The Sari Shop Widow (31 page)

“But it’s happening now. And the rest of it will happen, too, if you keep that dream alive.” He traced the outline of her lower lip with his thumb. “I could make it all come true for you.”

“Most of it is the clichéd pie-in-the-sky. Besides, you’ve already done too much.” She stood on tiptoes and placed a light kiss on his lips. “Thank you. I hope I can fulfill my end of the bargain—keep this business healthy.”

“You will. And there’s something else I want to discuss with you later.” He didn’t like to see the distress in her eyes, but he could do something about erasing it. Maybe it was that unexpected quality of vulnerability that had attracted him to her in the first place.

The other women he’d been involved with hadn’t needed him, whereas Anjali did. He’d never before considered himself a protective sort of man, but now he wanted to do it all—for this one woman.

He was in love with Anjali. For the first time in forty-two years he could honestly say he was in love.

His mother would get a good chuckle out of that, he thought with an inward smile. She’d always warned him that love was a strange thing. She’d told him how, as a pretty young woman with a good nursing career ahead of her, she’d been offered love and marriage by at least two good-looking men. She’d turned down their offers and gone off in search of adventure and to answer her calling. Then she had gone against her devout Christian parents’ wishes and married a Hindu.

She often said to Rishi, “You’ll stumble into it when you least expect it.”

He’d looked into his mother’s twinkling gray eyes and laughed. “Mum, I’m over forty, in case you haven’t noticed. If I haven’t found it yet, it’s bloody well never going to happen.”

“Look what happened to me,” she’d pointed out. “The Lord took your father, but years later he put another good man in my life.” With that she’d sent her husband, Charles, an affectionate glance. Charles Mallory was an upstanding, solid man. Rishi was genuinely fond of his stepfather.

And now Rishi had
stumbled
into love. But convincing Anjali of that was going to be a major hurdle. Besides, he had no idea how she felt about him.

Chapter 26

A
njali lay with her head resting on Rishi’s shoulder, wondering how she’d ended up in his bed again. She’d managed to keep away from his suite for an entire week despite his efforts to entice her. The temptation had been fierce. If it weren’t for the loads of work at the store, she would have given in to the urge and let the future take care of itself.

Tonight had been a repeat of that other night. Rishi had been a tender and ardent lover. He’d offered her a glimpse of bliss again and again. He had shown her what physical love combined with emotional love could be. The only problem was he was in it for the short term. Very short.

He hadn’t said when he was leaving, but it had to be soon. The store was on its feet and he’d done his part to make sure everything was running smoothly. Jeevan-kaka hadn’t said anything so far either. Tomorrow was probably when the two men would make an announcement about their departure.

She dreaded it.

It hurt like hell to think Rishi would be leaving soon. But it didn’t mean the end of the world, either. She’d survived the loneliness before and she’d survive it again.

“Why the frown?” Rishi’s voice drew her back to the present. “Was it that bad?” He’d been lazily running his fingers up and down her arm.

“It was fabulous, and you know it,” she said. “I didn’t realize I was frowning.”

“I thought you were contemplating how to let me down gently.”

“Funny how we were both thinking the same thing.”

“So you
were
planning on jilting me.”

“No, I was wondering if you were going to say something like, ‘It’s been mah-velous knowing you, dah-ling. I’m returning to London tomorrow, so it’s—’”

“I love you.”

“—ta-ta for now—” She sat up, unmindful of the sheet sliding down to her naked waist. “What did you say?”

“I love you.”

“You don’t mean that.”

His eyebrows snapped together. “I most certainly do.”

“Well…” She’d hoped for it and dreamed about it, but now that he’d said it, she was speechless.

“Is that all you can say?” He folded his arms across his chest.

Pulling the sheet up to her chin, she took two deep breaths. “It’s a little unexpected.”

“After the two nights you’ve spent in my arms, it’s still unexpected, Anju?” The scowl eased a little but he looked puzzled.

“Why are you so surprised at my reaction?” she said. “I thought you’d be telling me we could be friends and that if you happened to be in the U.S. on business in the future, and if we can make the time, we could sleep togeth—”

He reached over and clamped a hand across her mouth. “Marry me.”

She caught his wrist and slowly lowered his hand. “Marry?”

Tugging on her hair, he gently urged her to settle back on the pillow. “Yes, marry me.” He studied her face for a long moment. “You look like I just asked you to jump off the nearest cliff.”

It hit her then, sending her brain into a tailspin. Love. Marriage. She knew he wasn’t lying. Those eyes looked as sincere as anything she’d ever seen. He didn’t seem like the kind of man who’d lie—at least not about something like this. And yet, despite the heart-busting euphoria, she couldn’t really follow through with it.

Ordinarily, this would have been a dream come true: marry the man she was giddy in love with, someone who’d come along when she’d least expected it. He was smart, good-looking, sophisticated, funny, and a dynamite lover. Was he a little too perfect?

When she didn’t respond, he said, “We’d be good together. We’re in the same sort of business. Since we both travel we could do it together most of the time. We could complement each other personally, professionally, in every way.”

“Sounds delightful, but I…I can’t marry you.”

“Why?”

“I have obligations here. My parents can’t run the store by themselves.”

“They’re more capable than you give them credit for, Anju,” he said in rational tone.

“But now there are multiple departments and new employees and so much more floor area and merchandise,” she pointed out. “Mom’s bright and fashion oriented, but she’s not into it as much as I am.”

“I’ve thought about all that.”

“When?”

“Since I fell in love with you that’s all I’ve been thinking about, making plans for the future, seeing how you could expand your talents to other areas.”

She threw him a wary look. “But my talents are needed here.”

“I know that, but you could start designing clothes and accessories for our other stores in other countries.”

“You mean your fancy boutiques will accept my humble designs?”

“They’re not humble; they’re very appealing and they’re versatile enough to grab the attention of mainstream stores, the ones that sell standard western clothes.”

She angled a puzzled look at him, the first faint stirrings of excitement kicking in. “You mean my clothes could make it on the international circuit?”

“I could make it happen for you.”

“You’d do that for me, Rishi?”

“I’d do that and a hell of a lot more. I’d even move here if I could, but the bulk of my business is in London. Besides, the U.S. government makes it nearly impossible to gain permanent domicile in the States.” He paused, giving her a moment for thought. “On the other hand, living in London as a British citizen’s wife won’t be a problem for you.”

“I suppose so,” she said, chewing on her lower lip. She’d known this relationship was complicated right from the beginning. It wouldn’t come without its obstacles. No relationship was simple.

“I love you,” he repeated. “I’m offering marriage, so you’ll be my partner in every way. We can make your dream of having a chain of Silk & Sapphires boutiques come true. You and I,” he said, drawing her close. “We can do everything you ever wanted to do.” One suggestive eyebrow climbed up. “We could even…make a baby.”

“Oh.” Her wildest dreams could come true. And all of that was being offered by the man she was in love with. “Did you say baby?”

“I did.”

“How are we going to make a baby at our age, much less raise it?”

“Like other parents in the world. Like your own parents.” He pushed the hair off her face. “Did you ever think about having children?”

“Yes. Vik and I thought we’d get around to it when we had some money saved. We were young; we had plenty of time to have children. Or so we thought.” She looked away. “Pipe dreams.”

“This time around it needn’t be. We could have a child right away. I know you’d make a superb mum.”

“What do you base that on?”

“I’ve watched you interact with Nilesh and Sejal…and children in general. Didn’t you tell me you took care of your brother often when he was a baby?”

A smile tilted her mouth. “I’ve done diaper and bottle duty quite a bit. He was a cute little devil despite spitting up and peeing on me. Nilesh is like a fungus: he grows on you eventually.”

Rishi laughed. “He’s grown into a rather likeable mushroom.” He tweaked her nose. “You, on the other hand, darling, I happen to love.”

“You’re sure what you feel for me isn’t lust?” she asked.

“Positive.”

“Going for weeks without sex could make a man mistake one for the other, you know.”

“No mistake here. I know you don’t return my sentiments, but I jolly well plan to make you fall in love with me. I know this is egotistical on my part, but I’m a hard worker and I almost always get what I want.”

She threw her arm around his neck. “You don’t have to work hard; I’m already there.”

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

She tugged his head down to touch hers. “That’s what I’m saying.”

“Then will you please say it clearly, for mercy’s sake?”

“I love you.”

He gave her a mock frown. “And when exactly were you planning to tell me?”

“Never, if you didn’t reciprocate my feelings. No point in humiliating myself.”

He kissed the tip of her nose. “You should know by now how I feel about you. I wouldn’t have made love to you if I didn’t care deeply. Sleeping with you isn’t a casual pastime for me.”

“That makes two of us.”

“So, what’s your answer, Miss Kapadia? I wouldn’t mind if you decided to keep your maiden name like you did the first time. You’ll have all the independence you want if you marry me.”

“Sounds like a dream life…”

“Do I hear a
but
there?”

She gave him a helpless shrug. “This is all going too fast for me. I’m not prepared for this. Until two hours ago I was only thinking about how I was going to organize tomorrow’s workload at the store. Now I have a marriage proposal. I have too many things on my plate…too many complications.”

“Don’t worry; I’ll think of a way around those. It’s my job to solve business problems. People pay me handsomely to do it.” He surprised her when he said in perfect Gujarati,
“Jaynoo kaam thaynoo thhaai.”
Leave it to the expert.

Perhaps because she continued to look overwhelmed, he said, “Haven’t I kept my promises so far?”

“You have, but…there’s still…you know…Samantha.”

“I made a clean break with Samantha.”

She paused. “I’ll accept that. However—”

“For now, just think about my proposal. You don’t have to give me an instant answer.”

“All right.” Her stomach was bunched up in a tight ball.

“Come on, let’s eat something first,” he suggested. “Maybe some food will mellow your thoughts about marriage.”

“I doubt that. I’m not even hungry.”

“We’ve just had a fantastic workout and you haven’t eaten a thing all day. I’m going to order something to be brought up.” He picked up the leather-bound menu from the nightstand and handed it to her. “I’m going to have their broiled swordfish. What about you?” He smiled. “Should I think optimistically and order a bottle of champagne?”

“Not yet.” She studied the menu. “I’ll have a grilled cheese sandwich and decaf coffee.”

“We’ll forget the champagne for now.” He put the menu back on the nightstand, all the while studying her expression. “Take all the time you want to think about my proposal. I don’t want to rush you.” “Okay.” She badly needed some private time to digest his proposal and reflect. She couldn’t think straight when he was too close. So she slid out of bed and dragged the T-shirt he had lent her over her head. “Mind if I grab a quick shower?”

“Go right ahead. It’ll be a while before our food arrives,” he said, picking up the room phone.

She could feel his eyes following her. What was going through his mind? Was he wondering why she’d behaved the way she had? What woman on the wrong side of thirty-five would turn down such a dream of a man and the added fantasy of a business she’d always wanted?

While the hot water rained over her, she kept going over and over what Rishi had just said, but she couldn’t think of a way to accept his proposal and still remain active in the business. London was too damn far, and he was constantly on the move. She had her own work. Ironically, Silk & Sapphires, the thing that had brought them together, would likely be the very thing to keep them apart.

And then there was that other matter—as troublesome as the first, if not more. Although he’d said his affair with Samantha was over, it was unclear whether or not Samantha still had a place in his life. Was she still living in his house? Would their business relationship continue in the unforeseen future? He hadn’t said a word about it when he’d proposed.

It had all happened so abruptly that it had caught her by surprise, making it impossible to ask the more practical questions. Now, very slowly, the relevant issues were beginning to surface. And Samantha was a significant relevant issue.

Minutes later, when she came out with a towel tucked around herself and her hair still damp, she found him in the sitting room, talking on his cell phone. She stood behind the partly open bedroom door and observed him. He had his trousers on but no shirt. He was pacing the floor in bare feet.

She was tempted to sneak up from behind and throw her arms around him, but the conversation sounded like business, so she refrained from following through on her impulse. He had on that familiar intense look and his tone was crisp and authoritative. He was all business when he was like that.