Priya in Heels (Entangled Embrace) (18 page)

“Yes.”

My hands slid around to her front and the most mind-shattering moan escaped her lips. She clutched the pillows in front of her, dragging one lower until her forehead dropped down. Her body moved with my strokes as if we were one.

This was almost enough for me.

Almost.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Priya

Ty snatched my phone and held it over his head as I tried to retrieve it. I couldn’t jump high enough, nor did I have the strength to pull his arm down.

“Give me back my phone.”

“Call them,” he said.

“I will.”

“You keep saying that. You promised me that you’d call them.”

“Give me a little more time.”

“Do you love me?”

Did I
love
him? How could I define love? Could a future without Tyler O’Connor exist? Could a lifetime with another man make me this happy? Could anyone else make my skin tingle with his expectant touch or make my knees weak with one kiss?

Maybe the best definition of love came from Bollywood: a love so intense it drove people to defy traditions, laws, and every element on this planet to be together.

There was no denying that I was head over heels for Ty, especially after last night’s incredible adventure in his bed. It wasn’t just the sex, of course, it was everything about him. My heart, my body, my soul, my thoughts, everything that was me belonged to him.

“Yes.”

Ty lowered his hand. “Say it.”

“I love you,” I said effortlessly but filled with emotion.

A pleased smile lifted his lips as he handed me the phone. “Now tell them.”

I inhaled. “This is hard news for them to hear. I’ll drive to Austin tomorrow and tell them in person.”

He gathered me into his arms. “Want me to go with you?”

I shook my head. “I can be adult enough to tell them the truth.”

“Which is?”

“That I can’t get engaged to the dentist.”

“Because?”

“I’m in love with Tyler O’Connor.”

He pecked my cheek. “I love you, too, babe, so much.”

“Do all stalkers say that?”

He tickled my side. I laughed uncontrollably and fought him off. Ty didn’t ease up. In fact, he tickled harder, an act of war. I fought back, slapping, punching, but he handled it without letting go. I grabbed his short hair and pulled, then bit his neck.

Ty grabbed me by the waist, lifted me up, and slammed me onto the couch. He landed on top of me and restrained my hands above my head, his face red from laughter.

“Wrong move.”

My eyes grew wide. Ty had me pinned, unable to move and unable to snap at any of his body parts. He tickled. I screamed. He tickled until I cried, until I begged, until laughter turned into hyperventilation.

“Stop! Stop!”

“Magic word,” he demanded, having no mercy.

“Please!”

He stopped, released my hands, and settled on top of me. I tried to catch my breath as he nuzzled my neck. The stubble on his face scratched in a very good way. He kissed my throat, but I was too out of breath to enjoy his lips. His hands had a tendency to wander when his mouth was busy kissing.

My phone rang in my pocket and I fumbled to get it. Ty groaned with my accidental brushes against him.

“It’s my parents.”

That stopped him in his tracks. He lay on top of me, his face buried against my neck.

I took in a breath before answering. “Hello?”

“
Beti
, how are you?” Mummie asked.

“Fine. How are you, Mummie?”

“Good! Manuk’s parents called. They were delighted to see you at the ceremony.”

“Oh?”

“Manuk was even more delighted. He’s eager to set up the engagement. He’s made up his mind.”

Ty squeezed my thigh.

“Yeah, about that.”

“What?”

“I’m coming to Austin tomorrow to talk to you.”

“Priyanka,” Mummie said in her angry voice. “You are not going to turn down Manuk’s proposal. What is wrong with him?”

“Nothing’s wrong with him, except…”

Ty gave another reassuring squeeze.

“You know, he’s not as traditional as you think he is.”

“Men these days in America! That’s no reason to deny his offer. I understand the other two men. They had faults. Rahul wasn’t a looker, and Sanjay was too traditional for you.”

“Sanjay wanted a wife from the old country. I bet Jeeta would like him.”

“
Hmm
, that’s a good observation. She’s a very good girl. Unlike you. Why are you breaking my heart?”

I tried to nudge Ty, wanting some privacy. Instead, he rested against my chest so he could hear the entire conversation.

“Mummie, you want me to be happy, right?”

“Yes, which is why we only introduced the best of the best to you. Is Manuk too modern for you?” She gasped. “Has he had a girlfriend before?”

Ty chuckled. I clamped a hand over his mouth, but he just licked my palm.

“Yes, but that’s not the issue. I’m not very comfortable with him.”

“I didn’t see Papa until the day we married. I learned to love him. You young people are spoiled by dating before engagement and then taking another year before the wedding.”

“Mummie, I’ll speak with you when I see you in Austin tomorrow.”

“Manuk’s parents are waiting for an answer.”

“When did they call?”

“Ten minutes ago. I told Papa and called you.”

“And they can’t wait for an answer?” I snapped.

“Priyanka.”

“Sorry, Mummie. That was toward them. I don’t get along with them.”

“Try harder.”

“I shouldn’t have to try so hard. Everything feels wrong.”

“Are you saying no to the proposal?”

Ty glanced up at me when I paused. “Yes.” I ran my fingers through his hair and he relaxed.

“Tell me why.” Mummie’s voice hardened.

My heart beat faster, but Ty being here, hearing this, gave me the strength I needed. “Things don’t feel right, like I said.”

“What else?”

“I’ll tell you tomorrow.”

“Is it because of Tyler?”

A lump formed in my throat. “Yes.”

Mummie didn’t say anything for a long time.

“Mummie?”

“Will you ruin your life for him?”

“Mummie, I’m not ruining my life.”

“Have I ever steered you wrong?”

“No.”

“We worked hard to make sure you wanted for nothing, that you had everything you needed and wanted. You asked for a car, we gave it to you. You asked for cell phones and computers and road trips with your friends. Did we ever say no?”

“No.”

“You wanted to go to med school and live in Houston on your own. Did we say no? Did we ever think we couldn’t trust you to make the right decisions? Did we ever lecture you about not doing bad things? Do you know why?”

“Why?”

“Because we raised you well. We talked about everything. You’re a smart girl. I know some of your friends have boyfriends and drink and have sex, but I know you’re smarter than that.”

I closed my eyes.

“You never let a boy get into your head. You kept on your path, did great things, became successful. What have we done to you to make you hurt us like this?”

“I’m not trying to hurt you. And you just said you raised me well. Can’t you trust that I am making the right decision?”

“No. Not this time. Is Tyler successful? Can he take care of you, or will you be using your income to take care of everything? Can he speak Gujarati to communicate with our family? Will he go to
mandir
and know how to do
puja
? How will you raise your kids? Hindu or Christian? Will he be comfortable at functions? How will others treat him, treat you, your half-white children?”

“Mummie. Tyler
is
successful.”

She scoffed. “He doesn’t make much money, not like you, not like Manuk.”

“Income isn’t everything.”

“And the rest of my questions? You haven’t thought that far? What a surprise. Usually you think ahead. This is nothing. It will pass. Don’t tell me you love him. You don’t know what love is.”

“I think I do.”

Mummie laughed bitterly. “Did Bollywood teach you? Bollywood is nonsense, just fancy stories that you watched too often growing up. It’s not real life. Love before marriage is rubbish.”

“I disagree.”

“Priyanka, I will not let you make this mistake. I’m calling to accept the proposal.”

“Don’t do that.”

“You haven’t given me reason not to.”

“I told you.”

“You told me nothing! Stop thinking about Tyler and get your head on straight. What kind of shame are you trying to bring to our family, huh? My daughter will not marry a man like him.”

“There’s nothing wrong with Tyler.”

“Priyanka!”

“No, Mummie. I’m not accepting the offer. I’ll call Manuk myself.”

“Priyanka,” she growled. “If you decline this offer because of Tyler, I will never speak to you again.”

“You don’t mean that.”

“Do I lie to you, huh? Tell me, yes or no.”

“No.”

“Has he defiled you?”

“Mummie!”

“Answer me. Manuk will not want to marry a used woman, to be fair to him.”

Ty shook his head in disbelief. I didn’t bother mentioning that Manuk wasn’t a virgin. No twenty-seven-year-old attractive doctor was.

When I didn’t answer, Mummie snapped, “How could you? How could you let a man touch you? You’ve brought reproach on us already. You’ve shamed us. I’m so disappointed in you. We trusted you, worked hard for you. Do we mean nothing?”

The anguish in Mummie’s voice, her unadulterated discontent, pained me.

“I can’t even speak to you.”

There was some noise as the phone shuffled through hands. Mummie yelled in the background. Papa came on. “Is this true, Priyanka?”

I closed my eyes. “Yes.”

“Tell her not to come home!” Mummie yelled in the background. “She has no home here!”

“You can’t change what you’ve done, but you better fix it.”

“There’s nothing to fix. I love Tyler, and I can’t marry Manuk.”

“Before you call or see us, fix this, otherwise we have nothing to say.”

“Papa.”

The line clicked. I groaned and leaned my head against the armrest. Ty rubbed my waist. His touch soothed, but nothing could repair the pain in my chest.

“Don’t worry, babe. They’ll get over it. They need time to process and to see that what we have is real and not some temporary fling.”

I swallowed. What if they didn’t? This
was
a freaking big deal.

“They’ll be mad for a little while, but they love you. You’re a grown woman. They can’t do anything drastic. Just give it some time.”

I sank into the couch. “I had a friend named Anu in high school who dated a Muslim Pakistani. Her parents found out and forced her to stop seeing him, but they were in love. The entire Indian community knew, and her actions put them to shame. Her mom always walked around the temple with lowered eyes and her head covered, like her daughter was a murderer. Her dad just looked sad but hardened.

“Anu ran off with the guy. But they were stupid. They didn’t have money or a car, so they ran off to an
auntie’s
house and she called their parents so they wouldn’t worry. Her parents took her to India and married her off the day after graduation. After that, her parents could hold their chin up and everyone acted like Anu’s wedding validated her.”

“Your parents won’t drag you to India and marry you off. Like I said: grown woman.”

“The point is that this kind of thing affects Indian parents very strongly. And Indians who don’t even know me will have things to say. It’s a pain they’ll have to endure forever, whether they accept you or not. Like Niki—she married a black man who was the nicest guy. But because he was black, she got it bad. If looks could kill. I felt sorry for her. She was a sweetheart. Another girl in Jersey did the same thing. Her parents said she went to India for a trip, but she never came back.”

“Married off, too? That seems to be a stupid solution. Doesn’t solve anything. Marriage is overrated. People suffer.”

“Why do you think that? Your parents are together.”

“No.”

“What? I’ve met them.”

“You met my stepmom. My birth mom was anal about organization and cleaning and nagging. My dad couldn’t take it, so he started working late and cheated on her with his secretary. Mom went ballistic, but they tried to stay together. All they did was fight. When they didn’t fight, the house was silent. I hated being home. Mom started using drugs and one day she died from an overdose.”

“Oh, Ty.” I hugged him.

“It doesn’t bother me as much anymore. My dad married Stella a couple years later, and she’s been great, a real mom to me.”

“Their marriage is working out.”

“Not without issues. I think everyone needs their space. If we lived together, you’d have your own room. If we were mad at each other or bugging the other, we’d have our own space to go. We wouldn’t feel suffocated or tied down or hopeless because we’re married and thought there was no way out.”

I kissed the top of his head. “I can’t imagine wanting to divorce you.”

“I can’t imagine wanting to leave you, but I’ve seen too many relationships ruined by marriage. And kids…”

I shifted beneath him and rolled out.

“Where you going?”

“Going to call them again.”

I sat on the edge of my bed and called my parents. They didn’t answer. I left a few messages about wanting to talk, hoping they’d see me tomorrow. They didn’t return the phone calls.

Finally, on the fourth try, Mummie answered. “What?”

“Mummie, can’t we talk this through?”

“No. If you want to ruin your life and stab a knife through my heart, then I have no daughter to talk to.” She hung up.

Pain stretched across my chest, numbing me. I wiped away tears. Growing up, I had done things that upset my parents, like all kids. I hadn’t been a perfect child. Drugs and sex had never been an issue, but bad grades, staying out late to go to parties, and the occasional drink had sent my parents into punishment mode.

They had never remained angry for more than a few days. They had never said I shamed them or that they no longer had a daughter.

I curled up and wiped away more tears. Mummie had gone through so much pain. She always stood like a fortified, armored goddess, as if nothing were wrong in her world. Papa’s family hated her. This would add fodder for their frenzy. I just prayed the ammunition didn’t kill Mummie.

Ty walked in and joined me on the bed, drawing me into an embrace as I sobbed against his chest. He wiped away my tears as they fell and rocked with me.