How To Salsa in a Sari by Dona Sarkar Page A

completely out of place and terrified. Or as Gigi would say, like wrong-side-of-the-tracks Ryan Atwood during his first day in the O.C.
    God, she wished Gigi or Ishaan were by her side right now. She hated knowing she was all alone in her battle.
    â€œHello, and welcome, Issa.” Diego opened the door with a flourish after Issa forced her thumb to ring the bell. “Catalina is out with friends, but she will be back for dinner.”
    Goody.
    Issa stepped inside, lugging the huge garbage bag filled with her stuffed animals behind her. The entry looked even more gigantic than she remembered. How was she going to live here? The marble staircase leading upstairs seemed to go on and on. This place needed an elevator.
    â€œMom’s tipping the movers and I wanted to talk to you alone for a sec.” Issa shifted the bag to her other hand and stared at the pristine white floor.
    Diego closed the front door with a puzzled look on his face. “Of course.”
    â€œListen, Mr. Diego, Mr. Morena, Mr. Diego, sir…”
    â€œYou may call me Diego, if I may call you Issa,” Diego said with a hint of a smile.
    Issa almost smiled too. Diego had just made a joke. And it was almost funny for an old guy. Weird. “Okay, Diego. Um, I think it looks kind of wrong for me and Mom to live here, you know. I mean, we’re Indian. I mean, you know that, what I mean is…”
    Issa could feel redness rising in her cheeks. This was not going as predicted. The speech had sounded so good in the car, but now she just sounded confused.
    â€œWhat I mean is that you guys are going to be living together. And she teaches at the school and she’s a role model person, right? I don’t want my mom getting a reputation as living with guys before she’s married.” The words tumbled out of her mouth before she could figure out a way to make them sound pretty.
    Diego was silent for a minute. “I completely understand. It’s not very common for us either. To cohabit before marriage, I mean.”
    Issa shifted from foot to foot.
    â€œCubans are quite traditional, you know. So, this ‘living together’ as they call it, would be frowned on in my family.”
    Issa didn’t know what to say. “Um, yeah. Cohabiting. Bad.” Was she really going to get through to him? Could this horrible move actually be called off?
    â€œWhat I actually had in mind was that, you and your mother would move into our guest house,” Diego said, reaching out and taking the heavy bag from Issa’s hand.
    They had a guest house? Like in The O.C. ? Gigi was going to flip.
    â€œUh, what?”
    Diego pointed to the side of the house. “Next to the pool is a very cozy cottage. Bedrooms, full kitchen. I think you both will be very comfortable there. The four of us can share all our meals together here and you two can retreat there for the nights. How is that? Until the wedding, of course.”
    Issa stuttered. “That sounds, um—” not what she had in mind, but at least she wouldn’t be under the same roof as Cat Morena “—very nice. Thanks, Diego.”
    â€œYou’re most welcome. And, Issa,” he called as she started for the front door. “I’d like a moment alone with your mother.”
    Yuck!
    â€œWhy don’t you go through the kitchen door and explore your new place? I think you’ll like the indoor pool.”
    Pool? Wow. Issa grinned openly this time. “Thanks again.”
    Maybe he wasn’t such a bad guy after all. Too bad his daughter was a psychopath.
    Â 
    â€œI can’t believe you live here now!” Gigi bounced up and down on Issa’s bed. “This is only the guest house? This is bigger than the houses on The Real World! ”
    Issa had to agree. The Morena guest house was pretty much a miniature version of the mansion with its own sun-room, four bedrooms, a hot tub and an indoor pool. As soon as she’d seen it,