Page 63 of Celebrity

He looked older, with more gray in his hair and lines on his face. He seemed a bit more fragile than the formidable man I knew growing up, who’d tried to control my life.

“Beti.”

We stared at each other, making no move to show any affection. I couldn’t remember the last time Papa had hugged me or told me he loved me. It was something I could never expect from him, and I refused to make the first move.

“Come inside.” Jacinta broke the standoff. “I have rooms ready for you. You can freshen up before we have dinner and board the riverboat. Dev, will you check on the guests while I get everyone settled in?”

Devin nodded and moved toward the crowd enjoying their cocktails.

I threaded my arm through my mom’s and led her toward the steps of the house. Tyler and Ashur joked while Carol and Jacinta engaged my father in a conversation, asking him his opinion of the latest technology trends on the market.

Papa seemed to enjoy the discussion and happily shared his thoughts. Of all my friends, Jacinta had been Papa’s favorite. He would go out of his way to make time for her whenever she was around. It was as if he ignored the fact her brother was married to his estranged daughter.

“Mommy,”I said in my family’s native language of Gujarati.

“Why did Papa come? He can’t bear to look at me, much less want to socialize with me.”

“Your husband is very persistent.”

I gave her the side eye.“Right. I buy that.”We ascended the steps into the house.“Mommy, I have to tell you something before you learn about it in the tabloids.”

“I know, sweetheart. You’re going to be a politician.”

“That’s part of it.”I paused midstep.“How do you know this? I haven’t made it public.”

“I read the news. All rumors have some truth. Your client likes to talk too much, but he’s a smart man and never puts anything out to the public that doesn’t have a solid basis. I don’t like his tactics but he’s never disrespected you. In fact, he adores you.”

I wasn’t sure what to say. This woman could always pull apart the facts from the fiction.

People assumed I’d inherited my smarts from Papa with his technology savvy. What most never knew or dared to learn was that Mommy was a child prodigy like I was. She had graduated magna cum laude from Princeton and then by the time she was twenty-three, gained her PhD in computer analytics and physics from Oxford University.

The life she’d planned had taken a dramatic turn when her grandfather arranged her marriage to Papa. She’d cemented her family’s place in the Indian community, not by her achievements in science and technology, but by marrying into one of the wealthiest Indian families in the United States.

“Mommy, you are brilliant. No wonder Papa keeps such a tight rein on you. He’s afraid you’ll overshadow his success.”

“Samina—”her voice grew stern,“—don’t go there. Be happy I’m here.”

I released a deep sigh. I’d never win any discussion where it concerned Papa.“Okay. I hear you.”

“I know you did. Take me to my room.”She followed me along the hallway.“I want to change. Your Papa has a meeting with your father-in-law.”

I frowned as I opened the door to her suite.“Why?”

“Business,”she responded, and that was the extent of the information she was going to give me.

She had this way of shutting down a subject that left no room for argument. It didn’t matter how much I fought with Papa. He never could keep me quiet the way Mommy managed with a glare.

Oh well. I’d better enjoy my time with my mom instead of worrying about what the two fathers were concocting.

* * *

An hourafter setting sail from Jacinta’s property, I stared at the passing homes along the river. There was so much going on, and I couldn’t hide the strain anymore. I’d come to the lower deck, away from the festivities, to refocus and prepare myself for the discussion I’d have with the family after all the guests left.

I could only pretend to enjoy myself for so long. Hell, Jacinta looked exhausted, and she thrived on the chaos of a socialite party. Thankfully, she’d told me about a back passage to this level so that I could escape.

A boom of laughter reached my ears, and I heard the distinct accent and timbre of my father’s voice. He was a politician in his own right, using his charisma to charm everyone around him.

Papa still hadn’t spoken a full sentence to me. He acted as if I wasn’t even in the room, and whenever anyone mentioned my name or asked about my newfound fame, he’d made an underhanded comment like, “That’s the life she chose—she can’t expect anything less.”

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