Page 37 of Knot So Romantic

As Neel navigates through the morning traffic, I’m bouncing at every bump and turn. The lehenga shifts with each movement, and my fingers cramp from the effort of constantly readjusting my grip. The wind whips around us, threatening to catch the lightweight fabric and tear it from my grasp.

“Hang on tight!” Neel warns as we approach a speed bump. I brace myself, pressing my back more firmly against his.

The cool morning air rushes past, but I barely notice it, too focused on my precious cargo. It’s just about eight o’clock, and those few minutes on the scooter feel like an eternity.

Finally, we arrive at the bride’s hotel, where we need to deliver the lehenga.

As I carefully dismount, my legs wobble from the tension of the ride. Neel helps me balance the lehenga as I regain my footing. “You did great,” he says with an encouraging smile.

The bride hugs me with delight as I show her what I’ve managed to accomplish, and once she has happily tried on the lehenga and made sure it fits, I’m absolutely relieved.

Neel smiles as I walk back to the scooter and hop on behind him. With the delivery successfully completed, a wave of exhaustion washes over me. This time, without the bulky lehenga to manage, I wrap my arms comfortably around Neel’s waist.

Pretty soon, he’s zooming off, navigating through the morning traffic. The ride back feels completely different—liberating and almost exhilarating. With the pressure of the delivery behind me, I let myself enjoy the cool morning breeze and the closeness of Neel.

I rest my cheek against his back, allowing myself a moment of contentment as we weave through the city’s bustling morning traffic.

“Why were you at the boutique this morning?” I ask, finally getting the chance to bring it up.

“What?” he shouts over the noise of the scooter and the wind rushing past us.

“I didn’t get a chance to ask you why you came,” I clarify, leaning closer to his ear.

“Oh, I was running in the park, and I thought I’d drop by to discuss the event logistics with you,” he replies, his eyes focused on the road ahead.

I nod, then realize he can’t see me. “That’s great! I’m glad you did. I wanted to call you about that, too, but I realized I didn’t have your number.”

Though there were other reasons I wanted to call him, too. Like to hear his voice, to tell him I would have liked us to keep kissing that night, to ask him if he felt that way too. But I don’t tell him all that. I don’t want to push too hard. I want whatever this is between us to unfold naturally. I’m scared it’ll ruin our friendship otherwise. I think too much! I should stop!

Once we’re back at the boutique, I invite him inside.

“I know this place is still a mess,” I say, tidying up as best as I can.

He moves a large piece of fabric draped over the couch before he sits down. “This looks way better than it did this morning,” he jokes, flashing me a grin.

Oh, the way his lips curve. I want to kiss him again, but I must restrain myself.

We talk about the sponsors and the events, and before I know it, time has flown by.

As we wrap up, we exchange phone numbers, and I tell him I’ll invite him to the rehearsal soon.

“I will be there. Can’t wait to see your collection,” he says.

“Thank you for doing this for the park,” I say as he rises to leave.

“For the park,” he echoes, his eyes meeting mine. “And...also for you,” he adds with a soft smile.

I bite my lip, feeling a warm tenderness fill my chest. His words linger, making me smile at nothing for the rest of the day.

***

I’ve been so swamped with work at the boutique that I haven’t had a chance to talk to my friends about the fashion show. I finally have a moment to catch up with Kiara and Khushi over a video call at the end of the week.

We discuss the outfits I’ve been designing, and I tell them that we have found older models but still don’t know where to find younger models for our theme.

“Why don’t we ask a few of your brides-to-be to be the younger models?” Khushi suggests.

Soon, we’re talking excitedly again, making the rest of the plans. Kiara and Khushi update me on the progress they’ve been making.