All those flowery words? He’d said all of them in another life, in another language.
Dev pulled into the garage and removed his phone from the mount. It was when a nice older lady in the lift gave him a strange look that Dev realized his breathing was fast and rough. He cleared his throat and inhaled deeply, trying to strangle some of his emotions back. Into the box.
Only they weren’t in the box anymore.
The anger in her gaze made sense now. She should be angry at him. Hell, he was enraged, and he wasn’t the young woman who had been toyed with. Who could have done this?
“Kaka?” Luna called out from the kitchen when he opened the door.
Drat. Normally he would have been filled with warmth at her seeking him out the second he entered, but he’d hoped not to see anyone before he strangled—er, confronted—his agent. He took a deep breath, made sure his face was wiped clean of emotion, and then strode to the kitchen. He found his niece sitting at the kitchen counter, a plate of chocolate chip cookies in front of her, and Adil stirring a pot at the stove. Adil gave him a nod. Luna smiled at him, and his lips curved up automatically, though he didn’t much feel like smiling.
“Hi, beti. Uncle.” He stopped a foot away and rested his hand on the counter so he wouldn’t be tempted to hug her. He could really use a hug now.
“How was your first day?” His uncle wiped his hands on the towel tucked into his waist.
“Relatively easy.”
“That’s what happens when you’re not in every other scene. Enjoy this break. Once you hit the big-time here, you’re going to be busier than you can imagine.”
Dev gave a half smile. Adil was a cheerleader to his core. “Right.”
Luna offered Dev the plate. “Want a cookie? Uncle made them.”
“I didn’t know you baked, Adil Uncle.”
His uncle’s smile in profile was sad. “Your aunt liked anything chocolate. I learned. Eat, eat. You’re getting so skinny.”
He wanted nothing more than to stress stuff eight of them in his mouth, so Dev settled for one. He took a bite and let the sweet chocolate raise the serotonin in his brain. “These are good. Did you have one, Luna?”
“I haven’t had any yet.”
He finished his cookie in two bites. “What are you waiting for?” He nudged the plate closer, and she picked up one.
She nibbled it. “Did you find out anything about the schools around here?”
The schools, right. “I spoke to one of my coworkers, but his children go to a private school.”
“It’s okay. I requested a copy of my birth certificate, since I didn’t know if you have that.”
This time his smile was real. “I think there’s a copy somewhere, but it’s probably in storage.” Rohan hadn’t been great about paperwork, but luckily, Luna’s documentation had been in their mutual agent’s possession. “We can go tour the local school tomorrow.”
Luna’s eyes brightened and she sat up straighter. “Really?”
“Yes, really.”
She made an aborted motion and he wondered if she was going to launch herself at him, but instead, she folded her hands in her lap. “Thank you.”
“Have you called Aji today? She said she’s been ringing you.”
“Not yet. I wanted to make sure it was okay.”
“Of course. You don’t have to ask.” He tilted his head at the doorway. “Go call.”
Adil waited for her to leave before turning around. He waved his spoon. “That girl is far too obedient. She sat here with a whole plate of cookies in front of her, waiting for you to come home to ask if she could have one.”
“Weren’t you complaining about her being disobedient yesterday?”
His uncle sniffed. “She apologized to me for that, and even I know such moods are normal for teenagers. It’s not natural, this kind of obedience.”
“Not natural for any child or for Rohan’s child?”
“Both. Neither of you were like this at her age.”
His uncle had only seen them a handful of times as children, but Dev trusted his judgment. “Her therapist said she’s doing well, all things considered. It’s entirely possible my brother’s wild genes skipped a generation.”
“Hmph.” Adil turned the flame on the stove down. “If you think so.”
He absentmindedly grabbed another cookie and sat in Luna’s vacated seat. He didn’t really know if he was right or not, but he couldn’t stress over whether he was doing a decent job as a guardian tonight. Not when he had so many other things on his mind. “I will talk to her therapist again.”
“Good.” Adil tasted the curry he was making. “Hungry yet?”
“I’m actually going out soon.” The scent of garam masala and chili powder teased Dev’s nose. He took a third cookie. He’d have to spend a few extra minutes working out in the morning.
“Another party?”
“No, I’m meeting someone.”
Adil turned the stove off and fetched two sodas from the fridge and handed him one, popping another for himself. “You look a little pale.”
Dev rubbed his forehead. “Something’s come up.”
“What?”
“You won’t believe it.”
His uncle leaned on his elbows. “Tell me.”
Dev hadn’t really intended to tell his family any of this, but the words spilled out of him, like someone had taken that box of stuffed emotions and turned it upside down. Dev quickly recapped what he knew of the situation, withholding some details, like how the texts he’d ostensibly sent to Jia were eerily familiar. Adil’s eyes grew wider as he spoke, until they took up half his face. “Uhh,” he finally said. “Who would go to that much trouble to set you up with a girl?”
“Set me up? This wasn’t matchmaking.”
“Then what was it?”
“I don’t know.” His phone rang, and he released a gusty sigh when he saw who it was. “Thank God.” He answered. “Chandu.”
“Hello, Mr. Dixit. Chandu isn’t in yet, but since you said this was a social media issue, I thought I’d return your calls.” Chandu’s assistant had a posh and very fake British accent.
“Nandini. I need to know who has access to my accounts?” He turned slightly away from his uncle’s inquisitive and scandalized face.
Nandini made a thoughtful noise. “Chandu and I, though I do all the posting and management of your content. Why? Is there a problem?”
“That’s it? No one else?”
“No one.”
“No one else has ever had access to my accounts?” he persisted. “No intern or employee?”
“No, sir. Me, Chandu, you.” Nandini paused. “Oh, I suppose your brother, that time you were sick.”
Dev stiffened. “What? My brother?”
Her voice turned wary. “You sent me an email, remember? You had the flu, and I was off, so you asked me to give your brother your credentials so he could post some things for you.”
What? “I never did that, Nandini.”
She was silent for a second. “I’m sure I still have the email, sir. I called Rohan myself to give it to him. I remember him telling me how sick you were.” Her accent slipped, some of her native Delhi coming through.