Don’t push her, she’s already set to head into a meltdown.
‘Fine.’ She picked up the dice and put them back down on exactly the same numbers. ‘Oh wow, look, another four and a two.’
‘I’m seeing another side to you, Olivia,’ Jacob replied in admiration. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his precious, ragged-looking notebook. ‘I make lists. I roll for the country and then a place within that country. Whatever number I get will correspond to a destination I’ve written down. Wherever it says, I go to next.’
‘And you’re being totally, 100 per cent serious?’ Olivia stared dumbfounded at the notebook. ‘You’re not making this up?’
Jacob flipped open the book and pushed it towards her, tapping the page that contained his list of scribbled place names. ‘This is one of those rare moments when I am being deadly serious.’
‘I don’t know what to say.’
‘I’m guessing it’s a little different from how you travel, then?’ Jacob closed the book and tucked it back into his pocket.
‘Just a little! I like to plan things.’
‘You said that before.’
‘But, like … everything. In an extraordinary amount of detail.’
He noticed her cheeks colouring at the edges. ‘Christ, don’t tell me you have a spreadsheet,’ he joked, and then, seeing Olivia’s reaction, dropped his jaw in horror. ‘You do, don’t you?’
‘Maybe …’
‘More than one?’
‘Maybe.’
‘Jesus, I bet it’s all colour coordinated with little code words, isn’t it?’ he marvelled. ‘Can I see it?’
‘No!’
Her embarrassment was endearing.
‘Why not? I showed you my list.’
‘Yes, but you’ll just make fun of mine. And besides, I don’t want you to know where I’m heading to next.’ She regained her composure, shooting him a sarcastic look. ‘You might follow me again, like you did at the market.’
‘Hey, I was not following you. And even if I wanted to, I couldn’t, could I?’ He picked up the dice and shook them at Olivia. ‘The universe decides where I go, not me.’
‘The universe isn’t athing, Jacob.’
Well, why is it that we’re sitting here? Why did I come back to Delhi? Why did we run into each other, not once but twice?
‘If you say so.’ He drained the dregs of his tea and shrugged. ‘Now, do you want to roll again, or do you need to get back home?’
He didn’t want to give her any more reasons to dislike him, and he sensed making her late would be a deal-breaker.
‘Holy shit.’ She pulled out her phone and gave a jolt. ‘It’s nearly midnight!’
‘Well, you know they say time flies when you’re having fun.’
Olivia gave him a scathing look as she gathered her things and made her way towards the exit.
‘You want to share a tuk-tuk home? I can drop you off en route?’
As they stepped on to the street it was clear that, although the air may have become a little cooler, the madness and mayhem of the daytime had not relented at all.
‘Sure, are we going in the same direction?’
