“So, how was the dinner party?” Trishan asked Sarika. It was Saturday. He wasn’t spending the day with his aunt Savitri because she was spending the weekend with a friend in Manchester. Disappointed, he had called Sarika and she invited him to come over.
“It was fine. Saavi was sorry that you couldn’t go.”
“If I didn’t have to work late, I would have gone.”
“She hopes to see you some time soon.”
“That would be nice.”
“Guess who was there?”
“Who?”
“Darain.”
“Darain?”
“Yes, he’s a family friend. I told you about him. Remember I told you that Jahaira had asked me to stay and have dinner with her, Kaashi and that she had invited him too?”
“Yes, I remember now.”
“Well, at the dinner party, we spent most of the evening together.”
“That’s good.”
That wasn’t the reaction she wanted from him. “It’s a good thing that he didn’t have a date or she would have gotten very upset.”
“Upset about what?”
“Upset with him for staring at me. When we were having dinner, I could feel his eyes on me.”
“He was admiring you.”
“If it weren’t for you, he would have made a play for me.”
“He has good taste.”
“He said that you were lucky.”
“Because you’re my girlfriend?”
“Yes. He seemed very disappointed when I said that I was leaving.”
“He was obviously enjoyed your company and was hoping that you would have stayed a little longer or left the same time he did.”
Sarika stared at him. “Doesn’t it bother you?” she demanded.
“What do you mean?”
“Doesn’t it bother you that I spend most of the evening with another man who made it obvious that he’s attracted to me?”
“Why should it bother me?” he asked, sounding and looking surprised. “I’ve seen other guys look at you and it never bothered me. Why should it bother me now?”
Either he’s very sure of me, Sarika thought. Or, he isn’t the jealous type. She didn’t want to consider the third possibility. “You’re right,” she said. “It shouldn’t bother you because I’m not interested in him or any other man.”
“What else did you and he talk about?”
“We talked about his parents, the split of India into two countries, a Pakistani woman who returned home after so many years and the first tribal woman to become president of India. We talked about other things and then, I left. What time did you end up leaving work?” She thought it best not to mention that Darain has asked if Trishan hadn’t proposed as yet or that if she were his (Darain’s) woman, she would be wearing a wedding ring.
“I left around eight. I was bone tired when I got home. I showered and relaxed on the sofa. I ended up falling asleep there. It has been a while since I’ve worked so late.”
“Do you feel up to going out or would you prefer that we stayed here and just relaxed?”
“It’s too nice a day to stay indoors.”
“I agree. Where would you like us to go?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know.”
“First, we’ll have something to eat at Market Halls Victoria. There plenty of food places to choose from. We could have Dim Sum or Malaysian, Italian, Butchies Buttermilk Chicken or Kebabs.”
“Sounds good. I’m hungry. I haven’t had anything to eat since breakfast.”
“And afterwards, we can spend the afternoon on the beautiful roof terrace, enjoying the sunshine while sipping on a delicious refreshing beverage.”
“That sounds good too.”
“Let’s go, then.”
As he followed her to the foyer, it dawned on him that she had tried to make him jealous of Darain and was annoyed when she failed to get a rise out of him. In all the years they had been together, he had never been jealous and he thought it was because she had never given him reason to be, but he realized now that she would never arouse jealousy in him for the simple reason that he wasn’t in love with her. He never was.
Source: Hand Luggage Only
Notes to Women 