Dating Dr. Dil (If Shakespeare was an Auntie #1)(67)

Kareena: Prem . . .

Prem: I’ll take that as a no. Pack an overnight bag.

Kareena: Uh, what?

Prem: I’ll type it in Hindi if you want. I may have to google the Punjabi phrase to get it right, but I can do that, too.





Kareena sat at her desk in her bedroom, staring at Prem’s text. It was the first conversation between them since she’d bailed on their date. What was this man up to? And why did her heart jump when she saw his text come in?

“Dangerous feelings, Mann,” she said to herself as she put down her phone. “Dangerous feelings only lead to bigger feelings.”

She didn’t have time to dissect his cryptic message right now. She had to focus on herself. On her miserable dating life. Damn, it was like the Sahara out there for her. Dry and lifeless. It was as if she was standing on the top of a sand dune, begging someone to love her the same way she wanted to love back, and the only response back was a caw from a vulture.

Which was why she’d accepted Sonali Aunty’s matchmaking attempt.

She yawned, then checked the time, and realized that she had to open the link for her virtual date. She adjusted her laptop on her desk, fixed her ring light, and navigated into her personal calendar. Apparently Sonali Aunty’s contact had to work late and couldn’t touch base before ten that night. She should’ve just said no, but again. Sahara. Lifeless. Zero hits on dating apps, or pretty much anything.

Her mother’s house stood in the balance, and even though she desperately wanted to say yes to Prem, her future hung in the balance, too.

She logged on to her video conferencing app, and after checking her makeup one last time, adjusted her lighting, and then taking the water that she’d put in a mug, she joined the meeting.

Vikram’s face on-screen was identical to his picture that Sonali Aunty had shared with her. He had a green screen backdrop of what looked like a Restoration Hardware showroom.

Finance bro. That’s what Bobbi and Veera had thought of him when she’d shared the deets. Veera had gone so far as to recommend canceling, but Kareena couldn’t judge just yet.

“Hi, Kareena?”

“Hi, Vikram. Nice to virtually meet you.”

“Same,” he said.

Okay, his shirt was ironed. That had to be a good thing.

Vikram flashed her his hundred-watt smile and held up a tumbler with amber liquid in it. “I appreciate you accommodating my work schedule. Do you mind if I drink?”

“Not at all,” Kareena said and motioned to her mug. “My family drinks, too.”

“Great. Hey, your biodata document they sent me didn’t have a lot of information about your interests. Just your basics, and like your job title. What do you do up in New York? Nonprofit work?”

“Start-up work, actually,” she said. “I’m the general counsel of a start-up that helps women establish businesses and generate economic wealth.”

“Wow, a GC at your age? Well, it is a start-up, so you must be like the only attorney on staff anyway.”

She sat up straighter. “Uh, no, I have a team.”

He looked impressed, which only irritated her more. “How did you end up in your field?”

“It’s what I’ve always wanted to do.”

He cringed. “Work for a start-up focused on helping women? Sounds like . . . a lot.”

Red flag. Kareena could see it from a mile away and they’d just started talking. God, what was she going to tell Sonali Aunty? More importantly, how was she going to get out of this?

“It’s a challenge, if that’s what you mean. What do you do down in Atlanta?”

He grinned, and a dimple winked in his cheek. “I’m a VP. It’s a lot of work, but I have to make time for dating, you know? Like tonight. My parents have been on my case about getting married for years. But I told them, guys, my worth is more than my relationship status.”

Kareena nodded. “Yeah, I believe that. We should be on our own timelines.”

“Exactly! And for me, I think it’s finally time.”

She’d been searching for a man for a few months now, and it irritated her—no, it burned her ass—to think that this man could probably find his soul mate faster than she could.

Shaking herself out of a downward spiral, Kareena asked, “You’re looking for an arranged match?”

“Oh yeah. A love match is great and all, but it’s not necessary for me.”

What the hell? Was she the only person who believed in love anymore? Since this was already feeling not-so-great to her, she figured that she had nothing to lose if she went all in.

“Vikram, can I ask why love isn’t important to you?”

He shrugged and swirled his liquid in front of the camera as if demonstrating a proper technique. “Because I come from a pretty conservative family, and we believe that when people marry, they marry the family, not just the person.” He let out a short laugh. “Also, dating is hella hard. I mean, I have so many time commitments. It’s just less stressful this way.”

They had a point, Kareena thought. “Dating is hard for me, too. That’s mostly because everyone is in my business since I still live at home.”

There must have been something she said, or how she said it, that had him freezing. “At home? Like, together?”