“Ooh, vacation sex is the best. It was great, right?”
“Amazing. Honestly, we could not get enough of each other.” Nimita flushed and chuckled. This was the kind of thing she and Reena might have discussed if they’d stayed close. “On the beach, on the private balcony.”
Molly narrowed her eyes. “You sure this was just a vacation fling? You seem kind of sad.”
“Yes. I’m sure. We both have other things we need to tend to. And that was the agreement.”
“Agreements can be broken. Especially if it’s fabulous sex,” Molly said.
“You can’t have a relationship on just sex,” Nimita said.
“It seems to me there was more than just sex. People don’t get that look…” she waved a hand in front of Nimita’s face “…over a booty call.”
Nimita looked at the young woman. “You’re very perceptive.”
“I pick things up.” She flushed.
“I really did like him.” Nimita shocked herself with the admission. “But I didn’t want to mess things up by getting all serious, especially since I’m…unsettled. You know?”
“Makes sense.” Molly nodded. “Well, tell me all about your travels then.”
Molly was so eager to chat, so interested in every detail Nimita had to offer about her travels. The excitement was contagious, and they talked for an hour while Finn played. Molly told her a bit about being a teacher, and Nimita said she probably wouldn’t miss being a flight attendant.
Molly nodded. “What was the other job? The one you left?”
“Biomedical engineer. Boring, huh?”
“Not at all. There’s so much you can do. Besides, if you love it, who cares if I think it’s boring, right?” Molly said. “What did you work on?”
“I worked on pacemakers,” Nimita said, a sudden energy building in her as she spoke. “I was in research and development, and things we were coming up with were really life-changing. I really did like it. It helped people. I felt…useful.” She had actually looked at her old company’s website last night to see if they were hiring. They were not. And she had emailed Tom, though she hadn’t mentioned it to Reena yet. She was waiting to see what he said.
“Sounds like you might want to go back,” Molly suggested. “Your face lit up.”
“Maybe.” But she’d quit, run away.
Before she knew it, they were back at Reena’s house.
“What time are you walking Finn tomorrow?” Molly wanted to know.
“Whatever time you can join,” Nimita said.
“You sure? I leave early for work.”
“Of course,” Nimita answered. She’d checked with Neha, who confirmed Molly’s story. And the dog was clearly overjoyed to see her. And it was nice to have a friend.
Molly’s gratitude was clear in her smile. “Same place? 6:15 a.m.?” She leaned over with her phone out. “Let’s take a pic with Finn. No worries, I won’t tag you, viral flight attendant.”
Nimita shrugged. At this point she did not care. “See you at 6:15 a.m.” Nimita watched her go. For the life of her, she couldn’t figure out why Molly and her roommate had hired a dog sitter.
* * *
The three of them were surfing at a nearby beach. They’d been here all day, and it was fabulous. Vishal and Karan were really good at this. Roshan was getting the hang of riding the white water.
It was no surprise that surfing reminded him of Nimita.
And the food reminded him of Nimita. The drinks, the ocean and the sand. Especially the sand reminded him of Nimita.
He approached the shore and hopped off the board. He picked it up and made for the beach. Time for some food.
