That led to a conversation about how far Nairobi was from the Serengeti. Then Asha told them about a club that served game meat she’d gone to as a teenager, which led to a discussion about the nightlife in East Africa. Jana tuned them out and nibbled on fruit. She had nothing to add in a discussion about nightclubs.
“I don’t think we’ll be going to any clubs,” Kamila said, “but I have another item for your list, Jana. Be the last one up at night. I mean, obviously assuming your mother or Anil has put Imani to bed. But if you’re able to, stay up late and close the bar with us.”
Jana hated staying up late but wrote it down anyway.
In the end, there were six items on Jana’s “letting loose” list. She was pretty sure she wouldn’t end up doing them all, especially the singing, but this was just inspiration.
Something had to change in her life, and pretending to enjoy these things might be the way to jump-start that change.
Chapter 10
It was past ten by the time Jana left the mehndi party in Kamila’s suite. The others were staying, of course, talking, sipping cocktails, and enjoying themselves. But Imani was exhausted, and now that Jana’s own mehndi was done, it was time to get her daughter into her own bed. But with both Jana’s and Imani’s hands wet with mehndi paste, Jana couldn’t carry her daughter back to their suite. She couldn’t even hold the child’s hand. Jana got about three doors from Kamila’s, encouraging her sleepy daughter to keep walking, before Imani just stopped, whining for her mommy to pick her up.
“Baby, I can’t. I don’t want to smudge my mehndi before the wedding.” It was already risky since Jana had so many bags hanging off her arms—her own purse, Imani’s backpack with her iPad and headphones, plus the bag with the dildo in it. Jana had no idea why she agreed to take that thing with her.
“But I’m tired!”
Jana didn’t blame her. She was also tired and cranky.
“Mini! Are you okay?” Someone came out of a nearby hotel room. Anil, of course. He was dressed casually in a green short-sleeve shirt that brought out the pale halo in the irises of his brown eyes.
Jana took a deep breath, ignoring the goosebumps on her skin. “She’s fine. Just tired.”
“Daddy, Mommy won’t carry me,” Imani whined, putting her arms up for her father to hold her.
Anil lifted Imani, arms barely flexing with the weight. Imani immediately rested her head on his shoulder but kept her hands in the air so she wouldn’t smudge her own mehndi. He chuckled, rubbing Imani’s back. “We were all in Zayan’s room.” He indicated the door he’d just come from. “I heard her.”
Of course. He probably thought Jana was a terrible mother. She held out one hand to show Anil, which caused the dildo bag to slide to her elbow. “We have fresh mehndi. I couldn’t pick her up.”
He smiled. “No worries. I get it. You could have called me if you needed help.”
No, Jana could not have. She wasn’t going to go out of her way to spend more time with him.
“Where’s your room?” he asked, then held out his empty hand. “Here—let me take your things.”
Jana merely stared at him, knowing she’d say the wrong thing if she spoke.
“I can hold this,” he said again, his hand on the handle of the bag with the dildo in it hanging off her elbow.
Dildo.
There was a painted, bedazzled dildo in the bag Anil Malek was trying to take off her arm.
“I’ll hold it,” Jana snapped, taking a step away from him.
Anil stared at her for several long seconds, eyes intense. She had no idea what he was thinking. She had no idea if he was going to try to take the bag from her, which could cause a bit of a scuffle and smudge her mehndi. And probably cause the penis to roll down the hotel hallway. Well, the testicles would probably prevent the rolling. It would likely just stand there erect on the floor. And Jana would be deader than dead.
Finally, thankfully, he turned and started walking down the hallway. “Where’s your room?” he said curtly. Because now he was annoyed with her. Because Jana was incapable of having a normal conversation.
Jana had no choice but to guide Anil to her suite. He even had to take her key card out of her purse and open the door, since Jana was useless with her mehndi hands.
When they were in Jana’s suite, Anil offered to get Imani ready for bed to preserve Jana’s mehndi.
“Okay. Thank you. Imani can probably wash off her mehndi paste now.” The color would be darker if Imani left the paste on overnight, but there was no way she’d sleep like that. Jana carefully took the bags off her arm, hiding the dildo bag with the souvenirs she’d bought the day before. She went into the bedroom to see if Anil needed help finding Imani’s pajamas.
The door to the en suite bathroom was open, and Jana could see Imani sitting on the counter with her hands in the sink, and Anil gently rinsing off the paste while telling Imani about his night. Jana froze, mesmerized by their conversation.
Apparently, the Groom’s Platoon had left the resort for dinner, and there had been monkeys all over the grounds of the restaurant they went to. Imani was listening intently to her father tell her about them, which made Jana wonder if Anil always spoke to her about his day this way.
