“It doesn’t change the fact that you’re following me!”
She was close enough to him to hear his little grunt of frustration as he ran his hand through his thick, black curls. He looked down at her, but the anger in his eyes had faded. He just looked tired. “I’m not following you, okay? I live here, right on this street.”
“Ha,” she said, “good excuse. I bet you practiced that one.” She was taking out her frustration on Ravi, but he was right: she had already been late and wasn’t paying attention. Despite Sally’s warnings, she could tell he wasn’t dangerous. Maybe he did live in the area. Hadn’t he told her he lived in Princeton?
The dog at his feet started to whine again. “I have to get her home and get some ice on that paw.” He crouched and ruffled the dog’s fur with a gentle hand. Sandy lifted her head from her sore paw and licked him gently on the cheek. “Come on, baby,” he whispered as he lifted the huge dog into his arms. “I’m going home to look after my injured dog. If you’d like to come with me and use my blow dryer on that skirt, you’re welcome to follow me. Maybe you could still make it to your appointment.”
“Ah ha!” Although her anger and frustration were fading as she watched him interact with his big galoot of a dog, she threw a challenging finger in his face. “How did you know I had an appointment?”
Ravi hitched the dog up in his arms, careful not to jiggle her hurt paw too much. The dog whined and licked his face again. “Because you just told me. I’m sorry, but I have to go. If you’d like to come, I’m headed this way.” He nodded toward the street and took off.
“Like I’m going to trust a stalker!” Nandita called after him. His shoulders lifted with a shrug.
She watched him leave, feeling a little lost, and then bent to retrieve her purse and folder full of resumes and glowing letters of recommendation, now sopping wet with dirty rainwater. This was a residential street with no office in sight, but when she peered in the direction Ravi was walking, she could see some office buildings on the next street down. Should she go to the interview like this and make her apologies? Could she show up to an interview half an hour late with a wet skirt and red, scratched knees? Sally would do it, Nandita thought as she squared her shoulders and prepared to call forth her inner Sally. She stopped, then. Sally might do it, but Nandita wouldn’t. She needed everything to be perfect, or she wouldn’t do it all.
She trailed after Ravi, keeping him in sight, curious to see if he had told the truth. Did he live here? It should have probably creeped her out that she knew for sure he had been stalking her, but it didn't. She just wanted to know why. Maybe if she followed him, turning the tables, she could find out. You are nuts, Nandita, said a voice in her head. You don’t go walking into the lion’s den. Do you want to end up locked in his basement? He didn’t strike her as the basement-locking type, though.
He looked more like one of the men from the movie star posters she and Jaya had gleefully taped up on every spare inch of wall in her childhood best friend’s bedroom. Nandita hadn’t been allowed to have such juvenile distractions as posters in her room, but she had kept one at the far back of her bottom drawer, where her mother wouldn’t find it and tell her father. Ravi belonged on one of those posters. She'd put him up on her wall.
At the end of the block, he pivoted and made his way up a set of wooden steps, paint slightly chipped and fading, but obviously belonging to an expensive Princeton Victorian. He stopped on the deep, shady front porch where an oversized dog bed sat next to one of the patio chairs placed on either side of the two front doors of the house. Ravi carried Sandy to the dog bed and lay her down gently.
Nandita was close enough to hear him as he chattered away to the injured dog. “I’m not sure I could make it with you up the stairs, buddy, so why don’t you just lie here while I get you some ice? That paw will be sore for a while, but don’t worry—we’ll fix it.” He ruffled the hair on the dog’s head again, and the screen door creaked as he opened it. He pressed his shoulder on the inner door to push it open and disappeared inside.
Nandita wandered a bit closer to the porch and watched the dog as she cried quietly and continued to lick her paw. She felt ashamed of herself; she had injured this poor dog and hadn’t even asked if she was okay. When she realized it was Ravi she had bumped into, all she could think about was his stalking and her missed interview, plus a few delicious flashbacks of her handshake dream. What kind of person didn’t apologize for severely injuring a dog? Ravi had even been kind enough to ask her if she wanted to come over, and in reply, she'd given him some nasty retort.
The screen door creaked again and Ravi emerged with a bag of ice in one hand and a glass of water in the other. He was trailed by a gorgeous blonde dressed to kill, wearing a black power suit with a pencil skirt and tailored jacket over a white blouse. She had twisted her hair into an elegant bun, which highlighted a meticulously made-up face. She, too, carried a glass of water, which she set on the porch railing before wiping the condensation off on her skirt. Nandita felt the blonde’s eyes flick over her as she glanced in her direction.
She felt like a troll next to this perfect woman. It figured that a guy like Ravi would have a girl like that. No surprise, there. She glanced down at her swollen knees and her wet skirt, recalled her coffee-stained blouse from that morning, and swore she would try to do better with fashion. She would talk to Claire.
She was watching “perfect woman” click away on her heels when Ravi’s voice brought her attention back to the porch where he was holding a glass toward her. “I brought you down a glass of water. I can’t very well murder you on the porch on a busy street of Princeton, can I? I’ll be out here for a while, icing Sandy’s paw.”
Of course she would have a glass of water with him. If he wasn’t dating Miss Universe, she might even have babies with him.
She walked up the peeling steps, accepted the glass, and crouched down to stroke Sandy’s big head. “I’m so sorry about your dog,” Nandita said. “I should have said that earlier.”
He smiled at her and shrugged. “That’s okay, you had an interview. That’s a scary thing to miss.”
This day was crazy land. She should have been so angry about missing her interview, but suddenly, on this shady porch with this adorable, shaggy dog and the equally shaggy man, she felt calm. Was that contentment? She couldn’t remember the last time she had felt content. Deep down, though, something was bothering her. Who was this Ravi guy? Why had he been following her? She looked over at his black eyes and decided that, right now, she didn’t care. Right now, she was going to enjoy a glass of water in the shade.
17
Ravi – The Beginning
Ravi watched Nandita’s full lips close on the rim of the glass of water. It was dripping with condensation and almost slipped through her hand, but she put her other hand underneath to steady it. When she caught him watching, she flushed under his gaze. He smiled to break the tension, not wanting to scare her off. He still felt a mild undercurrent of anger, but it was hard to hold onto it in her presence. She was stunning.
So now he'd moved to phase two of his assignment: talking to her in person. Now what? He wasn’t sure what he should say to her now that she was standing on his front porch, but he wanted her to stick around. He sat on the top step, within easy reach of the dog bed, and gently formed the bag of ice around Sandy’s paw. She licked him again, and he smiled at her.
“Good girl, Sandy,” he said.
“You told me you aren’t a vet, but maybe you should be. It looks like you have a talent for handling animals.”
He felt a sharp pain in his chest at her compliment, his body reminding him of what a traitor he was to his dreams. “Yes, well,” he turned and stared out at the street, “my parents didn’t raise me to treat animals. They raised me to become a doctor, so I’m off to medical school in Pennsylvania in September.”
“With your girlfriend?” Nandita sat on the top step gingerly, ensuring he wasn't within touching distance, and shifte
d her damp skirt underneath her. He looked at her in confusion. “The blonde?” she prompted, waving down the street in the direction Tammy had disappeared.
He laughed; Sandy lifted her head from her paw and licked his arm. “Tammy? She’s not my girlfriend. She’s my roommate.”
“Hmm,” Nandita said.
“What?” He turned to her. “What does ‘hmm’ mean?”
She gave him a wide grin. “Nothing,” she said. “Just two beautiful people living together as platonic roommates, huh?”
He squinted at her. Did she just call him beautiful? “Actually, yes. We’ve been roommates for four years, since our freshman year at Princeton.” Her smile vanished, and she shifted again, lifting one thigh from the step and pulling more of the skirt fabric from beneath her. He shouldn’t have mentioned Princeton.
“So, why are you following me?”
He knew it would come up again. How could he expect a gorgeous, intelligent woman to ignore the elephant in the room? He wanted her to ignore it, though. He wanted to ignore it, too. He wanted to forget everything about her—everything he knew or thought he knew—and just enjoy her company. His anger flared from being put in this situation.
“I’ve told you a few times: I’m not following you. It does seem like fate that we keep ending up together, though.” The line felt a little cheesy as he was saying it, but he wasn’t very fast on his feet. She was distracting him.
“Fate?” she asked. “Why would fate want to throw us together?”
“Who knows, but who are we to challenge fate? Tell me about yourself. Do you go to Princeton?” It was a low blow for sure, but he had to figure out some topic of conversation if he wanted to find out what he had promised.
“No, I don’t,” she said. “Is it wonderful?”
“Princeton? Yeah, I guess. I mean, it’s a good school, of course, but I probably wouldn’t have chosen it for myself.”
“Why did you choose it?” She scooted a little closer on the steps so she could reach Sandy’s ear for a scratch. The dog rewarded her with a gentle lick, and she smiled.
“I didn’t.” He watched her smile grow wider as Sandy flopped onto her back for a belly rub. That dog had no shame. “My parents chose it.”
Nandita gave a rueful little chuckle, “Yes, they tend to do that, don’t they? They think they know what’s best for you and then force you into it.”
Ravi frowned. “Your parents did that to you?”
“They would have, if they could, but I wouldn’t allow it. That’s why I’m here—in the US, I mean. I kind of ran away.”
Ravi was silent for a minute as he considered how to phrase his next question. He was torn between taking the chance of making her angry and doing the job he’d been sent to do. “Shouldn’t you respect your parents—give back to them for everything they’ve done for you? I guess that’s what I’m trying to do. Why would you run away?”
Nandita stopped petting Sandy and looked carefully at him. “Are you seriously asking me that, or are you just trying to justify your own choices?” She started petting Sandy with a bit more force. “I didn’t disrespect my parents. They showed a lack of respect for me by ignoring everything I asked for, so I showed them the same amount of respect in return. I came very close to living a life of lies, but I avoided that by making scary choices and taking big risks. Why aren’t you going to vet school?”
He started a little at the change of subject. She'd decoded him so quickly. “Because my parents want me to be a doctor. It’s their dream, and they've sacrificed a lot to give me this opportunity.”
“What’s your dream, though, Ravi?”
How was he losing control of this situation? He was the one who was supposed to ask the questions. A part of him wanted to let it all out and tell her exactly how he felt about what was happening in his life. She would listen, and he knew she would understand because she’d had the same struggles. Nandita was overcoming hers, though, taking her life into her hands and making amazing things happen. Yes, she was beautiful, but she was a hell of a lot more than that. They would make a great team. He shook these thoughts from his head and remembered why he was here.
He went in for the kill. “Will you go back to India?”
She frowned at him and flushed a vivid crimson. “You’re changing the subject, and no, I won’t go back to India. Why would you ask that?”
“It’s just something I’ve thought of,” he said, pushing the issue to gauge her reaction. “I grew up here in the States, so I never had the chance to live there. I just thought maybe, since you had been away so long, you might want to go back. Do you?”
“How do you know how long I’ve been away?”
Damn, she was bright. “I don’t,” he said, thinking fast, “but you just don’t seem like the girls I’ve met in India, that’s all. I just figured you might have been here a while.” They sat quietly for a few minutes. What was she thinking? Had he been too hasty with his questions? Had he screwed up?
Sandy gave a big yawn and stood in downward dog, lifting her left paw off the ground and looking slightly wobbly on only her right.
Nandita gave Sandy one last scratch and got up from the steps, picking her wet skirt away from the backs of her thighs. “Thanks for the water. Again, I’m sorry about Sandy. She seems like a sweet dog, and I didn’t mean to hurt her. I have to go.”
Ravi stood quickly, racking his brain for how to salvage the situation. He didn’t want her to leave—and not because he had a job to do, but because the thought of her not sitting on these porch steps with him, drinking water and petting his dog, made him very sad. “Coffee?”
She stopped and turned back. “Sorry?”
“Coffee. Would you like to get a coffee some time? You know, since fate seems to want us to spend time together. I promise we could have it in a neutral location where you couldn’t get murdered.”
She looked at him, a guarded and slightly wary smile on her face. “Okay,” she said. “Coffee. Your treat.” She reached out her hand for his iPhone to plug in her number.
18
Claire – The Gang
Claire measured Satish's mood. He had been extremely stressed this past week over the Nandita situation, and she was hoping this dinner with his friends would give him some relief from the anxiety. She had been telling the gang about Nandita’s stalker, and Sally had made some rude comment, which made Satish laugh. He looked so relaxed that she reached over and squeezed his leg, happy he was enjoying himself. He turned his warm smile on her and stretched the back of his arm along the couch to rub the back of her neck, pulling her tightly to his side.
“So, did you see what he looked like?” Stephen asked.
“Yes! I saw him twice. He’s a hunky guy.”
Maureen laughed, “That poor girl has such a laser focus that she would push aside Brad Pitt if he kissed her right on the mouth. Is she really using the word ‘stalker?’”
“Yep!” Claire said. “She informed me he’s creeping her out. He looked like your average love-struck man, if you ask me.” Claire looked over at Satish, “I mean, he certainly wasn’t as stunningly handsome as the men in this room, but he was a mega catch.”
“How did her interview go?” Sally asked. Claire was surprised she didn’t already know, but she’d been in bed the last two days with the stomach flu. Still, it was unusual for her best friend to not be on top of juicy gossip.
“She missed it,” Satish said, laughing.
“Wipe that smile off of your face, Mister.” Claire squeezed his leg again. He found it entertaining that the only time Nandita had ever screwed up had been in his favor. He didn’t think a job was a good idea. “She was devastated. She tripped on the way there and ruined her skirt, or something. It’s all a bit vague. She’s trying to reschedule.”
Tod moved around the room, topping up everyone’s drinks. He had made his signature Tod Sangria, but Claire had noticed he wasn’t drinking any, himself, and seemed unusually quiet.
“I’m head
ed out to the terrace for a breath of fresh air,” he said. He shot a glance in Sally’s direction, but she was pointedly ignoring him. Claire elbowed Satish in the ribs.
“I’ll come.” Satish stood, smoothing his gray, linen trousers.
“Me too,” said Stephen, and they headed toward the stairs.
Claire looked over at Maureen, who shrugged at her in confusion. Sally was still standing, looking out the front windows toward the street, as though she were watching something fascinating, even though it was pitch black out. The floor-to-ceiling windows only reflected her pensive, slightly irritated look.
“So, what’s going on?” Claire asked. To her surprise, Sally, who never cried, started to cry. She was always the happy one—the optimist—and the one to drag everyone else along when they were feeling down. Claire quickly moved to her and grabbed her hand. Maureen was not far behind.
“Tod and I had another fight, right before you guys got here. God, and I’ve been such a bitch.”
Claire pulled Sally to the floor to sit between her and Maureen. They both stretched their arms around her. A protected cocoon of sisterhood. “What are you fighting about, Sally, and how are you a bitch?”
“I’m yelling, like, all the time, about everything. He isn’t home that often, and when he is, I’m whining all the time. Everything he does irritates me and I don’t know why, and I’m so stressed about us that I’m crying all the time like an idiot. He hates the travel and I hate that he hates the travel, because it’s working. I made some huge sales this week on some of his most expensive pieces. He doesn’t even care about that! I don’t know… I feel like we're just falling apart.” Claire rubbed Sally’s arm and moved her drink out of her way. Tod’s Sangria was pretty strong, and if Sally was feeling maudlin, a drink like that would pull her under the tide of her emotions.
“You’re just having a disagreement. You’ll work it out. Maybe you need to start talking about a compromise,” Claire said.
Uncharted (Jersey Girls Book 3) Page 8