“I am. That doesn’t mean I don’t like to travel. We used to take two family vacations every year. One in the summer and one over winter break. My brother likes to ski and scuba dive, so we went to places where we could do those things.”
“What about what you liked to do?”
Sam kept his attention on Wally. “I don’t mind skiing. Though if I don’t dive again, I won’t miss it.”
That wasn’t what she’d asked. “You don’t talk about your family much.”
He shrugged. “Two parents still married. A younger brother, also married, with three kids. The usual.”
He talked about them as if he were an outsider looking in. “And you.”
“And me,” Sam said. “We’re not close. I don’t think they even know what I do or have seen the movies I’ve worked on.”
“What happened?”
“Sibling rivalry gone to DEFCON one. My brother and I had a falling-out, and my parents chose him.” Sam glanced toward his dog. “Wally, leave it.”
The dog gave Sam a look to ask if Sam was sure that was what he wanted Wally to do. Sam gave him the command again, and Wally dropped the rock from his mouth.
“I’m sorry,” Meena said.
“I hear you’re coming to Diwali dinner on Sunday.”
“Anything I should know? To prepare myself.”
“Don’t eat beforehand,” Sam advised. “There will be a lot of food. You’re not going to need to order out for a week after.”
“What do you have against me and takeout?” In America it was cheaper for a single person. Thanks to portion sizes, she got two if not three meals out of one order.
“Too much sodium?” Sam grinned.
“My blood pressure is fine,” Meena said.
They watched Wally start battles with stationary objects, then become distracted by other things. In this moment, with Sam next to her, Wally zooming around them, Meena realized she wasn’t lonely.
“About the other night . . . ,” Sam began.
“It’s fine.” Meena had already relived her attempt to kiss him and his rejection. She didn’t want to dissect it with him. It had been an impulse. “Too much beer and the homey scent of potpourri.”
He glanced at her. “Cinnamon does it for you, huh?”
She laughed. “Who knew?”
“It wasn’t that I didn’t want to kiss you,” Sam said. “I want to make that clear.”
“It’s fine.” She reached over and put her hand on top of his. “Forgotten. No hard feelings.”
He glanced down and flipped his hand to hold hers.
She tugged her hand out of his. “It’s better to not complicate things. It’s been nice to hang out in Boston, but soon . . .”
Sam finished her sentence. “You go back to your life.”
“Exactly.” Though she wasn’t sure what that meant anymore.
“The thing about complications,” Sam said. “Avoiding them doesn’t always work.”
“I don’t know.” Meena wiggled the fingers of her casted arm. “I’ve kept it simple so far.”
He nodded. “No ties. No knots.”
It was a gut punch. So succinct and so true. “It’s getting cold.” She stood and, on her way back to her apartment, gave Wally a few scratches. The dog looked at her with adoration. He accepted her love. Without thinking, she gave the pup a kiss on the top of his head.