Dating Dr. Dil (If Shakespeare was an Auntie #1)(29)

He’d just tossed back another handful of nuts and almost choked. “God, that’s miserable.”

“How would you know? You’re a tall, desi dude with an M.D. The minute you got your degree, you became organic grass-fed filet mignon in a case of Costco-brand chuck roast.”

“The irony of comparing a Hindu to beef is not lost on me,” Prem said, amused.

The corner of Kareena’s mouth twitched. “Meanwhile, the more educated I get, the older I get, the faster people think my expiration date approaches. At least that’s what my aunties believe. So online dating is my only option.”

He dropped his feet to the floor and leaned in closer to her now. “Kareena, I know that you want a love story like your mom had, no matter how much I think love is a—”

“Don’t fucking start with me, Dr. Phil,” she said.

Prem held up a hand in surrender. “Rina, honey, what are you going to do if you can’t find someone in four months?”

Kareena quieted, and the seriousness in her expression had him pushing on.

“We know we have chemistry.”

“Prem—”

“We do,” he said. He wasn’t going to lie to both of them about that. Even now when he brushed his hand against hers, he felt a current straight up his arm. “And we also know that forever isn’t possible for us when we believe in different things. I can’t give you the love you want. All I’m asking you for is right now. A couple of dates, a couple of pictures, a big engagement announcement. In the end we both get the cash, then call it quits.”

“Why me?” Kareena blurted out. She motioned to her calamine-smeared face with fingers covered in peanut salt. “Your credentials are every Indian family’s wet dream. I’m sure you can find anyone that you can stand to be around.”

“It’ll take too long to find someone who won’t get the wrong idea,” he said quickly. “Since you know the truth about me, we aren’t going to have any problems.”

“Prem . . .”

He touched her hand and turned it over to brush the softness on the inside of her wrist. “Rina, give us a shot.”

“Can I ask you a question?”

He brushed a curl off her face; she looked startled but didn’t jerk away from his touch. He’d done that once before, almost like it was an instinctual need for him to be close.

“Ask,” he said, his voice husky.

“Why don’t you believe in true love?”

Prem let out a sigh, but leaned into her space, so it was just the two of them. Nothing else. No one else. “Rina, love is an emotion that can literally damage the heart, and it isn’t sustainable for long-term relationships. An emotional connection? That’s fleeting. Relying on body chemistry means you’re relying on something fickle.”

“Body chemistry,” she said slowly. “That’s what we have.”

“Rina—”

“Kareena.”

“I like calling you Rina,” he said with a smile. “It reminds me of the woman who chugged her drink just so she could have one with me.”

She smiled, and it reached her eyes this time. “Distracting me isn’t going to work. You may think love is an illusion, but it’s real. I saw it when my parents slow danced in the kitchen on Sunday mornings. Love was the stupid car my father bought for my mother that I have to keep in the shed because he gets really sad when he sees it. It’s the echoes of laughter I remember every time I come down the stairs in the house my mother and father built together.”

“Do you really want that much emotion in your life?” Prem asked quietly.

“Absolutely.”

He groaned when the realization hit him like a smack in the face. “Oh god, you’re one of those girls who has a secret list of things that make you think you’re in love, don’t you?” Kareena grinned at him, and her entire face lit up like sunlight.

Even though he’d known her for such a short amount of time, that smile could completely short-circuit his nervous system. Prem’s heart pounded in overtime, and for a moment, he forgot about what they were talking about. Her happiness was blinding.

“I’ve had a lot of time in my dating moratorium to think about what I want,” she said, completely oblivious to his reaction.

“Until you find Mr. Right, pretend to date me for a few months, then we can announce a pretend engagement. After the new year, we’ll break things off. No one will see it coming. Even your aunties won’t find out. This way you don’t have to settle for someone who is less than your perfect man.”

Kareena didn’t say anything for a minute, but Prem could see the wheels turning. Finally, she crossed her arms over her chest, a stubborn line set across her mouth.

“I want to keep dating other people for a few more months before I give you my answer. You’ll have to be my Plan B.”

“What? No way.” The idea of her flirting, having drinks, or spending time with anyone else was completely unacceptable. He wanted to keep all of her laughs to himself.

“That’s a deal breaker, Prem,” she said. “I need you to think about this for one second from my perspective. If I say yes to you, and we start fake whatever it is we’re going to do, then everyone is going to know. All the people who watched our video? They’ll want the update. Mrs. W. S. Gupta may write an article about it. Your family in California will find out.”