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“I’ll drop you off at home to change and drive you to the banquet hall right after,” Lucky suggested.

Dina nodded; she didn’t have a choice.

Deepak stuck his head out the storm door. “Oy, chutiya, are you going to tell Arshad you spent the night with his wife, or should I?” He grinned, mischief writ large on his face, before nodding respectfully at Dina. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Bhabhi.”

“Let’s go,” Lucky muttered, and Dina climbed into his car without a word.

Chapter Sixteen

Lucky was inside Dina’s house, waiting for her in the foyer and trying to resist the urge to snoop. He had changed into the brown shalwar suit Deepak had lent him inside her tiny powder room, elbows and knees bumping against the wall, then done his best to tame his thick, curly hair without product. He had already texted Samir explaining that something had come up and he would meet him at the banquet hall, then texted his brother explaining that he had spent the night at Deepak’s place. Both messages resulted in a barrage of follow-up questions, which he ignored, tucking his phone inside a pocket. He heard the shower turn off upstairs and gave up on the pretense of disinterest; this was too good of an opportunity to learn more about Arshad and Dina’s life.

The home was nothing like he had imagined. He had pictured his ex-friend living in a palatial estate on a large plot of land, perhaps with a fountain in the front lawn and at least three garages and five bedrooms. This house was smaller than his mother’s bungalow in Chicago, albeit better decorated. The cozy home felt more like Dina, thanks to the simple but elegant choices in flooring, wall color, and trim, each complementary in soothing neutrals.

He peeked inside the living room, noting the large television mounted on the wall, flanked by two oversize bookshelves filled with romance, mystery, historical, and fantasy novels, the same eclectic collection of fiction he used to see in Dina’s bag during law school. Arshad, in contrast, rarely read, and when he did it was always some self-help book with a grinning man standing with his arms crossed on the cover. The comfortable sectional was inviting with its decorative pillows and throws. There was a lot of pink, cream, and gold. Now that he thought of it, there seemed to be no trace of Arshad in the house at all. He hadn’t spotted any men’s shoes in the front hall closet, or jackets that didn’t belong to Dina hanging on the coat hook, which seemed odd. Something was up. Had she allowed him into her space to help him come to his own conclusions about the state of her marriage? Or was this more wishful thinking?

He recalled what Dina had said to him last night: “I went along with it all, but it hasn’t brought me any joy . . . I’m . . . not happy.” At first, he thought he might have read too much into her words, that his assumption that she was having problems with Arshad was only wishful thinking. But now he wasn’t so sure.

Then Dina came downstairs, and when he hurried back to the foyer, his breath left his body at the sight of her. Dina was dressed in a light-cream lengha tunic and full skirt, hijab tied back from her face to show off dangly jhumka earrings made with delicate gold and seed pearls, a matching necklace around her slim throat. The pale colors brought out the richness of her light-brown skin, and her subtle makeup made it seem like she glowed from within, eyes large and intense. She was too beautiful to take in all at once, and he had to look away to compose himself. When he looked back, she was studying him as well.

“Who knew Deepak had such good taste,” she said, nodding at his outfit.

“Oh, this old thing?” he joked. They stared at each other for another long moment.

“We should go,” Dina said, finally.

He nodded and led the way back to the car. The venue was a ten-minute drive away, and Lucky found himself wishing it were farther so they could spend more time alone together. Why did she smell so delicious? Something light with notes of jasmine and vanilla. He inhaled deeply, trying to be subtle.

Dina glanced at the time on her phone and sighed. “Hania will never forgive me for being late. I usually blame Arshad, but he’s likely already there. I can’t believe I slept in.”

“You’re here now. It will be okay,” Lucky soothed.

“You clearly have never met my little sister,” Dina said darkly. “Trust me, there will be hell to pay. I wouldn’t be surprised if she decided to make an example of me, for content purposes, of course. For a desi wedding, hers has been very low on drama.”

“Plenty of time for some hair pulling and aunty slapping yet,” Lucky said. “If it helps, I can pelt Samir with gulab jamun at the reception.”

“That would be great, thanks,” Dina said. But when they pulled into the parking lot of the luxury banquet hall the family had booked for the wedding, she didn’t wait for Lucky to park before she jumped out of the car and ran to the entrance.

Lucky waited a full minute after parking, inhaling what was left of her scent, before he caught sight of himself in the mirror. His pupils were blown wide, and there was a distinct flush crawling up his neck. “Get it together,” he told himself sternly, and then followed Dina inside.

When Lucky entered the banquet hall, the first person he ran into was Arshad, who appeared to be loitering near the front doors.

“Hey, buddy, salam,” Arshad said, holding out his hand to clasp Lucky’s.

Lucky stared at his hand; he really didn’t want to shake it. On the other hand, he didn’t want to make a scene, either. He reached out, and Arshad pulled him closer.

“I saw Dina get out of your car and run inside the hall. Anything you want to tell me, Luqman? Such as why you spent the night with my wife.”

Arshad’s smile was pointed, and Lucky felt his face flush. With guilt, and something else. He straightened to his full height, an inch taller than his ex-friend. “Sounds like a conversation you need to have with Dina,” he said. He released his hand. “Samir is waiting for me.”

Arshad let him go. “No worries, Lucky. I was just joking. Deepak filled me in on the fun, wholesome evening you all had yesterday. Told me it was real late and you and Dina decided to stay the night at his mom’s place.”

Inwardly, Lucky exhaled in relief. He owed Deepak for covering for him. “It was good to catch up. Deepak and Hassan said you never go around the old neighborhood and keep bailing on plans.”

His ex-friend smirked. “Nothing ever changes with those two. They’re still working their little jobs, still reminiscing about high school. It’s not my fault I’ve outgrown them.”

Lucky stared at Arshad. “You really believe that. What happened to you?”

Arshad shrugged. “Don’t pretend you’re any different, Lucky. We both wanted out. Don’t hate me for getting what I wanted.”