“Am not!” Great, now he’d stooped to being a ten-year-old. Nimita definitely brought out the worst in him.
“Just let me drive,” she tossed at him.
Was she for real? “Your toe is broken!” Maybe. But still.
She rolled her eyes, her annoyance a palpable thing in the air.
Whatever.
The next ten minutes were quiet in the car, as Roshan drove and Nimita did not speak. It was glorious. They reached Kaihalulu Beach in good time.
“Take that road, right there.” Nimita pointed ahead, her voice gentle for the first time. Gone was her irritation; she seemed to simply want to go somewhere.
They drove in silence for a few minutes, before Kaihalulu Beach came into view.
“Whoa.”
“This is…”
“Amazing,” Roshan concluded with a smile at Nimita. “Totally worth it,” he admitted. Even worth Nimita’s passenger side driving.
Nimita beamed. “This is a red sand beach. Thought you might like to see it on the way home.”
They found parking near the beach. And while Roshan helped Nimita hobble along, Vishal and Karan sped ahead. By the time Roshan and Nimita arrived, they had set up a makeshift camp for her, complete with umbrella and her backpack. Roshan hadn’t needed to say a word. The guys justknew.
Nimita grinned at them, clearly impressed. Roshan swore his heart skipped a beat seeing that she was pleased, even if she seemed abashed by the attention at the same time. “Thanks so much. Leave me here with my ice and my book. You all go in the water. We have about thirty minutes before we should head home.”
Vishal and Karan did not need to be asked twice. But of course they stopped at a truck to get a snack first. They then stripped off their T-shirts and ran to the water like children. Roshan held back.
“I’m a big girl, Dave. This is your vacation. Don’t babysit me,” Nimita said firmly, but this time, she did not snap at him.
He nodded at her, already learning when she meant something earnestly. He took off his shirt and joined his friends in the water.
* * *
Nimita watched Roshan join his friends and relaxed. She didn’t think she would have been able to bear him sitting out the fun to watch over her because she couldn’t be trusted to walk in water. She had wanted to melt into the sand when she had opened her eyes and found him staring down at her with real concern and possibly even fear in his eyes.
It took her a few minutes to piece it all together, and when she did, she wished she hadn’t. How completely mortifying to have slipped and fallen in the water. Not to mention, now her ankle was sprained, and she had possibly broken her toe. Honestly, what else could happen?
Nix that question, she didn’t want to know. It was bad enough that her ankle and toe throbbed, despite the ice and ibuprofen.
The family next to them had a small speaker playing top forty tunes. Behind her children laughed and shouted as they played in the sand. The sun beat down, warm and welcoming. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from the guys in the water. They acted like brothers, bickering and teasing each other. Their love was evident, their bond solid, as so often it was with chosen family. Despite her current situation, this brought a smile to her face.
She found herself drawn to watching Roshan. Luckily, her sunglasses prevented anyone from really knowing where her attention lay. Was he agitating, irritating and possibly pompous? Yes! Was he easy on the eyes—hot, even? Aggravatingly so. Dave was also turning out to be kind and thoughtful…and remorseful. She let her mind wander to his confession and apology. Now that her anger was passing, she was touched by his sincerity, his self-awareness and growth.
She giggled to herself as Vishal and Karan teamed up and dunked Roshan under the water for a second. He came up laughing as he wiped water from his eyes. He had been attractive in high school, but he had most certainly become even more so. Muscles dripped with ocean water, flexing as he attempted to exact vengeance on his brothers. His good looks had always simply been a fact. She had refused to be one of those girls who crushed on anyone, let alone the most popular guy in school. She had better things to do with her time.
But now? Well, she still had better things to do with her time. And she was basically a hot mess. Roshan was not only nice to look at, he clearly had his life together. Plus, if she were honest, she hadn’t really hated leaning into his wall of muscle as he’d helped her to the car.
The sun was relentless, and sweat beaded on her face and dripped down her back despite the umbrella. The guys were having so much fun, and the water looked so inviting. Maybe she could just stand at the edge and get her feet wet. Her toe was feeling much better, and she could actually move her ankle now with minimal pain thanks to the meds. Plus, didn’t saltwater cure everything?
She undid the ACE bandage and tried to stand. Gingerly, she put some weight on the ankle. No real pain. Not bad.
She attempted to walk, and lo and behold, she took a couple steps. Maybe this wasn’t as bad as she thought. Maybe it had just been a minor twist, already healing. She took another couple steps. Great! Still standing! This was fabulous!
Roshan was walking toward her, his brow furrowed. Whatever. He was likely going to reprimand her for not resting. She felt fine. Well, her ankle hurt a little, but she was good. As he approached, she became increasingly aware of the fact that he was wearing only swim trunks. That hung quite low.
He started to jog toward her and was saying something and waving his hands, but she couldn’t hear him. There was a lot of noise around her.
