The other three women exchanged glances. Maureen and Nandita dropped to the floor beside Sally with Maureen awkwardly patting her leg. How did you deal with a sobbing Sally? None of them knew.
Claire turned to the dress, stress surging up her windpipe. Had she made a mistake? Had she screwed up? She pulled it toward her on the hanger and glanced down at her best friend still sobbing on the floor.
“What do you mean, Sal? It looks fine. I took measurements before I started, but I’ve made tons of stuff for you. This is your size!”
Sally sat shaking her head, and then, to their surprise, she started laughing—loud, joyful laughter, fighting with the sobs that choked out between her giggles. Had she gone insane? Maureen jumped up and pulled the woman to her feet.
“Come on, Sal. Let’s go to the bathroom and get you some tissues. Plus, I think you should sit down.”
“No, you don’t get it. You guys don’t get it.” Sally stopped laughing and used the heels of her palms to wipe the tears from her face. “Gather round, gather round,” she said, echoing Claire’s words from earlier. Nandita got to her feet and they all stood around her, even though it was cramped in the dressing room. Sally grabbed the hem of her t-shirt and lifted it up, exposing her belly, “Ta-da!”
Nandita looked at Claire and Claire looked at Maureen. She'd gone insane. There was nothing there but her belly—her toned, flat, tanned belly.
Sally looked around in expectation. When she realized that she wasn’t about to get the reaction she was looking for, she rolled her eyes. “I’m pregnant, assholes!”
Maureen and Nandita squealed and jumped up and down, clapping again, while Claire burst into tears and threw herself on Sally. “So that’s why you’ve been such a bitch!” she said, laughing. “You had me scared. I thought you and Tod were getting a divorce!”
“So did I!” Sally laughed. “Hey, watch the baby,” she said as she pushed her best friend away from their embrace.
Claire laughed. “I think it's time for a toast!’
If there was one hour in her life that Claire would choose to live over again and again, like Groundhog Day, it would be the following hour spent with her friends in her boutique. They had toasted the baby (after Claire had poured Sally a glass of orange juice), toasted the wedding, and toasted their friendship before the girls tried on their dresses. Claire had been right: they were perfect. Even Sally’s fit like a glove. She may have been pregnant, but no one would know from looking at her. She knew that would change over the next six weeks, though, so she started planning for seam let-outs, which should work fine. If Sally packed on the pounds, she could always add extra panels.
A part of Claire had been worried upon hearing Sally’s announcement. She knew that her best friend wanted to have kids one day, but one day was happening right now. Sally had been so busy promoting and developing Tod’s business that Claire wondered if part of her would resent this early surprise. Those doubts, however, had been instantly swept away as she listened to Sally talk. She was in Heaven. She'd already cut back on Tod’s travel, as he was insisting he stay with her to experience every moment of the pregnancy. She talked happily about keeping the gallery smaller and more family-oriented. Claire was thrilled for her friend. This day could not have been any more perfect—and then Nandita spoke up.
31
Nandita – The Announcement
On the spur of the moment, Nandita decided to take advantage of everyone’s good mood. She would share her plan. Today was a day of celebration, and they would be thrilled for her. She clinked her nail against her glass and called out, “Gather round, gather round.”
There was another round of shared, slightly scared glances as they all stopped chattering and gave their attention to Nandita.
“I wanted to share some exciting news with you all.” She heard the nerves in her voice and cleared her throat, gathering her legendary determination to steel herself for their reactions. She shot a nervous look toward Sally, who gave her a distressed look and shook her head discreetly, but Nandita pushed forward. “I think I’ve met my future husband, and I think we might marry.”
It went so quiet in that room that Nandita could have sworn her ears popped, like she was on a plane that had just started its descent. The muted sounds of the traffic outside got strangely loud, and then Sally cleared her throat. Nandita waited for her to say something—to stick up for her—but nothing happened.
Claire opened her mouth, closed it, and then opened it again. “The stalker?” she squeaked. “You could’ve only had one date, though.”
Nandita shot her look of annoyance, “No, not the stalker,” she said, “and how did you know I’ve been on a date?”
“I didn’t,” Claire sputtered. “I just assumed.”
“Wait, you met the stalker?” Maureen asked. “What was he like?”
“He’s not a stalker!” Nandita snapped. “He wasn’t stalking me. He’s a very nice man, and his name is Hank.”
“Hank?” Claire asked. She looked confused. “He didn’t look like a Hank.”
“What do you mean he didn’t look like a Hank? How do you know what he looks like?” She looked over at Sally. Did she tell her? Sally’s eyes were huge, though, and she just kept shaking her head. Nandita was irritated. She was abandoning her now? This marriage had been her idea, after all.
“You’re marrying him?” Claire asked. “Oh God, oh God. Satish is going to flip the hell out.”
“I might. I haven’t decided yet, but it’s likely. Satish won’t flip out, Claire. As I said, he’s a very nice man.” She looked around the room at the fallen faces; the giggles and smiles from five minutes ago were nowhere to be found. “How about congratulations?! Why aren’t you guys happy for me?”
“You could have only just met him… like, only weeks ago,” Maureen said. “How could you be marrying him?” She turned to Sally, “She said, no men, right? She says it all the time. It's one of her rules?”
Sally just stared at Maureen in silence, and the attention shifted to her.
“Yeah, how about it, Sally?” Nandita said. “I say it all the time, right? What changed?” Sally had to be on her side, here—she was partially responsible. Why wasn’t she speaking up? Nandita turned to Maureen, “Things change, you know. I mean, you didn’t go to the Bahamas expecting to meet Stephen, and you moved in with him a week after you met him.” Maureen flushed.
“I think that’s a little different, Nan,” Claire said. “She had more life experience.”
“Who says I don’t have experience? You guys don’t know everything about me.” This wasn’t going as planned. She was feeling desperate. “Sally,” she turned to the still mute woman, “what do you think?”
Sally made a gruesome face and brought her hand to her mouth. Through her fingers, she muttered, “Sorry, morning sickness,” and ran from the room. No one followed—Claire and Maureen were too intent on Nandita.
“Maureen was a lot older than you are now. You’re so young to be getting married,” Claire said.
Nandita put her hands on her hips. “She’s only a few years older, and maybe I’m in love?”
“Are you in love with him?” Maureen asked, moving closer to Nandita and pulling one of her hands into her own. “I mean, you should be in love, like, crazy, head-over-heels in love.”
Ravi’s face popped up in front of her eyes, making her gasp. Claire squinted at her. She stuttered, “I might be… I don’t know, it’s early. Who knows what love is anyway? Maybe it’s over-rated? Forget I said anything. Let’s not talk about this now. This should be Sally’s big day.” They all turned to look for her, but she hadn’t returned.
“Maybe I should go check on her,” Claire said, but she didn’t move a muscle and just stared at Nandita.
“I’m sure she’s fine.” Nandita rolled her eyes. So much for friends who stood by you. The reaction of the room had shaken her, though. Was she doing the right thing? Didn’t they understand? She had no other choice.
&nbs
p; 32
Nandita – The Door
Nandita had driven back to her apartment in a funk. Now she was sitting on her couch, quietly waiting for the inevitable angry phone call from Satish. She felt stupid. It had been way too early for her to bring up the engagement, but the baby and champagne had gone straight to her head, and then Sally did that disappearing act. Maybe she was changing her mind. It seemed that Sally’s entire world view had shifted now that she was having a baby. Could she be getting cold feet about paying for Nandita’s green card marriage? She hoped not, because there was no way she could pay for it herself. She’d better speed things up, or Sally might change her mind completely.
A thought suddenly occurred to her and she gasped. If she had to go back to India, she would miss the birth of Sally’s baby! Everyone would celebrate without her; Claire and Maureen would be the ones babysitting, buying baby clothes, and going for sunny walks in the park. That thought combined with the dregs of the champagne made Nandita weepy. There was no way she was leaving!
She hadn’t yet given up on her job and had been sending out resumes daily. The count was way past five hundred at this point, and she’d not had a single bite. No contact, no rejections letters, and no interviews. Her resume was sitting on desks around New Jersey in the stacks with other recent graduates, but she might as well have written them in invisible ink. It was Hank or bust.
She hadn’t told Ravi yet. After her date with Hank a week ago, she had sworn to herself that she would tell Ravi she couldn’t be serious with him. She would cut out the casual dates and late night phone calls, and she would tell Ravi she couldn’t see him anymore. It hadn’t happened, though. In addition to the phone calls, she'd seen him a few more times: a quick trip to the movies and lunch twice. She’d kept her distance physically, at least, and Ravi, being the gentleman he was, hadn’t questioned it. Maybe he thought he’d come on too quickly and was giving her space. If only he knew the torture he was putting her through with every minute in his presence.
She longed to touch him and craved his skin, but she couldn’t allow herself to go there—not without telling him her plan. There were a few times she almost broke down and confessed. When she was in his company, she was so comfortable and relaxed that it seemed as though she could tell him anything and he would understand. Maybe they could even be friends. She laughed at herself. Who was she kidding? They couldn’t be friends. If she told him about Hank, she’d break his heart. She shouldn’t even be seeing him right now, but she couldn’t help herself. He was an addiction, alright.
She stood up to put the kettle on—she would need a cup of tea within easy reach when that phone rang and Satish started yelling. As she crossed into her tiny kitchen, the doorbell made her jump. My God, Satish is here! Well, that was fast. Claire must have gone straight home and told him, and he must've climbed into his car and been on her tail for the entire drive to Princeton. Nandita put the empty kettle back on the stove; the tea would have to wait. She swallowed a lump of anxiety creeping up her throat, tucked her hair behind her ears, and prepared to face her brother’s wrath.
She had all of her talking points straight in her head. I am in love with Hank (lie), we’ve known each other for quite some time (lie), he is in love with me (lie). Nope, she would never get through this. What would she do if Satish put his foot down? Well, he had put his foot down before, and she had stood up to him. He had wanted her to apply to Harvard, not Princeton, so he could use the influence of his legacy, but she’d applied to Princeton instead. How had that worked out? She couldn’t listen to him this time, though; she had to follow her plan. She would marry Hank. Nandita took another deep breath and ran down her staircase to the front door, prepared for battle.
It was Ravi. He stood on her doorstep with his face hidden by a ginormous bouquet of white roses. She couldn’t help but laugh as he peeked around the edge. The size of the bouquet was ridiculous.
“Hey.” Her fluttering stomach told her time was running short. Her reaction to Ravi’s immediate presence was incredibly dangerous.
“Hey, you,” Ravi replied, and she was relieved she couldn’t hear the sexy smile in his voice. “So, I asked for a small bouquet of white roses, being conscious of the space in your studio, and I picked up these. What do you think?”
She laughed again, this time more from anxiety than humor. “I think I will have to spread them out in lots of different vases, and some may even have to go on the floor, but they are beautiful. Thank you, Ravi.”
He stuck his face out from behind the flowers again and smiled at her sweetly. “Do you have plans tonight? Maybe we could spend the evening together and order in some dinner?”
Say no, Nandita. Say no! Make up some excuse. You need to practice your lying before you talk to Satish. Say no!
“I’d love that Ravi. Come on in.”
Where was her self-control? It was her pride and joy. When others in college had tried to get her to move into the dorms—something she was desperate to do—she’d resisted and stayed at Satish’s to avoid the temptations of dorm life. When the cute boys of Rutgers had asked her to dinner, parties, and on a winter skiing trip to Vail, she'd refused. Self-control was her specialty, but with Ravi, it was all gone. She stood in front of him in the tiny space between her stairs and her door, and it was as though a drain had opened at her feet and all her self-control poured down it. She watched it go.
I’m only letting him in so I can do what I said I was going to do. I am only letting him in so I can break this thing off and explain why it won’t work. He must have known this, already. He knew about the expiring visa, and during their first meeting, he had told her she should go back to India, hadn’t he? Well, she would tell him she was and that there was no way this relationship could go any further, because long distance just didn’t work. Lying would be kinder than telling him the truth.
Ravi lay the huge bouquet on to the kitchen counter. Nandita hunted through the kitchen for anything that could act as a vase, filling everything she found with water and placing it next to him. There were two vases, three jam jars, and two tall rocks glasses. Ravi patiently separated and cut the flowers to the perfect length for each “vase” before arranging each bouquet with care. They worked well together, dividing their duties quietly and naturally.
Nandita found every masterpiece a home somewhere in the tiny studio, and when all the flowers were distributed, she stood in the center of her living room and smiled. It was like living in a green house. Ravi watched her as she walked around and inhaled the scent from each bouquet. He didn’t take his eyes from her enjoyment, even as he gathered the cut stems and wiped down the counter.
“Who needs incense?” he said. The smell of roses dominated the room.
“Thank you, Ravi. They are beautiful.”
She stayed in the living room, trying to keep her distance, which was difficult in her apartment when he was never more than eight feet away. She caught her breath when he wrapped his arms around her waist and squeezed. Her body responded immediately, the traitor, and as he dipped his lips to hers, her arms stretched up to wrap around his neck. She managed to restrain her fingers from plunging into his dark curls—score one for self-control.
They kissed passionately, his lips soft yet demanding as he drew her closer. For a guy who had never kissed a girl before he met her, he had gotten damn good at it. She knew he was waiting—most of the time not so patiently—for her to give him permission to go further, but her self-control had won out so far, although not easily. Unfortunately, it had lost the battle of kissing back.
“You smell even better than these roses,” he whispered into her hair.
“Aren’t you hungry?” she asked, trying to gather herself together before this kissing thing got out of hand.
He pulled back with a look of terror on his face. “I’m so selfish! Of course, you’re hungry. I’m sorry, we should have ordered before we fixed the flowers.”
She laughed at his earnest concern. “It’s okay, we ca
n order now. Do you want a pizza?”
“Pizza sounds great, thanks.” He moved to the couch and sat; she felt his eyes on her as she grabbed the takeout flyer from a kitchen drawer and dialed the local pizza delivery shop. When she finished ordering, he patted the couch next to his seat and she sat next to him. He curled his arm around her and pulled her closer, planting another soft kiss on the top of her head. “I’ve missed you,” he said.
“Missed me?” A thrill of pleasure coursed through her, followed quickly by a pang of anxiety. “We had lunch together yesterday and spent most of last night on the phone. I’ve only been in Hoboken for a few hours.”
“Yes, but I missed you,” he repeated. “I sometimes even miss you before I leave.” He tilted her head up to his and kissed her again. Her body betrayed her, and she found herself lying back on the couch. He stood for a moment, never breaking the kiss, and then stretched out on top of her with his weight on his elbows. She stretched her arms around his back and pulled him onto her, feeling his weight and wanting more of it. She had to stop, though—this was no good. She had to stop.
Her cell phone rang, loud and jarring, from her jeans pocket.
Ravi jumped up, as though he had suddenly discovered it was electrified, and she almost laughed. She sat up and grabbed his arm, pulling him back down to sit next to her, as she pulled out her phone, intending to ignore the call and continue with the issue at hand. By mistake, she glanced at the screen: Satish.
She must have been out of her mind over the last few minutes, but instantly she was right back in it, and it was pissed. I warned you, it screamed at her. I said self-control! Now Satish was calling to yell at her about getting engaged while she was making out with someone other than her fiancée—someone who she clearly had strong feelings for, whose heart she would probably break, and who seemed to have hijacked her self-control and probably her heart, when she wasn’t looking. Her plans were falling apart all around her.
Uncharted (Jersey Girls Book 3) Page 14