Destination India (11 page)

‘But we can fix this, surely. You’re very good at what you do, Nihal.’ He blinked proudly and rubbed his face. ‘You can’t let this break-up ruin what good work you’ve done so far, work that I know you’re capable of. What about the tour group waiting in the hotel now? Relying on you?’ He didn’t need to know that they were all being given a tour of the old city thanks to Rashid stepping in and picking up the pieces.

Priya started laughing. ‘I’d cancel the rest of this trip if I were you.’

I was expecting Nihal to stand up and fight back, to use reverse psychology on his sister and make sure that didn’t happen. But instead he visibly slumped forward and nodded dejectedly. ‘For once, she’s right. You saw me last night in the restaurant; as soon as I heard that love song I just had to get out of there. I can’t function without Ameera.’

‘No,’ I said, firmly ignoring Priya making sick noises. ‘These people have also been through a bad time and they haven’t come all this way to be let down once more.’ I decided I needed to change tactics to the tough-love approach.

Nihal just sat there playing with one of the burnt-orange tassels hanging off the cushion he was sat on. ‘I’m sorry, but I can’t do it. I can’t eat, I can’t sleep, Ameera is all I can think about,’ he admitted quietly. His sister just scoffed in the corner. I didn’t want to laugh; I understood that being dumped hurt, a lot.

‘But maybe work would take your mind off that. They say the best remedy is to keep busy,’ I counterbalanced, before realising that hanging around a bunch of other heartbroken people was probably not a good mix for anyone.

Nihal shook his head. ‘No. I am so sorry you have come all this way to see me but I really think it would be better if I quit. I would prefer not to work at all than to ruin the tour.’

For the love of …!
He couldn’t quit.

My heart felt for him, it really did. But then the other rational side of my brain politely tapped my conscience. I had a business to run here. I’d come all this way, causing problems with Ben and Marie in the process, specifically to sort this problem out. I was not ready to let this go.

‘Right, why don’t you tell me what happened between you and Ameera,’ I said, thinking that if I had all the information then maybe I could come up with some sort of plan of attack.

He sat up, wiped his eyes and told me how they’d been together for two years; everything had been perfect until he’d started working for the Lonely Hearts. Suddenly he was spending longer away from home then returning with
all these incredible, inspirational stories of the men and women whom he had helped and Ameera had started to get jealous.

‘Jealous of the other women on the tour?’ I asked.

He shook his head. ‘No. Jealous of the things I was doing. She works in a small travel agency as she hopes to see the world one day but so far has never left this city.’

‘So, there was no cheating involved?’

‘No!’ He looked horrified at the thought.

‘And she hasn’t specifically said she wanted to end it with you because she doesn’t love you any more?’ Again he shook his head. ‘Well, then we can fix this!’ I said brightly.

He eyed me sceptically. Priya scoffed and I ignored her.

‘It’s simple; we just need to go and find Ameera and ask her to join one of the tours. Once she’s taken part she’ll know what it is you get up to and, who knows, maybe we can train her up to be a tour guide too?’

There had been so much demand for this Indian tour, if we had two tour groups going we could help even more people. The business side of my brain high-fived itself.

‘I don’t know,’ Nihal said, slowly running his fingers over the rim of his cup.

‘Please, Nihal, you said yourself you enjoy your work. Well, it shouldn’t come between you and Ameera, but sitting around here crying about the end of your relationship isn’t going to help you either.’
Plus if you don’t pull yourself together then where am I supposed to find another tour guide at such short notice?
I tried not to sound desperate.

Priya sighed and chucked a small cushion over at her brother. ‘Oi, you need to at least try, Nihal – even just to get you out of Mum’s house and out of my way. It’s not like you’re some rich prince who can turn down the cash, is it? Just suck it up and sort it out.’

Nihal sniffed loudly.

‘So, we’re on?’ I pushed.

He sighed. ‘OK but just please don’t be upset if your idea doesn’t work. Ameera can be very stubborn when she wants to be.’

I put three fingers together in a Girl Guide salute. ‘I promise.’

‘Well if it fails then just think, you could book yourself on the tour as a guest this time,’ Priya added before falling into a fit of giggles.

‘Don’t listen to her; we’re going to get this fixed,’ I said, crossing my fingers behind my back.

Shilly-shally (n.) Vacillation; indecisive behaviour

Fifteen minutes later we were walking up the street to the travel agency where Ameera worked, nestled in between a higgledy-piggledy electric store and a boarded-up laundrette. I told Nihal to wait outside as I went to scope it out, hoping I could use my womanly charms on Ameera to help her get back with the love-sick puppy pining for her in the street. I was actually feeling quite smug that this would all work out just fine.

A small bell tinkled my arrival like it did in Lonely Hearts Travels back in Manchester, taking me right back to thinking about work. Ben’s handsome face flooded my mind, making my tummy do a strange, silly flip. I wondered how he, Kelli and Trisha were getting on without me and how they were managing the workload. As I stepped into this travel agency a world away from home it dawned on me that since leaving Shelley at the airport my mind hadn’t been swimming with things I needed to do or emails I needed to send. It felt strange and I wasn’t sure I liked it.

I shook my head to focus on the task at hand: once I had match-made Nihal and Ameera I could confidently leave the tour group in their hands and be back where I belonged, catching up with my own business. I stepped into a small room that held two large desks with empty chairs opposite
and a battered-looking filing cabinet squished into the small gap in between; it made my shop seem like a palace. The whitewashed walls were covered in beautiful prints of exotic beaches and palm trees, which added bursts of colour to the unloved room. A plump woman was sitting behind one of the desks hunched over a clunky laptop that was wheezing as she typed. Beads of sweat dripped down her cheeks and she wiped them away with the back of her chunky wrist.

‘Hello, how can I help you today?’ she asked in a soft Indian lilt, looking up at me as I entered the shop.

‘Hi.’ I walked the three strides it took to stand in front of her. ‘Erm, are you Ameera?’

The fat woman pursed her lips. ‘No I’m not! But if you see that girl you tell her she will not be receiving
any
references from me after just running out on the shop like that.’

‘What? So Ameera’s not here any more?’

The chubby lady shook her head, spraying drops of sweat as she did.

Oh no.

‘No. She just upped and left with no warning or even working out her notice period. It’s left me in a right mess. Had to miss my nephew’s birthday party to be here to open up today and let me tell you that did not go down well,’ she huffed before her squinty eyes flicked to the window and she huffed again. I followed her gaze and saw Nihal peering through the glass, his face pressed against it trying to see how our mission was going.

‘Is that Nihal? You can tell him to get away from my shop before I come out there and make him. I know that Ameera leaving has something to do with him.’ She awkwardly tried to get up from the battered chair she was wedged in.

‘OK, we’ll go. Sorry for taking up your time,’ I said edging quickly to the door while she muttered under her breath as she heaved herself up.

Nihal almost pounced on me the moment I went outside. ‘So? I couldn’t see her. Was she in the back? Is she OK? How did she look? What did Fatso say? Why is she glaring at me like that?’ His words tumbled out as I steered him away from the shop.

I shook my head and took a deep breath. ‘It didn’t work. I’m sorry, Nihal.’

‘What?’ His shoulders slumped and his face visibly drooped. I panicked that he might start howling with tears again.

‘Ameera wasn’t there.’

‘What? Well where is she?’ A look of worry danced on his tear-splattered cheeks.

‘She’s quit. Her boss said she hasn’t turned up for work. She’s pretty annoyed to be honest; we really should start walking away.’ I looked over my shoulder, expecting the sweaty woman to waddle out of the shop after us.

Nihal cleared his throat and stayed planted in the same position letting what I’d said wash over him. ‘She’s gone?’

I nodded. ‘That’s what she told me.’

He looked like he was totally alone with his thoughts, as if the noise and mayhem of this Delhi street literally didn’t exist. I kept glancing at the shop nervously. After the world’s longest pause, he spoke. His voice sounded measured as if he had spent the never-ending silence choosing exactly the right words.

‘Well this changes everything. I have to go and find her.’

‘What?’ I coughed, ignoring a man tugging a rickety cart who spat red paan at my feet. Nihal turned to face me and gave a sharp nod.

‘No, you
have
to lead our tour group. You
have
to act like everything is normal. If she’s moved on then you need to do the same,’ I pleaded.

Nihal let out a deep sigh. ‘Georgia, I don’t know if I can.’

My stomach dropped; just moments ago I was preparing myself to get this all sorted out and head back to Manchester. Now I was standing on a baking hot street corner with some stranger’s chewed tobacco dripping on my toes and a maverick tour guide on a mission. I couldn’t have come all this way for nothing. ‘Nihal, everyone has been dumped at one time in their life and yeah it’s crap but that doesn’t mean staying at home sulking. You can’t lose your job over this. You need to show Ameera that you’re doing totally fine without her.’

Nihal turned to face me. ‘I can’t live without her. I love that woman with all my heart. We Indian men are not like the men you know. We don’t have that stiff upper lip, as you say. For us, the heart rules the head. I’m sorry, but I need to go and find her.’

‘No, you can’t leave the tour group without a tour guide! Wait – what if I join you?’ I suddenly blurted out to Nihal, without fully thinking it through.

He did a double take and scratched his stubbly chin. ‘What?’

‘I know you want to find Ameera but you have responsibilities to finish here first.’

‘Georgia, I told you I could hardly focus when Ameera dumped me. You saw me at the restaurant last night, but now I know she has left her job I definitely won’t be able to do anything until I find her. I can ask around to find another tour guide to stand in?’

My mouth filled with saliva and my stomach tightened. I was not losing him now, especially when I knew what potential he had. I silently waved goodbye to my speedy exit to Manchester.

‘Nihal, just finish this tour and then I promise we can try and find Ameera together. I’m on the tour already, maybe I can just, you know, step up a bit more to support you. Without the others noticing of course.’ I cleared my throat. ‘This way you get out of your mum’s house and away from Priya’s teasing, keep yourself busy and do what you love, but you have me to cheer you on if things get too tough. Please.’

He looked like he might cry again.

‘Nihal?’

He sighed deeply. ‘OK. You’re on.’

I got back to the hotel feeling exhausted. Nihal had given me his word that he would be here tomorrow to lead the tour group and he would put off trying to find Ameera until the guests had left. I’d thanked Rashid for the box of tea without explaining how freaked out I was by the way it had been delivered. His face had dropped when I mentioned that Ameera had gone AWOL but then broken into a wide toothy grin at hearing the news that Nihal was back on board. I was suddenly aware that it wasn’t just the tour goers or our bank balance that suffered if we cancelled these tours. All the hand-picked suppliers we worked with would also lose out. He told me that the other guests had had a great day sightseeing and that he’d explained I wasn’t feeling so well, hence my bailing.

I flopped on my bed and allowed my body to relax and my mind to catch up on everything that had happened today. I eventually managed to pick up a half decent Wi-Fi signal and turned onto my side as a message buzzed through from my parents asking if I’d arrived safely and one from Shelley telling me that her passport had been handed into the pub by one of the cleaners. I breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness we were wrong about Marie; it must have just slipped out of her bag without us
noticing. I quickly typed back that this undercover boss mission was harder than I’d imagined but I was starting to find answers to the questions I had.

I tapped out a message to my parents letting them know I was OK and WhatsApped Ben asking him to call me. I needed to fill him in on today’s revelations plus I remembered that I’d forgotten to give him my log-in details for my emails, and judging by how sketchy the Wi-Fi was it would be worth him asking Kelli to check that nothing urgent had slipped through the net if I couldn’t access my messages. Especially now I was going to be staying here for longer than I had thought.

After a few minutes, FaceTime chirruped to life; I patted down my frizzy hair, hoped the bright lighting wouldn’t highlight my under-eye bags and pressed the green button. Ben’s face filled my small phone screen and I felt my stomach flip and my lips curl into a smile.

‘Hey.’ Ben’s bloody handsome face smiled back. ‘You’re alive,’ he said, sounding as relieved to see me as I did to see him. ‘I was worried about you,’ he half mumbled, causing my smile to grow even bigger.

‘Hey, I’m here.’

God he looked cute. His hair had this adorable natural wave that framed his features and only made his almond-shaped eyes more inviting. He was wearing the checked shirt that always made me gawp at his strong arms. I felt my vagina do a funny squeeze and forced myself to concentrate.

‘Shelley called me and told me that she’d lost her passport and that you’d carried on and travelled without her?’ A worried expression creased his forehead.

I nodded. ‘Yep. That was pretty scary but I’m here safe and sound.’ That seemed like it had been weeks ago. ‘God, Delhi is one crazy busy city.’ I laughed lightly as he nodded gently then distractedly glanced out of the shot to a phone
that was ringing. ‘I won’t keep you but I realised that I’d forgotten to send you my email log-in details. I’ll send you a message with them so you can keep an eye on things.’ I paused, taking a breath as he nodded. I was sure I noticed him roll his eyes but that may have been a time delay. ‘So, how’s everything going?’

The phone stopped ringing and Ben sighed deeply. Suddenly I realised that his eyes had red rims around them and his stubble was almost at Nihal levels. ‘Not good.’

My stomach dropped. ‘What? Why?’

Balls. I’d only been gone a few days and already things were falling apart.

He ran his hand through his messy curls and briefly closed his eyes. ‘Trisha’s had a fall.’

‘What? Oh my God! Is she OK?’

Ben cleared his throat and nodded slowly. ‘Yeah, she tripped up in the middle of Boots; she said the shame of it was more painful than anything else. Thankfully she’s only sprained her ankle so the doctors have ordered bed rest.’

‘Oh, thank God she’s OK. Well of course she needs to take things easy for a while.’

‘Yeah.’ He sighed. ‘Not to sound callous but it has left us in the lurch a little. I’d banked on her being here so took on extra work whilst you’re away and I doubt Kelli and I will be able to cope with it being just the two of us.’ He paused. ‘I’ve just been thinking about maybe hiring a temp whilst you’re not here. What do you reckon?’

I answered without hesitation. ‘Poor Trisha, she was really looking forward to being back in the shop, but yep, I think you should get an extra pair of hands to help you out. I actually have a list of possible temps on my desk, in the green or maybe orange folder. I can’t remember.’

Ben smiled and nodded. ‘So you planned for this then?’ he said, not giving me the chance to answer. ‘Course you did.’

‘No not like that.’ I bit my bottom lip. ‘I just started looking into maybe hiring a temp way before Trisha offered to help out, just as a back-up plan.’ He nodded but stayed silent. ‘Anyway I divided the list into suitable and, let’s say, not suitable in a million years. I thought it might be helpful.’

‘I know.’ He rubbed his face with his hand. Was this how exhausted I had been looking? I heard someone chattering in the background that grabbed his attention. ‘OK well thanks. I’ll check it out and try and get someone soonish. Listen, I’m sorry, Georgia, but I’m going to have to go. It’s getting pretty chocka in here.’

‘Oh, all right, well …’

I was cut off from saying goodbye as Ben’s screen turned black. He’d hung up. I hadn’t even had the chance to tell him about Nihal. I turned onto my back and stared up at the ceiling. Maybe I should have just cancelled the tour, given the guests their money back and flown home to help Ben in the office. It did feel like this whole trip was cursed. I let a single tear roll down my cheek and closed my eyes, hoping a good night’s sleep would fix everything. For the first time I felt helpless and completely out of control. Of everything.