Chapter 4

December 31st AM | Sausalito, California

"Ahh! This tiny town is like magic..." Ruhi jumped in excitement as they got off the ferry from San Francisco to Sausalito.

"Look at how the homes are clinging to the steep hillside! The skyline, the waterfront, wow!" She turned around in a full circle in awe. "I'm in love with California!!" She hugged Dhruv.

"Correction: Northern California," Dhruv said, "I hate LA and anything SoCal." 

Ruhi had no idea what he meant. She visited a few places in the US but lived only in one place all four years. She did her MBA and stayed in the same town for work.

"Thank you for getting a job here. Now I'm convinced I should also apply for something and move."

"Ask your soon-to-be fake husband to hire you in one of his companies. Your current boss will throw you out for missing work for so many days anyway."

Ruhi suddenly got nervous when Dhruv brought up Rafael. She was still recovering from the effect his voice had on her. He barely said a few words during the phone call and sounded so arrogant and disinterested. And yet, his cool, gruff voice put her stomach in knots just like it did many years ago.

"We should have rented bikes and brought them on the ferry. Dang it!" Dhruv said when he saw couples exploring the charming town on bikes. 

Ruhi didn't hear him. Six days have passed since she talked to Rafael. In the meantime, she drove home from Atlanta, went to work during vacation time, went shopping to pack more clothes, and flew back to Atlanta to leave with Dhruv to San Francisco. They spent the last few days exploring the city while waiting for the movers to arrive at Dhruv's new place.

They were going to meet Rafael and Alisha tonight. He had returned from Greece almost a week ago but said he was busy until New Year's Eve. Repeated phone calls from parents on either side didn't stop because they haven't said yes to the marriage yet.

Rafael's dad was in Dubai but was going to be back in the US in a couple of days, and Rafael wanted the contract to be drafted and signed secretly before his dad returned.

Alisha wanted to meet Ruhi to make sure that she really had a boyfriend and not making the whole thing up to trick Rafael into marrying her. She called Rafael's attorney a million times to make sure all the right clauses were being added to the contract, although Rafael had already done his part well in getting it drafted.

Dhruv was feeling insecure but believed at the same time that they could work something out because Rafael wouldn't ever be interested in Ruhi. He was so confident in his assumptions that he didn't notice how Ruhi's demeanor visibly changed every time she thought about Rafael or heard his name.

He also didn't notice how anxious she was feeling about looking good tonight. She wasn't worried about the wedding; her main concern was about looking good. Her thoughts were bothering her and eating her up with guilt. She peeked at her watch several times to see if they had enough time to return to Dhruv's place and get dressed.

When Rafael had mentioned on the phone call last week that they would meet today, she splurged on a dress with sequins and shimmer to match the occasion since everyone would be dressed up and partying till the early morning of the next year.

"I hope we won't wait in long lines outside the club for too long. I'll freeze to death," she yelled across the bedroom, complaining about how warm and sunny it was in Florida while they were suffering cold weather with wind bites. They planned to go bar hopping and then to an upbeat club after meeting and dinner with Rafael and Alisha.

"No complaints here, it's warmer than Atlanta," Dhruv replied.

She slipped into her turquoise color sequined bodycon dress with full sleeves and put on a winter coat that ran longer than her hip-length dress. Her mom told her to meet Rafael in a saree at a temple and send them a selfie with him. She giggled by imagining her mom's reaction to the length of her dress.

After wearing ankle boots with five-inch stiletto heels and grabbing her slim clutch bag, she walked to Dhruv to see why he was taking so long today. He usually got ready way before her and behaved pretty impatiently about her being slow, but he was quiet and preoccupied today.

"How do I look?" She asked, revealing a part of her dress under the jacket.

"So heavy on the eye makeup and such a flashy dress. Are you sure this is for the club and not for Rafael?"

"Oh, shut up and get your insecure ass out the door. I'm starving." She took over the space between him and the mirror and applied another coat of mauve lip color.

Dhruv also dressed up to look his best, as he wanted to look no less handsome than Rafael. He expected Ruhi to exclaim at how gorgeous he looked in the blazer, but she was lost in her own world. She missed the next few sentences he said too, as she examined herself sideways in the mirror with and without the jacket and was having second thoughts about her big earrings.

In fifty minutes, they reached the rooftop of the restaurant that Rafael told them to. The restaurant offered more than just a stunning view of the city skyline and a delightful ambiance. It was sitting at a height of 500 feet and the flooring was underlit, giving it a magical appearance when combined with the lively music. Dhruv spotted Rafael and Alisha as the couple also saw and approached them. 

Ruhi had mixed feelings about Alisha until then. The minute she laid her eyes on Alisha's dress and appearance, she burned with jealousy and felt like an ugly duckling. 'How can her waist be so thin?' She frowned at the sexy open bust burgundy red dress Alisha wore, with an hourglass figure and perfectly toned thigh that peeked out from the side slit. Even her long glossy fingernails looked out of the world to Ruhi.

Dhruv gaped at Alisha's cleavage before he came to his senses. On any other day, Ruhi would have strangled him to death and yelled at him until his ears bled, but she forgot all about his existence for several moments when she saw Rafael. Her eyes went wide in awe as they scanned him. Tall with broad shoulders and muscles that stood out from a well-fitted white shirt worn with suit trousers, sleeves rolled up, two buttons left undone—so fucking hot. Sigh!

Rafael was used to getting this kind of response from every woman he met. Nothing about her caught his eye. He didn't care to look at her for more than a moment but didn't think any less of her for eye-fucking him for a good thirty seconds. As her eyes caressed his angular jawline, she felt Dhruv's hand rub against her lower back, directing her to take her jacket off and hand it over.

She realized she was feeling so warm and flushed, not just because of Rafael, but it was due to the countless tiny bonfires that lined either side of the restaurant, giving out abundant heat on the cold happening night. Rafael and Alisha turned around and led the way to their dinner table after exchanging greetings with them.

"Ugh!" Ruhi muttered in annoyance when she saw that Alisha's dress was backless. "She's fucking pretty, like some celebrity!"

She would have felt better if Dhruv had said something nice and assuring about her own looks, but he just agreed with her about Alisha, earning him a jab in the ribs.

"Rafael looks even hotter in person," she said to him in a whisper, trying to make him jealous.

"Oh, please! He didn't even spare a second for you. He looks so arrogant as if he's doing us a favor by agreeing to meet us."

Ruhi agreed with him inwardly. Both Rafael and Alisha oozed arrogance and borderline contempt. She wasn't sure if she wanted to put up with this attitude on a daily basis. If he could make her feel like a piece of shit without even saying anything, how much more horrible would it be when they get married and live under the same roof? Not to mention the intense sexual attraction she felt for him across the table.

"Babe!" Dhruv nudged at her when she was staring at the menu upside down, lost in her thoughts. "What do you want to drink?"

The embellished cocktail descriptions did not appeal to her at the moment. Moreover, she can't let Rafael blackmail her about her drinking habit. Her parents were unreasonably rigid about such things.

"Just a glass of water with no ice, please." She looked at Rafael with a sulk. He was talking to Alisha in a low voice and she was smiling warmly, looking at him with those sexy eyes that tilted upwards in the corner. Why was he even here if the love birds can't even spare a second to talk to them?

She cleared her throat in irritation, drawing his attention. He raised his expressive brows before asking, "So, how did you two meet?"

"Through our parents," Dhruv responded because it took more than a couple of beats for Rafael's words to sink in for Ruhi. Her heart was going frantic.

"Really?" Alisha asked.

"Yeah, we met last year because our parents set us up to meet, and we liked each other. But they wanted the wedding to happen right away, so Ruhi pretended to have rejected me."

"Huh, so lying and pretending are not new to you folks." Rafael's words pissed Ruhi off.

"Come again? We did what we thought was best for us. Would you rather marry someone you know for just two days? Maybe I should have married him back then. It would have saved me from you and this whole fiasco."

"Ruhi..." Dhruv squeezed her palm.

"He thinks he's helping us. We are the ones helping these love birds. I don't feel like being here anymore."

She wasn't sure why she felt so upset.

"Calm down. You look like you are on the verge of tears. Want to talk in private." Dhruv ignored Rafael and Alisha and took Ruhi into his arms.

"I'm okay. But I'm not apologizing to those assholes."

"You don't have to."

She straightened up in her seat, and Dhruv changed the topic. "Alisha, where are you from?"

Alisha tossed her hair and replied proudly, "South Africa, where the most beautiful and precious diamonds come from."

Ruhi had already looked up A to Z about her. She was too embarrassed to meet Rafael's gaze and remained quiet the rest of the evening until it was time to leave.

After paying for their dinner, Rafael spoke when Ruhi got up to leave. 

"Ruhi, I'm sorry. It wasn't my intention to be mean to you. I'm just frustrated with the turn of events. Do you guys want to stay back for the ball drop event here?"

She looked at Dhruv, whose face was neutral, "Maybe some other time. We have plans now." She led the way out and Dhruv followed, confused about her behavior.