Free How To Salsa in a Sari by Dona Sarkar Page B

forever!”
    â€œYou already do.” Issa smiled grudgingly. She was being unfair. Gigi was her friend. Gigi would certainly do the same for her.
    â€œPlease?”
    Issa sighed. “If it comes up, I’ll ask him.”
    The chances of that particular topic ever coming up was slim, and Issa managed to put the mission out of her head. Unfortunately, she had just the right window of opportunity that afternoon after English class.
    Ishaan refused to let her ride home with Cat and offered her a ride home in his Jeep. The walk to his car was silent with Issa wondering if she really had to bring the dreaded topic up.
    Now or never.
    â€œYo, Ishaan. Listen.” Issa hesitated as the car roared to life. She really didn’t want to do this. She didn’t want him to say he wanted to date Gigi. She didn’t want anything else to change.
    â€œâ€™Sup?” He wove the car through the lanes of after-school traffic.
    â€œYou date girls, right?”
    He took his eyes off the car in front of him. “You asking if I’m gay?”
    â€œNo! I mean…” She realized how idiotic that sounded. “I mean, you’re willing to go out on dates, right? With girls.”
    â€œYou asking me out?” Ishaan resumed staring straight ahead, smile on his lips.
    â€œNo!”
    Mortifying. He’d saved her from her hideous ex-boyfriend and now it sounded like she was hitting on him. And did he have to look so amused at the thought?
    Hmph. “I mean. Not for me. For Gigi. I figured. You’re single. She’s single—”
    â€œGigi wants to date me?”
    â€œNo!” Issa practically choked. This was not going well. Why did she agree to this? “I figured, you’re both my friends. You’re both nice people. Why shouldn’t you guys date?”
    Ishaan said nothing as if waiting for her to go on.
    â€œSo, what do you think?” Issa prodded. He was not making this easy. Gigi owed her big-time.
    â€œUh. Okay.”
    â€œOkay, you want to date her, or okay you’re both nice? Ishaan, quit bein’ all ghetto and give me a real answer.” Issa was growing more and more exasperated. She could feel her bangs start to frizz from the nervous perspiration on her forehead. Ishaan was one of the most straightforward guys she knew. He hated games. She couldn’t understand why he wasn’t giving her a straight answer here. Either he wanted to date Gigi or not.
    Ishaan slowed down the car as they entered the neighborhood of the Morena mansion. “Listen, Gigi’s a nice girl. And she’s cute, but I’m not looking for a casual fling right now.”
    Fling? Gigi was going to be pissed if she ever found out she was considered to be fling material rather than take-home-to-Mom material. Hopefully Ishaan would keep that tidbit of info to himself. But even Issa had to agree that she had a hard time imagining fun-loving Gigi dealing with day-to-day fights and a long-term commitment. Especially with someone as intense and loyal as Ishaan.
    â€œYou could get serious about Gigi,” Issa protested halfheartedly. “She acts like a ditz, but she’s really sweet and—”
    â€œIz.”
    â€œBut she is!”
    â€œIz.”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œThere’s someone else.”
    â€œOh.”
    That shut Issa up. Not what she’d been expecting. Ishaan had never shown any interest in a particular girl. Sure, he’d discreetly check out any pretty girl who would walk by, but never a second glance. Now there seemed to be someone real on the horizon. Issa didn’t understand why he’d never mentioned her. Especially to her, one of his best friends. She never kept anything from him. He knew her every pathetic, silly secret. So why not the other way around?
    After a second, she dared to look at Ishaan again, slightly stung that he was so casually keeping things from her. “Who is it?”
    â€œJust