CHAPTER 11 #2
He smiles, but I step forward anyway, holding the side rail of the buggy steady so he can get in comfortably. Just then, another hand reaches out. Raghav.
He steps in at the exact moment, probably not trusting that I’ll take care of it. For a second, our hands brush against each other over the metal bar.
It shouldn’t feel like anything. It’s just a touch. But it lingers enough to make me aware of it, especially when he looks at me with those intense eyes. It’s like he’s surprised by my protectiveness towards Uncle as I help him into the buggy.
“I’ll take it from here,” he says firmly.
I let out a quiet breath but don’t move. “I’m already handling it.”
His gaze doesn’t flicker. “I can see that.”
“Then you should also be able to see that he’s fine,” I add.
For a split second, his jaw tightens. It’s subtle, but I see it.
“What happened?” Uncle asks the moment he settles in. “Both of you are acting like I’m about to fall off a cliff,” he mutters. “Raghav, I’m fine. Siya is taking such good care of me. Stop being so hard on her.”
Neither of us responds because neither of us is looking at him. Raghav’s eyes remain locked on mine, and I don’t look away either. I pull my hand back first and get inside, taking the seat beside Uncle.
Only then does Raghav step back. Instead of joining us, he turns to the driver and gives a few instructions. Of course, he doesn’t sit with us. He follows us in another buggy, close enough to keep watch.
The ride moves slowly through the vineyard, and Uncle points out various sections as we pass, explaining how each area is maintained differently depending on the grape variety. Soon, we stop near another part of the estate where a staff member is waiting to take us inside the processing unit.
As the buggy comes to a halt, Uncle begins to step down. Once again, both Raghav and I reach out at the exact same moment.
Our hands almost meet again, but this time Raghav withdraws his hand without a word as soon as he sees my fingers close around Uncle’s arm. I steady Uncle as he steps down, making sure his feet are firmly on the ground before letting go.
My actions surprise me, even though they feel familiar.
I never had to hold or support Dad like this.
He was always physically strong, always the one holding everything together.
Yet the instinct to stay close to him, to be aware, to look out for him without being asked had always been there.
Now, a year after losing him, that same protectiveness rises in me again for Kailash Uncle.
I feel that same pull, that same unspoken urge to be there and take care of him without being told.
We head inside, and the temperature drops slightly. Uncle continues to show me around, explaining each stage of the process as we move ahead. Just then, Raghav walks in and drapes a shawl around his shoulders.
“You forgot this in the buggy,” he says, adjusting it properly. “It’s colder inside. Wear it.”
Uncle smiles, his hand coming up to pat Raghav’s arm before he settles the shawl around himself. I observe the ease between them once again. This time, though, Raghav doesn’t stay for long. He turns and heads towards Haider and the staff, then starts speaking to them.
We move further inside, and just as Uncle is about to show me another section, a young woman walks towards us from the other end of the room.
She appears to be around my age and is wearing in a well-fitted beige wool coat over a dark turtleneck, paired with straight trousers and ankle boots.
She’s beautiful in a casual, effortless way.
“Kriti,” Uncle calls out, a wide smile spreading across his face.
“Hello, Uncle,” she greets him respectfully. “It’s so nice to see you here again. How are you doing?”
“I’m doing perfectly alright,” he replies. Then Kriti’s eyes shift to me with curiosity.
“This is Siya,” Uncle introduces me. “One of our special guests.”
“I’m sure she is to get a private tour like this,” Kriti responds, her gaze settling on me for a beat longer than necessary. “Otherwise, you wouldn’t have stepped in to show her the vineyard yourself.”
There’s something in the way she says it that doesn’t sit right with me. The words seem harmless enough, but I can sense a dislike in her tone. Still, when she gives me a polite smile and says, ‘Hi’, I return the greeting.
“Siya,” Uncle continues, “this is Kriti, the sommelier at RK estate. Our in-house wine expert.”
He gestures towards her with pride.
“She understands wines inside and out, from how the grapes are grown to how each batch is aged and stored. When guests visit, she’s the one who guides them through tastings, helping them understand the flavours, the aromas, the textures, without making it feel complicated.
Even someone trying wine for the first time can enjoy it the way it’s meant to be. ”
Kriti smiles politely as he goes on.
I simply nod as Uncle keeps praising her. “Her father, Mishraji, handles all the accounts here. He’s been our chartered accountant for years and is one of the most trusted people we have.”
“It’s all thanks to Kailash Uncle that I got to work here along with my dad,” Kriti adds.
Uncle shakes his head. “It’s all your hard work, Kriti.” He then turns to me again. “She went to Bordeaux, France. Learned everything about wine there and gained the best exposure.” His smile deepens. “And everything she has brought back is now a part of this place.”
Kriti lowers her gaze a little, almost embarrassed by the way he speaks about her.
“That is… really impressive,” I say, meaning it.
“Thank you,” she replies softly, before her attention shifts past us.
To Raghav.
“Uh, I need to discuss something with Raghav,” she says, almost as if she has just remembered it, though the slight change in her tone doesn’t go unnoticed by me. “I’ll be right back.”
Uncle nods. “Of course.”
As she turns and walks towards him, my eyes follow her involuntarily. Raghav looks up the moment she reaches him and gives her his full attention. There’s nothing personal in the way he interacts with her. It’s purely professional.
But for her… it’s different. There’s something in the way she looks at him, the way her fingers brush against her hair, tucking a strand behind her ear that doesn’t really need fixing.
Her smile lingers a second longer than it should…
almost shy. While talking, her eyes do not leave his face, not even for a moment.
And when he says something in response, she smiles again…
this time with a faint blush creeping up her cheeks.
And just like that, it clicks. So that’s where the earlier dislike came from. The woman clearly has the hots for RK. And seeing him and his father giving me a private tour of the vineyard… of course, she wouldn’t like it.
Just like I don’t like the way she’s trying to get his attention now. But why should I let it bother me? What she feels, and what he feels for her… none of it should concern me. And yet, my gaze stays there longer than it should until Uncle’s voice pulls me back.
“Come, Siya,” he says. “There’s more I want to show you.”
I force my attention away from the two of them as we step out of the processing unit and move further along the vineyard stretch.
“Up ahead,” Uncle says, walking beside me at an easy pace, “there’s a spot from where you can see the entire vineyard.”
I nod, excited to see that spot, but I’m also curious to know if Raghav and Kriti are still inside or if they’re following us. No, Siya, don’t turn around to check. Keep looking ahead.
Just as Uncle said, the vines begin to thin and give way to a slightly raised stone platform built at the edge of the slope. From there, the entire vineyard stretches out in front like an endless landscape.
It’s well past noon, and thankfully, there’s a small setup of refreshments already waiting for us. A neatly arranged table holds a few glasses and bottles of wine, along with a selection of light bites placed beside them. And suddenly, I’m hungry!
RAGHAV
I arrive at the spot a few minutes after them, slowing my steps before coming into their direct line of sight.
From here, I can see her clearly.
Siya stands near the edge, her back slightly turned towards me, her gaze fixed on the vineyard as if she’s trying to take it in all at once. The breeze catches a few loose strands of her hair, brushing them across her cheek, but she doesn’t move. She just stands there, lost in the scene before her.
When Baba says something, she turns, and that easy smile finds its way back to her lips. I’ve seen that smile more times today than I should have allowed myself to. And yet, it doesn’t feel enough. This is exactly what I didn’t want.
From the moment Baba arrived this morning, I made sure of one thing: Siya would not appear in front of him. I even arranged for her to be booked on this vineyard tour separately, to prevent any chance of their paths crossing.
And still, it didn’t work out. She met him anyway, and in a way I hadn’t expected.
And the worst part wasn’t that they just met.
It was that they’d already connected. She had spoken to him and likely complained about me in the heat of the moment, without realising who he was to me.
And Baba, being Baba, would have listened to her without questioning anything.
Things had already happened, and I wasn’t there to control it. That doesn’t sit well with me.
So when Baba said he wanted to take her around the vineyard himself, there was no way I was letting that happen without being there myself. I followed them because Baba was involved, and I don’t take chances when it comes to him.
But for the past few hours, I’ve done nothing but watch. Not just Baba, but her as well.
I watch the way she walks beside him as if she’s known him for years. I notice how she holds his arm without hesitation when the path gets uneven. I see the way she listens to him, not just politely, but with genuine interest.