Page 123 of The Love Position

‘What happened?’

Jessica leaned in and lowered her voice. ‘Greedy arsehole wasn’t going to give these to anyone but the chosen few. Your boyfriend had a few words, and he changed his tune.’

Sophia bit into the brownie and moaned as the taste exploded on her tongue. ‘Thank you.’

‘No problem. He knew if he hadn’t shared them, I was going to go full Pedersson on him, and at least half the ashram would have mutinied.’

The two women chewed in happy silence.

‘Hey,’ Jessica began. ‘You think we get tomorrow off now?’

Sophia hesitated, then shook her head. ‘Is—Hanuman said it’s unlikely.’

Jessica’s forehead hit the table. ‘Fuccccckkk!’

‘I know. Let’s get your bed to my room and have a nap. I think we’ll feel better once we’ve slept.’

Jessica’s head raised. ‘Right now, I’m counting the days till this is over. The moment I’ve got my qualification, I’m outta here for good.’

Sophia nodded. When she left the island on the ferry for the last time, she wasn’t planning on looking back.

21

‘Swamiji!’

Isaac jogged the last few feet to Swami Saraswati’s side as her hand dropped from the door to her meditation garden.

She turned, her expression neutral. ‘Hanuman?’

‘Er…’ Now he could speak to her in private, he wasn’t sure what to say.

‘Can I help you?’

He ran both hands through his hair. ‘Guruji told me you were leaving here, and he was…’ he trailed off, not wanting to say the words ‘replacing you’.

‘And?’ Her features were a bland mask. He couldn’t read her.

‘Is this what you want?’

There was a flicker of surprise in her eyes. ‘It’s not about what feeds my ego, Hanuman. It’s about what is right for the organisation.’

‘Yes, but…’

He stopped before voicing the heretical thought that maybe it was better for the organisation that Swami Saraswati continue running the ashram she’d shaped and led successfully for the past two decades.

The sound of rustling leaves filled the silence.

‘Hanuman…’

‘Yes, Swamiji?’

She placed her hand back on the door. ‘You chose your path a very long time ago and I do not believe it is possible for you to step off it.’

Giving him a small nod, she went into the garden and shut the door behind her.

Isaac stared at the brown wood, his gaze unfocused.

What did she mean? How did his decision to be celibate have anything to do with her leaving the ashram?

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