Page 50 of The Love Position

Had she imagined it?

The bell sounded again, then a chant in Sanskrit started and everyone dressed in orange and white joined in.

Sophia didn’t know any of the words and there were no books to follow in the temple, so she let the sounds wash over her and thought about how many years Marcus had successfully gaslighted her. Whether it was about his relationships with students, her abilities as an archaeologist, or her theories about their most recent dig, her ex had lied and manipulated her until she felt she couldn’t trust her own judgement.

Had Isaac done the same thing at his house? And if so, why?

Shifting a little to the right so she could look around the person in front of her, Sophia sought him out. As he sang, his gaze passed over the other people in the room, but kept missing the very back where she sat, as if that part of the temple simply didn’t exist.

Her throat tightened. What had she done wrong? Eveline, Foxbrooke’s lovely vicar, was Isaac’s best friend. Everyone in his classes adored him, and before she’d been to his house, Sophia believed he’d thought of her as a friend.

But now?

She frowned as she stared at him, trying to find a solution to a puzzle where the answer wasn’t Jessica’s theory that Isaac was fighting an attraction to her.

The back of her neck suddenly prickled and her focus snapped from him to find the shrewd and assessing eyes of Swami Vishnu staring her way.

Heart thumping, she wrenched her attention back to the floor. Did he know who she was? Had Isaac told him about her schoolgirl crush?

Jessica placed her hand on Sophia’s knee and squeezed. ‘You okay?’

She nodded in return. Seeing Isaac would get easier, especially as it would only be twice a day. Plus, he didn’t seem to want to acknowledge her existence.

She needed to take a leaf out of his book. Concentrate on the course she’d come to do and pretend he wasn’t here.

9

‘Those starting the TTC this morning, please go to Asana Hall One which is located behind the shop,’ Anisha said loudly as morning Satsang finished.

Getting to her feet, Sophia stretched then held her stomach as it growled angrily at her.

‘Only another two and a half hours until kibble time,’ Jessica muttered. ‘I could murder a burger.’

‘Have you got any granola bars left?’

‘Four, but I’m rationing them until I know when I can return to the mainland and stock up. This is nothing like the yoga retreats my girlfriend told me about.’

‘I’m already feeling a little light-headed,’ Sophia murmured. ‘I know I should see this is an opportunity to lose a bit of weight, but—’

‘Why do you want to do that?’

Sophia’s gaze slid to their roommates, who were bending at the waist to pick their cushions off the floor, demonstrating how flexible they were, and also showing off their pert backsides to the small group of men taking the course.

Jessica rolled her eyes. ‘God gave me curves, and I sure as shit ain’t gonna starve myself just so some jackass wants to bang me. And you shouldn’t, either. You’re hot AF. If I had a dick, I’d do you.’

Sophia giggled. ‘Thank you for cheering me up.’

‘Anytime.’

They made their way out of the temple, along the path towards the asana hall, then up the two steps to the covered wooden platform. At one end sat Anisha and Mohan, with piles of clothing and spiral-bound manuals beside them.

‘Take a seat, everyone,’ Anisha said, ‘then we’ll take a roll call.’

There weren’t any cushions available, so Sophia sat on the floor at the back with Jessica. From about thirty people on the course, nearly all of them were women.

The four men were in their twenties and gazed around the room as if they’d just landed on a planet devoid of males and where every female was desperate to be impregnated.

‘Jeez-Louise,’ said Jessica. ‘They’re hot, but they’re not that hot.’

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