Free Priya in Heels (Entangled Embrace) by Ayesha Patel

want to do everything to make them happy. They only want what’s best for me. Had I not paid heed to their wants, I wouldn’t have learned three languages, I wouldn’t have graduated high school as valedictorian, wouldn’t have gotten scholarships, wouldn’t have made it into med school, wouldn’t be where I am now. They wanted me to concentrate on school and not date. So I did. I wasn’t distracted by boys.
    “Above everything else, I can’t handle hurting my parents. That would tear me apart. And what kind of man encourages a woman to drag her parents through the mud just so he can get into her pants?”
    Vicki rested her chin in her hand and shook her head. “You’re hopeless. And still dumb.”
    “Vicki. When are you going to tell your parents you’ll marry who you want?”
    She broke eye contact.
    “Yeah, go find your own white guy, or better yet, a black Muslim and see how that works out. I will not destroy my relationship with my mom because of an irrational connection to the guy down the hall. I’ll move if I have to.”
    “Life is too short to spend it with someone you don’t love.”
    “Love is superficial and temporary. These feelings of elation pass, but marriage doesn’t. I’m not ruining my chances at a good marriage because I stupidly did stuff with another guy.”
    “And there’s that idiotic ideology. What are the chances the guy your mom picks hasn’t had a fair share of women already?”
    I paused.
    “And don’t even think the world is so eighteenth century where it’s acceptable for men to have sex when women can’t.”
    “Unlike most people who wander this earth, I’ve had a plan since forever.”
    “Your plan, or your mom’s?”
    “Are we seriously arguing about this?”
    “Yes!”
    “About Ty?”
    “Yes! You like him and it’s only going to get worse.”
    “All right, so I like him. I like a guy who my mother would never approve of. A white guy. So what? I like him, but I don’t love him. I’ve had crushes before. They’re intense and they fade. This isn’t any different.”
    “Then why are you freaking out?” Vicki asked calmly.
    Because it scared me how much I liked Ty, how much I wanted him. Instead of admitting it, I grunted and went to my room.

Chapter Eleven
    Tyler
    I had to go the extra mile with Pree. Not that she wasn’t practically floundering the last time she saw me, but she was well worth the effort to do things right. Neither of us were about sex and games, and according to my intel, there were a few major hurdles to leap before I could shatter her barrier of self defense.
    “You got the stuff?” I joked when I secretly met Vicki in the hallway. I felt like we were dealing drugs or something.
    She handed me the bag. “Let’s get something straight.”
    “Hit me.”
    “Priya is not the type for a hit and run. I’m not helping you so you can get her into bed.”
    I put my palm up. “I’m offended you think I’m that guy.”
    She sighed. “I know you’re not. But in case my gut is wrong, I will hurt your man parts if you hurt Priya.”
    “I wouldn’t hurt Pree. In fact, I’d hurt someone if they hurt her, like her aunts.”
    “She told you about them?” Vicki looked shocked. “Wow. You might not need my help after all. She doesn’t tell anyone about her aunts.”
    “I figured. She doesn’t seem the type to bad-mouth anyone, and even then, I could tell it was difficult for her to get the words out. Look. I’ve been trying to talk to her since I moved in, when she almost bulldozed me on the staircase because she was late for work. I can’t get her out of my head. I’ve never tried so hard to get a girl to notice me. And I’ve definitely never studied for one.”
    I opened the bag. “This is all I need to know about Gujarati culture, religion, language, and…Bollywood?”
    “Don’t skimp on the last one. Priya’s a die-hard Bollywood fan.”
    “I can learn a language for her, but I don’t know if I can sit through an