helped.
Rasika emerged from the bathroom wearing a pink nightgown, looking as fresh as Botticelli’s Venus emerging from the sea. He watched her arrange her soap and shampoo in her suitcase.
“They have soap here, you know.”
“I’m particular about what I put on my body.” She smiled across the room at him as she toweled her hair dry. She sashayed over to him, sat down on the bed, and kissed him. “I don’t have to tell you to keep all this to yourself.”
He nodded and reached for her.
“We can meet every once in a while,” she said in between kisses, “but only if I can completely trust you. I’ll give you my e-mail at work.”
He felt her hand traveling over his chest, and put his hand over hers to stop it. “I don’t have e-mail.”
“Why not?” She pulled her hand away. “You can’t be opposed to e-mail. It saves paper.”
“We didn’t have personal e-mail addresses at Rising Star, and I just haven’t signed myself up for anything yet. I thought I might as well keep myself out of that whole loop for a while. I don’t want to be an electronic slave, constantly obsessing about checking my messages no matter where I am.”
Rasika rolled her eyes.
“And more importantly,” he continued, “what’s the idea here? Are you going to keep pretending to your parents that you want an arranged marriage, and then see me on the sly?”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “I do want an arranged marriage. I’m not pretending.”
“You’ve done this before with other men, haven’t you? Lots of times.” He saw her face close again, yet he kept talking. “I’m not interested in sneaking around with you. If you want to have a relationship with me, that’s great. But I’m not going to play your game.” He thought his words sounded fine and courageous. He also knew that if Rasika wanted to whisk him off to a hotel again, he’d let her.
“If I’m playing a silly game, then so are you. You pretend like you’re so mature, but all you can talk about is that you don’t know what to do with your life. You’re only one person. You can’t do everything all by yourself. Just pick something and start doing it. Get into the stream of things. How long are you going to wait to start living?”
He rubbed a hand over his hair. “I just need a break after the move home.”
She pressed her fingers into the velvet bedspread, making light fingertip impressions. “That’s how I look at it, too. When the time is right I’ll get married, and I won’t have to do this kind of thing anymore.”
“So why don’t you marry that guy? The one I saw you with the other day.”
She kept pressing and rubbing away her finger-marks. “I ruined things. Everything was going well until I saw you. He was really angry, which made him look funny, and I couldn’t help laughing.” She laughed just thinking about it.
“He seemed like a complete jerk,” Abhay said. “How could you even think about marrying him?”
“He fit all my criteria. I don’t know why I went and ruined things.”
“Maybe your subconscious knows what you really want and isn’t willing to abandon you to an asshole.”
“Maybe.” Rasika crossed her ankles and tossed her wet hair over her shoulder. “So, Mr. Know-It-All. What does your subconscious want for you?”
“I don’t know.”
“Are you waiting for another clue? Like the dreams or signs you told me about?”
“I don’t think that’ll work anymore. I feel like I’m done with that phase of my life. I was naive to believe that I could run my life based on those kinds of signs. I want to try being logical. Try being reasonable. That’s what my dad always told me to do.”
Faint, tinny music sounded from a corner of the room. Rasika leaped up. “My phone. What did I do with it?”
“In your purse?”
“Where’d I put my purse?”
The music came from the area near the refrigerator/TV cabinet. Rasika stuck her arm between the cabinet and dresser, and pulled out a
Rasika emerged from the bathroom wearing a pink nightgown, looking as fresh as Botticelli’s Venus emerging from the sea. He watched her arrange her soap and shampoo in her suitcase.
“They have soap here, you know.”
“I’m particular about what I put on my body.” She smiled across the room at him as she toweled her hair dry. She sashayed over to him, sat down on the bed, and kissed him. “I don’t have to tell you to keep all this to yourself.”
He nodded and reached for her.
“We can meet every once in a while,” she said in between kisses, “but only if I can completely trust you. I’ll give you my e-mail at work.”
He felt her hand traveling over his chest, and put his hand over hers to stop it. “I don’t have e-mail.”
“Why not?” She pulled her hand away. “You can’t be opposed to e-mail. It saves paper.”
“We didn’t have personal e-mail addresses at Rising Star, and I just haven’t signed myself up for anything yet. I thought I might as well keep myself out of that whole loop for a while. I don’t want to be an electronic slave, constantly obsessing about checking my messages no matter where I am.”
Rasika rolled her eyes.
“And more importantly,” he continued, “what’s the idea here? Are you going to keep pretending to your parents that you want an arranged marriage, and then see me on the sly?”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “I do want an arranged marriage. I’m not pretending.”
“You’ve done this before with other men, haven’t you? Lots of times.” He saw her face close again, yet he kept talking. “I’m not interested in sneaking around with you. If you want to have a relationship with me, that’s great. But I’m not going to play your game.” He thought his words sounded fine and courageous. He also knew that if Rasika wanted to whisk him off to a hotel again, he’d let her.
“If I’m playing a silly game, then so are you. You pretend like you’re so mature, but all you can talk about is that you don’t know what to do with your life. You’re only one person. You can’t do everything all by yourself. Just pick something and start doing it. Get into the stream of things. How long are you going to wait to start living?”
He rubbed a hand over his hair. “I just need a break after the move home.”
She pressed her fingers into the velvet bedspread, making light fingertip impressions. “That’s how I look at it, too. When the time is right I’ll get married, and I won’t have to do this kind of thing anymore.”
“So why don’t you marry that guy? The one I saw you with the other day.”
She kept pressing and rubbing away her finger-marks. “I ruined things. Everything was going well until I saw you. He was really angry, which made him look funny, and I couldn’t help laughing.” She laughed just thinking about it.
“He seemed like a complete jerk,” Abhay said. “How could you even think about marrying him?”
“He fit all my criteria. I don’t know why I went and ruined things.”
“Maybe your subconscious knows what you really want and isn’t willing to abandon you to an asshole.”
“Maybe.” Rasika crossed her ankles and tossed her wet hair over her shoulder. “So, Mr. Know-It-All. What does your subconscious want for you?”
“I don’t know.”
“Are you waiting for another clue? Like the dreams or signs you told me about?”
“I don’t think that’ll work anymore. I feel like I’m done with that phase of my life. I was naive to believe that I could run my life based on those kinds of signs. I want to try being logical. Try being reasonable. That’s what my dad always told me to do.”
Faint, tinny music sounded from a corner of the room. Rasika leaped up. “My phone. What did I do with it?”
“In your purse?”
“Where’d I put my purse?”
The music came from the area near the refrigerator/TV cabinet. Rasika stuck her arm between the cabinet and dresser, and pulled out a
Similar Books
