‘Oh my God, stop.’ I nudge him. ‘They just made up. Don’t make them fight again.’
The adults laugh.
‘I don’t ever want to fight again,’ Hira Auntie says.
‘Me neither,’ Ma agrees.
Azad Uncle, in true Uncle fashion, nods wordlessly in agreement.
Salman and I exchange a silent glance, trying not to get ahead of ourselves.
‘So, now that you guys have made up and have been reminded that friendship is everything, does this mean we can still see each other?’ I ask.
Hira Auntie, Azad Uncle and Ma all glance at one another with a raised brow, until Hira Auntie delivers the verdict. ‘You’re going to do it whether we allow it or not.’
‘So does that mean .?.?.?’ Salman’s question goes unfinished, our hands squeezing tighter with anticipation.
‘Doors remain open at all times, no matter where we are,’ Hira Auntie says.
‘And be respectful in public, please. We don’t need the community knowing every detail of what you two do,’ Ma adds with an eye roll. ‘We’ve had enough drama to last a lifetime.’
I can’t fight the smile that takes over my face, or the warmth that spreads across my chest. Salman puts an arm around my shoulder, pulling me into him, and plants a kiss on my forehead.
‘For there never was a story of greater bliss than this of Poppy and her Salman,’ he whispers into my hair.
I couldn’t agree more.
30
My last day at Eternally Yours comes around far too quickly. When I took the job, I couldn’t wait to find what I needed for Ma and get out, but now I feel strangely sad to be leaving. So much so that when I hand my laptop back to IT services, I nearly don’t let go. I’m on the brink of tears when Sadia calls me into her office and hands me a card and flowers.
‘Sadia, you really didn’t have to,’ I say, my voice cracking with emotion.
‘Of course I did. You’ve been a great employee, and I hope you’re as proud of yourself as I am of you.’
That does it and I let the tears run down my cheeks, not bothering to hold myself together any more. ‘Thank you. For everything. You don’t know how much working here has meant to me. Truly.’
Her lips quirk before she holds her arms out to me for a hug that I gladly lean into. As I’m about to leave her office, she says, ‘Oh, Poppy. There was something I wanted to ask you – how are things with Salman?’
I turn around so quickly I make myself dizzy. ‘How did you –?’
‘Aha, I knew it!’ Sadia leans back in her chair, a wide grin on her face.
I stand there frozen, a million questions running through my mind. How does she know? When did she find out? Is she mad that we’re dating? Isn’t it forbidden in certain workplaces?I guess it doesn’t really matter since it’s the last day of my contract, but will this burn any bridges for us?
Of course, I blurt all these questions out.
‘You two aren’t as subtle as you’d like to think.’ Sadia laughs at me. ‘You forget that I’ve built my reputation on finding a person’s perfect match, and as soon as I saw the two of you together, I knew you were meant to be.’ Sadia shakes her head. ‘You were right about using the alignment chart fromDungeons & Dragonsas a tool for successful client matches, Samira and Akash are a prime example, and I’m looking forward to using it again in the future.’
I can’twaitto tell Salman about this!
‘Besides,’ Sadia continues, ‘I had an inkling that there was some history between you two after he begged me for the job only seconds after hearing your name.’
My chest blooms with warmth at her words. As much as I know I made the right choice in dating Salman again, having Sadia’s seal of approval means everything to me.
‘You know, I’ve told him as much. That you’re the one for him.’
‘You did?’
