Chapter 18
On Monday morning, Ariya sat in the back seat of Veer’s car, his hand cradling hers as he spoke on the phone. She hadn’t realized how much Veer was involved in his father’s businesses. She couldn’t believe he was ready to walk away from what he loved to do for a promise he made to his dad as a teenager.
They were on their way to the location of the shoot, one of the cities that was affected in the recent floods. Some of the families lost their homes and were still living in temporary housing provided by the local disaster recovery agencies.
The hotel where the crew was staying at for that week would set up a pet clinic in one of the convention halls for the local residents to bring their pets for treatment. The treatment was free as long as the pet owners were willing to be part of the reality TV show. The network had advertised to the locals about the service and based on the sign-ups, the team knew it would be super busy.
Halfway through the two-hour drive, she leaned her head on the door and shut her eyes. Veer held her hand and continued to talk on the phone. She felt the warmth from him as she drowned in a blissful state. They both barely slept the night before unable to keep their hands off each other.
She could not deny Veer ignited something more than just the deepest desires, and there was more to their relationship that she had not experienced in the past. She felt a connection form that made them want to spend a lot more time together. She was thankful they were working with each other and knew she would have been as miserable as she was before she showed up at his door two weeks ago.
A pessimistic voice inside her told her that this was too good to be true based on what she had been through in the past, but something in her heart told her she wanted this to be her reality, and she would fight for it.
She opened her eyes when she felt Veer’s hand pull away from hers and smiled when she felt the back of his hand graze her cheek. She looked at him and scooted closer to him.
He gently kissed her forehead. “Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you.”
She nuzzled his neck. “I wasn’t sleeping.”
“Are you excited about the show?”
“Yes, and you?” She looked up at him.
“I am. I’m just worried it is not going to be enough. We need more such clinics,” he said softly.
“Did we get more sign-ups?”
“I just got a text from Stefan that people are lined up outside the hotel. He wants us to take an alternate entrance.”
She sat up to look at him. “That is so awesome!”
“Yes, but Melanie and I can’t take so many patients in one day and the number of assistants we’ll need… I don’t like it when we cannot limit this to just the people who signed up to bring their pets.”
“Veer… send out a message to your followers asking for help. Ask your buddies from college to join you and get Stefan to take care of the paperwork and the travel. This is bigger than what the network expected.” Her voice held excitement, and it made him squeeze her waist in happiness.
“I love the way you think. I want you to keep thinking because I got a bit of the messaging out. It is going to be chaotic.”
“It is going to be fun!” she corrected him laughing.
Veer instructed the man driving them to the location about taking the utility entrance to get into the hotel. Veer led her out of the parking lot in a hurry.
“Veer, our bags are in the trunk,” she whispered as he led her in through the back entrance and an aisle of supplies lined up against the wall.
“They’ll set them in my room.” He turned to smile at her.
“Veer, I know this isn’t a good idea, but we should work through the weekend if we can’t accommodate everyone.”
“Right… Stefan’s going to have an issue with the labor laws if he makes the people from the union work all days of the week.”
“Let the producer figure it out.” She laughed, knowing the network was capable of pulling a rabbit out of a hat when they see such a response from the people.
Ariya let go of his hand as soon as they stepped into a brightly lit area and out of the storage area. “I’m your photographer here.”
“Will I see my girlfriend tonight?” he crooned.
Her breath hitched at the look in his eyes, and she nodded, smiling at the beautiful face she had woken up to the past few weeks.
*****
The crew fell into a routine over the next few weeks. It was unbelievable as to how many people showed up to get their pets checked. The word got around very quickly about the free pet clinic, and the crew was putting in long nights. Veer and Ariya had rooms next to each other in the same hotel but no connecting doors.
Veer slept in Ariya’s room and had gotten used to climbing over the balcony wall to go to his room when someone knocked on his door to talk to him. They fell into a routine, a tiring one, but she had a lot to capture and couldn’t wait to write the stories of the people who showed up. In addition to the pet owners who were impacted by the Landslides and the recent floods, they were surprised to see the people who had lost their homes in the wildfires a few months back, also show up at the hotel. The network was super excited with the response and was considering extending the show for a few more weeks.
While Veer showered in his room, Ariya spent time in the morning talking to her sister over video chat. Her sister understood the need for Ariya to stay back over the weekends and had a display of the various options for outfits sent or shown over the phone.
“When will I see you again?” Her sister pouted, faking sadness.
“Siri, you are doing so well by yourself, do you really need me?” she teased.
“Yes, I do. Mom misses you, too.”
“I miss her, too.”
“You look great by the way.” Siri smiled.
“You still talking to me?” Ariya laughed, running her fingers through her messy hair—hair messed up in bed while her body was on fire.
“Yeah, you are glowing. You haven’t looked this good in such a long time. I’m sure you are having fun.”
“Yes, it is a lot of fun.”
“Is the celebrity dude growing his hair back?” Siri winked making Ariya gasp. She gasped at the memory of his long hair. She had confessed to Veer that she found him more attractive with his long hair.
“It is short for now, but his it is growing out.” She felt the heat creep up her cheeks at the memory of his hair between her fingers.
“Are you like his fan now?” Siri asked, surprising Ariya.
“Why do you ask?”
“You are not rolling your eyes, and what’s worse, you are blushing.” Her sister laughed.
“Time for you to get your eyes checked and time for me to go shower,” she grumbled.
“Whatever… bye.” Her sister smiled and ended the call.
She bit her lip thinking of what her sister said and wondered if what she had going on with Veer had something to do with the way she looked. All she could think of was that she liked Veer, enjoyed being with him, and he made her laugh. Most of all, she was at ease and happy.
Ariya smiled when she heard the shower run in her bathroom. She walked into the bathroom and stepped into the steamy room. She stood looking at the hazy image of the man who had been the reason for her happiness. They worked together all day, and he was lost in the job he loves most and had caught her admiring him as he held the animals. Every time she saw him hold a small pet, something deep inside her stirred, and she couldn’t figure out why.
“Are you going to stand there and stare?” Veer’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
She smiled and opened the shower door and looked at him, water dripping down his hot body. “You can shower in your bathroom, too, you know.”
Veer smiled and reached out to pull her close to him by her nightshirt. He pulled her partially under the water to plant a kiss on her lips and pulled back looking at her. “I can’t do this if I shower in my room.”
“Do you think we will have rooms next to each other in the next city?” The crew was moving to a neighboring city to continue the program.
“I trust my man, Stefan.” He laughed.
“Do you think people know?” she asked brushing her teeth.
“Does it matter if they do?”
Surprisingly, she didn’t feel it was a big deal anymore. Was it because she felt things were working out between them, and she wouldn’t have to go through what she did with her previous relationship. “I don’t mind if people find out, but I am not going out of my way to tell anyone.”
“Yeah… I’m feeling a bit lonely in the shower, baby. Can you fix that?”
“Yes.” She smiled and shed the nightshirt she had on and stepped into the shower with him.
An hour later, Ariya stepped into the conference room that was set up as the clinic for the time they were in the hotel. Veer had gone to meet Stefan, Andy, and Melanie for the debrief. It was their routine to have Veer leave the room early, and then she would go to the conference room.
“Ariya, there you are,” Dominic said cheerfully.
“Good morning, Dominic.”
“I picked up special coffee for you and was worried it would get cold.” He handed her a hot drink.
“Thanks, Dominic, you didn’t have to.” Ariya had grown comfortable with him over the past month, and he had stopped hitting on her, although he would make a flirtatious remark from time to time.
“I wanted you to try the local coffee. It’s pretty good.” He flashed his glorious smile.
She took a sip of the coffee and placed it on the table where she usually set up her camera. “I like it, Dominic. Thank you.”
“I knew you would.” He chuckled.
Veer and Melanie joined them a few minutes later, and Andy’s team showed up shortly after. Stefan usually started the day with his pep talk for the team, and it definitely charged the team and pumped them with the energy they needed for the long day ahead.
The crew cheered as they let in the first patient for the day, a German Shepard that was big enough to knock her down. Dominic moved ahead and started taking pictures as Melanie walked halfway through the room to greet the majestic dog.
Melanie was passionate about her work and did not complain about the long hours she was not expecting to put in for the show. She always looked so put together and didn’t go overboard with the makeup or the touchups during the few breaks they took during the day.
Ariya stood smiling at Melanie playing with the dog. Veer stood right behind her, and she could feel his eyes on her back. She caught the look in Dominic’s eyes and knew something was off.
“Veer, that’s not your coffee,” Dominic called out from across the room, and a sudden hush fell in the room. Thankfully, the pet owner was in deep conversation with Melanie.
She turned, her heart pounding in her chest and saw Veer savor the coffee from her cup. He swallowed lazily and looked at the coffee cup and then at Stefan. “Isn’t this the coffee you said you left on my desk?”
Ariya could see the surprise on Stefan’s face for a split second, but he recovered quickly and shook his head, smiling. “I forgot your coffee in the car. That’s not yours.”
Veer looked straight at her and took another sip of her coffee. “Sorry, Ariya. This tastes so good, I can’t give it back.”
She smiled, feeling the flush on her cheeks. “You can have it.”
“Ridiculous,” Dominic grumbled under his breath.
“You and I can go get coffee sometime.” She smiled at Dominic.
“Really… you are asking me out?” Dominic flashed his cheesy smile.
“Yes, for coffee.” She laughed, shaking her head.
“I’ll take that for now.”
“Thanks for my coffee, Dominic,” Veer almost growled from behind her making her wonder if she sensed jealousy or annoyance in his tone.
The pet owners strolled in at a slower pace than they did during the initial weeks. Veer and Melanie needed additional animal doctors from the local area to help out in the initial weeks, but during the extended week only a few pet owners showed up in the morning.
A few hours into the day, both Veer and Melanie had checked on a few animals, and they were both working on their notes and online posts when a pet owner showed up with a puppy in a cute basket.
Ariya saw the cute animal in the basket and started taking pictures. She smiled at the elderly woman who walked toward Veer with her pet. Ariya turned to capture Veer’s expression and froze. The look on his face made her stomach twist. She saw a blank expression, and then something emerged in his eyes—sadness.
Veer mumbled something under his breath and started walking away.
“Veer,” Stefan called out to him, but he did not stop.
“Melanie, can you check on the puppy?” Ariya asked as she placed her camera on the table. Melanie nodded, and Ariya followed Stefan out of the conference room.
“Stefan, I got this,” she called out without turning to look at her friend as she kept her eyes on Veer walking toward the back of the hotel.
“Veer…” She caught up with him just as he stepped out on the patio that was to one side of the hotel all the way at the back. It was a weekday, and there was no one else there.
Veer stopped right on the edge of the pool and looked up at the sky. She walked up to him, cautiously. “Baby, what’s wrong?”
He took in a strained breath and turned to look at her. On impulse, she put her arms around him and let his head rest on her shoulder. She left butterfly kisses on his cheek as he held her, gathering himself.
Ariya waited for a few moments before speaking. “It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it.” She felt his breath quicken on her shoulder, and he pulled her closer straightening his back. She placed her cheek on his chest.
“I feel so sad, I wanna cry,” she blurted unable to contain her emotions. Her heart wrenched in her chest, and at that moment, she knew what she felt for him was deeper than she had realized. His breath warmed her cheek and her heart, and she realized she was falling for him. She smiled correcting her thoughts—she had already fallen in love with him.
“Baby, please,” he murmured.
She pulled back to look at him and ran the pad of her thumb on his cheekbone. “Do you want to sit down?”
He nodded and sat on one of the wooden benches holding her hand in his. She slowly ran her free hand through his hair, and he pulled her close to him burying his face into her belly. She looked down at the dark head molded into her belly and gasped when she felt moisture through the thin material of her t-shirt.
She felt suffocated with how sad he was and was willing to do anything to see him smile. “Veer, I… I’m unable to breathe when you look so sad.”
He took a deep breath against the fabric on her belly before looking up at her. “Everything I’ve done so far feels useless… I couldn’t save the dog who saved my life.”
“Veer, you were injured… how could you have done anything?”
“That puppy… looks exactly like Enzo… I couldn’t save Enzo… twice.”
She hugged his head into her belly again running her fingers through his thick hair. “Veer, what you did has inspired so many people to care and protect the animals. You have taken care of so many pets in just the last few weeks… what you do is very important… don’t discount the love you have for what you do and what you do best.”
Veer took a deep breath before looking up into her eyes. “I love you, Ariya.”
She smiled, fighting back happy tears as he stood up to claim her mouth.
“I love you, too…” she mumbled against his lips and felt their bodies meld.