‘What on earth put such a strange notion into your head?’

‘No idea. Maybe because the hoarding is so white, without any pictures or words, the bird seemed to be part of it.’

‘Yes, maybe … We do nothing in isolation – there’s always a background, something to support a given action or thought. But I can’t tell which is the backdrop here – the white hoarding or the bird.’

‘But you know what, the whole scene was actually something I imagined. Which is why it brought me happiness, albeit only for a moment.’

You looked at me when I said this, and I smiled back at you.

Just then two dogs ran across the lawn of the club, emerging from the darkness. One black, the other red. The black dog rolled on the grass right in front of us.

There was nothing new in this scene. These dogs belonged to the club. They could be seen there every day, larking about. So I turned back to you and was about to say something when you signalled to me to look back at the dogs. Something flashed in your eyes. Something familiar – I’d seen it before, flashing in a man’s eyes when he looked at a woman. Sometimes … rarely …

Overwhelmed, I looked back at the dogs. The red dog had collapsed on the grass, its legs folded beneath it. It appeared to be trembling. And the black dog sniffed audibly …

I was completely overcome by the sound of the black dog sniffing, accompanied by the red dog’s soft, seductive yelps. I felt the blood course up from my toes to my head. You took my left hand with your right, interlaced our fingers, squeezed mine briefly and then pulled away. Your lips swelled. I examined you closely. In your trousers and long-sleeved silk shirt you looked like a spirited black steed – heated, thrilling, aroused. The collar of your shirt lay like a pointed dagger against your fair cheek. Desire gripped me. Almost inaudibly, you whispered, ‘If you’re the red one, I’ll be the black.’

Lightning flashed in the monsoon sky. Startled, the red dog sprang to its feet and raced away. The black dog gave chase.

‘Chasing …’ you said. ‘Chasing for pure sex. Only sex, nothing else.’ You paused, looked into my eyes, at my hair, at my lips and breasts, then said, ‘Imagine me chasing you like that.’ My throat felt parched. I gulped. The dogs came racing back. As soon as the red dog slowed down the black one mounted her, and you and I forgot everything as we watched him trying to push himself inside.

Your breath against my face was impossibly heavy. My whole body throbbed. You called the waiter at once, ‘The bill …’ I sensed your urgency – I smelled you in the air.

Signing swiftly to pay for the vodka, your fingers grazed my hand before you stood up and strode to the portico. I followed. You seemed impatient, starting the engine before I’d even closed the door. Kolkata at 10 p.m. rushed past outside the windows. In the car, you touched your lips to mine, briefly, just once.