Page 25 of Pillow Talk
‘SEN!’ she said through gritted teeth.
‘So remember that fun walk we did when we were kids? Turns out it’s only for kids,’ he said stepping back in case she decided to punch him in the face.
‘Listen Buster, I know I’m shorter than you but I don’t think I would qualify as a kid, so why are we standing in this registration line?’
She looked at the excited children around them and swore under her breath.
Sen pulled her out of the line.
‘You can’t curse in front of kids,’ he scolded playfully as he ushered her towards the refreshment stands. The overhead sign said it was sponsored by Shah & Sons.
Sen noticed that.
‘Hey, your shop sponsors this every year and you didn’t know it was a kids’ fun walk!’ he exclaimed, handing her a cup of juice.
‘My dad usually just signs a cheque,’ said Shona, taking a sip, looking around to see if any of her family was there.
‘We could do the walk if you still want to,’ said Sen.
Shona planted her hand on her hip and glared at him.
‘I didn’t even want to do this in the first place. There’s no way I’m going to race a bunch of kids,’ she said.
He took the empty cup from her and tossed it into the bin.
‘I could give you another kind of workout,’ he bent down and whispered in her ear.
‘And I could give you a kick on the shin,’ she warned.
He backed away, smirking.
‘It’s 6o’clock on a Saturday morning. You’re not working. I’m not working. Let’s go on an adventure,’ he said enthusiastically.
She looked at her watch.
‘I still cannot believe you got me out of bed at 5.30am on a Saturday to be here to take part in a kids’ walk. I want to go home and go back to bed,’ she said, walking away.
‘Then that’s exactly what we’ll do. The lady gets what she wants,’ he teased, a step behind her.
She stopped in her tracks, turned around, and pressed her hand on his chest.
‘Not so fast. If the lady gets what she wants, then I’ll tell you exactly what I want,’ she said. Her voice was sultry and she licked her lips.
Sen nodded like a high school boy about to score his first kiss. She smiled sweetly, far too sweetly.
Sen stood in a massive warehouse; its endless aisles packed tightly with rolls of fabric. He should have known that when Shona spoke about her ‘wants’ it would have to do with sewing. After they swapped their sports gear for a floral swing dress for her and dark denim jeans and a plain blue T-shirt for him, they got into Sen’s car and he followed Shona’s directions. He never expected her to lead him to a fabric warehouse in the middle of nowhere.
Shona was talking to a sales assistant while he looked at buttons that he didn’t need.
Before his intimate relationship with Shona, he knew nothing about the production of clothing. But now he knew more than he should. It was interesting and a lot of work. In fact, he suspected that Shona worked harder than he did.
‘Found anything you like?’ she asked, coming up behind him.
He turned around to make a joke but stopped when he saw her. Shona was beautiful. She was juggling a pile of folded fabric and her handbag. Her hair, which she painstakingly tried to control, was all over the place and her face was fresh and…happy. Yes, that was it. Shona was happy. He’d taken dates to expensive restaurants and even exclusive shows, but none had been as happy as Shona in a fabric warehouse. But then he sobered when he remembered this was not a date. It was two friends on what they called an ‘adventure.’ Obviously they were both fools, but what did it matter if they were having this much fun?
‘Sen?’
He snapped out of whatever enchantment she had over him.
