A Colorful Life by Melissa Storm

Author:Melissa Storm [Storm, Melissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Partridge & Pear Press

Three hours later, the city's morning chorus pounded Daly's eardrums—honking traffic, shouting street vendors, and chanting holy men. None cared to be quiet, despite the early hour. Try as she might to block out the noise by resting a pillow over her ears, she couldn't escape the persistent call of, "Saag at just thirty rupees per kilo," by a particularly irritating merchant. Careful not to disturb Mishti, she crept out of bed and padded into the drawing room.

Kashi sat curled on the couch under a heavy red quilt, cradling a steaming cup of chai. "Couldn't sleep either?"

Daly shook her head and took a seat next to him.

"It's always hard the first few days back in India. You need to get used to the loud noise early in the morning, and the stiff beds." Bringing a hand to his lower lumbar, he winced in pain.

"Is anyone else up?" Daly yawned and wiped the residue of sleep from the corners of her eyes.

"Not yet, but Mummy will wake up around seven to start preparing breakfast."

They sat in silence for a few moments. Daly hoped her hair was not too messy, but no way could she hide the bags under her eyes. She must look lovely.

"Hey, come with me. I've got something to show you." Kashi led her out of the apartment and up a long flight of stairs, then opened a hatch door that led to the rooftop terrace.

"This was my favorite place as a kid. See those plants? That was my garden. Now Mishti takes care of it for me."

She smiled at the garden, recalling her own pet flower back at the zoo, and walked over to the edge of the terrace to look out over the bazaar. She spotted her new enemy, the saag vendor, and muttered a curse under her breath.

Kashi came up behind her and put a hand on her waist. His scent trapped her, pulling her closer, and she shivered though the air was already warm.

"I thought we were only friends in India," she muttered, wanting both to turn into his embrace and to shove him away.

"That's just a show, Daly. You are much more than a friend to me, you know that." They shared their first Indian kiss.

"You know, this isn't how I pictured India," she said when they broke away. "I thought there would be all kinds of tall, old-fashioned buildings, and people singing and dancing in the streets, like they do in the movies we watched together."

He chuckled and gave her another quick peck. "People do sing and dance in the streets, though not exactly like they do in the films. Since this is marriage season in Delhi, we will probably see a bridal procession sometime soon. As for the buildings, you must remember this is one small part of an enormous city. If you want tall, old-fashioned buildings, I will show you a very tall, very old building. We can all go together today."

"Sure, but for now, I'm happy to have you all to myself.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.