Sanyukta impressed the management of the hotel through her initiative and sheer hard work so much that an exception was made in her schedule, allowing her to work in the kitchen during the coastal Koli food festival which became a runaway hit because of its authenticity. She received a citation for managing to rope in Rukmini as a consultant and for assisting the hotel chef by acting as a conduit between Rukmini and him. She was given a weekend off from work because she had worked continuously for a fortnight without taking a break. When she messaged Randhir in her excitement he replied in an hour's time that he had planned a weekend break to the nearby hill-station Matheran, and they would take Aman along as a surprise treat for having excelled in his school year. He had already spoken to Aman's grandmother and received her consent. 

Here Aryan was becoming increasingly frustrated because Sanyukta had smartly managed to have her schedule altered to avoid him. His mission of fraternising with her had stalled due to her lack of interest and her resourcefulness. She has gone a step further and met with the American expatriate General Manager of the hotel in confidence, expressing her interest in signing up for their global employment register, wherein if she took an entrance examination and cleared a series of interviews she would be eligible for placement in one of the US properties  of the chain. No other trainee knew about this particular route and Sanyukta acted in complete discretion as she did not want competition. The American boss, already happy with her performance and seeing her potential, signed her up for the program as soon as she had managed to breeze through the online entrance examination. 

She was desperately looking for an opportunity to make it to the US to join Randhir, who would take up a job in New York in the month of May. She had Nobin da to thank for it, he had shared the invaluable tip with her and had briefed her on how to approach the management for a recommendation. He asked her not to tell Randhir about it until she had received an actual offer letter from the hotel, which could take a few months. She was happy that her dream of going to the US with a valid work visa seemed to be coming true. She was looking forward to the Matheran trip, having reason enough to celebrate. Randhir had booked an overnight stay for the them in a Parsi-owned heritage property, managing to get a sought after valley-view room due to somebody's last minute cancellation. 

They finished packing their backpacks the previous day and rose early next morning. Sanyukta made some vegetable and cheese sandwiches for the journey. Aman was thrilled, he was put to bed and woken up early, sent for a bath and only then told of the plan. They took the metro train and reached Ghatkopar station by 7 am, with enough time to buy train tickets to Neral and to board the Karjat bound train. The journey between Ghatkopar and Neral took them over an hour during which they ate the sandwiches and also snatched some shut-eye. Randhir set an alert on his phone to warn them before the train reached Neral at nearly half past eight in the morning. The toy train was scheduled to depart Neral in half an hour, they bought tickets and enjoyed some hot tea at the station as they waited.

Aman gave a whoop of joy as they got on the blue toy train, his first experience of the kind. The narrow gauge ride meandered up the hill, offering them a breath-taking view on the 21 km and two hour journey. En route the train halted at three small stations called Jumma Patti, Water Pipe and Aman Lodge long enough for local residents to get on and off . Vendors came by selling steamed peanuts and local berries. The roadway met the rail route, once at Jumma Patti and at yet another location where they could see trekkers walking up the hill. Randhir had earlier contemplated taking the car but had changed his mind later as no vehicular traffic is permitted in Matheran and one has to park a vehicle 3 km away at Dasturi car park and complete the journey either walking or by hand-pulled rickshaws or on horseback. Sanyukta had to hold on to Aman as he was fascinated by the journey and wanted to peek out of the train around every bend and through the One Kiss Tunnel. 

The train pulled in at Matheran around 11 am and they called Aman's grandmother to assure her that they reached safely. Their immediate reaction to Matheran was a mixed one. As they exited there was a volley of porters, pony owners and rickshaw pullers offering to drop them off, touts offering hotel rooms and red mud flying everywhere. The place was teeming with weekend tourists like themselves, some of whom choose to arrive by taxi till Dasturi Naka. They looked for directions to the hotel and continued on foot as the distance was not much. The surroundings of the plateau were lush green and serene, in fact the name Matheran translates as forest on the hilltop. At 800 metres above sea level the air was cooler and less humid compared to Mumbai. Langurs and monkeys were seen everywhere, often close to crowded areas where they could look for scraps of food.

After checking in they freshened up, changed into costumes and went for a dip in the hotel pool keeping Aman close to the narrow end, with a watchful eye over him even if he was a swimmer. They relaxed on loungers, sipping chilled beer while Aman enjoyed his lemonade, coming to an agreement that the poolside offered the best view in the whole of Matheran. After that they had a delicious buffet lunch and decided to take a short nap. Aman promptly fell asleep, having begun the day quite early and after his heavy meal. Randhir lost no time in taking advantage of that, dragging Sanyukta into the bath, taking her both in the bathtub and then against the wall. They tried hard not to moan lest they wake up Aman with their shenanigans. After they had a last intimate session in the shower they went to bed in each other's arms, to be woken up a couple of hours later by Aman who was now completely fresh. He wanted to know why he woke up on the smaller bed when he had gone off to sleep on the double bed between the two of them. 

Randhir smirked at Sanyukta who turned red. He pacified Aman with the bluff that he did not want him hurt as Sanyukta could kick really hard while asleep, earning a glare from her. They changed quickly and stepped out for a trek to the famous Charlotte lake nearby, the source of Matheran's water supply. Sanyukta freaked out at the mention of riding on horseback so they hired a pony for Aman and continued alongside on foot to visit some viewing points. Randhir, who was an excellent equestrian, pulled Sanyukta's leg over her fear of riding. "Remember how you had caught me spying during the horse-breeding at the Shekhawat mansion and how I fell ill after that? Maybe that is why they scare me even now, because of you." She reminded him. "You were a voyeur even as a little girl, watching animals at play." He ribbed her. "Hello, you were such a perverted teenager you enjoyed organising live peep shows featuring animals!" She retorted, refusing to stand down. They continued their banter as they trekked on. The views from everywhere were spectacular, the stark, craggy beauty of the Sahyadri evident in the light of the setting sun. 

Back at the hotel they had fun playing badminton, table tennis and carrom and then lazed around sipping more beer while Aman found children of his age to have fun with. There was a library for those who enjoyed reading. The hotel had a colonial old world feel and the owner's well-trained cocker spaniel blended in perfectly into the ambience. Parsi specials like dhansak, mutton samosas and puddings dominated the menu. It was an expensive stay but they decided that the view, the ambience, the cuisine and the personalised service was worth the expense. Moreover Aman was having a whale of a time playing monkey see, monkey do with his newly found friends. This had been their second outstation trip with Aman and his comfort around them was steadily growing. After dinner they retired to their room, Aman insisting on sleeping between them. They moved him to his bed only after he was fast asleep. "Randhir, I want him to call me Mom. Is it too early for that?" She asked him as she switched off the lights. "Well, it is early for that but it is just the right time for me to try and give you a new baby to call you Mom." He grinned as she dug her elbow in his side and he began to undress her.