“You know I didn’t mean what I said that night,” he confessed, and his voice had taken on a softer tone. “I was drunk. You could’ve given me a second chance. I actually begged you. More than once. I would’ve made it up to you.”
“How? More sex?” she retorted, adjusting so she had a better stance on the uneven concrete. “That’s all I was good for in your eyes. That’s the only thing you wanted.”
“I was young.” He repositioned the gun, then lowered to pick up Leena, who struggled against him.
“You’re only upset about me being with Devesh because you missed out on everything else I brought to the table.” She paused when Leena reached for her. “Put her down. She’s cold and hungry.”
“I tried to feed her,” he defended. “She wouldn’t eat. Stubborn little thing.”
“Put me down,” Leena said, squirming in Shawn’s arms.
“Be still, Leena,” Reign said, fearing that any sudden movements would make his gun discharge. She complied, but her frown said she was not happy.
“Feisty, just like your mother.” He flickered a gaze over Leena’s face before putting his focus on Reign again. “Walk this way, and I’ll release her.”
“Easy, Reign,” Devesh said, keeping a steady focus on Shawn. “Make sure he keeps his word.”
“Make sure he keeps his word,” Shawn taunted in a whiny voice.
“You sound like a little girl,” Devesh shot back, ignoring Reign’s warning look.
Leena’s head snapped to her father as she frowned in a way that meant, that’s an insult to little girls everywhere.
Shawn grinned, then proceeded in telling Devesh in the crassest way possible, exactly what he didn’t do like a little kid, and how all of it would be done to his wife.
Leena covered her ears and scowled at Shawn. When she lowered her hands and balled them into fists, Reign could swear that her daughter was about to punch Shawn in the face. “That’s nasty,” Leena admonished. “I shouldn’t hear that. Be a grownup.”
Shawn’s eyes widened with shock as he looked at Leena and she glared right back.
“No class then,” Reign said sourly, totally agreeing with her baby girl. “And none now. No matter how many degrees you have. Leena …”
Leena’s eyes snapped to Reign, who said, “Be still for now, baby girl.”
She grimaced and unclenched her fists, but the look in her eyes said forget whatever program the adults were on, she was ready to take him down by herself.
“All I wanted was your forgiveness,” Shawn said.
“She forgave you a long time ago,” Devesh countered. “You just believed that forgiving meant forgetting what you did, allowing you to pick up where you left off. There’s no coming back after what you said to her. There’s no kind of trust you can build after that. Sorry stud, get over yourself.”
The glint of something flashed in her peripheral vision. Devesh had slide to one side, slowly removed a weapon—Pranav’s gun—waiting for an opportune time to put it to use.
If only Shawn would put Leena down, Devesh could even the score. Permanently.
“You don’t want me,” Reign said to Shawn, realizing she needed to keep him engaged and distracted. “You want to win at something, since you’ve deliberately destroyed your own life. I’m just convenient. You don’t have any respect for me. Never did.”
“Yes, I did,” he whispered, trying to steady Leena in his arms.
“Did you ever take me out to dinner?” she asked. “A movie? For a walk in the park? To the beach?” she roared. “For a whole year, you were afraid to be seen in public with me.”
“That’s not true,” he countered, but his voice was weak.
“You don’t respect any woman. Not even your wife.” Reign pointed a finger at him. “You went on national television practically proclaiming that you still have a thing for me.”
“I love you, Reign,” he said softly. “I just wanted a second chance.”
“But doing that told your wife that she wasn’t enough,” she said, in the most soothing tone she could manage. “That she was so lacking, you wanted to reach back into your past to get with the woman who clearly hadn’t given you any indication that she wanted anything to do with you. She took vows with you, and you threw her away.”
“I didn’t want her,” he yelled, and his voice echoed off the shipping containers. “I never wanted her. She was a substitute.”
Devesh sighed and shook his head. Something that infuriated Shawn who growled, “Get over here.”
She took a few steps forward, saying, “Release my daughter now.”
Leena’s expression turned serious as she studied Shawn’s stance as though measuring him up for some reason.
“Leena, go to Papa,” Reign instructed, moving just within Shawn’s reach.
Shawn gingerly placed Leena on the ground. He put a grip on Reign’s arms.
Four things happened simultaneously.
Devesh raised his gun.
Leena doubled back, sending a roundhouse kick to Shawn’s genitals causing him to double over in pain.
Shawn’s gun went off.
Leena fell to the ground.
Chapter 46
The police were gathered around the entrance of the shipyard. Officers Mitchell and Gill were questioning Reign and Devesh for the third time but were interrupted when a pencil-thin detective came up and said, “We found the body of Amy Seran at the mouth of the yard that led away from the more developed areas. She was shot in the chest and temple, and died instantly.”
“What did she have to do with him?” Reign asked, noticing that Devesh was trying to school his features into a mask of indifference, though she could tell he was affected by the news of his ex-girlfriend’s murder. “Shawn was never into White girls.”
“While that may be the case,” Officer Mitchell said. “Evidently, from the records we pulled, they’ve been corresponding for a while now.” He flipped a few pages of his notepad. “First contact was on Facebook Messenger after he posted an article about Reign and Devesh. Seems like she wanted you totally out of the picture, but Newsome had other plans.”
“I guess she went in for that old saying, ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend,’” Officer Gill said.
“I can’t believe we were both attracted to crazy,” Reign said, causing Devesh to nudge her into silence.
“So,” Officer Mitchell said, turning the conversation back to getting his questions answered. “Let me get this straight,” he said, scratching his temple, as the paramedics wheeled a moaning Shawn to the waiting ambulance. “The little girl took him down?”
“Yes,” Reign and Devesh said in unison, then glanced at each other.
The officer shook his head and looked at his partner, who shrugged but peered at Leena as she lifted her chin, staring back at him as though daring him to say something out of order.
“My daughter took martial arts in Chicago to learn how to protect herself,” Reign explained, with a side-eye at Devesh.
“And she’ll be starting new classes next week,” Devesh offered, nodding as if that was now the end of the debate they’d had for nearly six months.
“Leena was supposed to go to her father the minute I was close enough for Shawn to grab me,” Reign said with a pointed look at Jay and Pranav who came to stand next to Devesh. “Instead, she surprised him—and us—by landing what’s called a roundhouse kick to his—”
“Softer parts,” Devesh supplied, and Jay stifled a smile. “That would have been enough time for me to get a shot off and get both Reign and Leena to safety. But instead, Reign wrestled the gun from his hand, and it went off, shooting him in—”
“The softer parts,” Reign said, glancing at Leena whose lips crooked into a smile.
“It’s a penis, Mama,” Leena said, causing the officers to grin. “Didn’t you teach us that?”
“Good Lord,” Devesh whispered, rubbing his forehead. Jay lowered his head. His shoulders shook, a sure sign he was failing at
holding in his laughter. Same with Pranav.
“I’ve been on the force for almost twenty years, and I’ve never heard anything like it.” Officer Mitchell lowered until he was eye level with Leena. “Little lady, you’re going to be one powerful woman.”
Leena beamed up at him. “That’s what Papa says all the time.”
Epilogue
Three days after Leena was safely home with her family, Mumma arrived at Reign’s home at daybreak. Several of the Maharaj women were gathered around her.
“Is something wrong, Mumma?” Reign asked, pulling her robe tighter about her body.
“Nothing is wrong,” she replied. “We have a request.”
Reign stood back to allow them in. The women, all nineteen of them, spread out in the living room. Their expressions were so serious that Reign believed Mumma had not been honest.
“We would like to give you and Devesh a proper wedding.”
Reign blinked, trying to process that request, before taking a sweeping look at all of them. “So you’re saying I’m not married, already?”
“No, not that,” Mumma said, smiling. “Only that we would like to do it the proper way this time. A blend of your culture and ours.”
Devesh sauntered into the parlor, leaned on the doorjamb and took a sip of coffee.
Reign explained what his mother had said.
“It’s not every day a man gets to marry the woman he loves twice,” he said, lifting his mug in a salute. “I’m game.”
Mumma clasped her hands with glee. “The pandit is waiting at our home to talk with you.”
“Just knew I’d say yes, eh?”
“We could hope,” Mumma replied with a comedic lift of her eyebrows.
“Give us a few minutes,” Devesh requested. He put his arm around Reign’s waist and guided her to the cuddling chair in the living room. They sank down into its soft cushions. He placed a hand on her knee, his finger tracing the swirly design on her silky robe. “We can do this if it’s what you want.”
“I never saw myself in a white dress and walking down the aisle or anything like that,” she said. “That ‘til death do us part’ thing does something to me.” An involuntary shudder ran through her body.
Devesh let his chin fall to his chest for a moment, then looked up at the ceiling while drawing in a deep breath. “Honey, look at me.”
She slowly let her eyes meet his.
“Are you saying you’re still planning to leave me in eight years?” he asked. “After all we’ve been through together. You don’t want a lifetime for us?”
She looked deep into his eyes while a montage of images from their life together ran through her mind. This man had been good to her. Better than good. He had proven to her that she was deserving of his love. He was a great father to their children, wonderful and loyal to her son.
“Devesh, we’ve had our struggles for sure. Most couples couldn’t have lasted through half of what we’ve been through in this short amount of time.”
He gave a cautious smile. “You have brought me more happiness than I ever dared dream a man could have.”
He picked her hand up and gave it a gentle kiss.
“But …” She bit her lip while she searched for the right words.
“No ifs, ands, or buts, my love.” Devesh nodded toward the other room. Leena and Kamran, dressed in their pajamas, had gotten out of bed and were being greeted with hugs and kisses from Mumma, Aunt Kavya and the rest of the women. “You’re buying an issue before it’s been sold.”
“You’ve been hanging out with Jay too long,” she accused.
“Guilty.” He stroked his fingers across her open palm. “I love your son. And I love you.” He kissed her. “My family wants to show you how much they love you. Let’s do this. Let’s live, my love.”
She leaned into him, returning his kiss. When she pulled away, she called out to the twins who came running to join them in the cuddle chair.
“Leena, Kamran,” Devesh began. “Your Mama and Papa are getting married.”
The twins shared a curious glance, before frowning up and asking, “Again?”
Several days before the wedding, they placed the traditional mehndi—henna markings—on Reign’s hands and feet. The deeper the final color, the more the bride would be loved by her husband and motherin-law. The bride was also forbidden from doing any housework as long as the color of the bridal mehndi remained on her hands.
“Hey, that works for me,” she said to Devesh when Aunt Kayva explained everything. “You do know how to mop, right?”
Devesh could only shake his head.
Reign and her bridal party of Maharaj women, nieces Jennifer and Shakira, friends Renee, Debra, and Janice were treated to skin and spa treatments with her favorite team as well as private meals. The garments were all made by Aunt Kavya and her growing group of seamstresses. She alone, made each one of Reign’s wedding dresses. None of them were white.
An Indian wedding is a three-day affair. The Maharaj family had traveled from places as far as New Delhi, Mumbai, Goa, and Africa and as close as New York City, Los Angeles, and Miami for the wedding.
On day one of Reign and Devesh’s wedding, white tents were erected across the gardens outside of the Maharaj home. The array of food was sure to be pleasing to even the toughest palate. Champagne and liquor were free-flowing to keep spirits high.
Reign, Devesh, and the rest of their guests were dressed in emerald—the color of Reign’s eyes.
On day two, everyone wore magnificent shades of red and gold, and the tents and their house were layered in flowers, sheers, and silks that transported the guests into a glorious rendition of an Indian palace for the ceremony and the reception.
On day three, one side had been done in rich shades of royal and electric blues, deep lavenders with silver accents, tiny pinpricks of light on the ceiling gave the impression of being under a moonlit sky.
The neighbors had also been invited, and the entire Shoreview area between the Maharaj place and Devesh and Reign’s home had been blocked off. Devesh arrived on a white horse, followed by twenty groomsmen and bridesmaids—all sisters, cousins, and nieces of their respective families, most of whom wore magnificent blues. Pranav and Jay, the best men, were dressed in traditional hand-embroidered sherwanis of blue and silver silk. Reign, draped in a Kavya Patel royal blue and silver silk sari, wore jewelry given to her by the Maharaj family.
Devesh, Pranav, and Jay carried matching swords that made them look dashing and dangerous. Reign smiled, realizing they were three of the most handsome men there. When they walked into the area, traveling up the plush blue carpeting specifically laid for the event, and arrived in the specially crafted ballroom that had been created inside the formally designed tents, Devesh draped a blue floral garland around Reign’s neck.
Reign started the first of Saat Phere, the seven vows that they were to repeat after the Pandit recited them.
When it came time for her to repeat Phera—the prayers to God for plenty of nourishing and pure food—she simply said, “I do,” causing everyone to break out into laughter and for Devesh to nudge her a little.
Devesh leaned over to Reign and said, “You must say all of the words.”
Reign lifted the silk scarf covering her hair and answered. “Sweetheart, he needs to hit the cliff notes of this whole thing. It’s been an hour already. Come on, now.”
Jay stepped to the podium, and leaned in to Devesh and asked, “What’s the problem?”
“Indian marriages take about seven hours.”
Jay blinked his confusion, looked first at Reign then Devesh. “Seven hours?
“As in 420 minutes?” Reign asked, and put her focus on the Pandit who nodded. “No one mentioned that. And Sesvalah still has to do her part of the ceremony.”
The silence that ensued after that revelation was ample time for Jay to come up with a plan.
“Do you know the story of King Solomon?” he asked the Pandit.
“As a matter
of fact, I do,” the robust man answered with a lift of his bushy eyebrow.
“Great,” Devesh replied, splaying his hand over Reign’s back. “Then you’ll understand if we ask that you split this one down the middle?”
Reign looked to Jay as they both laughed.
The family waited as the Pandit started with the second round of prayers to God for a healthy and prosperous life, for physical, spiritual and mental health. Round three—prayers to God that they could walk together to attain wealth, that they could share the happiness and the pain together. The fourth round—prayers to God to increase the love and respect for each other and their respective families. The fifth round—prayers for beautiful, heroic, and noble children was altered and shortened immensely as the couple already had that covered; and the sixth set of prayers, asking for a long peaceful life with each other.
By the final step, even though the pandit was rolling through the words at twice the normal speed, Reign was ready to slide into the front row, but she stayed true and asked God for companionship, togetherness, loyalty, and understanding. She asked God to make them friends and give her the maturity to carry out the friendship for a lifetime.
Devesh turned to her at the end of the ceremony and said, “We have now become friends. We will not break this friendship in life.”
She beckoned for the twins to come forward. Bending down to eye-level with them, she smiled and said, “Yes, we’re married, again.”
Reign moved to stand by Devesh’s side, watching as the family-style dinner began. The servers brought out each dish to tables draped in colors that were complementary to the theme. They explained the contents and placed them on the table around the tall cylindrical glass centerpieces with candles and lotus floats. Music that complemented all tastes—Hindi, popular, dance, and even a few of Reign’s favorite Jazz, House, Hip-Hop tunes, and songs from Devesh’s new album releasing in two months—were part of the night’s line up.
“I have never seen anything more beautiful,” Devesh whispered to her, giving her a slow onceover.
That statement brought a smile to Reign’s tear-stained face. Certainly tears of joy as he had never seen a smile so bright.
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