When he arrived at the saree shop the shutters were closed, but not locked. Raghav could see a sliver of light shining through at the bottom. He pulled up the shutter and saw Pallavi asleep at the desk, accounts and what looked like receipts piled up around her.
This woman, Raghav thought, she can't do a single thing right.
"Hey, Saree ka Dukaan, if you like sleeping so much do it in your own goddamned bed, I'm not your servant. I'm not going to spend my life driving you from here to there!"
Pallavi woke with a start. She saw Raghav standing over her and stood up, backing away from him.
"What are you doing here?"
"I came here to buy some pochampalli sarees, what do you think I'm doing here? My slightly crazy mother insisted I come get you."
"Oh, crap, I didn't realize how late it was."
Raghav noticed that her eyes were still bloodshot and puffy, it looked like she had spent the whole day crying.
"I—I can't leave, I have to get all this ready for Krishna by tomorrow because Baba is getting discharged, and I don't know if I'll be allowed back. Tell Amma I'll just be a couple more hours, I just need to get this done." Pallavi started shuffling the receipts on the desk and tried to force the panic and worry out of her head.
"Do I look like a courier service to you, and why do you think you won't be able to come back tomorrow? Did your Saanki Baba say that?"
"Raghav, not another word about Baba, I just—" Pallavi went to the back of the shop, getting on a stool to pull some boxes off a shelf. "I just need to finish this accounts and the list of vendors—"
Raghav crossed to the back of the shop and pulled Pallavi off the stool by her wrist.
"It is late, you are tired, and your father would be stupid to let go the only employee in all of Hyderabad who actually gives a damn about selling sarees. We're leaving." Raghav glared at Pallavi, he was sick of her 'woe is me' attitude.
Pallavi, taken aback by Raghav's forcefulness, realized that if she continued to argue with him she still wouldn't win and moreover Amma would probably get more worried. She pulled her wrist out of his hand, "Fine, let's go."
She grabbed the keys from the desk and locked the store behind her after Raghav walked out. As Raghav followed her to his car, he couldn't get the damn smell of her perfume out of his nose. He had noticed the scent this morning, but he hadn't placed the smell of jasmine as coming from Pallavi until right now, when he was inches away from her, so close he could see every little eyelash and every speck of gold in her irises. He shook the thought out of his head and both of them drove back to the house in silence.
Back at the house, Amma ran to greet Pallavi. "Beta, you look so tired. Have you eaten, of course you haven't, come sit down."
Pallavi smiled weakly at Amma, "I'm so sorry Amma, I should have called earlier, I just wanted to finish some work at the shop in case—"
Amma understood, "How is your Baba doing?"
Raghav glared at the two women, this Saree ka Dukaan had managed to get his mother into her clutches so fast that Raghav barely recognized Amma anymore.
"Baba's doing better, he might get discharged tomorrow, but—" Pallavi started to cry.
"Beta, I know you've spent two years doing everything for the Deshmukhs, but if they stand in the way of your happiness, they might not be the family you think they are." Amma said.
"No, Amma, it is my fault." Pallavi glared at Raghav, "If I hadn't made certain choices over the past couple months, I wouldn't be in this position today."
"Forget all of that, let bygones be bygones and learn to move ahead, Pallavi. Now, come and eat some dinner, you've had a long day." Amma pulled Pallavi to the dining table.
"I'm hungry too." Raghav muttered under his breath, sitting down at the table and serving himself as he watched Amma stack up Pallavi's plate with food.
After dinner, Pallavi wished Amma a good night and walked Amma to her room. Pallavi wanted more than anything to ask Amma if she could sleep in her room tonight, or maybe she could sneak into Keerthi's room. Both of them felt like family even though she had only known them for a short while. She remembered how much Keerthi had helped her with the store, and how sweet Amma had been a few days ago when Baba had kicked her out. Perhaps marrying Raghav Rao wouldn't be the worst life she could have imagined for herself if she got to live with amazing family like this. Especially considering the fact that the people she thought would always remain her family had abandoned her.
Amma said good night and motioned Pallavi to go to sleep too, "You've had a long day beta, night."
Pallavi smiled and turned to walk the few steps to her new bedroom. A room that she didn't want to be hers even if her so-called husband actually wanted her to sleep in there.
As she swung open the door she saw Raghav reading a book on the bed, the only light on in the room coming from the lamp on the right side of the bed. She walked silently to her suitcase and noticed it was empty.
"Your clothes are in the walk-in closet, I think Reddy moved them," Raghav said, muttering, "without asking me."
Pallavi opened the closet door and turned on the light, she found a pair of pajamas and a pale green kurtha, and went to the bathroom to change. When she looked in the mirror at her face, she didn't notice her red eyes or her tear-stricken face, all she saw was the bright red sindoor in her maang. Twenty-four hours as Raghav Rao's wife. She sighed and thought that it could have been worse.
She walked to the bed, not noticing Raghav's eyes following her.
She climbed into the bed, making sure to stay almost right on the edge, and turned her back to Raghav, closing her eyes.
She heard Raghav switch off the light and then suddenly she felt his breath in her ear. Before she could jump off the bed, Raghav grabbed her arm, "You may be my wife, but from tomorrow I am not your driver, your courier, or your friend. And stop trying to charm Amma, she's my mother." With that he let go of Pallavi's arm and moved back to the other side of the bed. Pallavi's shock turned quickly to rage. How dare he touch her?! And again, this idiot had decided to come to bed without a shirt on.
She turned around and sat up, "You may be my husband but that doesn't give you the right to touch me, nor does it mean you get to sleep..half-naked, and—"
Raghav sat up too, "my bed, my wish. If you have a problem...I. Don't. Care." He laid back down and turned his back to Pallavi.
Pallavi groaned and turned away from him in the bed. Twenty minutes later she was fast asleep. When she tossed and turned a little, Raghav noticed she had yet again not put a blanket over her. He sighed and draped it over her, shaking his head and smiling at the quiet whisper of 'Ghamandi Rao' he heard Pallavi mumble in her sleep.
