Chapter Twenty-Three Rajneet

Raj knew that she couldn’t hide in Ajay’s penthouse forever. She wasn’t the hiding type. Furthermore, despite the shame she’d felt when she first read the article, she had nothing to be ashamed of. Yes, her secrets were uncomfortable, but they were hers. She’d made her life choices and reaped the benefits of what she’d sown.

Harnette had just left with instructions about the press conference in two hours. Now all Raj had to do was finalize her statement and wait for her assistant to come pick her up to take her to the location. She’d just trimmed her opening paragraph when she received the one call she’d been dreading since she saw the article.

“Kia,” she said with as much briskness as she could muster.

The other woman didn’t even bother with pleasantries. “You have some serious enemies, Raj. I’m so sorry about the article.”

“I’m sorry that my life is written like a salacious tabloid, but not about the contents.” She reached down and picked up Khunda to cuddle. Ajay’s view of New York was therapeutic as she stepped up to the glass, phone and puppy cradled in her hands. “Are you calling to tell me that I’m no longer considered for the position of chairwoman and CEO of Gen One?”

Kia let out a sigh. “No, actually. I’m not.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m not going to rescind my nomination of you for the position. I think you’re a strong, hardworking woman who has made choices to get the career that you’ve wanted. I am not judging you, I’m commending you.”

Kia’s words had Raj staggering into the nearest chair. “I don’t understand...”

“Honey, what kind of woman would I be, what kind of leader would I be, if I judged the path of other women and leaders in this country? Hell no. I’m not going to do that to you. But the board is a different story. I’m calling to let you know that I don’t think they’ll support my nomination. I’ve gotten a few concerning calls this morning, and I’ve done my best to voice my support, but this position is going to be a bigger battle than even I anticipated. I’m so sorry, Raj. I’ll do my best, but I can’t promise anything.”

Her dog sensed her confusion, her twisted heart, and began licking her cheek. Raj pulled the phone from her ear, buried her face in Khunda’s neck, inhaling the fresh puppy scent, and breathed. This was all so overwhelming for her.

She heard a knock at the front door. “Kia, your support means... so much. However, if I am constantly going to be defending myself against the board, I don’t know if Gen One is the place for me.”

“Well, my nomination still stands. What are you going to do about the article today?”

Raj put Khunda down and walked toward the front entrance. “Address it head-on, as I always do,” she said. “Thanks, Kia. I have to go.”

“Good luck, Raj.”

She tucked her cell back in her pocket and opened the door. “Tracey, we don’t have to leave for another hour and a half—”

Her brother stood on the other side of the entry, hands tucked in his jeans pockets. She moved to slam the door. His foot jutted out to stop it.

“Wait. I just wanted to talk to you before I leave for the airport.”

“I don’t care what you have to say,” Raj said. “I know you had a part in that article. Ajay found out a little while ago. You’ve what, come to try and dismantle my life and then leave? Is Mumma even dying? How did you even get up here?”

“It took a lot of convincing,” he said. “Just let me in for a minute. Hear what I have to say, gudiya, and then I’ll go.”

Raj crossed her arms over her chest. “You can tell me what you have to say in the hallway, and then get out.”

He hesitated for a moment, and nodded. “Robert approached me for the article. He said he had an inside man who could provide some additional details on you and your relationship with Bharat. I always hated that scumbag.”

“Then why the hell did you work with him?”

Guru ran a hand over his beard as if contemplating his next answer. “I technically didn’t. I just told him that if a single word was an elaboration or a lie, he’d be floating in the Hudson.”

“Dammit, Guru—”

“You spend so much time trying to hide your truth that you are too afraid to live. Raj, when did you become such a coward? You fear that other people will turn you away now, when you were never that girl before.”

There was that word again. Coward. It was one thing for Ajay to call her a coward, to force her to be better, to face her fears, but it was another when a man was trying to hurt her.

She wasn’t that girl who acted carelessly and recklessly. Nor was she the polished, refined woman who kept people at an arm’s length in fear of judgment.

“There is no way you can convince me that hurting me was for my own good. Do you seriously think I’m so blind that I wouldn’t see through your pathetic lies? Now, if you’re done, I need you to go. You’re not welcome.”

Her brother shrugged. “I’ll go. I’ll tell Mumma that convincing you to come was a fruitless exercise. I guess you said your goodbyes to her years ago.”

Raj felt tears in her throat, but her eyes remained dry as dust. “I said goodbye to all of you years ago.”

“Okay.” He put his hands back in his pockets. “For what it’s worth,” he added in Punjabi. “I really am so proud of who you’ve become, Rajneet. You were always the brightest star with the most heart and grit in our family. Mom is very proud of you.”

The elevator door at the end of the corridor opened and Ajay’s mother stepped out. She carried a brown leather tote bag, which clashed with her black walking shoes and black pants. She paused when she saw Guru in the hallway.

“Sat sri akal, Auntyji,” Guru said, as he folded his hands in front of him. He motioned for her to come forward. “I was just leaving.”

Ajay’s mother approached with slow, cautious steps. “Are you a friend of my son’s?”

“No, I’m Rajneet’s brother, come to visit her from Punjab. I am headed to the airport now and saying my goodbyes.”

“Oh,” she said. She turned to Raj, who must’ve still looked glassy, since Ajay’s mother immediately bristled. “Well, have a safe trip.”

“Thank you, Auntyji.”

He stopped halfway to the elevator. “Auntyji? We’re entrusting the happiness and health of my sister to your and your family’s hands. Please take care of her. She doesn’t think she needs it, but we all know better.”

“Guru, I don’t need—”

Ajay’s mother squeezed her arm. “We’ll take care of her.” Then she waited for him to leave before facing Raj again.

“He wasn’t welcome here,” she said simply.

Raj shook her head. She moved back so that the woman could enter her son’s home. I’m getting hit with a one-twopunch today, Raj thought. First Kia, then her brother, and now Ajay’s mom. She had a high tolerance for stress and drama, but this was getting a bit much for even Raj to handle.

“Aunty, can I get you something to drink?”

“I’ll make it.” After toeing off her shoes she put her tote bag on the kitchen counter. She pulled out a foil-wrapped packet and a jar with seasoning in it. “My Ajay usually has masala for chai, but one can’t be too careful. I carry some around just in case. I also brought paranthas and mango pickle, too. It’s spicy.”

Raj hadn’t eaten since the few bites she’d consumed that morning, but she didn’t have the stomach for food. She was about to say so when Khunda bounded around the dining table straight toward Ajay’s mother.

In Raj’s experience, there was a fifty-fifty chance whether or not Indian parents liked pets. Dogs and cats hadn’t been common in India when Ajay’s parents immigrated to the States, so Raj went to intercept as quickly as she could. Khunda dodged her and pounced on Aunty’s foot.

“And this must be Khunda!” She greeted the puppy like a long-lost friend. “My son has sent me a picture of you. I brought you a roti, too, with little oil and no salt. Would you like a roti? Is your mother okay with a roti?”

It took Raj a moment to realize the question was for her. “Auntyji, that is very kind of you to do.”

“Nonsense. Now come. Sit while I make this chai.”

Raj smoothed a hand down her pants as she thought about the best way to approach her current predicament. If there was one person whose judgment could hurt her, it would be this woman. She’d raised an incredible man and her approval would be... no. No, Raj thought. She didn’t need anyone’s approval. She just hoped that Ajay would be okay with that, too. She’d hate to be the cause of widening the wedge between him and his family.

“Aunty, can I ask why you’re here?”

The woman pulled out a pot and began filling it with water. “Because I would rather be with you than sitting in a boardroom during Ajay’s meeting. My boy can handle it on his own. His father is with him, anyway.”

“I know.” Raj stepped forward until she could grip the edge of the kitchen island countertop. “That doesn’t answer my question.”

Aunty paused in the act of dropping a tablespoon of masala into the water. “It does if you were listening.”

Well, that put her in her place, didn’t it? Raj mused. She slid onto the barstool and decided that it was best to wait and hear what the woman had to say on her own.

“You know, I read your article—”

And there it was.

“—and I didn’t think you should be alone right now.”

What twilight universe was she living in? Raj picked up Khunda, because obviously her dog was the only thing that made sense right now.

“Aunty, I appreciate your support.”

The woman laughed, the sound lyrical to Raj’s ears. “It’s clear that you aren’t comfortable with me. Maybe it was your mother? I don’t know how other Punjabi mothers are, but I raised three boys and our life was very different from the moment I stepped foot in the US. That is why I’ll tell you what I think.”

She pulled two mugs out of the cabinet and then a small canister of sugar. “I think that you need a parent to listen to you. My boys, and my husband, they know I’m no good with business. I’m no good with technology. But I’m good with them. I know them, and I know people. So they’ve always talked to me. You can talk to me, too, Rajneet.”

Raj pressed Khunda closer to her.

“In my limited experience, Punjabi mothers prefer their sons to marry chaste women without secrets in their closets.”

The older woman made a dismissive gesture with her hand as she retrieved milk from the fridge. “Bland women are bland in bed and produce bland, boring children.”

Raj’s mouth dropped. “You’re okay with... You’re okay with me?”

“Now, I didn’t say that.” She added milk to the pot. “I will judge you, not based on your past, but based on how you respond to your past. After the article today, my son is sitting in a meeting where people are also judging him. Hopefully, he gets what he wants. You are here, sitting in his penthouse. What are you doing to get what you want?”

“I’m going to fight.”

“Oh?”

Raj nodded. “In one hour, my assistant is going to pick me up. I’m going to do a press conference where I’ll address the contents of the article.”

“What will you say?” Aunty placed a steaming mug of chai in front of her, along with a spoon and the sugar dish. “Will you deny the article?”

Raj shook her head. “Not at all. Why should I? It’s the truth.”

“Will that hurt your business?”

“If it does, then it does. But do you know what, Aunty? I wouldn’t have thought that way two months ago. Now, if I fail, I have more than my friends, my dog, my employees. I have Ajay. If I can’t figure out another solution, he will.”

There was a small smile on Ajay’s mother’s lips as she rounded the counter so that she could reach out and cup Raj’s face. “My soni, soni girl,” she said softly. “You’re absolutely right. You have family now. I am here.”

Raj swallowed the lump in her throat. “Aunty, would you like to come to the press conference with me? I know Ajay will be busy, and I could use... I could use some support.”

“Of course I can come with you. Now. Will you be wearing something that casual?”

Raj looked down at her slacks. She liked this woman. “No, I’m going to change. I have a lucky black dress.”

“Good. Now, let’s have some chai. I want to know what your brother was doing here.”

Raj smiled. “Yes, Aunty.”