Page 39 of The Love Position

‘It never is, and it’s becoming more of an issue every year.’

‘Where does it come from?’

‘The mid-Atlantic. It’s natural, but it’s been getting bigger each year. When it hits land, it chokes life under the water, makes nesting for sea turtles almost impossible, clogs propellers and desalination plant intakes, and ruins it for tourists.’

The boat chugged past the brown line of sargassum and suddenly they were surrounded by cobalt blue water and the fresh smell of the sea. The boat picked up speed, cutting smoothly through the small waves. Sophia took a big breath, her anxiety and nausea receding.

‘Better now?’

‘Yes, thank you. I’m a bit of a scaredy-cat about a lot of things.’

‘Think of it as a good instinct for survival. You’re not like my stupid brothers. My mom spent so much time in the ER when we were kids she knew all the staff by name.’

‘What did they do?’

‘Everything. And with no sense of self-preservation.’

‘What do they do now? Something safe?’

Jessica rolled her eyes. ‘They’re firefighters.’

Sophia smiled. ‘That’s amazing. My brother wasn’t wild growing up, but he’s super-competitive. He was an Olympic-standard rower.’

‘That sounds very British. Does he still do it?’

‘Every day, but on a rowing machine. Plus running and weights. He’s the athletic one.’

‘Well, give it a month and we’ll both be bendy-Wendy yoga bunnies.’

‘You think?’

Jessica smirked. ‘Probably not, but I hope we have fun.’ She glanced at the boat captain, staring at the ocean as if in a stand-off, then back at Sophia. ‘Do you think they’ll be any hot guys at the ashram? My girlfriend does yoga retreats in Hawaii every year, mainly for the hook-ups.’

Sophia’s mind went straight to Isaac. He was the hottest guy she’d ever known, but was currently eight thousand miles away in India. ‘I hadn’t really thought about it.’

‘You haven’t? I’m single and hoping to mingle. You?’

‘I split up with my long-term boyfriend back in January. I don’t think I’ll be ready for anything new for a long time.’

Jessica gave her a sympathetic smile. ‘Was he a douche canoe?’

‘A what?’ Sophia spluttered.

‘A grade-A fuckwad. Someone so douchey they no longer fit in a bag.’

Sophia smiled. Even though it still hurt, being so far away from Marcus helped dull the pain.

‘He’s a professor who heads up our archaeology department. Over the ten years we were together, he had multiple affairs with his students. I only found out when I came home earlier than planned and found him smoking heroin with two of them, and also…’

‘Get outta town! What an A-hole! Holy hell, Sophia. He’s not a douche canoe, he’s a douche barge.’

Sophia nodded. There were so many ways that Marcus had treated her terribly, culminating in the dig. How had she managed to normalise his behaviour for so long?

‘And you’re a good person,’ Jessica continued. ‘I’m an excellent judge of character. You have to be if you’re working in the hospitality industry and living in such close-quarters with people. Is that why you’ve come to the ashram? To get away?’

‘Yes, but I also hope it’ll help with my breathing and anxiety.’

‘Okay then, we’ve got a plan. You’ll get chill, and if there’s any cute dudes about, I’ll get laid.’

---