Silver Lining | Grooms #3

VIII. Half-Naked Encounters

"I don't like business seats."

Nikhil raised his brow at her, confused, "Who doesn't like comfortable seats?"

"Me." She grumbled, taking the seat next to him. "Why wasn't I asked what seat I wanted?" The seats were too comfortable and she couldn't be blamed for falling asleep.

"Okay, well, it's a bit late to downgrade to economy. I always travel business so Julie booked yours business too." Nikhil explained.

"Boston isn't that far. Why couldn't we just drive there?"

"And then what? Leave the car there while we catch a flight to Chicago?" He questioned, allowing her to see the argument.

"Point. So she mentioned your boss might be joining us in Boston?"

"Boss?" He was confused for a second, "Oh, you mean Evan? He's not my boss, but yeah, he wants to tag along. We'll go check the property out, and then grab dinner before taking the flight to Chicago."

"Won't it be rushed if we only see one site today and two tomorrow, and take the flight back to Portland?"

"Yeah, but it's what it is. The other two sites aren't far off. Just hour and half drive from each other so if we get an early start tomorrow, we should be fine."

"Awesome." When he looked at her longer, not understanding the sarcasm, she gave him one reason of the two. "I'm not good with time difference working against us."

"Lucky for you, you've got me by your side." Her brows narrowed. He explained, "I mean with the number of trips I take, I'm used to it. You'll be fine."

"Yeah, right." She answered, not too sure yet how much to believe that. She was going to have to see proof of that.

They fell into silence as the rest of the passengers boarded, safety instructions were carried out, and then the plane slowly started rumbling on its path towards take off. It took a good hour before take-off. An hour that Esha had to stay seated and wasn't able to use the restroom.

The second the seatbelt sign was turned off, she unbuckled, stood up, walked past Nikhil who had been reading a sports magazine, and rushed to the restroom.

He held back a chuckle when she returned, but she could tell the smile he was trying to hide. She defended, "I've got a small bladder, okay? Shut up."

"Mm-hmm." He didn't give a proper answer, making her huff, cross her arms over her chest, and look out the window as they continued to gain altitude and speed.

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Three hours later, Nikhil and Esha exited the airport with their luggage. Esha didn't understand the reason for the crowd of journalists that were by the exit. Nikhil put on his glasses, one of his arm going around her and putting himself between her and the rest.

"What's going on?"

He instructed, "Just keep walking." He led her towards the black limo where two of the private security guards reached for their luggage. Esha was reluctant at first, but seeing Nikhil allowing them to take his, she didn't put up a fight. A man in his mid-40s, dressed in white, opened the door.

"Afternoon, Mr. Khanna." The guy greeted him.

"Joe." Nikhil acknowledged him, and then nodded for Esha to get inside. She was a bit taken aback by all of this. She had been in a limo before, courtesy to high school prom and the many events she had attended along with Arjun and her sister, as well as his family.