Rich People Problems (Crazy Rich Asians #3)(43)

From the archways on the lower floor beneath where Astrid was standing, a dozen men in white came running out between the women to the far side of the courtyard. A Hindi pop song began blasting through the air, and the men and women danced opposite each other in a seductive face-off. They were soon joined by another dozen female dancers in vibrant blue-and-purple saris, streaming in from the north and south gates of the courtyard, as the music got louder and louder.

Suddenly the song stopped abruptly, and the window shutters on the opposite side of the courtyard flung open, revealing a man in a gold embroidered sherwani. He extended his arms toward Astrid, singing a cappella in Hindi. Then the music resumed as the dancers continued to stomp and twirl. Astrid burst out laughing, delighted at the Bollywood spectacle unfolding before her. Charlie must be behind all this! No wonder he's been acting weird ever since we got here, she thought. 

The man disappeared from the turret, only to appear moments later in the courtyard leading a band of musicians. The entire troupe danced to the beat of the music, moving in perfect formation. She looked down at the handsome lead singer outfitted in gold, realizing with a shock that it was none other than Shah Rukh Khan, one of India's biggest stars. Before she could even react properly, the sound of trumpets filled the air, followed by a strange roaring sound. Turning to the main archway into the courtyard, Astrid's eyes widened in surprise.

Coming through the gate was an elephant festooned with gemstones and vibrant pink-and-yellow patterns painted onto its head, being led by two mahouts dressed in the full regalia of the royal court of Jodhpur. On the elephant's back was an ornate silver howdah, and perched majestically on one of its seats, dressed in a midnight blue paisley sherwani with matching trousers and turban, was Charlie. Astrid's jaw dropped, and she ran out of the room onto the open veranda. "Charlie! What's all this?"

The elephant strode over to her veranda, and she was almost at eye level with Charlie as he sat on top of the elephant. The mahouts guided the elephant so that it stood alongside the balcony, and Charlie leapt off the howdah onto the terrace where Astrid stood.

"I wanted this to be a surprise. I haven't wanted to tell you until now, but Isabel signed our divorce papers last week."

Astrid let out a little gasp.

"Yes, I am a free man. Completely free! And I realized that in all the craziness of the past few years, we've just talked about getting married as though it was a done deal, but you know, I never properly proposed to you." Charlie suddenly got down on one knee and stared up at her. "Astrid, you are and have always been the love of my life-my angel, my savior. I don't know what I'd do without you. My dearest sweet love, will you marry me?"

Before she could answer, the elephant let out another roar, and then curled his trunk upward to grab something from Charlie's hand. The animal then extended its trunk toward Astrid, waving a red leather box in front of her face. Astrid took the box gingerly and opened it. Sparkling inside was a five-carat canary diamond solitaire, encircled in a delicate floral scrollwork of white gold. It was an unusual setting, unlike anything that a contemporary jeweler might design.

"Wait a minute … this … this looks like my grandmother's engagement ring!"

"It is your grandmother's engagement ring."

"But how?" Astrid asked, utterly confused.

"I flew down to Singapore last month and had a secret date with your grandmother. I know how important she is to you, so I wanted to be sure we had her blessing."

Astrid shook her head in disbelief as she stared at the precious heirloom ring, covering her mouth with her right hand as tears began streaming down her face.

"So how about it? Are you going to marry me?" Charlie looked at her plaintively.

"Yes! Yes! Oh my God, yes!" Astrid cried. Charlie got up and embraced her tightly, as the crowd of dancers and musicians cheered.

The two of them walked downstairs into the courtyard, and Shah Rukh Khan bounded toward them to be the first to offer his congratulations. "Were you surprised?" he asked.

"My goodness, I'm still in shock. I didn't think I could still be surprised at this point in my life, but Charlie really pulled it off!"



       
         
       
        

In the euphoria of the moment, no one noticed the series of bright flashes coming from the highest turret on the southern end of the fort. It came from the sunlight glinting off the telephoto lens of a Canon EOS 7D, the camera favored by paparazzi and private detectives.