“Dude, that’s the definition of a fetish!” She valiantly tried to stop laughing, but another wave overcame her, and she slid right off her parents’ armchair onto the floor.

“Are you seriously laughing at my preferences?”

She waved her hand. “No, no. I’ve known enough people with unique tastes, I don’t kink-shame … it’s just that it’s so totally not what I expected you to say! I thought you were going to reveal some deep, dark secret you’ve hidden that would ruin everything. I literally at that moment thought the next shoe was going to drop and—”

He smiled. “I dropped a foot on you.” He chuckled. “What did you think I was going to say?”

“I don’t know. Last time you had that look you told me you had li—”

“Don’t say it,” he warned.

“Sorry.” She got back onto her seat. “I thought you were going to say you had a secret girlfriend or an incurable disease or something. Not that you enjoy the odd foot job.”

His nose wrinkled. “I didn’t say I—”

“Shh …” She waved her hands again. “Don’t even worry about it. I don’t care what floats your boat.” Especially since she had no intention of floating that boat in any manner herself, she didn’t judge an adult’s sexual predilections, so long as they were legal and consensual. Still, this was too funny. She burst out laughing again. “Now I get why you said nail polish when you were telling my mum why you came over. You were staring at my pedicure!” She nearly fell off the chair again.

“I said nail varnish, and glad I’m so amusing,” he muttered.

“No one has ever complimented my feet before. So much makes sense now—a foot fetish!”

“You can stop laughing anytime now …”

His brown skin tinged with pink, and his body seemed to have folded in on itself. Big, confident Nadim was embarrassed. She stopped laughing. Smiling at him, she got up from the green armchair and joined him on the sofa. “If I give you my foot to massage, you’re not going to like, rub up against it or anything, are you?’

He laughed, but he still looked embarrassed. “No, it’s not like that. And I’m not into fishnets or stilettos or anything. I just like bare feet. They are soft and vulnerable but strong enough to carry your weight all day. They are private and hidden most of the time, but then women adorn them with colorful nails and sometimes jewelry. They’re sensitive and ticklish … and I’m going to shut up now.” He lifted his eyebrows and squeezed his lips shut.

Well. When he put it that way, Reena could see the appeal of the humble foot. She slowly leaned down and removed the thin cotton sock on her right foot. Her toes inside were red, still angry after being squeezed in Marley’s boots for so long. She placed her foot on his lap.

“As long as we stay G-rated, this can be a symbiotic exchange for us. I get a foot rub, while you get to admire my lovely arches.”