Dating dr dil, p.26
Dating Dr. Dil, page 26
Her grandmother shook her head.
“Don’t be such a besharam,” she said. “Shameless.” She reached up and touched Kareena’s cheeks. “The contacts suit you, though.”
“I knew you’d yell at me about pictures,” Kareena muttered. The contacts were already dry, and every time she tried to push her glasses up her nose, she ended up poking herself in the face.
“Dadi, I’m going to go get a drink and then find Bobbi.” Kareena needed liquid courage if she was going to do this thing with Prem.
“You can’t leave! I just told you have to stay here and greet our guests.”
“First of all, this is a party for family and friends. It’s not that big of a deal.”
“There are two hundred people coming tonight,” her grandmother said, deadpan. “You and the aunties are meeting Loken’s parents for the first time. We have to put on a good impression.”
“Indian Standard Time, Dadi. That means people won’t show up for another two hours.”
“We still have to do a run-through of events tonight,” Bobbi said from behind her.
Kareena stepped back to take in Bobbi’s pink-and-silver Patiala salwar. She even braided her hair in a choti with a paranda hanging from the end. Her jutti shoes matched the outfit, and her winged liner was on point.
“Excuse me, but have you seen my friend? I seemed to have lost her in a mustard field in Punjab.”
“Up yours,” Bobbi said. “Sorry, Aunty.”
“I don’t know what that means, but, Bobbi, you look so beautiful,” Dadi said in Punjabi. She reached out to fuss with her chunni that draped from one shoulder, across the front and pinned to the other. It was low enough to expose a tiny diamond necklace that matched the jhumka earrings, those pretty little umbrella-shaped drops that hung from Bobbi’s ears.
“Am I late?” Veera called out from the doors. She strolled in wearing a deep-teal-colored gown with a strip of belly showing. Her simple black fitted velvet blouse was elegant and sexy.
“You’re just on time,” Dadi said, and opened her arms for a hug. “Beta, you look lovely as well. Now you and Bobbi have to find someone just like my Kareena.”
The DJ, a sixteen-year-old music genius that Bindu had found on Instagram, began testing his speakers in the corner under a canopy of fake marigolds. The soft strains of sad Bollywood music filtered through the speakers.
Kareena’s father walked out of the back room holding a box that had a whiskey brand on the side. He wore a tux that was a little loose at the shoulders and a little snug at the waist. “I brought more for the bar,” he called out. “If we run out, I can get the alcohol from our basement that I started collecting for the wedding.”
“Daddy, you know we have to use the alcohol that the hall provides,” Kareena said.
He walked right past her toward the bar on the other side of the room. “They’re not going to have enough.”
“Keep up the good work, Uncle!” Bobbi called out. “And don’t worry about the extra alcohol. I already cleared it with the owners.”
She grabbed Kareena’s and Veera’s hands and dragged them across the hall. “Sorry, Dadi, I need a moment with these two.”
“Take your time. I’m going back into the dressing room to check on Bindu.”
“What is it?” Kareena asked when they huddled in the corner together.
“What is it?” Bobbi mimicked Kareena’s voice. “Hey, asshole, you are supposed to announce an engagement tonight. Is that seriously happening? You’ve been AWOL for the last week and wouldn’t answer our texts!”
Kareena’s stomach pitched again. “This is all very surreal.”
Veera squeezed her hand. “Oh my god, that means it’s happening! Wow, one of us is getting engaged. You manifested it into existence at your birthday and look at you now!”
Bobbi touched Kareena’s and Veera’s shoulders. “Unless you don’t want to be engaged.”
“I can’t stop thinking about my mom,” Kareena whispered shakily. “I wish she was here to give me some advice. I mean, I’m stupid, right? I love Prem.”
Just saying the word gave her stomach cramps. She pressed a palm to her stomach.
“I love Prem,” she repeated, “but I want to be loved, too. Am I getting caught up in semantics? If so, why can’t I accept the fact that I’ll never hear him say how he feels about me?”
Veera rubbed the small of her back. “He loves you. Even if he’s a dummy and hasn’t said it. He has to! I mean, look at the way he tries to take care of you.”
“But if the words are important to you, then take the time you need to get them,” Bobbi said.
“That’s why I’m remembering Mom,” Kareena whispered. “I feel like if she was here, this would never be an issue, and she’d know exactly what to say about Prem. And then she’d freak out at Dad and Dadi for putting me in this stupid position of fighting for something that means a lot to me.”
Bobbi and Veera looped their arms over Kareena’s shoulders and waist. They put their heads close together and stood in a triangle, close together, borrowing strength from one another. “I’m scared that this is all I deserve,” Kareena said, in a shaky breath.
“That’s not true,” Bobbi said. “Never think that.”
“You deserve whatever you want,” Veera added softly. “What can we do to help fix this? Do you want us to take you home? Pretend you’re sick?”
“No, I have to figure this out myself,” Kareena said. They pulled apart, and even though Kareena still felt shaky, it was comforting to know that her friends were right behind her.
Bobbi’s phone buzzed, making all three of them jump. After she pulled it out of her bra and checked the screen, she let out a screech. “Oh my god! Why didn’t anyone tell the Indian Italians that Indian IST is later than Italian IST? Loken’s family is all here!” She rushed out of the ballroom.
Dadi yelped from the front entrance. “The aunties are coming, and the caterers are still setting up in the next room over! Kareena, I’m going to check the food, you stay here and tell the aunties where their table is.”
Veera was still holding her hand. “I’ll wait with you.”
Kareena shook her head. “No, you go. I’ll be fine. I’m going to be happy.”
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered, her eyes sparkling. “But I love you. Bobbi loves you. And your mom loves you. No matter what you decide for the house, you’re going to be okay.”
“I hope so,” she whispered back.
Kareena swallowed her tears, her warring thoughts, as she stood in position.
The DJ changed the music to a basic Punjabi dhol beat and like slow motion, Kareena watched her four aunties enter side by side. Farah Aunty flipped her hair, Sonali Aunty checked the little mirror in the flap of her purse, Falguni Aunty adjusted her chunni on her shoulder, and Mona Aunty straightened the bracelets on her wrist.
Farah Aunty approached her first. “Beta! Don’t you look stunning. Just like your mother.”
“Well, isn’t that just the nicest compliment,” Kareena said as she hugged Farah Aunty back. Sonali Aunty was next, who did the customary hello, hi, how are you. Then Mona Aunty, who gave Kareena air kisses.
“Darling, you’ve gotten so good at eyeliner!” Mona Aunty said. “And to think when I taught you all those years ago, you would poke yourself in the eyeball.”
“Practice does make perfect, Aunty.”
Falguni Aunty squeezed her hand, her smile fading. “Are you okay, beta?”
“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?”
Her smile didn’t reach her eyes, but she patted Kareena’s arm. “It’s just something that I heard. I wanted to make sure that it was just a rumor.”
“Excuse me?”
“Falguni, what rumor?” Farah Aunty asked. Her red lips pursed. “We rode here together, and you didn’t say a thing.”
“Mind your business, Farah. It’s just a little something between me and Kareena.”
Kareena had no idea what Falguni Aunty was talking about, so she just nodded her head.
Dadi came waddling back into the hall, gripping her sari pleats in one hand and her dupatta end in the other. “Oye! They’re coming. Be on your best behavior!”
The front doors opened with a rush of wind. Kareena’s hair flitted around her face like she was the heroine of a damn Bollywood movie, and in walked Loken’s entire family led by Prem, Deepak, and Bunty all wearing custom-fit three-piece suits. Their hair was groomed, and their beards were trimmed and styled. Each of them had shoes that shone, and the crowd of Gujarati Italians behind them drooled.
Loken’s entire family was beautifully dressed, and their traditional clothes glittered as everyone entered the ballroom and dispersed.
“The groom’s side is here!” Farah Aunty said. She clapped her hands together.
Holy hell, Kareena was going to throw up. The aunties huddled around her as they all waited for the introductions and the greetings to begin.
Seconds before Prem and his friends reached them, Falguni Aunty spun Kareena around to face her and blurted out, “You’re going to make a lovely bride and groom.”
The other aunties gasped in horror.
“Beta?” Sonali Aunty said gently.
Before Kareena could respond, Dadi gripped her shoulders and pulled her close. “Beta? Are you engaged?”
“I knew I should’ve kept that appointment with the pandit,” Sonali Aunty said. “Now you’ll have to wait until after his vacation to get your janampatris reviewed!”
“Is this true?” Dadi asked quietly. She had tears in her eyes as she pressed closer to Kareena. “Is this . . . is this true?”
“Ah, we were supposed to announce it together—”
“Tell me, it’s not because of the house, is it?”
Kareena’s jaw dropped. Holy shit, her grandmother went in for the kill. “I mean, it would’ve been nicer to have time, but since the house is so important to me—”
“Chalo, no matter. As long as you’re engaged.”
The way her grandmother said those words had Kareena’s back going rigid. “Dadi, you know better than to say something that ridiculous.”
Dadi patted her hair and smiled at the guests. “I worried about you. That you’d be all alone, beta. Because you think it’s easier to be alone. Your wedding is going to be lovely with Prem. Look how handsome he is.”
“My wedding with Prem won’t be for a while.”
“What?” The aunties gasped as well.
This time Dadi spun around to face her. “This is too much, Kareena. This is too much, you’re giving me a tension headache and we haven’t even started yet!” She unzipped the clutch she’d tucked under one arm and pulled out the Asian Sensation vibrator, turning it to a high speed and resting the writhing sex toy against her neck. “So much tension!”
“A group of beautiful women shouldn’t look so distressed . . . oh my god, is that a—”
“Dude, Grandma has a vibrator,” Bunty whispered loudly.
At that moment, Kareena’s father walked over with two glasses of whiskey. “Prem! Here, have a drink.” He looked over at Dadi, his eyes bulging. “Ma! I told you to leave that at home!”
“It’s the only thing that relieves my tension,” she snapped back. “Your daughter is at fault for giving it to me in the first place!”
Kareena couldn’t handle this anymore. Loken’s family was staring. Her father was greeting Prem with joy. The aunties looked so unhappy for her as they waited for her reaction.
And Prem. He had a hesitant expression on his face. Bobbi and Veera had the same.
Kareena couldn’t stand there anymore, faking nice, pretending everything was going to be part of a happily ever after. That wasn’t real. None of this was real. It would break her heart to lose the house, but it would hurt even more to know that she’d settled for something less than she deserved. Prem couldn’t love her, and even if they got engaged, they got married, and they spent the rest of their lives together, she’d be constantly wishing he did.
“I have to go,” she blurted out. Then before anyone could stop her, she bolted out of the ballroom and through the double doors.
Chapter Thirty
Prem
Prem barely stepped out of the way in time for Kareena to come rushing through the crowd to the lobby. She looked like a stunning goddess, the queen dressed in black, come to slay. But instead, she was trying to escape.
“Runaway dulhan,” Deepak muttered. “Uncle? I’ll take that whiskey.”
Prem knew that something was bothering Kareena, that maybe she was having second thoughts about him, but her grand exit was definitely unexpected. He spun on his heels and strode after her. Behind him, he heard Bunty tell Kareena’s father, “I think she’s changed her mind.”
“About what?” Kareena’s father replied.
Prem caught up with Kareena just as she reached the parking lot. His hands brushed her arm, and he called her name again. “Rina, will you just stop and tell me what happened?”
She spun around, her lehenga billowing at her ankles, and the distinct sound of her payal punctuating her turn. Her eyes glittered with unshed tears.
“Do you love me?” she said.
His heart seized, and he couldn’t catch his breath. His mouth moved to form her name, but nothing came out. Yes, he thought. Yes, absolutely. Without question. From the moment he saw her at Phataka Grill. Through every conversation, every fight, every second since her birthday.
Her eyes filled with tears. “Oh god . . .”
Prem’s heart pounded, thudding like a stampede in his ears. He was losing her. He could tell that he was losing her. “I’m sorry, I can’t . . .”
“No, you won’t.” She wiped the tears off her cheeks, ignoring the burning and blurriness from her contacts. “I know you have the capacity to love. You loved Gori, so is it just me?”
He jerked back like she’d slapped him. “Gori and I were arranged to be married. We were compatible.”
“You changed your entire life for her!” Kareena shouted. “You changed your entire life for that woman, and you think you didn’t love her? That community center is in her memory!”
No. No, he didn’t. She didn’t understand. What he felt for Gori was special, but for Kareena? It was so much more. “Gori needed me, and I wasn’t there for her—”
“Bullshit,” Kareena said. “People don’t spend three years raising money for a community center and dedicating their entire future to a person’s memory because of guilt.”
“Kareena, you can’t decide how I feel about a person.” If he could just take her away, whisk her far from the crowd that was forming behind them in front of the banquet hall doors. Then they could talk in private.
“I’m asking you to tell me yourself,” she cried. Tears spilled down her cheeks now. She looked so beautiful, but unlike the Kareena that he . . . that he wanted. Without her glasses, and with a full face of makeup, she was ethereal, and that was unnerving on its own.
“Why can’t I just show you how I feel about you?” he burst out. His heart pounded hard and fast, and this time, he couldn’t fix it. “That means so much more, doesn’t it?” He gripped her shoulders, then ran his hands over her arms. “Every day. I promise you, I’ll be here for you. Isn’t that better than words? So many arranged marriages are built on—”
“Stop it!” Kareena pulled away from him. “You said it yourself, this has nothing to do with arranged marriages. Even if we were arranged, I’d expect the words. I need the words, because sometimes, the words are more powerful than anything you can give me or do for me. Come on, Dr. Dil. You’re smart enough to know that.”
“Kareena, I can’t give you what you want.”
The sound of her sob almost brought him to his knees.
“What the hell is going on?” A Barbie princess voice roared from behind the crowd. Kareena’s family and friends parted like the Ganges to reveal a fuming Bindu. She stood frothing at the mouth. “Why isn’t everyone inside for my big entrance?” she shrieked.
When she spotted Kareena, her eyes widened. “You!”
“Okay, time to go,” Bobbi called out. Like a football player making his way to the goalpost, she weaved through Loken’s family and rushed across the lot to Kareena. Prem was still so stunned, so scared that she’d go, he didn’t realize that her friends had already planned her getaway before he could intercept.
Kareena took the small black bag from Bobbi, spun on her heels, and ran toward a Subaru crossover vehicle at the corner of the lot.
“Wait!” Prem called out, ready to run after her, when a viselike grip on his arm pulled him to a stop.
“Not so fast there, Dr. Dick,” Bobbi said. “You know the magic words you need to say to see her again.”
What the hell did this woman think he was going to do? Sit around while one of the most important people in his life got away? “She’s upset.”
“And you’re not going to help her. Trust me when I say that you should let her have her room before you grovel.”
“She ruined everything!” Bindu shrieked, interrupting their conversation.
Kareena’s grandmother and father appeared to be trying to console Bindu, but nothing looked like it was working.
“Looks like Bridezilla is blaming her sister again. Excuse me, I have to fix this.”
“I’m in the mood to fight,” Prem muttered. He was sick and tired of this pipsqueak running rampant on Kareena’s family. If he had to take care of her first before going after Kareena, he’d do that. “Bobbi, move.”
“Oh boy.”
Prem stormed over to where Bindu was yelling at her fiancé for not intervening.
When Bindu turned to face Prem, her expression became murderous. “You. You’re to blame for this, too!”
“Nope, you’re the only one to blame, honey. You’re the one who recorded the video, who tried to monetize off your sister’s pain, and then guilt-tripped her into helping with your engagement party for the last four months.”
The entire crowd hushed.
“What, you think because you’re spoiled, you can treat people like garbage? Your sister is twice as beautiful as you’ll ever be, and she isn’t a bitch.”
