Arranged by the Stars
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Authors: Kamy Chetty
Tags: #contemporary romance, #medical drama, #sexy alpha
Arranged By The
Stars
By
Kamy
Chetty
Cover Design by: T’heniel
Chetty
Edited by: Nas
Dean
Copyright © 2014 by Kamy
Chetty
Smashwords
Edition
All rights reserved. By
payment of the required fees, you have been granted the
non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text
of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced,
transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored
in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system,
in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now
known or hereinafter invented, without the express written
permission of author, Kamy Chetty.
This is a work of fiction.
Names, characters, corporations, institutions, organizations,
events or locales in this novel are either the product of the
author’s imagination or, if real, used fictitiously. The
resemblance of any character to actual persons (living or dead) is
entirely coincidental.
Kindle Edition
:
ISBN
978-0-473-29402-1
EPUB:
ISBN 978-0-473-29401-4
PDF:
ISBN
978-0-473-29403-8
iBook:
ISBN 978-0-473-29404-5
Soft
Cover:
ISBN
978-0-473-29400-7
Table Of Contents
Discover More Books
by Kamy Chetty
Arranged By
The Stars
Kamy
Chetty
Do the stars really
determine our destiny?
Scandalised ex-beauty
queen, Ashwariya Kapoor will marry by arrangement. It’s a matter of
honour and duty. The families have decided. Now the wait is for
alignment of the stars and the wedding can proceed. But is it meant
to be?
Billionaire Doctor Kieran
Kanna doesn’t fix people. He works with software. So when his
father takes ill, he faces his greatest fear. Working with people.
Add to that, his not-so-bright idea of having a fake fiancé—Ash—to
face the woman he walked out on … it’s bound to be a Bollywood
drama.
The undeniable heat
between Ash and Kieran goes beyond the cosmos. So is it possible
for the stars to be wrong? Or can the stars change if the right
person comes into your life?
There hasn’t been a time in her life that Kamy
hasn’t been writing or dreaming up some magical story. As an avid
reader, it wasn’t long before she realised the characters living in
her head were not normal and not everyone wrote and directed
imaginary plays during boring history classes.
Originally from South Africa, Kamy now lives in Auckland, New
Zealand with her family. Her two teenagers make her proud every day
and keep her grounded, the two dogs keep her sane when nothing
makes sense. She loves to hear from her fans so please do write to
her.
She can be found at:
Ackno
w
ledgements
In everything we do in
life, we don’t always succeed. We sometimes get things wrong and
sometimes we make mistakes. The important thing is to own those
mistakes and do better next time. So I want to acknowledge all the
people who have helped make this book possible. To the writers I
have read and have empowered me with the knowledge that has helped
me continue writing. To the editors who have rejected manuscripts
and told me why the book didn’t work. You showed me a way to fix
it.
To the many readers who
have liked my work and have encouraged me to keep writing, I write
for you.
For Shalene Nandlall, my
first fan and my best fan. This one is for you.
To my editor Nas Dean, who
continues to bring out the best in my writing, and keeps me on
track. Nas—you are amazing in every way, I can never thank you
enough.
This one is
for you Dad.
The man who
loved me unconditionally and has always believed I was capable of
more than I ever imagined. Love you always.
Kieran Kanna snapped the
blue velvet box closed, as the waitress peered over his shoulder
for the fourteenth time. Cupping the back of his neck he massaged
the thick cord of bulging muscle. He could name ten places he would
rather be. This was not one of them.
The waitress brushed back
her thick black hair as she settled her curious green gaze on him.
She tapped the notebook with the pen she held in an impatient
rhythm. “Are you ready to place your order now, Dr Kanna?” Her hand
moved and before he could stop her, she fingered the box he’d left
on the table. “I could come back if you’re waiting for
someone.”
He couldn’t tell if she
was sympathetic or curious. Like she’d pushed a button below his
skull, the area between his shoulder blades tightened. The last
four days of avoidance were at an end. Luxury hotels in Goa with
ex-beauty queens to wait on you, was a good place to hide, but life
always caught up with you in the end.
“My usual please.” Her
lips lifted in a bemused smile and he had to wonder why an ex Miss
India would be waiting tables at a posh hotel.
“Can I get you anything
else, sir?” she asked.
Was it five years ago or
six? Something about a crooked judge. He’d been living in London
for so long that Indian news didn’t usually matter, but that time
it did. When she prompted him, he lifted his chin. “No. You look
familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?”
She filled his water
glass and a drop spilled. She ignored it, not her usual behaviour.
On a scale of one to ten, she rated a twelve as a meticulous
waitress.
“
Sorry Dr
Kanna, but that is one of the oldest pick up lines in the book. I
will get your order and maybe you should work on the proposal,” her
gaze went to the blue box.
Kieran placed his hand
over the box and squeezed tight. If only she knew the story behind
this box. He grunted acknowledging the overstepped
boundary.
The hotel restaurant was
cool and air-conditioned, which was a requisite for the humid
weather in Goa. He tugged at the tie he wore and swore softly. He
should have changed into something more comfortable. His phone
buzzed and he curled his fingers to hide the slight tremor as he
answered.
The only words he heard
were: Kieran. Your father. Hospital.
Words he had been
expecting for six months, but preparation in this instance was not
necessarily a good thing. Without thinking he took his jacket from
the back of the chair, and rushed out of the restaurant. Guilt
burrowed into his insides. He should have known something was
wrong. His first stop should have been his parents’ home. What he
shouldn’t have been doing was hiding out like a coward, gathering
courage to face his old life again.
He barely remembered the
ride to the hospital. There were so many things he could have done
better. Like he could have been home more. Helped his father more.
Been more of a son and less of a failure. Maybe if he’d came home
earlier, three weeks ago when his father had asked him
to.
He rushed into the
hospital and went straight into the intensive care unit. He knew to
expect the worse. He was a doctor but it was always different when
it was one of your own and that never changed.
Kieran stood at the door
and watched his mother as she sat by his father’s side. She looked
tired. Different, and a lot older. His hands curled into tight
fists at his side. Was he to be blamed for this?
He knew what
to expect. His father was in a serious but stable condition. Doctor
speak for,
we don’t know how this will
play out but we’re hoping for the best
.
“
Kieran,
beta, you’re here,” Julie Kanna noticed her son and her eyes filled
with tears as her arms reached out for him. “Your Papa will be so
pleased.”
“
Ma.” His
throat choked up and he couldn’t say anything more.
He’d been avoiding his
parents for so long that all the hurt inside was too fresh and he
was scared it would break him. He held onto her until she pulled
away from him to kiss his cheeks.
“
It’s okay,
you’re here now. How was your trip?” she wiped her eyes with the
end of her sari.
Unable to lie to her, he
took hold of his father’s hands and kissed them. How could he tell
his parents he’d been here for a few days and couldn’t face them?
“What happened, I thought he was doing better?”
It had been at least a
year since he’d seen his parents, but his father looked different,
smaller as he lay there in that hospital bed. Anil Kanna was never
a man who could be considered small by anyone’s
standards.
“
A few weeks
ago he had a mild heart attack and the doctor told him to take it
easy.”
The muscles in his neck
tightened and squeezed painfully. A few weeks ago he was opening
another branch of his business in Brussels. “Mild heart attack? You
didn’t tell me.”
“
You were
away and your father hates interrupting your work. He was going to
tell you in person when you came for the meeting.” The brave face
she tried to put on wasn’t fooling him.
His father’s tired figure
lay on the bed. He was a little too still, causing him to move
closer so he could make sure he was breathing. He turned to his
mother, looking for the tell-tale sign that would tell him there
was more to this than she told him. In his gut he knew his father
wasn’t resting. “How long has he been unconscious?”
The smell of hospital was
strong and made him realise how long it had been since he’d been in
a clinical setting. He wasn’t used to this queasy feeling in the
pit of his stomach. “You should have called me.” His father’s hand
was cool when he touched it.
His mother rubbed his
shoulder. “You’re here now. That’s what’s important. Your father
will be so pleased that you’re here to take care of the
clinic.”
Kieran’s fists clenched
until his nails scraped his palms. That’s exactly what he didn’t
want to do. His eyes closed briefly as he thought of a solution.
This shouldn’t have happened to his father. He should have been
closer, known what was going on with his family. How was he going
to tell them he wasn’t the best choice to run the
clinic?
“
He should’ve
called when he had the heart attack. I could’ve arranged for a
doctor to relieve.” He sat beside the older man. Growing up his
father had been so larger than life, now he looked like a shadow of
his former self. What had happened since he’d last seen
him?
“
He knows how
important your business is. Your father would hate to take you away
from your work. For a while, he had Latha to help him out.” She
held his hand in hers.