One's life can change in an instant. At least that was the lesson I had learned in the last six months. One minute, I was working a lowly government job in an office with air conditioning that barely worked, and the next I was married to this sassy, quick witted , and sharp tongued woman who had a great sense of style. And to top it all, she was settled as a US citizen in the greater LA area. Her family owned a gas station and a motel and they wanted a down to earth North Indian boy who would not mind helping out with the business.
A common family friend had introduced me to Jas's family and our first conversation had lasted for a couple of hours. Jas had talked at length about her extended family and interest in fashion designing. She also mentioned her complete lack of interest in managing the family businesses as well as cooking and any kind of house work. She was extremely social and seemed to always have a text to respond to or a friend to talk to either in the US or here. In fact even on the day we met for the first time, a local friend had joined her. She seemed to know a lot of people. But I was completely in awe of her, and the fact that she would even consider someone like me. She had brown eyes that were intense and piercing. At 5 feet 5 inches, she was skinny , slightly dark, and had a pointy nose. The day we met she wore tight black jeans with a hot pink off the shoulder top to match her sharp pink finger nails. There were a bunch of pimples across her forehead. I simply loved her confidence and the way she took charge of any situation even though these were not her regular surroundings.
We were on our way to her ancestral house in Punjab. Her father has passed away several years back in a road accident. Her mom shuttled between Punjab and LA frequently. On the way, they talked about a lot of things but Jas mentioned several times how she wanted me to take charge of the motel and gas station.
"If I am going to spending all my time at the motel and station, when will I start my masters degree, honey?" I asked her.
"What is this rush to study? Eventually you have to earn money only right," Jas replied rather casually while fiddling with her phone texting someone for the umpteenth time on the trip.
"But we talked about that. I want to start in the next six months," I said in a gloomy tone.
"That will happen when it happens," Jas shrugged me off as she often did.
Then she let the cellphone go and lovingly took my arm and said in soft but firm manner, "Now listen, when you see my mom, touch her toes, got it? Bend all the way. Do not make it a formality and just give her cursory respect. And she is very demanding when it comes to keeping the house clean. Also everything needs to be in its place. And for God's sake brush your hair."
Jas brushed her fingers through my hair and smiled seductively. I had a hard on immediately. I could not wait to get over this formality of meeting her mom and rushing to our honeymoon. We had not had sex yet and I could not wait to rip Jas's pants and get inside her.
Her mother greeted us in the driveway of their pretty large bungalow in a shaded corner of this rich neighborhood. The house was a pretty good size and had large trees in the front. One thing that struck me as odd was that the windows all seemed to be tinted with a really dark color. That must make the house really dark inside, I thought. And indeed as I stepped in the house on a late afternoon summer day, the lights were on even though the bungalow had such beautiful windows. And for some reason, the Dhingra family, loved white tube lights. Instead of the soft lighting that I would expect to see in a house of this class, there were bright fluorescent lights all over the place. Even the lamps had smaller mercury bulbs. My wife had mentioned that her mother hated wasting money and got really mad when someone did the same. The entire place had a very functional look. They could have decorated this place so much better.
Sheila entered the room looking really sexy. I was almost (but not totally) embarrassed being turned on. I had not paid much attention to her during the wedding ceremonies. I did remember her yelling at the wedding planner when the flowers she liked were late and yelling again at the cooks for being slow. But I could not remember how she looked until now. She was wearing a red halter neck blouse that accented her long neck with a saree that was baring midriff a little too much for someone of her age. She was wearing a deep red lipstick to match and had her sexy silver glasses resting on her head. She came and sat by my side but did not even look at me. In fact, she totally ignored me.
"Jas, your room is ready. Also make sure, you call Harry. He has phoned you twice already wanting to plan an evening with the gang tomorrow," Sheila said talking to Jas in a businesslike manner.
"I thought we were leaving tomorrow?" I asked looking a little surprised.
"Oh honey, I forgot to tell you. My mom was missing me. Moreover, I wanted to catch up on my friends as well. So we will be staying a few days. What is the hurry anyway? And in case you are thinking, Harry is part of my group of friends, I have grown up with," Jas replied looking at me in a teasingly knowing how insecure I got when I heard her talking to guys on the phone.
I was shocked of this change in plans. Spending an evening with her friends, especially Harry who she seemed to talk with a lot was not my idea of a romantic evening. Jas left to get a glass of water. Sheila had not spoken to me directly so far. She seemed a little cross. There was an uneasy tension between us with none of us saying anything for a few moments.
"It's a really nice house. I love the long flowing rooms," I said trying to break the uncomfortable silence.
She nodded a little. But still not words.
"Everything OK? You seem a little quiet," I persisted
Now she turned her eyes and gazed straight at me. Her curved eye lashes made her looked like a fiery snake.
"Looks like your parents did not teach you how to respect elders," Sheila angrily remarked.
