“Yes?”
He thought about Kareena, about how quiet she’d been the night they’d talked, and then decided it was best to trust her to tell him how she felt directly. “Never mind. I’ll see you around.”
Veera shot him a wary look, then wiggled her fingers at Deepak before leaving the office and disappearing down the hallway.
“Trouble in paradise?” Deepak asked from his chair.
Prem zeroed in on his friend’s smug expression. “Oh no. No, you don’t. Don’t turn this on me. What about you? Lucy, you have some esplain’in to do. What was Veera doing here?”
Deepak put the Rubik’s Cube down on his sparsely decorated desk. “We started talking at that dinner you dragged Bunty and me to. She’s smart. Intuitive. More importantly, she can be an asset on this project I’m working on that requires a lot of number-crunching foresight skills. She’s also looking to diversify her clientele. It’s a perfect fit.”
That sounded reasonable, but it definitely wasn’t the whole story. Of course, Deepak never revealed his cards until he was ready, so harassing him for details wasn’t going to work in this situation.
“Now your turn,” Deepak said. “What’s up with Kareena?”
Prem thought about his girlfriend.
His girlfriend. The word made him unreasonably delirious. He had enjoyed Gori, respected her and appreciated her in his life, but this feeling was new. A little odd, but he could work with it. “I woke up next to her for two nights in a row. Between our trip to the shore, and the hours we spent in the park on Saturday, I really think this can work.”
“After four months? Good for you. Have you figured out your community center issues yet? Is your engagement to Kareena Mann going to help you get the cash you need?”
Prem shook his head. “It has, in the most surprising of ways. Apparently all this love talk with Kareena has influenced some of my segments on the show, and Gregory at LTD Financial had a change of heart. I had a meeting with him today, and he said he loved the new content.”
Deepak’s head jerked up. “LTD Financial is investing again?”
“Yup, Gregory changed his mind about pulling out of the community center project. This time he’s willing to commit more money.” Prem was still buzzing from the news. He texted Kareena, but she was in client meetings until four. The next best thing was his friends. With the larger investment, Prem could not only secure his dream location and start building out his center according to his plans, but he could also hire a larger staff to start.
In honor of Gori’s memory, and for the South Asian community.
“I’m happy for you, brother,” Deepak said. “You’re finally doing it.”
Prem picked up the Slinky that Deepak left next to his monitor on his otherwise pristine desk. “Finally. We’re pulling out the original contracts, tweaking the numbers, and by next Friday, I should be able to sign the lease with the center location.”
Deepak tossed the Rubik’s Cube in the air and caught it in one hand. “Does this mean that you and Kareena no longer have to do the engagement thing? I know you’re officially dating and all, but the engagement part was fake, wasn’t it?”
“Well, no. We still need to do the engagement thing so she can get the money for her mom’s house. She’s determined to save it, and I’m sure as hell not going to stop her. It’s a great house.” Prem had seen the inside twice, and both times he could see imprints of Kareena in the design, in the decor. It was as if it always belonged to her.
“And you want to be engaged, too.”
“Well, yeah,” Prem replied. “We make sense together. We have similar likes and dislikes. We have physical chemistry and want the same things out of our future.”
Deepak’s thick black brows shot straight to his hairline. “And love? That’s a big thing for her, right? Is she just going to accept that you can’t love her? That you don’t love her?”
Prem felt an odd pang in his chest. “I think she’s accepted that I don’t believe an emotion that I have literally referred to as an illusion is the foundation of a relationship.”
“Mm-hmm. Prem, you seem pretty lovesick to me.”
“No way,” Prem said. His pulse jumped at the thought. “Love isn’t what makes a relationship. That’s not what makes Kareena’s and my relationship . . . fit. We’re based on compatibility. Like an arranged marriage, except we found each other first and needed a bit of inspiration from her aunties.”