“I just said, no monkey bars.” He shook his head and laughed at her as he made his way over.
“It’s okay, Bhaiya!” She was still saying his name when she fell. Roshan ran but was too late to catch her. She hadn’t fallen from too high, but it was enough to break her ankle.
He sat in the waiting room with his head in his hands while his parents spoke to the doctor. Malini would need a cast and some time in the hospital. He never should have let her go to the playground. This was all his fault.
His parents came out of her room, their faces pale.
“Roshan. This is unacceptable,” his father had said.
“You are supposed to look out for her,” his mother added.
“When she is in your care, she is your responsibility.” His father had glared at him. “See to it that this kind of thing never happens again.”
Roshan had been ashamed. His parents were right, it was his responsibility as a good older brother to see to it that Malini stayed unharmed. He nodded. “Of course. This will not happen. Ever again.”
Roshan took that diligence with him into every aspect of his life. It had made him a great doctor and provided him with scaffolding, so he was always in control.
* * *
The next day, Nimita was prepared for Finn. She had spent the night reviewing what Neha had taught her and studying how to train dogs. Delayed gratification would take some time, but it was possible. Though she supposed that would be the owner’s problem to deal with.
Nimita just needed Finn to not drag her into the ocean with him. She dressed in athletic shorts and sports bra and headed for the dog part of the beach. As soon as he saw the ocean, he took off, Nimita in tow.
Not again!
Nimita still couldn’t get him to stop, and into the water they went. At least this time, Nimita was able to hang on to the leash. She also noticed that Finn didn’t seem like he wanted to swim all the way out to sea. He turned around toward the shore when he noticed her saying his name and trying to get him to heel.
They returned to shore, both soaking wet. Nimita had brought a few towels, so she laid one out for them to sit on. Might as well dry off in the sun.
“Oh my God.” A woman’s voice sounded from behind her, and Finn was off and running. Nimita jumped up and turned around to find Finn being cuddled by a beautiful woman. Finn clearly knew this person.
“Um, hi!” Nimita said.
“Oh hi!” The woman looked up and smiled at her while Finn licked her face. “You must be the dog sitter.”
“I’m actually helping the dog sitter with walks,” Nimita said.
The woman sat on the sand, and Finn curled up beside her. She frowned. “I totally could have done the walks,” she murmured.
“I’m sorry, how do you know this dog?” Nimita asked, suddenly wary, no matter how comfortable Finn was with this woman.
“I’m Molly. And Finn is kind of my dog.”
“What?” What an odd thing to say. Maybe the woman was confused.
“Well, he’s my roommate’s dog.” She hugged the golden hard. Molly seemed sweet and definitely knew Finn. All eighty pounds of him was as curled up as an eighty-pound dog could be in anyone’s lap. And Molly was quite petite. She was wearing running shorts and a sports bra. Her dark hair was pulled into a ponytail that swung jauntily from the back of her baseball cap. Her skin was golden brown, and she had eyes to match. She was beautiful.
“Why is Finn with my cousin? The dog sitter, I mean,” Nimita asked.
“That is a great question,” Molly said with an odd note of sarcasm. “Basically, my roommate is away, and things are kind of hectic in my life. We agreed to let Finn have a little vacation with Neha, and I’ve been regretting it—not leaving him with Neha but sending him away at all. I miss him so much!”
“What do you do?” Nimita motioned for her towel, and both Molly and Finn moved over.
“I’m a kindergarten teacher,” Molly stated with pride. “It really is the most fun job in the world.”
Nimita smiled. It was hard not to, Molly’s energy was contagious. “That’s fantastic.”
“The kids are hilarious and so curious.” She shrugged with what could only be contentment. “The parents, though…” She rolled her eyes.
