Will looks confused and checks his watch. ‘Nope. One hour session, same as earlier. Did you space out?’
‘I don’t think so,’ I reply. ‘This stuff doesn’t work on me. I was completely awake.’
He smirks. ‘You did! You were totally in the zone! Are you a hippie now?’
‘Shut up.’ I stand and pick up my cushion. ‘I don’t believe you.’
‘They got to you, Nora,’ he mocks as I walk away. ‘The universe has plans for you!’
I hear him laughing as I return my cushion to the pile at the back of the room. He’s such a wind-up merchant.
‘He’s right, you know.’
Startled, I spin around to see Brad holding several yoga mats, which he places on the top shelf of a cupboard. His T-shirt rides up over his stomach and I give a little gasp – not loud enough for him to hear, but enough to make my vagina want to come out of involuntary retirement.
‘Sorry?’ I reply. His eyes are so green, it’s distracting.
‘The universe does have a plan for you, but I get the feeling that you’re not entirely convinced yet.’
I see Will behind him making sly humping motions. I’m going to drown him later. No one will miss him.
‘Me? No… why would you think that?’
He shrugs. ‘I’ve been doing this a while. You get to know who’s fully immersed in the experience and who needs some extra guidance. Come and see me in the main hall before meditation tomorrow. Say, eight thirty am?’
I nod as Brad places his hand on my arm and tells me, ‘You’ll be surprised how your life opens up once you start living it.’ And with that, the sex god saunters off along with everyone else, leaving me in the room with the hairy man-child.
‘Ooh, private session with Brad!’ Will remarks. ‘Whatever will you wear?’
‘Oh, grow up,’ I reply, rolling my eyes. ‘He’s just doing his job.’
‘Nah, I think he secretly likes you. You know those nineties films where the hot guy transforms the dowdy, repressed girl into a sex kitten —’
‘Dowdy! That’s rude.’
‘Well, she’s never really dowdy, they just make her wear glasses and a ponytail.’
Without thinking, I reach back and touch my hair.
‘All I’m saying is, you might end up Prom Queen.’
‘I’m leaving.’
I quickly put on my shoes before Will has time to do his and dart out of the building.
At the bottom of the hill, I spot Kenneth and Patricia, obviously arguing. From their body language, it looks like he’s on the defensive. With only one path back to my cabin, I’m forced to awkwardly manoeuvre past them.
‘It doesn’t matter who she is, Patricia. Anyway, she’s just a friend.’
‘Bullshit. I know all of your friends because they’remyfriends.’
They both stop arguing. I just smile and keep moving. They don’t even wait until I’m fully out of earshot to continue.
‘Youmight have spent the last year crying into our divorce papers, but I haven’t. I’ve been meeting people. Going places.’
I hear her tell him thatbrothels don’t countbefore I’m out of range. I’m dying to know what went on between them and also, would it kill them to provide a bit of backstory before they start insulting each other?
I scuttle down to the store inside reception, planning to load up on free wine, snacks and some more wood for the log burner. The cabin is warm but there’s something about a real fire that calms my soul.My soul?Maybe Will is right. Maybe they did get to me.
