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“Oh, but it did. She called the hospital to inform me of an obnoxious woman in my house.”

Neha pulled her head up and nodded. “That would have been me.”

“She told me you have commanded her to leave if the door wasn’t opened on the first ring.”

Neha nodded.

“It flummoxed her when I confirmed that this was exactly what I had tried to tell her all this time. She even apologized.”

“Wow.” Neha grinned. “So all’s well?”

“Almost. She then insinuated that my guests wear proper attire in the daytime.”

Neha gasped. “Those were new pajamas, with ducks on them!”

Jay stiffened. “Come again?”

“Ducks. Cute little duckies,” Neha said. “So they are good PJs.”

Jay howled with laughter. He had to put his hands on the wall to stay upright. Eventually, he wiped his eyes and said, “Reasonably good getup, then.” He gave another chuckle. “Anyhow, I told her that my wife is an artist and works odd hours because of her Bohemian lifestyle. So you better pick up some sort of art, to not make me a liar.”

“You told her we are married?”

“Yep. Shut her up like nothing.” He yawned.

Neha remained silent. He talked so easily about their marriage. Didn’t he see how complicated everything was?

“Will we go on a hike this afternoon?” Jay asked, yawning again.

“Sure. If you want to.”

Jay nodded. “I do.” He climbed up the stairs.

His scent still hung in the air and tormented Neha. Even sweaty from a hike or exhausted after a long shift—there was something intoxicating about the way he smelled. Something that was like quicksand for her thoughts. Now what had she wanted in the kitchen? She looked around and saw the kitchen table covered in spreadsheets and lists. Sitting down again, she picked up her plans. She had decided to give up her apartment in Atlanta, and that meant she’d have to go there soon to get her stuff and close her bank accounts. She’d have access to all her money soon. So she could go to that small camera shop downtown and get herself an overpriced camera. Before she could second-guess herself, she got up.

* * *

When Jay came down, well-rested and showered, he found Neha walking around the living room and taking photos. She didn’t try for images but wanted to get to know her camera. “Hey, you’re up!” she called. “I already made coffee and brought some bagels from the bakery. You wouldn’t believe how yummy they are!”

“I know them.” Jay grinned. He ate his salmon-cream cheese bagel standing in the kitchen, leaning against the counter. From there, he could watch Neha acquaint herself with her new camera. Neha briefly wondered why that didn’t make her nervous, but she was too engrossed in examining the camera to care. Once Jay was done with his afternoon breakfast, they left for their hike. Neha took plenty of pictures, slowing down their pace. “I’m sorry. I’m an albatross around your neck.”

“No, please, do take your time.” He stretched and took a deep breath, smiling contently. “It’s fun watching you exploring my mountain.”

Neha chuckled. “So it’s your mountain?”

Jay nodded solemnly. He pointed, and said, “My mountain, my trees, my sky, my eagle…”

“Eagle? Where?” Neha looked around searchingly. Jay pointed at the sky. There it was, the biggest bird Neha had ever seen. She followed it with her eyes as it soared higher and higher. Taking photos, she found her lens was not long enough for something this far away. She’d have to get another lens sometime soon. “There I am. I’ve had the camera for hours only and already I am planning to get more gear.”

Jay didn’t reply. Okay, it had not really been a question. Still, it was weird that he remained all that silent and stepped aside. She was irritated and blurted out with a question she would have otherwise held off, “Have you been in a relationship before?”

Jay did a double-take. He resumed walking and Neha followed. So he wasn’t above giving her the silent treatment. Neha scowled at his back. But after a few minutes, he turned around. “I’ve been in a serious relationship once. Or at least that’s what I thought it was. Anyhow, I decided to scout for the right place to stage a big-ass proposal.” He paused, looking at the summits far away. “I took half a day off, and to make it serve a dual purpose, I went to see a doctor about a burning pain that I had when peeing. I thought I had a UTI, but it turned out to be clap.”

“Ouch,” Neha burst out. “I’m sorry.”

Jay cast her a quick look before he trained his eyes on the horizon again. “I was a virgin when I went into that relationship and had been faithful, so there was no way I could have contracted an STI from anyone but my girlfriend. I did not buy that ring.”

“I’m sorry. That’s an awful way to find out.”