Jana put her hand down awkwardly, hoping Imani didn’t ask about the scene in front of her.
“Mommy, were the zebras fighting?” Imani asked. Asha giggled.
Jana bit her lip. She had no idea what to say here—she looked to Anil for help. He looked like he was straining hard not to laugh, too.
He reached over and patted Imani’s knee. “No, they weren’t fighting, Mini. They were playing a game.”
Imani turned to Jana. “What game?”
Jana asked Nicole for help, who had turned to look at the child. What was the point of having an ob-gyn in the vehicle if she couldn’t help explain the birds and the bees to the preschooler? But Nicole shrugged, still chuckling.
“Leapfrog!” Anil said.
Imani frowned. “What’s that?”
Nelson started driving again, and the rest of the trip was spent giving Imani a verbal lesson on playground games from her parents’ generation until she forgot all about the zebra copulation in front of her.
Thank goodness.
When they got to the hotel, Anil insisted he would take Imani for the evening again. He said he would give her a bath, then put her down for a nap in his room while he caught up on some emails. Jana agreed. She had no idea how long this truce between them would last. Or if soon he’d start being cocky andchallengeher again, and she’d become grumpy and bitter, so she thought it was best not to press their luck and spend the evening together. Everyone else said they were going for a swim, so Jana agreed to join them.
This was an opportunity to check off another item on her “letting loose” list. Dancing had helped loosen her up. Staying up late hadn’t really done much, but maybe swimming in a bikini would give Jana some confidence. Jana headed to her room, which, for this hotel, was the bottom level of a small hut with a thatched roof. In her room, Jana slipped on the bright pink two-piece from the brigade backpack. She hadn’t worn a two-piece in years—not since before Imani was born. She’d never been ashamed of her body—but she did grow up with religious Muslim parents who didn’t like her revealing so much skin. But of course, they never minded her Indian dance costumes.
Jana looked in the mirror—something she didn’t do often in swimwear. Usually because she didn’t like to study all the changes in her body since giving birth. Maybe it was Kamila’s preternatural shopping ability, but in this swimsuit, with its push-up bra cups, high waistband, and neon pink color, Jana looked…fine. Actually, better than fine. Jana turned in front of the mirror. She lookedgood. Fierce. This wasn’t the same body she’d had as a twenty-five-year-old, but there was nothing wrong with it. And the color of the fabric—so much brighter than anything Jana ever wore—brought out the pink in her cheeks. Jana looked carefree, easygoing, and fun.Vibrant. She wrapped a pink, green, and black kanga around her waist, popped the bottle of sunscreen in her bag, and headed to the pool. She didn’t even know if Dr. Lopez would be there, but she felt different in this suit. She felt like the person she wanted Dr. Lopez to see in her.
The whole Bridal Brigade, minus Shelina, was already at the pool. Kamila was applying sunscreen at a lounge chair, while the others were already in the water but near the edge so they could talk to Kamila.
“OMG, Jana,” Asha said. “Look at you, you hot mama. You lookspectacular.”
Jana smiled as she joined them. Everyone was in swimwear, of course, and their kangas were draped over the nearby chairs, but Jana was a little surprised that none of the other suits matched hers. “You all aren’t wearing the swimsuits from the brigade backpacks?”
Kamila nodded. “They are. I picked out different suits for y’all based on your personalities. We don’t have to be matchy-matchy anymore now that the wedding is done.”
Jana frowned. Apparently, Kamila thought Jana’s personality was a flirty hot-pink bikini?
“We’ve had a day and a half,” Kamila said as Jana rubbed sunscreen on herself. “Shelina’s kids were anightmareon the drive. Remind me not to sit for three hours in a car with three boys under ten. We had to stop at a rest stop so the kids could be separated into the other Land Cruiser.” She looked at Nicole. “I need to schedule an appointment to get my tubes tied.”
Nicole raised a brow. “Rohan had a vasectomy last year.” It was no secret that Rohan and Kamila weren’t interested in having children of their own and that they were happy being dog parents and everyone’s favorite aunty and uncle.
“I’m not taking any chances.”
“Imani was a bit fussy on the drive, too,” Jana said. “We had to stop for three bathroom breaks.”
“Ha!” Kamila said. “Only three! The luxury! Jana, you did the right thing by having only one child. They feel like exponentiallymorewhen they increase in numbers. Like puppies, really.”
Jana shrugged. She’d always assumed Imani would be her only child—and now that Imani was four, she’d pretty much missed the boat to give her a close-in-age sibling. Jana herself was an only child, and it suited her. She couldn’t imagine having to share her life with brothers and sisters. Of course, Anil might give Imani a sibling one day. He may be older than Jana, but thirty-eight wasn’t too old to have more kids.
Jana pushed the thought out of her head and took off her kanga. The to-do list said to swim in a bikini, so that’s what she had to do. She dove gracefully into the water, resurfacing a few seconds later, her hair pasted to her head. The sun was low in the bright sky and gave everything a hazy sepia tone that made this whole scene feel so surreal. Peaceful.
She waded over to the edge of the infinity pool, where the water seemed to disappear into the horizon. It was an unbelievable view. Soon the others joined her, and they all looked out at the grasslands and baobab trees in the distance. It was like a postcard. There was just the right amount of breeze in the air. It was quiet, despite the increasing number of people in the pool area. The green dappled views stretched as far as the eye could see.
“I’m happy to be here,” Jana said quietly. And she meant it. This trip had started so chaotic with Jana being tossed into one uncomfortable situation after another. But right now, here in this beautiful infinity pool, Jana was content. Almost happy.
Nicole must have heard Jana’s silent proclamation because she squeezed Jana’s hand under the surface of the water for a moment. “I’m happy we’re both here.”
Dr. Lopez and Farzana Aunty came to the pool area then. A group of aunties and uncles were with them, including Mom and Nadira Aunty. It appeared the pool was the party spot this evening. This was good. Now Dr. Lopez would see a fun, frolicking-in-the-pool-with-her-friends Jana. She smiled and climbed out of the water as they came toward her.
But Mom was not smiling. “Jana! What are you wearing? You can’t wear a bikini like some—”
