He didn’t really believe that. He was on his way to beinginfamousinstead of famous. He scrubbed his hand over his face. He really didn’t want to talk about his family right now. “I got the schedule for my promos. It’s not that bad… I’ll need outfits for some talk-show appearances in LA next week. And probably some social stuff while I’m there.”
“I should be okay to pull together some looks online tomorrow.”
He nodded. “No rush. We have time. And, Marley?”
“Hmm?”
“Thanks for listening, too. You’re also an amazing friend.”
She smiled. Nikhil was growing very, very addicted to that smile.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Marley
The next morning was a little easier for Marley. Nikhil left before she woke up, but he put out a little saucer with two of her good painkillers (since opening the bottles herself hurt) and a glass of water on her nightstand. Marley stayed in bed with McQueen until the painkillers kicked in.
She eventually got up, emptied her drains, and went downstairs. Nikhil had left her breakfast out near her recliner—a thermos of tea and some fruit and granola. She smiled to herself as she sat and poured the tea. It was a little over-brewed, but it was better than the pain of making it herself. When Nikhil came home at the end of the day, they ate the kheema and bread Reena had left when she’d visited that afternoon, then watched reality TV until Nikhil finally helped her go to bed.
On Friday morning, her mother took Marley back to the hospital for her first post-op appointment. Dr. Abernathy said Marley was doing well, but her drains would probably need to stay in for another week. Marley was exhausted when her mother dropped her back home, so she took a nap. In the afternoon, she started feeling restless. She wasn’t used to doing… nothing, so she picked up her iPad and started scrolling the stock on Reid’s website to get clothes for Nikhil’s trip. But thepainkillers were jumbling her mind, and Marley couldn’t keep track of what he needed. She spent fifteen minutes on a site detailing the hottest new offerings in menswear before realizing the article was three years old. By then she needed to use the bathroom, which of course took forever.
She was going to fail. Maybe she couldn’t do this job. Jacqueline was going to be pissed. Marley would be working on the selling floor forever. Abused by customers. Treated like crap with no autonomy.
Marley closed her eyes. She was spiraling. She checked the time in Paris: six p.m. Shayne knew how to stop her brain. She opened a FaceTime call.
“Marley, darling, how are you? Paris isamazing.”
Marley could feel her tension easing the moment she saw her best friend’s face on the screen. He seemed to be outside, but the light was dim and hazy. The sun was setting. “Shayne… I’m useless. Nikhil’s trip to LA is soon, and I can’t focus online for more than thirty seconds.”
“How far into this doom tunnel are you, babe? Did you already imagine Jacqueline firing you?”
Marley didn’t say anything.
“Can’t you have Nicky to help you?” Shayne asked. “Hey, how’s that going, by the way? Is he walking around topless? I need to know how to imagine my house right now. He’s got a six-pack, right?”
“Shayne.”
“You know you got this. I have to go—a delicious, young design assistant wants to show me a Paris night market. Au revoir, ma chérie!” The call disconnected.
She rolled her eyes. Shayne did have a point, though. Nikhilsaid he’d help her. She texted him and asked him if they could look at clothes together later, and he immediately wrote back that he’d be happy to. Just like she knew he would.
At around five, there was a knock on the door. Had Nikhil forgotten his keys? Marley wasn’t expecting Reena, or even Ruby, to drop by today. She was nervous—she wasn’t exactly presentable for guests. She pulled a robe over her mastectomy shirt and answered the door.
She was shocked at who she saw there.
“Oh! You’re Nikhil’s sister!” Marley said, narrowing her eyes. “Nalini, right?”
Nalini grinned. She was a pretty girl, with a round face framed by shoulder-length straight hair parted in the middle. She was wearing a brightly patterned sweater in a style that Marley’s father had worn in the nineties, and boot-cut jeans that were completely frayed at the bottom. Marley wondered if Nikhil’s poor fashion sense was a family trait.
“Yeah, that’s me! Marley, right? Nikhil said I could use his iPad. I have this massive bio assignment and I can’t find mine. Ooh, you have a cat!”
McQueen stepped into the doorway and rubbed up against Nalini’s shins, so she reached down to pet his head. “Oh my god,so cute. I want a cat, but my mom’s allergic. But I mean, allergy shots exist, right? Where’s Nikhil?”
Marley tightened the robe around her. “He… he’s not home from rehearsals yet.”
“Shoot. Lemme text him.” Nalini pulled her phone out of her pocket and started typing on it.
Marley didn’t want to be rude and leave Nikhil’s sister outside, so she took a step back and motioned her into the house. McQueen followed. After sending her text, Nalini looked at Marley.
