Chapter Two

"Is Lakhi not ready yet? Darcy will be here in 20 minutes." Lalita said as nonchalantly as she possibly could.

The younger woman emerged from the bathroom, still wearing her pajamas. "I'm not going. I don't care about museums."

"Big surprise," Lalita said rolling her eyes. To be truthful she was relieved. Her sister was a handful and would make no effort to keep her mouth from complaining the entire time.

Just then, Jaya came out of the bedroom. She was dressed, but not to go out in public. Lalita eyed her sister suspiciously, "Why are you dressed like that?"

"Um," Jaya said, "I'm not feeling well. I think you better go without me."

"What?" Lalita did not buy it. Jaya was as bad as Chandra. "You expect me to go with him by myself?"

"Jaya said you probably wanted to be with him on your own last night." Lakhi got an elbow to her ribs.

Lalita shook her head a little too forcefully. "I did not. And just because Darcy was being charming last night…"

"Go Lalita, have a good time. You're into museums more than the rest of us anyway. And if Georgina was telling the truth about Darcy's love for them, he'll be an excellent gui-"

"Why wouldn't she be telling the truth?" Lalita asked, glaring at her two sisters. "Why does everyone keep pushing us together? I'm not interested like that…"

Just then the doorbell rang downstairs. Lakhi glanced out the window to see Darcy's car. "He's here."

"He's early," Lalita hissed.

Jaya couldn't resist, "Probably can't wait to see you!" She earned a glare from her sister for her trouble.

Chandra welcomed Darcy inside. Lalita knew she better get down there or Chandra would ask him to stay. Walking down the stairs, Darcy and Chandra looked up to see her. Darcy's blushed while saying, "Good morning, Lalita."

Feeling her face match his, she returned the greeting.

Getting a good look at her friend, Chandra couldn't hold back her giant smile, "Why, Lalita, don't you look beautiful this morning? Is that a new outfit?"

"No," Lalita said, upset with her friend's teasing. "Um, you're early."

"Yeah, I'm sorry. Traffic was much lighter than I expected. If you're not ready I could wait in the car."

Lalita had to giggle a little at his nervousness. "No, don't be silly. We can go."

As they walked out the door, the three women chimed in perfect unison, "Have a good time!"

Darcy was about to turn to say something, but Lalita held out her hand. "Ignore them."

The ride to the museum was quiet at first until Lalita remarked on the traffic. Darcy had a lot to say on the subject, but in an amusing way. She reminded him of the traffic in India which he remembered well. Darcy's sincere feelings on how lost he felt there gave Lalita pause to remember her own treatment of Darcy was not exactly welcoming.

At the museum, Lalita was very surprised that Darcy was indeed a big fan of the Natural History Museum. He'd obviously been there several times and even had knowledge of the architecture of the building. His lively spirit in explaining what he knew, though not in a condescending way, was almost boyish in nature. Lalita found herself laughing out loud at his liveliness, which may have confused him but was no deterrent.

They spent a lot of time in the dinosaur section. As they went from display to display, Lalita found herself asking Darcy about his love for the museum.

"Oh, well, when I was younger my farther would take me here and the ones in London. Back then, well I was a boy and other than the dinosaurs, I didn't really care. He would rattle on, I guess the way I'm doing now and I'd just shrug."

She nodded, smiling at the image of a young Darcy. "But you came to love it."

Darcy's face fell slightly, "Yeah, well…not really in time though."

"In time?" She was surprised at the sudden sadness on his face.

Glancing at her, he looked to be struggling about whether to say anything. She waited until he relented. "When my father died, I was a teenager. I…he never gave up his love for museums even though I found excuses for him not to take me anymore. Anyway, in London after the funeral I went to the Museum of London by myself. I felt a very deep connection I hadn't felt when he was alive. A little too late."

Darcy's face held such regret and sadness, Lalita reached out her hand to caress his arm. The touch had him come out of his melancholy state and return to the present. "Sorry, didn't mean to turn negative all of a sudden."

"No, no, that was a tragic moment in your history and at such a young age. I can't imagine…I love my father and if I lost him even now…"

"Yeah, I liked your father. He seemed to favor you." They sat down at a nearby bench.

Smiling, Lalita shook her head. "He would never say I was a favorite but it's true he and I get along better than the rest of my sisters, though Jaya comes in very close. If he was gone, I think I'd be shattered."

"It's tough, but you carry through. For the love of your family." Lalita knew he was talking about his sister.

"If you were a teenager, then Georgina must have been a little girl."

He nodded. "Yes, she was but she was old enough to understand which I think made it all the harder. And you met my mother so it wasn't like we were first on her mind."

"Yeah," Lalita said, feeling more disdain for Mrs. Darcy than ever. She reached for his arm again and squeezed. "Looks like you did a good job with Georgina in spite of, and she obviously adores you."

"Thank you." Darcy was staring into her eyes. They were hypnotic and she couldn't think of anything else she wanted to say. His other hand came over Lalita's. She enjoyed the warmth of his touch. He then began rubbing her hand in small circular motions. The sensations made her heart race but once Lalita came to her senses, she gently took her hand away. Standing up, she said with a hoarse throat, "We better keep going. Remember I want to meet my family for lunch."

"Right." Darcy replied.

The morning went by faster than either could imagine. Darcy asked if she wanted to get coffee before her lunch. When she agreed, he realized he'd been holding his breath.

As they waited for their coffee, Darcy reflected on the wonderful morning they had. Or he thought it was wonderful. His excitement over sharing his love for the museum wasn't fake, and the fact she was so responsive made him enjoy himself all the more. They had far more in common than one would think since they grew up on opposite sides of the world. And she was so easy to talk to, even on the hardest of subjects. Darcy could kick himself for not trying harder in India to get to know her.

After getting their coffees, Darcy found a booth that was out of the main crowd, making it easier to talk. "How's your cappuccino?" He cringed inwardly at the lame question.

"It's good." She took a sip. "I'm not used to so much foam on the top."

"Yeah, well, that way they can serve less and make more."

She smiled knowingly. "Yes, I'm sure they do."

"It's the American way." He said shyly.

"Well," she said reflectively, "I think you'll find everywhere in the world they try to do the same."

"Yeah. Pretty much. Um, how do you like America so far?"

Lalita seemed to consider his question, and Darcy felt his heart dip. What if she hated it? All at once he understood far better how his dismissive attitude on her country's long held customs must have felt to her. However, her response was positive. "Actually I do like it here. It's different. And I know LA is just one part of the country, so I wish I had time to see more. We're only here for another week."

Was that a hint of regret in her eyes? Darcy wasn't sure. He was about to say something else when Lalita went on, "Maybe with my best friend living here, I can come again in the future."

"I'd like that," Darcy said before he could stop himself. Lalita's reaction made him blush. "Anyway, I hope you enjoyed your tour of the Natural History Museum. Was your tour satisfactory?"

She smiled, "Very."

"And was the guide informative, charming and delightful?"

Her giggle was music to Darcy's ears. "Maybe. Just a little."

"Excellent! The audience was very captivating, making it difficult to speak about the exhibits."

She grew quiet at his comment and Darcy worried he'd messed up again. How did he always find the wrong thing to say? But one look into her eyes and he then realized maybe, finally, he said the very right thing.

Just then, his cell phone rang. He tried to ignore it, but Lalita told him it was fine. Apologizing he took the call. He listened as his assistant explained the issue and he realized he was going to have to go in. Hanging up the phone, he never felt such hatred for his job than he did at that moment.

"I'm so sorry. I'm afraid I'll have to go to work. There is this problem…"

"Don't worry; you've been so kind to give up so much of your time as it is." The disappointment on her face was there, but it oddly did little to appease him; in fact it made him feel worse.

As they walked out, Lalita checked her watch. "Actually this is good timing. I should be meeting my family soon for lunch, then onto our own site seeing tour."

They got to his car, and she told him what restaurant they were to meet them. As they drove, Darcy asked, "You don't sound too excited about more LA site seeing."

She shrugged. "Yes, well. We've been to all the typical hot spots. It's fine. They want to go to the beach. I'm sure California beaches are beautiful but I had hoped to see something different or unusual. I feel like…I don't know, I want to see everything but with our tourist guide book and maps carrying our cameras, it feels so generic. Plus we have another day of it in the morning."

"I know what you mean, I think." He said thinking.

He could feel her eyes on him, "This morning was different. I really did enjoy myself."

He laughed. "So I'm a better tour guide than Kohli?"

She returned his laugh. "Yes, very much."

"High praise indeed." He waited a beat then ventured an idea. "You know, I'm not sure if you would be interested, but I might be able to make the site seeing for you and your family a little more exciting. I think…I mean I have an idea. Would you be up for it?"

She was staring at him. "What do you have in mind?"

"Oh," He had to grin mischievously, "I'd rather not say. But I promise it to be quite over the top, that is, if you would allow me to be. If you think it would be alright for the morning that is. I'm afraid there is nothing I can do about this afternoon."

She was silent for a few moments, then responded. "So tomorrow, will you be there?"

He didn't dare look at her but her tone sounded hopeful. "Would you like me there?"

She waited a beat before she answered which nearly killed him. "Yes."

"Well, then I'll pick you guys up in the morning with a chance to see LA like few do." She agreed. Dropping her off, Darcy knew he had a lot to do if he was going to pull this off.