Silently Falling in Love: Race (THE EDITED VERSION)

Chapter 34 - Meri Jaan

Alex: June 1995

My phone rang, and even though I was in a hurry, I answered.

"Hello, Alex Shergill."

"Hey Alex, it's me Anjali."

I smiled hearing her voice, "Hey Anjali, what's up?"

"I was wondering if we could move our lunch date on Friday?"

"Do you want to meet later? Dinner instead?" I asked.

"Can we change the date?"

"Are you going to Boston this weekend?" What did she see in Karthik?

"No, Karthik is busy this weekend. I have a work meeting I can't get out of," Anjali said.

"A new client meeting on a Friday?"

"It's with the big boss he wants to go over the progress of my current project."

"Let's have dinner Friday night," I suggested.

Anjali laughed, "Sorry, it's girls' night so I can't invite you. Can we have a lunch on another day?"

"Are you sure I can't join you Friday night? I promise to behave myself," I teased.

"Wax your body, thread your eyebrows, and wear a pair of stilettos and I'll think about it," she teased back.

"After all of that, maybe I'll get an invite?" I laughed. "Fine, what day do you have in mind?"

"Does Wednesday work for you?" Anjali asked.

I paused and stared at my schedule for that day.

"Does it work?" Anjali asked impatiently. "Or we can do Wednesday dinner," she suggested.

I hesitated after looking at my calendar, "It might work," I said, "but, it would be a late lunch after 1pm. Can you do that?"

"1pm works for me. I'll see you Wednesday for lunch."

"Yeah, Wednesday for lunch works. See you then," I hung up the phone.

Was Anjali up to something?

Wednesday:

At the entrance of the restaurant I saw Anjali speaking with the hostess. She nodded her head and turned around. It took her a few minutes to notice me.

"Hey, how are you?" she hugged me.

"I'm good, why do you look sad?"

"I'm an idiot, I didn't make a reservation since we were having a late lunch, assuming we wouldn't have a problem getting in, but I was wrong. This place is so hot, they are booked. I wanted to try this restaurant. It's one of only a handful of restaurants with an Indian chef who has a Michelin star. Another time."

"Do you really want to eat here?" I asked.

"Yeah, but we'll find another time. Where should we go instead?" Anjali asked.

"Come on, let me try," I said.

"The hostess said there were no openings, not even at the bar."

"Just play along with me, okay?"

"if you're planning to use your charms, shouldn't you leave me behind? If your plan is to flirt with the hostess, it will be better if I disappeared to the bathroom," Anjali said as she used her fingers to quote as she said the word bathroom.

I grabbed her hand and intertwined my hand within her soft hands and pulled her to my side.

At the hostess table, I pulled Anjali into me and wrapped my right arm around her waist.