Page 62 of The Ex Factor

“I’m trying to compute if a detour to my family’s home might spare us the inconvenience of being stuck in a storm somewhere.”

It was the first time I had heard about his family home.

“Do your parents live there?” I asked, wondering how comfortable he’d be taking me home to his family.

“No, it’s empty. It’s a vacation home that we use during the holidays and when we have out-of-town guests. Mostly, Cathy loves to plan and throw elaborate parties there.”

Interesting, I mused.

“Tune in to the road advisory,” he suggested and gave me the frequency for an AM channel.

Sujit’s suspicion was spot on, probably based on his experience.

The advisory said a blizzard was set to cause whiteout conditions along the highway we were on. The projected snowfall was about two to three inches, it said.

“At least that’s a silver lining,” Sujit commented.

“What’s a whiteout?” I asked.

“It’s when the visibility is severely compromised,” he explained and added, “Apologies, Aarti, but this calls for an executive decision, and I’m making one. I think it’d be best if we drove to my family home rather than risk being stranded somewhere.”

I wouldn’t mind being stranded anywhere with this man, but being adrift on a tropical island sounded better than risking a frozen death on the roads.

“I trust you, Sujit,” I said like I had several times before.

“And I hope never to disappoint you,” he added with a grim look as he took an exit and got on the off-ramp.

Driving effortlessly without any prompts from the navigation system, he pulled up in front of a giant house. It had snowed in the area a lot more than it had in the city, or so it looked. The driveway and the entrance were cleared out, but mounds of snow heaped all around the house.

“At least the property managers are taking care of the shoveling. I hope they have stocked the pantry after my last visit,” he said as we drove around the house to the garage in the rear.

He accessed the garage with a pre-programmed button in his car, and the door lifted up.

“How often do you come here?” I asked.

“Whenever I need to get away from people,” he said with a quick grin. “Sometimes being here helps me think.”

He led me in through a side door attached to the temperature-controlled, four-car garage. We entered through a mud room to a large living area. It was dimly lit and a bit chillier than I expected. Maybe because I had shed my layers before sitting in the car, but Sujit commented as much.

“Darn, the temperature is set to vacation mode. I should have changed it on our way here.”

When I returned a questioning look, he explained, “The heating and cooling is connected to an app on my phone.”

“Of course it is,” I said. “You techies have a compulsion to automate everything, don’t you?”

“It’s just convenient. Don’t you love it when you can turn off the lights with a voice command?” he said, and stepped over to the windows. “It’s not bad yet, but the visibility is decreasing. This was a good decision.”

I stepped closer to him and peeked outside. The heap of snow beckoned me. Growing up in a region where it doesn’t snow seemed to bestow it with a magical feel. Even when severe weather conditions brought snow to Dallas, it never stuck around. It melted away in a day or two. That winter wonderland feel of a soft snowfall had always evaded me, even when I had travelled to snow-capped regions.

“Can we step outside for a bit?” I asked, and he looked at me with a frown.

“It’s biting cold.”

“I just want to feel the snow on my face. We’ve got our coats, gloves, and hats in the car,” I pleaded like a child. “Please?”

When he assented with a smile and a nod, I rushed to the garage and heaved back our winter clothing.

I had already pulled the front door open and was out while Sujit was still putting on his gloves and hat. The light snowdrifting around in the mild breeze made for a great winter greeting card image.

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