“You have to try my new fusion dish,” Taara Auntie called from the kitchen. “I call it ambrosia masala. Instead of chickpeas in a channa masala, I used marshmallows and added some mandarins and pineapple to the onions like in the American dessert.”

Layla and her aunties made their way to the kitchen, where Taara Auntie was filling a bowl with her new dessert. Layla’s stomach clenched when the scent hit her nose. “I would love to try it, but I’ve got a client—”

“What the hell is going on?” Sam’s angry voice rang through the office.

“Oh. And here he is.” She raced out to find Sam scowling at Daisy, who had her feet up on his desk.

He whirled around to face her. “Look what she’s done to my—”

“Mr. Mehta. How nice to see you.” Layla grabbed his hand and shook it hard. “Please play along,” she whispered. “My aunts are in the kitchen. One of them is obsessed with matchmaking. If she sees you—”

“Who is here?” Salena Auntie called out.

“Just a client.” Layla pushed Sam toward the boardroom, keeping his back to the kitchen so her aunties couldn’t see his face. “I’m afraid I have to go into a meeting. Thank you so much for coming.”

“Is he single?”

“He’s in the arts,” Daisy said. “Musical theater. Jobs are scarce so he’s hoping Layla will find him a new gig. He was in Annie a few months ago. Maybe you saw him. He was the one wearing the curly wig and the cute red dress.”

“Oh.” Salena Auntie gave a disappointed sigh. “Arts.”

Layla shoved Sam into the boardroom and closed the door. “Please, Sam.” She stood with her back to the door and pressed her hands against his chest in case he tried to escape. “Just stay here until they leave. I know it’s wrong, but you don’t understand what they’re like. They’re desperate to get me married, and I don’t want someone’s husband’s third cousin’s son popping into the office with his mother because they were”—she made mock quotation marks with her fingers—“‘Just in the neighborhood.’ Or hearing how we’re suited because we both like grapes and were born on a third Wednesday. I want to do this myself.”

She looked up through her lashes to find Sam studying her intently. She suddenly became acutely conscious of how hard his chest was beneath his shirt, how his broad shoulders blocked out the room, how she could feel the rapid thud of his heart beneath her palms, and the warmth of his breath on her forehead. She drew in a deep breath and inhaled the sharp, rich scent of his cologne. He was so much bigger than her, so strong. If he wanted to get past her, it would be no trouble for him to move her aside. In fact, he could easily have resisted her pushing him into the boardroom in the first place . . .

“Pretty please with a cherry on top,” she whispered.

His eyes darkened, smoldered. Electricity sparked between them. She had a curious urge to lean up and kiss him. It made no sense. This was Sam. The man she loved to hate.

“The dog goes.” His deep voice rumbled in his chest, breaking the spell.

“What?”

“The dog goes or I walk out that door and tell them the truth.”

Flames licked both her cheeks as his words finally sank in. Of course it had to be a negotiation. “You’re talking about Max?”

“Are there any other dogs running around the office?” He drew in a ragged breath. “Yes, Max. This is a place of business. We can’t have animals barking at me every time I walk by. It’s unprofessional.”

“Maybe if you didn’t growl at him, you two could be friends.” She shuddered, shaking off the inexplicable moment of desire.

Sam reached for the door and she pushed against his chest again. “Okay. Okay. I’ll talk to Daisy. But he really is an emotional support dog. It’s just been her and her dad and brother since her mom left them to pursue a career in New York. Max got her through a really rough time.”

“Are you trying to get me to feel sorry for her?”

Layla shrugged. “She would hate that, but she hasn’t gotten over her mom leaving the way she did. When my family found out her dad was struggling to cope alone, they stepped in to help—taking care of one another is what my family does—but it wasn’t the same as having her mom around. I got Max from a shelter when she was really down. They’ve been together ever since.”

“Most of my relatives are in India,” he said. “And the few that are here I rarely see.”

“Sounds lonely. I can’t go anywhere without an uncle or aunt or cousin popping up. And they always have food. Daisy and I were in the movie theater the other afternoon and, this is no lie, Pari Auntie was there with her kids and an entire shopping bag filled with Magic Masala and Kurkure that she’d brought over from her last trip to India. And she was like ‘Eat, eat’ and I was like ‘Okay, okay’ because no one has to ask me twice to eat Magic Masala chips.”

Sam frowned. “You see movies in the afternoon?”

“Don’t judge me,” she said. “I’m self-employed in a business that I can’t seem to get off the ground, and I have a movie habit. And don’t say streaming services, because some things just have to be seen on the big screen.” She took a deep breath. Whenever she was around Sam she couldn’t stop talking. One day she would run out of air. “How do you get your kicks?”

“Fight ring.”

“I didn’t mean literal kicks.”

His lips quivered at the corners like he was fighting back a smile. “I train at an MMA gym five times a week. It’s a good stress release.”

“Sounds intense, but also kind of cool. Have you ever used your skills outside the gym?”

“No,” he said after a long pause. “But once I was very, very tempted.”

Disconcerted by the pain in his voice, she bit back her sharp reply. “For what it’s worth, from what I know of you, the guy probably deserved it.”

“Yeah, he did.” His voice was hard and cold.

Heat engulfed her. The idea of Sam meting out justice Fight Club style made her body turn to mush. Seeing him vulnerable, even for a moment, made her wonder what hidden depths lay beneath that prickly shell.

“All clear!” Daisy shouted from outside.

Layla stumbled back when the door suddenly opened behind her. She lost her balance, hands flailing until she grabbed Sam’s tie. Her foot hit something hard. Sam grunted, tipped forward. Unable to fight gravity, Layla went down, pulling Sam on top of her. They landed in a heap on the floor.