Chapter 2 #2
She remembered a Sunday morning when Neel tried to make breakfast. He burned the egg and sausages but blamed the stove, even threatening to call the manufacturer.
He was so serious that he had Kaavi laughing until her stomach hurt.
And then he had her on her back and it was perfect because they just completed each other.
But a couple of hours later, their weekly argument started.
He had to go to his parents’ house for lunch and she refused to go with him.
After all, his family didn’t know she existed.
They’d argue. He would go to lunch. She would sit around waiting for him.
She’d apologise when he returned. He’d say he understood – until one day he stopped understanding.
And she couldn’t explain it to him because she didn’t understand either.
She just knew she wanted their marriage to remain a secret; there was no reasoning behind it.
But there was a reason. She just didn’t want to confront it.
Now, sitting on Sen’s couch, she wondered if they would have still been together if there hadn’t been any secrecy. She shook off the thought. She didn’t want to explore it. She and Neel Naran were long over and there was no point in mulling over it.
Neel looked in his hotel room mirror. If he was going to stay in Rally for a month, he would have to upgrade to a suite to have adequate space to work.
He still couldn’t figure out what had come over him when he told Kaavi he’d be staying in Rally for a month.
He had no game plan. Kaavi had walked out on him and didn’t look back.
She’d moved on and was even living with a man.
But when he saw her this morning, he just couldn’t – didn’t want to – leave.
He sat on the bed, hit the speed dial on his phone and waited for it to ring.
‘Neel, I was just about to call you to let you know I’ve confirmed your flight for tomorrow.’
He ran his hands through his hair.
‘About that …’ he mumbled.
‘Must I change it to an earlier flight? I know you prefer travelling early in the morning.’
‘I’ve decided to stay in Rally for a month,’ he heard himself utter slowly.
There were a few seconds of silence before Sarika spoke.
‘Do I have to fly out there to work with you?’
‘That’s not necessary. I can switch all my meetings to video conferences. With technology, it’ll be like I’m there in my office,’ he replied.
‘Are there any files I need to email to you? What else do you need?’
He knew Sarika. She was trying to be professional by not reacting the way she usually would have.
Sarika was his executive assistant. They’d met in college when she started dating his best friend Ryan.
The trio went on to achieve their MBAs and Ryan married Sarika.
But Sarika soon realised that she didn’t want to be in the world of mergers and takeovers.
Despite being the smartest of the three, she didn’t want to make decisions in the business world.
When Neel joked that she could be his executive assistant, she took it seriously.
She didn’t need to work because Ryan had a successful telecommunications company, but Sarika didn’t want to ‘sit around doing nothing’.
‘Say what’s on your mind,’ he said.
‘What could possibly be on my mind?’
He pressed the speaker button, placed his cellphone on the bed and began to pace.
‘You’re not going to ask why I’m staying here for a month?’
‘Why would I? You’re the boss and I take orders from you. I can’t question your decisions,’ she replied flatly.
Neel burst out laughing.
‘You take orders from me? That would be the day. You’re more like my boss. Just say what you want to, Sari.’
She was silent for a few seconds.
‘Neel, why are you doing this to yourself? I’m assuming the divorce papers haven’t been signed? What do you hope to achieve by prolonging this trip?’
Neel sat on the bed again.
‘I don’t know, Sari.’
‘Listen, Neel. You are one of the most organised people I know. You always think things through before you do anything, but when you’re with this woman, whom we have not even met, you do things that are out of character … the marriage, the secrecy, and now prolonging the inevitable.’
She spoke softly, perhaps to soften the blow.
‘Neel, you don’t deserve this.’
He sighed. ‘I know. I know all these things. But I … just a month, Sari,’ he replied.
‘Fine, we can make this work. This – as in your job as the CEO of a massive company.’
He hesitated for a few seconds.
‘Yes?’
Sari knew him so well.
‘Someone has to tell Natara,’ he ventured.
‘No, Neel. That’s where I draw the line. You and only you must face the music.’
He ran his hand through his hair again.
‘I’ll send her a text message.’
‘WHAT? You want to send your sister a text message – your twin sister? The same sister who drew up the divorce papers, which you are refusing to get signed? The same sister who terrifies everyone who knows her? Are you mad?’
‘That’s resolved then. I’ll send her a text message,’ he said calmly.
‘Did you hear a word I said?’
‘I did. I’d better head down to reception. I need to upgrade to a suite. I’ll talk—’
‘No. I made the booking. I’ll call for the upgrade. Listen, Neel, we’ve been friends for a pretty long time. I don’t know what happened between you and this woman, but I do remember the pain you went through. I don’t want to see you hurt again,’ Sarika said. She whispered the word ‘hurt’.
‘I know, Sari. I appreciate your friendship. I’d appreciate it more if you called Natara,’ he ventured.
‘Not going to happen. Bye,’ she added quickly, hanging up before he could reply.
Like a coward, Neel sent a text message to his sister. Exactly ten seconds later, her name flashed on his phone’s screen. He ignored it. It rang again. He ignored it again.
A text message popped up in his chat app.
CALL ME!!!!!
No.
I knew I should have taken care of this myself. Why are you such a fool?
Takes one to know one.
WHAT! We’re almost 31 years old and that’s your comeback? Answer the phone!
Neel’s phone rang again. He let it go to voicemail and wrote instead:
Nats, I got to do this. Just let me figure it out. Please.
Three dots appeared on his screen. She was obviously typing a long response.
Finally, her message came through.
Okay.
Neel jerked his head back. What? This was very bad. Natara never ever backed down. He knew his twin. Her one-word response was to throw him off a plan that was probably brewing in her mind. He didn’t respond.
His cellphone rang again. Ryan’s name flashed on the screen. No doubt Sarika had spoken to him. He let it go to voicemail.
Looking at his phone, Neel realised that he didn’t have Kaavi’s number.
He was about to do some sleuthing on the internet to try to find it but remembered that Rally was a small town, and people talked in small towns.
He shoved his phone in his back pocket and made his way down to the coffee bar where he found a seat next to a window.
This room was like every other in the hotel group’s vast portfolio – it dripped with luxury.
The café tables were strategically positioned for guests to have enough space to be private but also be seen.
He looked over to a group of young women taking photos of their iced coffees, which came in only the finest trendy cups.
A few tables over, a couple leaned into each other, sharing a slice of chocolate cake.
Neel looked away, out the window. He spotted a lake in the distance.
The view was fascinatingly tranquil. While the rest of Rally, except for the apartment Kaavi was living in, was homely, this hotel was a five-star establishment with modern amenities.
Yet it fitted in with the surroundings. It was like everything in Rally just fitted in, no matter what it was, from five-star hotels to small corner shops that sold everything from lollipops to power tools.
He wondered if that was why Kaavi chose to move to this sleepy town. Or did she move here for him? The man whose apartment she seemed so comfortable in.
A waitress appeared next to him. Showtime.
‘Good afternoon, sir. Have you had a chance to look at the menu?’
Neel flashed her a big smile. He’d been told by far too many women, mostly those who wanted to secure his surname and access his bank account, that his smile melted hearts.
‘Good afternoon. I have. I’ll have a cappuccino and a blueberry muffin please.’
She nodded.
‘Is there anything else I can get you?’ she asked, noticing that he’d picked up the menu again.
Neel placed it back on the table and sat back.
‘Actually, I’m supposed to be meeting a friend in town, but I’ve just realised I didn’t take down her number. Maybe you know her?’
The waitress smiled eagerly.
‘You were here for the wedding, right?’
Neel had been at the hotel when the wedding took place, so what if he stretched the truth?
‘Yes, I was. A beautiful celebration,’ he lied.
‘It was. Senthil and Shona are perfect for each other,’ she said dreamily.
Neel nodded as if he knew the couple.
‘Who is your friend? I’ll check if I can get a number for you,’ the waitress said.
Neel felt guilty about the deception, but there was no way he was going back to that apartment to ask Kaavi for her number.
‘Kaavi Archary,’ he replied.
‘Of course I know Kaavi! She hosted a workshop here a few weeks back. Well, Shona and Anni actually organised it, but Kaavi was the main attraction,’ she said.
Neel sat back and pretended he wasn’t interested, but boy did he want to know everything about it.
‘Must have been fun,’ he said.
‘It was spectacular. Shona and Anni help run the youth programme at the community centre. They’ve helped so many troubled kids.
They got Kaavi to teach a couple of the teenage girls to apply makeup.
It was a real girly event. The kids loved it,’ the waitress said excitedly, like it was hot-off-the-press news.
Neel was impressed but simply nodded. The Kaavi he knew would hide in the shadows when she wasn’t on the catwalk. But he also knew she was kind and would instantly have jumped at the chance to help troubled kids.
Realising she was babbling to a customer, the waitress said, ‘I’ll get her number from the front desk and I’ll bring your drink and muffin.’
Kaavi pulled her suitcase out of a cupboard and dragged it to the room that she’d made hers since moving into Sen’s apartment.
She opened it and turned towards her closet but stood rooted to the spot.
What was she doing? Running away. That’s what she did.
She always ran. But she didn’t want to this time.
She loved Rally. She loved the connections she’d made here.
She wanted to be here and Neel Naran wasn’t going to drive her out of town.
She sat on the bed, pushing the suitcase away from her. She realised she would have to face this problem head-on. She couldn’t run.
She stood up confidently and reached for the suitcase. After packing it away, she planned to conduct a web search to find an out-of-town lawyer to draw up divorce papers, when her cellphone rang.
She shook her head. Sen was probably calling to check up on her again. Did this man know what a honeymoon was!
But when she retrieved the ringing phone from the kitchen counter, she saw a number she didn’t recognise.
‘Hello?’
‘Kaavi, it’s Neel.’
Her heart started to race. Kaavi didn’t know if it was anxiety or excitement. That’s the effect Neel had on her. She always felt giddy around him.
‘Neel,’ she squeaked.
‘Would you like to go out for supper tonight? It would give us a chance to discuss the matter at hand,’ he asked casually, like it was every day that you went out for supper with your hot, estranged husband. Hot. Kaavi reached for a softcover book on the nightstand and started to fan herself.
Supper with Neel. It sounded like a nightmare.
She would spend the whole time blushing and wanting him.
Yes, he still had that effect on her. Also, she didn’t want anyone to see her out with him.
People in Rally loved to talk. Her grandfather, aunt and uncle would probably know about him before they could order their meal.
But she had to see Neel. They had to talk about a divorce. It had to be done.
‘Can you come over to the apartment for supper?’
She felt like a teenage girl asking her crush out. The butterflies in her stomach were in full flight.
‘Are you sure?’ She heard him say.
‘Yes. I’ll order some food and we can talk,’ she replied.
‘Is there anything I can bring over?’
‘No. I’ll see you at seven?’ Why was her voice suddenly so squeaky!
‘Seven it is.’
She didn’t even wait to say goodbye. She pressed the disconnect button and began to pace.
Neel Naran was coming over for supper. And they were going to talk.
The same Neel who made her feel out of control by just looking at her.
The man who’d seen every inch of her and with whom she would most likely fall into bed.
No! She shook her head as if it could erase that thought. She had to make plans. What was she going to get for supper? What would she wear?
She stopped herself again. This was not a date. She would have to put on her bitchy supermodel mask to get through the evening. Neel would see right through her, but at least it would give her a fighting chance.
A fighting chance? She started laughing, a little louder and then almost uncontrollably. Was she losing her mind? She caught her reflection in the decorative mirror in the kitchen.
‘Kaavi, who are you kidding? You want that man,’ she confessed to the face looking back at her.