Kareena was practically on her feet now. The producer motioned for Dr. Dil to cut.
Dr. Dil glanced at Kareena one more time, then smiled into the camera. “Let’s revisit this conversation after a short commercial break. Stick around, everyone. We’re just getting started.”
The cameras cut, and the studio went dead silent.
Kareena stepped over a cable wire and moved toward the stage. “You hypocrite!” she shouted. “After everything you told me yesterday, I thought you were one of the good guys, but it was all just an act, wasn’t it?”
Prem glanced at his crew then back at her before getting to his feet. “Maybe we should talk in my dressing room.”
“No way.” Kareena’s head rang, and she lowered her voice to control the throbbing in her temples. “We know what happened the last time I was alone with you.”
Sounds of grumbling rose from the crew. Someone whispered, “Oh my god.”
“Wait, you two know each other?” Bindu asked.
“Yes,” Prem responded.
“No,” Kareena said at the same time.
Prem held up his hands in surrender. “I think there has been a bit of a misunderstanding about what happened, Rina—”
“Her name is Kareena,” Bindu interjected.
Prem glanced at her sister over his shoulder before turning back to Kareena. “Oh?”
“I was protecting myself,” Kareena replied. “Obviously not well enough.”
Dr. Dil stepped off the platform stage to stand next to her. He was as tall as she remembered and made her feel dainty standing next to his broad-shouldered, six-feet-plus height. Damn it, he smelled great again, too. Even in her hungover pissed-off state, she wanted to crawl all over him.
“I would love to drive you home, but since I’m on call, I can’t leave Jersey City,” he said. “But would you be comfortable coming over to my place?”
Kareena remembered her last hookup and the guy’s porn studio camera set up in the bedroom. She couldn’t risk it again until she got to know Prem better. “Maybe we could just find a quieter spot away from the bar?”
Prem nodded. “You know what? My friend Benjamin actually owns this place. He has couches in his office in the back where we can sit . . . and get to know each other better. Is that okay with you?”
That sounded great, Kareena thought. She didn’t care that she was going to be in a stranger’s office. She just wanted more time with Prem.
“Lead the way,” she said.
“I got an SOS call.” Prem interrupted her train of thought. He looked back at his producers and then at Kareena. “I came back to find you after I hung up, but you were already gone.”
“Because I was in a private office stuck with my sweater vest over my head,” she hissed.
Prem leaned in until their noses were practically touching. “I’m sorry about that. I was an idiot, but that doesn’t make me a liar.”
“But you are,” she said, louder now. She took a step back for distance and clarity. “You are on a network targeting older South Asians, telling a bunch of aunties that marriages based on compatibility, not love, are the only ones that can work, while you’re duping younger generations into thinking their feelings are misleading. You’re gaslighting people by using Bindu Mann as an example. Hell, you duped me last night, too! Do your viewers know that you use romance to get your way in your personal life?”
His eyes widened and his mouth gaped like a fish. “We didn’t talk about love at all! And this has nothing to do with arranged versus love marriages,” he snapped.
She waved at his long, tapered torso. “You told me that you fix broken hearts, and that you believe in something greater than love, while you’re onstage here saying that love is bad for heart health.”
The crew gasped again.
“You are a fraud, Dr. Dil,” Kareena said.
“Oh no,” Bindu whispered.
“There are real doctors who actually have done extensive studies on love.”
Dr. Dil’s shoulder’s straightened, and he moved closer until they were practically chest to breast. Her nipples tightened into peaks, and she swayed on her feet. Damn it, it was as if her body recognized him.
“Do you have any idea how ludicrous you sound right now?” Prem replied. “You are visiting my show, interrupting my team, just because you disagree with a point I’m making? Oh wait, I know what this is. You’re the type of bitter old single woman who blames her lack of a love life on people who view relationships practically. Is that why you were out last night? Hoping for lightning to strike?”