He grinned at me as my mouth swung open. ‘Do you mean it, Yudi? Honest?’

‘I mean everything I’ve ever said to you. Including all the comments about that fat but incredibly pretty head you have right here,’ Yudi said, pulling me close again and kissing me long and hard.

‘Megha?’ he said a few minutes later.

‘Mmmm?’ I looked at him dreamily as my brain struggled to regain its cognitive abilities.

‘I’m serious, you know. You do have a lot of talent for creative work. I wanted to talk to you about it earlier but I was too caught up in all that crap with Suketu and the mess we were in on Dinky Chips. But seriously, have you ever thought about a switch to the creative side?’

‘No,’ I grinned at him. ‘All I think about is you.’

‘Really? You know, I could ask you a few questions of my own. Like that Yankee dude you were having dinner with a few months ago. Remember? What was his name? Goamzeee?’

I giggled in spite of myself. ‘Gautam? He was just one of the Momster’s hand-picked prospective bridegroom material types. I had been emotionally blackmailed into having dinner with him.’

‘I know,’ Yudi said airily and grinned as I gaped at him. ‘I know, thanks to my friend Shalini. Remember I told you about her? She runs that store in Dehradun, the one you got your bag from. Apparently she was on Goamzee’s shortlist too. The guy has set himself the target of getting hitched within the year and he’s going about it with total dedication. Oh, and by the way, the inside story is that he rejected you because you’re too career-focused. Too much passion for selling biscuits is apparently not an admirable quality in Goamzee’s bride-to-be.’

‘Really?’ I collapsed in giggles. ‘God! What a clown! You know, I was all set to portray myself as this pati-parmeshwar type that day? Obviously it blew up in my face! I had even dressed in full desi style and I was mortified when I met you there! I must’ve looked like a total behenji!’

‘You looked lovely,’ Yudi said gravely, cupping my face in his hands. ‘You look beautiful with your hair pulled back—why don’t you wear it like that more often?’

‘Because it makes me feel too exposed,’ I said, tossing my mane playfully. ‘I prefer it this way, with my face hiding behind my flowing locks. You don’t think I observed Puru so closely in all those sales meetings with my hair pulled back, do you?’

Yudi grinned at me. ‘You like hiding, don’t you? Your face, as well as your feelings?’

‘It’s right up there on my list, along with running away from difficult situations,’ I admitted.

‘So where do we go from here?’ he asked. ‘One mercurial temper plus one penchant for running away spells troubled times ahead, don’t you think?’

‘Mmmmm,’ I nodded gravely. ‘So we’re in trouble then?’

‘We’ll figure it out. I did read somewhere about it being statistically proven that the couples who fight the most also love each other the most.’