Nothing Like Love Read Online Free

slapped Rajesh hard on the back. “Raj, when last I see you, boy?”
    Rajesh remained rooted in his spot despite the slap. “Puncheon, how you could be drunk at six thirty in the morning?”
    Puncheon laughed and draped an arm around Rajesh’s shoulders, exposing a sweaty armpit. “Who drunk? Me?” He sucked his teeth.
    Vimla and Minty inched back. They made their way out of the tent and began to browse the stalls that lined the side of the road. Slippers, cast-iron pots, rolling pins and pot spoons lay in the sun on wooden stalls or on newspaper on the ground. Men and women sat beside their goods, fanning themselves in their best market wear and calling out to shoppers who swarmed the side of the road like bees.
    Across the road, Vimla spotted a doubles stand. She watched hungrily as a woman heaped a spoonful of curried chickpeas and a dash of pepper sauce in between two pieces of flattened, fried dough and wrapped the sandwich in wax paper for a waiting customer. Her hand flew to Minty’s arm. “Is him!”
    Minty squinted against the sun. “Him who?” There were dozens of people milling about the place.
    “
Krishna
. Pundit Anand Govind’s son. He buying a doubles. Look.” Vimla glanced both ways and darted across the busy street, with Minty running after her. They positioned themselves behind a pair of men shucking corn.
    Krishna, five foot ten, beamed down at the doubles lady. “Thank you, Auntie,” he said, handing her some money. His deep brown eyes crinkled at the sides when he smiled.
    The doubles lady batted her sparse eyelashes at him. “That’s all right, son. Tell me, your father find a girl for you to marry yet?”
    Krishna leaned forward some. “You available?”
    The doubles lady giggled and waved her hand at him. “I too old for you, dahling,” she cooed.
    He took a step backward, his hand flying to his heart. “Well, if I can’t have you, I go take two more of your doubles then.” He fished into his trouser pocket and pulled out some more bills. “Not too spicy this time.”
    Delighted, the doubles lady whipped up two more packages, oozing with chickpeas. Krishna thanked her, turned on his heel and headed straight toward Vimla and Minty.
    “Pretty gyul.” Krishna handed Vimla a package and winked. He turned to Minty. “How you going, Mints?”
    The girls stared back at him, doubles in hand, speechless. He laughed. “What happened? I have
channa
on my face?” Krishna wiped his large hand over his smile, brushing the invisible chickpeas away.
    “Sita-Ram,” Minty said.
    “How you so formal today, Mints? Like you and me is strangers now?” Krishna made to pinch her arm playfully but then remembered where he was and shoved his hand in his pocket instead.
    Minty shrugged. Then: “How you know we was here? And how come you buy this for
we
?” When she took a big bite of her treat, sauce drizzled over the side of her hand and down her wrist. “Mmm … thank you,” she said through a spicy mouthful.
    “I been watching Vimla for the past hour,” Krishna said to Minty, nodding at Vimla with a roguish smile. “When shefinally notice me, she was giving me a hungry look, so I decide to buy my girl a snack—and one for she co-conspirator, too,” he added. “How I could let two sweet girls starve?”
    Minty looked away, embarrassed, but Vimla stared up at Krishna as if he were the only other person in Chance market. Krishna took a step closer to her, so close the faint hairs on his arm grazed her skin. She inhaled the soapy scent of him, trying to extract it from the market smells and hold it in her lungs for as long as possible. Krishna inched nearer still and lowered his voice. “I left something for you with the fig man. Tell him I send you and then get back in the tent—Sangita looking for allyuh.” He gazed over her head while he talked, scanning the road and the produce tent across the street.
    She could feel her heart pounding. If she shuffled just a step forward, she