Kamila grinned. “Remember we were trying to organize one more bridal party get-together? It’s all finalized. We’ll have a final private party at a very cool hotel.” She looked at Shelina and then Jana. “No kids.”
“What are we going to do with the boys?” Shelina asked, seeming to forget that she’d loved this idea when Kamila had first told it to them.
“They’ll have three grandparents and one nanny. And Imani will have her nanima, and my dad, too.” She looked at Jana. “Or we can uninvite Anil so Imani can stay with her dad. Your call, Jana.”
Clearly Kamila had noticed the coolness between Jana and Anil today.
Jana shook her head. “It’s fine. I’ll need to check with my mom, but if she’s fine with it, so am I.” Jana might be irritated at her mother right now, but she did trust her completely with Imani. “I guess I have to ask Anil if he’s okay with it, too.” She could call him. Or even go to his room to ask—but he probably didn’t want her there.
Rohan was texting on his phone. “I just asked him. He said he’s fine with it. He’s heard of Hatari. Supposed to be amazing.”
Kamila clapped her hands together. “Yay! The place looksdarling. It’s a small resort with all sixties modern design. It’s named after a John Wayne movie! Very swanky.”
Where the heck had Kamila found a midcentury modern hotel named after a movie starring a famous cowboy actor in the middle of Tanzania? Or in the northeast of Tanzania, specifically.
“Doesn’thatarimean danger?” Asha asked.
“The place is named after amoviecalledHatari!,” Kamila said. “It’s not an omen or anything. It was filmed near there.”
Jana sighed. She was inclined to think the namecouldbe an omen. Because after things had been going somewhat well between her and Anil Malek for the last few days, they’d taken a definite turn today. All Jana could think about was what could happen at a small, stylish, private party with Anil Malek. And without their child.
Jana was pretty sure she was in danger, in one way or another.
Chapter 20
The following morning, a bus arrived to take the wedding party to Hatari while everyone else headed to a hotel in Arusha, a town near Kilimanjaro Airport. Jana and Anil said goodbye to Imani and promised they would FaceTime her that evening. Shelina’s nanny was planning a pajama movie party, and Jana’s mother told them not to worry at all and to have fun.
It was yet another three-hour drive from the Tarangire resort to Hatari, and Jana spent the trip as distanced as possible from Anil. If he was going to pull back from theirfriendship, then so be it. Their daughter, the aunties and uncles, Dr. Lopez, Farzana Aunty, and Mom weren’t here—so there was no reason to pretend anymore.
Hatari Lodge turned out to be even cooler than promised. Secluded and very private, it was both quirky and extremely stylish. The lobby/lounge area was decorated in a bold color scheme with plush cushions on low seats. Paper lantern animal heads hung on the white walls along with tribal artwork and sixties movie posters. There were more tassels and sequins than Kamila’s own living room. It somehow felt modern and trendy, while also feeling like they’d stepped back in time. The rooms were in a separate building from the lobby. Jana had agreed to share a double with Yuriko, and when they were led to it by the porter, they were greeted with a beautiful table with full glasses of champagne and the wordkaribuwritten in rose petals on the surface.
Jana looked at the porter. “Um, is this the bridal suite? Are we supposed to be getting this?”
He smiled. “This is for all guests at Hatari. Everyone should feel welcome.” He showed them the luxurious room with two four-poster wood beds, crisp duvets, and a bathroom with a soaker tub. “Dinner will be served in the dining room at eight. Tonight, you have a choice of roast beef, coconut fish, or vegetable terrine. Do you know what you would prefer?”
“The fish, please,” Jana said.
After Yuriko requested the vegetables, the porter left, and Kamila, Nicole, Asha, and Shelina came in.
“Your room is nicer than mine and Zayan’s,” Shelina said.
Kamila glared at her sister. “That’s because your room only has one bed. Jana and Yuri need two.” Kamila sat on the chair near the window. “Impromptu hashtag Bridal Brigade meeting. Isn’t this placeamazing? We need to take a ton of pictures. Tonight’s hashtag is ‘Rohan Kamila at Hatari.’ Word of advice—don’t bring your father, aunties, uncles, and in-laws with you on your honeymoon. Not that I don’t love them all, but…”
“You should have come to Hatari alone,” Nicole said.
Kamila shook her head. “Nope. Y’all are my ride-or-die crew, and this is all forus. Besides, this isn’t really our honeymoon. Rohan and I are headed to a beach in Barcelona with no one to entertain but each other when you all go home. I’m kind of sad it’s our last night together. This was my favorite wedding ever, and not just because it’s mine.”
Tonight was the official last night of the wedding, and guests would be leaving Tanzania on their own over the next few days. Some wedding party members were on a flight out tomorrow night, but Jana and her mother were leaving in two days, since Jana wanted to give Imani an extra night in Arusha to rest after the safari before the long trip home.
“So, what’s the plan tonight?” Asha asked.
“Nothing really. We can hang out in our rooms this afternoon or go have drinks outside. There’s no pool here—but I’m pooled out. Basically, we can do nothing. No game drive, no entertaining children or, worse, entertaining our parents. A four-course meal is being prepared for us, and apparently, there’s a bartender here who knew John Wayne and loves to talk. Put on your sexiest dress for dinner. Tonight, we party in style.” She stood suddenly. “I, for one, am going to test out the tub in the bridal suite. I’m hoping there will be a groom nearby to wrangle into it with me. See ya soon, ladies!”
Everyone left Jana and Yuriko’s room, including Yuriko, who readily accepted Asha’s invitation to join them for a drink in the lounge with the platoon. Jana declined. This was her chance to do whatever she wanted. She didn’t have to be social or a team player, so she took her book out of her backpack and curled up on the window seat.
But after about half an hour, Jana found she couldn’t concentrate. She kept wondering what the others in the lounge were up to. Was she wasting her only day in this special place? She didn’t know where this was coming from—this was her first moment alone on the whole trip, and all she could think about was what she was missing. Maybe all her efforts to be more social had changed her. She remembered Nicole’s comment at the sangeet—that when you step out of your element enough, you don’t even notice when your element just changes.
Were Tim and Jerome finishing each other’s sentences? Was Shelina not so silently judging the others? Was Yuriko giving any clues as to what she did with the dungeon in her house? Was anyone sending anyone dik-dik pics?
