Chapter 37

Nandani was glad to see her best friend, Mukti. She had arrived the previous night and they had a last-minute 'Dream Girl' label meeting in their hotel room but otherwise kept things pretty pleasant. Tonight Mukti had other ideas.

"We are going out. You have been in so low spirit lately, and working crazy hours. We are all set for the meeting tomorrow afternoon. Now you just need to calm down," she told Nandani. Since both of them had turned twenty-one already, they could legally get into any club. But, before that too, Mukti had arranged fake IDs that had permitted them entrance to many establishments since they were nineteen. Still, it was nice to do it legally, and as Nandani Singhania, rather than Tina Biden a fake ID. The name Tina too, had been Mukti's idea.

"It is like a pre-celebration, Nandani. And you are wearing this." She produced a gorgeous silk green dress that was fitted around the bust. When Nandani tried it on, it hung loose to the top of her thighs. "How did I not know you were working on this?"

"It is your Christmas present." Mukti clapped her hands together. "And you will look totally hot in it!" she said.

"I love it, Mukti. Thank you." And Nandani did love it. The dress was not the color of emeralds, like what she usually wore, but a pale mossy shade that looked like plants in the forest. It gave an extra punch to her hair, making it look more brown than black. She styled it in waves hanging down her back just past her shoulders. Some black strappy sandals and a gold clutch pulled it together into something that looked both festive and hip at once.

Mukti looked stunning, as usual. Her dark hair was up in some kind of messy bun that looked like it had taken hours. Her face was dramatically made up with light eye makeup and dark red lips. Her dress was black with cut-outs along the midsection, and it stopped well above her knees. With a pair of platform black stilettos, it showed off her legs to full advantage and made her look much taller than usual.

Since Mukti could not be dissuaded from her quest for guys, she chose an upscale place that apparently catered to young professionals. As it turned out, junior stockbrokers and lawyers were a few years older than them but not many. It was classic for Mukti to show up in a town that she barely knew and immediately find the hottest party.

She eyed up a few guys by the bar when they went to grab a drink. Mukti started chatting them up.

"No one will believe we are in such a fab place," Mukti gasped.

"Yeah. We will have to take pictures or they might think we made it up," Nandani added.

"My brother said he would stop by. He can be our alibi," Mukti said.

"What? Your cousin brother Dhruv is here in town?" Nandani knew he did some business here occasionally.

"The other one," Mukti replied.

It took a minute for Nandani to process that information. When she did she nearly choked on her martini. "Manik is in New York?"

Mukti nodded. "Weird, right?" she asked. "He has some kind of engineering conference. He also has plans about visiting friends from Houston."

Two good-looking guys in jeans and button-downs offered to buy them the next round of drinks, as Nandani's brain rushed to make sense of this piece of news. Mukti quickly jumped on that bandwagon and instantly they had made some friends.

The guys were cute and very flirty and dragged them off to dance. After one song Nandani pulled away and told Mukti she would be back. She wandered up the stairs to the second floor, her mind wrapped around other things. She leaned against the railing, gazing down over the dance floor.

Manik had not mentioned anything about a conference, or visit. But then, why should he? They were not anything anymore.

If she could go back in time, do things differently, Would she be able to? She was not sure. But it was clear to her in the weeks since they had broken up that something was not the same without him. Breaking up with Aryaman, even after four years, had been a huge adjustment, as most days they had spent time together. But with Manik, it was more acute, like a piece of Nandani had been cut out. A piece she had not known was so critical to her functioning.

The club was dark but there were pulsing lights. Nandani watched Mukti dancing enthusiastically with a different guy than before.

Nandani should have been having a better time but felt detached from it all. Like she was above it and not part of it. Which in a way she was.

New York was a one-in-a-million kind of city. Nandani had always romanticized about it, about the energy, the vibe, the people. But right then she was not feeling like a one-in-a-million-kind of girl. So, it was wasted on her.

The song changed again and this time, something shifted in her. She glanced over toward the bar and her gaze caught, held. Her heart started beating faster than the techno music in the background. Before she could think it through, she was tripping down the stairs, whether due to her own clumsiness or the obscenely large heels and, rushed up to the bar.

For once Nandani had zero thought of doing 'the right thing.' She pushed her way through the crowd and sucked in a breath, not the slightest idea of what she would do next.

"Come here often?" Nandani asked, standing on her toes so her lips nearly grazed his ear.

She could smell his shampoo. A wave of emotion washed over her and her breath fastened.

Manik's body stiffened, and he turned his head a fraction of an inch but was still facing away from her. After one heartbeat, two, he turned back to face the bartender.

Nandani was not sure what to do next and thought about retreating to beat some sense into herself. But she saw some evil girls down the bar eyeing him up. Screw her pride and sense. There was no way she was going to let them any closer, to Manik.

Nandani downed her drink and tilted her chin at the bartender to get another, mouthing her drink order. She would need it. Manik did not move to acknowledge her except to let her in at the bar just enough to pay.

After taking a long sip, Nandani tried again. "I miss you." Her voice was casual but there was a raw edge to it. Something more meaningful.

His laugh sounded tight. Not the easy sound she had come to expect, but at least he acknowledged her, she thought. But she could not understand why the hell would he not look at her?

They stood not touching, surrounded by people and drinks and a low, rhythmic beat, for endless moments. She could smell Manik and feel his warmth even in the heat of the club. Being this close to him after nearly a month apart was perfect, and it was torture.

Well, at this point Nandani had very little to lose. "Manik. I cannot stop thinking about you."

"Yeah?" The first word he had said to her. He glanced in her direction for a split second, their eyes connecting. She took the opening and charged ahead.

"I think about the way you laugh at my stupid jokes. The way you are totally sweet one moment and drive me crazy the next," she said.

He was still listening, but she could not read his face, She took in a deep breath. "The way every girl in this bar wants you but you don't have a clue, Manik."

Being this close to him without touching him was killing her. It had been too long since she had his hands or his mouth, on her. It felt like the air crackled between them when they were just a few breaths apart.

"Manik?" She waited for an endless moment. The song changed to something low, and still, she refused to move. How long was he going to make her wait? Would he even acknowledge her at all?

He would have to, Nandani thought determinedly. Because she was not going to move.