We chat some more and she passes the phone to my dad and to my son again. Rian sneezes a few times, making me worry.

“Mom, is he unwell?” I ask her.

“Just a slight cold.”

I close my eyes in anguish. “I’m worried about him now.”

“Will you relax, Aaliya?” Mom makes a face at me. “It’s just a cold. He’s a baby. Of course, he’s going to be unwell once in a while. It’s been raining here. You know how the weather gets. And I’m perfectly capable of looking after my grandson. Besides, Jasmine’s been a great help as well. She spends most evenings and the weekends with us watching over Rian.”

I’m ever so grateful to my parents and Jasmine for doing this for me. They’re the best caregivers for my child while I deal with the situation we have been presented with.

“Mom, I feel like a terrible mother being away from him when he is unwell.”

“Aaliya, he is doing fine.”

“But...”

“No Aaliya. You work on getting Damien to remember you and all of us. We all miss him.”

My mom took to Damien immediately when we started dating five years ago in Mumbai. When I started working for him, he was just about setting up the business in Mumbai. We dated for six months before he proposed. My Dad was quite reluctant when I told him that I wanted to marry Damien. He’s quite traditional and he’d never imagined his only daughter marrying a British man. Although Indian girls are marrying foreigners now, the list is short. But with his easy and natural charm, Damien won him over as well. We were so happy together and suddenly, life threw this curve ball at us.

I hang up the call when I hear a knock on the door. I thought it was Damien coming to check on me, but it’s his housekeeper, Mrs. Perkins. She enters with her arms overflowing with clothes and puts them on the bed.

“What’s all this?” I ask her as she starts organizing the clothes in the cupboard.

She gives me a cheery smile. “His Grace has sent clothes for you to change into and some shoes as well.”

I look at the pile of clothes. There are warm leggings, two long sweaters, a few tops and two dresses. Many of them have their tags on and are designer labels.

“Oh! Please don’t tell me Damien sent some poor soul out in the storm just to get me clothes and shoes.”

She laughs. “No, Ma’am. It’s rather impossible to drive out in this weather. All these belonged to his late aunt.”

I take a step backward and shake my head. “Oh no! I can’t wear her clothes. That’s crazy!”