The Sari Shop Widow (35 page)

“You could have at least given us a hint, Rishi,” scolded Usha. “We’re family.”

“It wasn’t my place to do it, Auntie. It was Jeevan-kaka’s wish to share that when he wanted to.”

Jeevan made an imperious and dismissive gesture with his hands. “Enough about me. We have more important things to discuss.”

Usha cleared her throat. “Yes, we do.”

“Sit down, Rishi,” ordered Jeevan. “Mohan and Usha are worried about Anju. I have explained some things to them, but they want to talk to you in person.”

Rishi sat down in the only chair left in the sitting room. “All right, then. Let’s talk.”

As expected, Usha came straight to the point. “Is it true that you proposed to Anju?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m in love with her, Auntie. I believe I could…make her happy.”

Usha’s eyebrow flew up. “Did you invite your British girlfriend to live with you because you believed you could make her happy, too?”

Despite her deliberate sarcasm Rishi decided to keep a lid on his temper. He shook his head. “I never actually invited Samantha to live with me. She suggested it and I agreed. And if you’re wondering whether I kept Samantha a secret from Anju, I did not. I mentioned Samantha to her and the nature of our relationship some time ago. Anju had no problem with it. At least that was my impression.”

“If you already had a relationship going in London, then why did you start one with Anju?” Mohan’s voice sounded more tired than angry. His wife had probably woken him early and dragged him here against his wishes. Of course, he’d just found out about his brother, too. It had to be hard on a man his age—coping with all that on top of the stress of opening a new business.

“Uncle, please understand that I didn’t
plan
to start anything with Anju. I came to the U.S. at Jeevan-kaka’s request to help you with the business issue. But then I met Anju. The more I saw her, the more I liked her, and fell in love with her. You have a lovely and talented daughter with a captivating personality. However, I started seeing her seriously only after I broke up with Samantha. Until then, I didn’t date Anju, and nor did I tell her of my intentions.”

“And you never once thought that by playing with her emotions you’d be hurting a vulnerable girl whose life has been blown apart once before?” The distress in Usha’s voice was sharp enough to affect anyone, even a strong man.

Rishi felt his stomach tighten. “Auntie, I had no intention of hurting Anju. Precisely for that reason I didn’t pursue her until I made a clean break with Samantha. When I was in London recently, I told Samantha that our relationship wasn’t progressing and that it was time for us to part.”

“Samantha obviously didn’t think so,” Usha quipped.

Ignoring Usha’s barbed remark, Rishi continued, “I made sure there was nothing of hers left behind. In fact, I even thought about selling my home and all its furnishings if Anju agreed to marry me. I wanted us to start fresh, with no ghosts from our respective pasts.”

A frown settled over Usha’s face. “Then why is your girlfriend still calling you in the middle of the night?”

“She’s facing some financial problems.” He was beginning to have doubts about Samantha’s claims but he couldn’t tell the Kapadias that. Not yet anyway. “For some unknown reason she called me for help.”

“What do you mean,
unknown
reason?” retorted Usha. “In our culture, when a man and woman live together like husband and wife, then they’re expected to be husband and wife. And apparently you and she lived together for several years.”

All Rishi could do was nod. He knew enough about the values she was talking about. “I understand, but I wasn’t entirely steeped in that culture, Auntie. I’ve lived most of my life as a white man in England.”

After his long silence Jeevan joined in the conversation. “That is true, Usha. Did I not tell you that although he has a girlfriend, he is basically an honorable fellow?”

Rishi glanced at the old man. “Thank you. It’s kind of you to offer your support.”

“So exactly what are your intentions toward Anju now?” asked Mohan, when his wife sent him a pointed look.

“My intentions are still the same, Uncle: I want to marry her; I want to encourage her to market her designs to reputable international houses of fashion; I want to help promote her career; and by the grace of God I hope to have a child with her.” He put on his most humble face. “I want to do it honorably and with your blessings.”

He noticed with some satisfaction Usha taking a deep breath and settling back a little. Maybe he’d put her mind at ease to some extent. Or maybe not. He couldn’t be sure.

“But you know Anju has obligations, Rishi,” Usha said after several seconds of uncomfortable silence. “She has deep roots here in the U.S.”

“I realize that, but doesn’t she also deserve a life of her own? How long do you expect her to live as a widow and let the business occupy her entire life?”

“She’s our partner and she’s the one who has managed most of the design and merchandising,” answered Mohan. “If she marries you, how will she manage the business?”

“I’ve thought about that, Uncle,” explained Rishi. “Sejal’s graduating soon and she seems to be extremely interested in co-managing the store. I’ve talked to her about it briefly and I think she’s a natural for the job. I’m not saying Anju has to remove herself completely from the boutique; she’ll still have much to do with it. She can visit you several times a year, spend a couple of weeks each time, take inventory, set up the new fashion lines, et cetera. She’d still remain your fashion expert and strategist, but Sejal and Auntie and you can manage the daily operations.”

“What about you?” Jeevan raised his brows at Rishi. “You are also our partner in Silk & Sapphires.”

“I’ll be just as active as Anju. I manage to keep an eye on all my businesses and this one is no exception. It’s Anju’s store. How could I not be involved?”

That particular remark seemed to earn him a little clemency from Usha. “Really?”

“Yes. I want to make her dreams come true—at least some, if not all.” He looked at Usha. “Did you know Anju had dreams of starting an international chain of Silk & Sapphires stores?”

“She told you that?”

Rishi nodded. “Apparently she and Vikram had some long-term business plans?”

“She had dreams, all right,” Usha conceded.

“She still has a chance to realize them,” Rishi emphasized gently. “She seems to love children, and I could give her that as well. Before it’s too late.”

Usha glanced at her husband, probably wondering what his feelings were. But Mohan still appeared a little dazed.

It was Jeevan who took the initiative. “We understand that you want to marry Anju, but how are you going to convince Anju of that? She says she doesn’t want to see you again.”

“I know she’s confused and angry.”

“Very,” said Jeevan.

“But she has absolutely no reason to be. I didn’t get a chance to explain things to her clearly. A minute after Samantha called Anju jumped to certain conclusions and then decided to go home.” He looked at Usha and Mohan. “I could use your help in convincing her.”

“She has a mind of her own, Rishi,” said Usha. “When she’s hurting she withdraws into herself. After Vikram’s death it took us a long time to draw her out. Although she’s very outgoing and friendly, she’s a very private person when it comes to certain things. When she eventually comes out of it, she throws herself into her work till she’s ready to drop.”

“I know. I’ve observed her.” He rose to his feet and paced, hoping to ease the increasing stiffness in his knee. For a minute he mulled over how to deal with Anju, then came up with an idea. “What if I went away for a while? I’m supposed to meet a client in California within the next few days. Instead I’ll leave immediately. That might help, don’t you think?”

Usha gave him a dubious look. “You mean that age-old cliché about distance making the heart grow fonder?”

He shrugged. “Anything that’ll work in my favor. If nothing else, my absence will give her the time and space to put things in perspective.”

“Does she know anything about your trip to California?”

“I told her I was planning on leaving sometime within the week.”

“I will talk to Anju,” offered Jeevan. “She might listen to me.”

“Thanks, Jeevan-kaka, but I think it’s best if Auntie talks to her, woman to woman.”

“I’ll do it, Rishi,” said Usha, “on one condition. I never want to hear about any girlfriends from your past or present. If you have anything sneaky going on in your life, you can forget about Anju. She’s had enough heartache to last her a lifetime. Besides, we don’t tolerate extramarital affairs and things of that nature in the Kapadia family.”

“I understand. Other than Samantha I have no other issues in my life. Any future contact with her will be purely business.”

“You promise to take good care of our daughter?” Usha shot him one of her cutting looks.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“If you make her unhappy in any way, you’ll have me to answer to.”

Rishi stopped in his tracks and turned to her. “You have my promise, Auntie. I’ll take care of her as best as I can. If she’ll have me, that is.”

“And that’s a big if.” Usha rose to her feet and gestured to the two men to do the same. “Now let’s go home and deal with the next problem—Jeevan-bhai’s condition.”

“Thank you for allowing me to state my case,” Rishi said to all three of them.

“So you are leaving for California in the morning?” Jeevan asked him.

“Yes, sir. I’ll check airline schedules straightaway.” He gave the old man’s arm a reassuring squeeze. “I’ll ring you when I get there. I should be back in a couple of days.”

“We’ll take good care of Jeevan-bhai in your absence,” Usha assured Rishi as she opened the door.

Despite the gravity of the situation, Rishi couldn’t help smiling as he watched Usha sweep out of the room with Jeevan-kaka and Mohan trailing behind her. She would have made a formidable CEO. He had no doubt about her management abilities. It gave him great satisfaction to know she’d have no problem managing Silk & Sapphires without Anju.

But convincing Anju to accept him was going to be one hell of a challenge.

Chapter 30

R
ishi was gone. Anjali learned that nearly two days after she’d had her spat with him on Saturday night. On Sunday, the store had been extremely busy. Most everyone who had wandered in had bought something. That was the only redeeming feature about Sunday.

Although she was wrapped up in serving clients all day, Anjali had noticed Rishi’s absence, felt it keenly. How could she not? He was all she’d been thinking about, and she hadn’t slept much for two nights in a row.

There was no sign of him. Every time the door had opened and the chimes had sounded, her eyes had flown to the door, looking for him. And every time, her shoulders had slumped when a customer had walked in instead.

Rishi was the one who’d thought of celebrating at the Indian restaurant and made the reservations for Sunday night, and yet he’d remained conspicuously absent. Anjali had convinced herself that he had flown back to London and Samantha after realizing he didn’t belong here. The thought had made her ache, the kind she’d experienced once before, from having loved and lost.

When Naren-kaka and Sejal had asked why Rishi wasn’t there for the celebration dinner, Jeevan-kaka had replied, “He is busy with a new project.”

Yeah, a new project called Samantha
, Anjali had concluded bitterly,
or more like an old project he can’t let go
. By the time she and her family had gone home, it was nearly midnight. She had fallen into bed exhausted, and then slept fitfully.

How could she have been so blind about Rishi? But then he’d been convincing in his proposal, so earnest, so persuasive. When he had a sophisticated and successful woman like Samantha, why would he want to settle for Anjali, who was about as exciting as tepid tea?

Today was Monday, and Jeevan-kaka, Anjali, and her parents had arrived at the store in the morning to take inventory, restock, and clean up after the hectic opening weekend.

While Jeevan-kaka and her father had taken care of the paperwork, the two women had unpacked and organized the new shipments in the storage room. Lunch had been a hurried affair with some takeout food from the restaurant down the block. Fortunately, Jeevan-kaka had wanted only a glass of warm milk, and that was easy enough to rustle up in Anwar’s kitchen.

After lunch, Anjali and Usha went about taking care of the large number of special orders they’d taken over the weekend. It meant contacting the fabric suppliers in Bangkok, the tailors and embroiderers in India, and then trying to coordinate their pickup and delivery with the shippers. With the differences in time zones, it had taken up the better part of the afternoon to accomplish everything the way they wanted it.

It was nearly six o’clock now. It had turned dark outside a while ago. Rishi still hadn’t shown up. Where was he? Back in London with Samantha? Supposedly arranging a business loan for her…or something else?

She didn’t give a damn where he went or with whom, Anjali tried to tell herself. She really didn’t.

Picking up her sewing kit, she settled on a stool behind the counter to shorten the hem of an ensemble someone had bought the previous day. At least with a needle and thread and beautiful silk fabric in a rare shade of plum draped over her lap, she could keep her mind occupied.

Her mother worked nearby, polishing some silver jewelry. The two women worked side by side in companionable silence, as they often did. Anjali sensed Usha’s gaze on her every now and then. She could tell her mother was curious to know what was going on.

Anjali knew her parents and Jeevan-kaka had gone out early Sunday morning and met with Rishi. Having remained awake all night, she’d heard the sounds in the house: her parents and uncle having a whispered dialogue, and later the three elders going out the door and driving off. From having overheard her mother’s heated words to Jeevan-kaka in the kitchen the previous night, Anjali had concluded that they had gone out to confront Rishi.