The Hero Next Time: A Novel of the Terribly Acronymed Detective Club (Book 4)

Chapter Thirty: Sunny, Summer, 1993

The Anand Karaj, the Sikh wedding ceremony, took place at the Ross Street Temple, the gurdwara Tej's family attended. They welcomed him in as was tradition in a Sikh wedding, but unlike with some weddings, they didn't tease him about purchasing his way into the gurdwara in order to "take" his bride. Tej would not be taken by anybody, and she wanted that reflected at her wedding; she and Sunny were giving themselves to each other.

Tej's family had also hosted the Sangeet the day before, adorning their house with vibrantly coloured fabrics and their backyard with a stage from which members of both families had sung traditional folk songs to welcome each other, to dance and be jolly while they'd feasted.

Bishan had performed on that stage, dancing and singing in playful competition with Tej's cousins. Balwinder had watched her from where he'd sat and cheered her on. He was her official plus one at this event, but Sunny knew Jordan would be here if he knew where it was. Bishan was using every trick in the book to prevent them from running into each other. Sunny knew Balwinder had no idea about Jordan, because Mom and Dad didn't either. She kept her Sikh life separate from her student life; she definitely didn't go to Sikh Student Association events in case someone Balwinder knew spotted her with Jordan. What Sunny didn't know was whether Jordan knew about Balwinder. Probably not. Would he be secure enough in his relationship with Bishan to remain her secret while she courted another man publicly? Sunny didn't think he could.

Sunny was resplendent today in a beige and gold sherwani with a stole and turban of the same red colour. He wore a talwar, a curved sword, at his hip, reminiscent of the kirpan against his skin. It was ceremonial only, symbolizing the groom's duty to protect his bride, but suddenly he remembered the samurai sword Lauren had used that terrible day at the Trybek house and wished she and his other friends in the LSDC were here to witness this day. He hadn't thought of them in years, but this brief flare of memory made him miss them so much that he felt tears running down his cheeks, and when Tej saw them she thought it was because he was so moved at the sight of her sitting before the Guru Granth Sahib.

He was, though. Tej was beautiful in a bright red sari with a veil covering her head. Her body was painted with henna, and Sunny could see the intricate designs on her arms and hands where they were not covered by the many gold bangles on her wrists. She wore the tikka in the middle of her forehead to protect herself from the evil eye.

They walked around the Guru Granth Sahib four times while the Ragis sang the verses of the laavan, the wedding prayer. They ate the kara prashad, the sweet wheat pudding, after the ceremony, and sat for langar, finally able to relax with their family and friends.

It was a perfect day, and he might have let himself relax and enjoy it more if he hadn't spotted Jordan near the back of the room, sitting with a few of his and Tej's white friends, looking rather comical with their shoes off and their heads covered with colourful cloth while inside the gurdwara, like fish out of water. Everyone was welcome in the gurdwara even at a wedding ceremony, but Sunny had no idea Jordan would be here, even if the two men had forged a grudging acquaintance over the time his sister dated him. Bishan sat at the other end of the room from him, with Balwinder and both sets of parents, and Sunny could just picture the row that would result if the two men knew who the other were. Jordan had to notice she was with another man.

"I can't wait to get out of these clothes," Tej whispered in his ear, and at first Sunny meant she couldn't wait to get him into bed, but before he could become aroused, she said, "Well, first I can't wait to get off the floor and stretch, and then to change into something more comfortable."

He nodded dumbly as he kept his eyes on the two men in his sister's life. They were at a safe distance from each other now, but they were like matter and antimatter, sure to negate each other in a spectacular release of energy if they ever met.