Kamila rolled her eyes while tying her most subdued apron, a pale-green linen, over her dress. “I’m pretty much done cooking. But since you’re here, you can wash the new dishes. Then set the table.” She gave him a once-over. “You’re looking good. I like the sweater. That’s almost a color.” His beard was growing in well—and the chunky charcoal knitwear was a nice change from his suits, even though the whole look was still pretty preppy. More intellectual academic preppy instead of finance-guy preppy, though. “Did you go shopping just for me?”
He smiled. “What, this old thing? Show me the dishes that need washing, boss.”
Kamila put on a playlist on her stereo, and they worked silently for a while—Rohan unboxing the new dishes and giving them a quick wash, while Kamila cut the stems of the flowers and arranged them in the bowls. Rohan’s sunflowers would be the brightest thing on the table, but they went well with the white lilies she’d picked up.
“Did you work today?” she asked. The rest of the HNS team might do casual on a Friday, but not Rohan.
“Worked from home. Did you buy all these plates just for tonight?”
“Yup.” She pulled out the bamboo skewers and set them to soak in cool water.
“Seems overkill.”
“It’s to set the mood. Create an air of sophistication.”
“But why? You’re already pretty…urbane.”
She preened before taking one of the bowls of flowers to the dining table. “Look at you! That’s almost a compliment. I’m so happy you came early to shower me with praise.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “It’s my duty, isn’t it? Honestly, though, Kam, I came early because…I wanted to apologize. I’m sorry I was discouraging you from taking on Anil’s nonprofit. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
She looked at him, head tilted. Shehadbeen upset with him. She’d actually been pretty furious on Saturday. The puppies had helped. But also…it was hard to be mad at Rohan. Kamila had never been good at holding grudges—except, of course, when it came to Jana. But still. “Do you still think I’m not capable or qualified for this incubator thing?”
He shook his head. “No. I never thought that at all. I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were signing up for. But I may have gone too far. I am sorry for that. People underestimate you, Kam, but Idosee how hard you work. You’d be an asset to any team. I spoke to Anil and told him his project would be in good hands with you. I think this will give you the credibility you were looking for without torturing yourself by working with me at HNS.”
She touched his arm. “Aw, you told Anil how awesome I am? Thank you. Andyouwouldn’t be the torture at HNS. You, I like. Boardrooms and people who say, ‘Let’s circle back to that,’ or, ‘We need to leverage our position,’ is what I want to avoid.”
He laughed. “So, still friends?”
“You can’t get rid of me that easy. Of course—still friends.” She pulled him in for a quick hug, then squeezed his arm. “Now, back to work, friend.”
Now that their Hallmark moment was behind them, they worked together to finish setting up the party. It was nice to have someone to help her since Asha didn’t come over as much anymore. Rohan let her lead with minimal snarking—obeying her on where to move the tables and chairs, which throw cushions to put where, and how to set up the dining table. After lighting some cream scented candles, it was time to start on the food. First, she set the cider with the spices on the stove to simmer, then she pulled out the paneer and started threading the marinated cheese cubes on skewers.
“Wow, you really did cook. No takeout at all today?”
“The biryani is takeout. DoorDash will deliver in one hour.”
“Well, this stuff looks impressive. Let me help.”
He rolled up his sleeves and helped her thread the paneer along with some cubed vegetables onto the sticks. Soon, the skewers were roasting gently in the oven, adding a creamy, spicy aroma to the apple-cider-and-cardamom scent that was already permeating the room. The table looked perfect—the pink and black plates popped against her wood table. The golden sunflowers were the perfect contrast to her white lilies. This party was going to be amazing.
Smiling smugly to herself, she took the momos out of the fridge. She figured re-steaming them for a few minutes was the best way to heat them, so she might as well load them up in the steamer now so they would be ready to go when the guests arrived.
“Who made that? Actually, what is that?” Rohan asked, looking over her shoulder.
“Momos. I’ll have you know I made these completely myself. From scratch. Including the wrapper dough.”
“I’m impressed, Kam. They look a little…” He frowned. “Are they supposed to look like used Kleenexes?”
“Shush, you. They’re perfect. Wait till you taste one.” She grabbed a pair of chopsticks to feed Rohan a momo. Even though they were fridge-cold, she knew he’d be impressed.
But when she tried to lift the momo from the top of the stack, the whole container, and the three dozen momos in it, came with it. She dropped the chopsticks and the container fell back to the counter.
“No problem.” She smiled. “A little stuck.”
She took out a spoon and tried to gently pry the steamed dumpling from the others. It resisted. A lot. She stopped with the gentle and pulled a little harder. The momo finally budged…sort of. It tore right in half, revealing the vegetable filling stained purple from the red cabbage.
“Fudge,” Kamila whispered.
