She’d better get to baking.
An hour later, two pans of lust-inspired apple crumble she would freeze for Gigi bubbled in the oven. Anna had added freshly grated ginger root, chopped walnuts, and dried cranberries to her regular recipe and sprinkled maple sugar over the top. The smells wafting from her kitchen almost distracted her from the next problem.
Elaine had forwarded an email from the woman who would lead the workshop. Attendees were supposed to come up with names for themselves, a word that reflected their inner beauty or something to that effect. Anna had no idea what that even meant.
“I have mine already,” Elaine said, “from the class I went to with Richie.”
“What is it?” Anna asked as she pirouetted in her kitchen, pulling drawers open in a futile search for oven mitts.
“Ruby.”
“Ruby? Is that your birthstone?”
“It’s the name I gave to my yoni.”
“Your what?”
“Your yoni is your vagina, Anna. Ruby is what I call my vagina.”
Anna guffawed. She never thought to name her vagina, and why the oven mitts were in the spice drawer, she had no idea.
“So,” her best friend cajoled, “what’s your secret name going to be?”
“Hmm…” Running a finger over the jars arrayed in front of her, she stopped at small vial holding a few precious, bright orange threads. “Saffron. I think I feel like a Saffron.”
Friday’s excursion into the world of lingerie shopping consisted of entering an exquisitely decorated dressing room lit with skin-enhancing light bulbs and trying on a variety of shockingly priced items.
It seemed the less flesh covered, the more it cost.
The specialized boutique recommended by both Elaine and Gigi also carried pajama sets in summery lightweight materials. Anna sampled linen drawstring pants in shell pink and white, and silky T-shirts in matching colors. They would be perfect for the beach in Mexico, filled the requirements for Friday’s workshop, and what the heck, she hadn’t bought nice anything in a long time. A very, very long time. She added a cozy cashmere wrap sweater and a pashmina shawl to her purchases and managed to look nonchalant while fending off the urge to faint when her credit card rang through.
Elaine texted she’d meet Anna at their hotel’s ground-floor bar, another adult thing she hadn’t done in forever. The elegance of the high-ceilinged room nudged her to sit up taller and suggested she might consider applying some lipstick. She was adding a trip to the make-up counter to her shopping list when her friend breezed in and signaled she needed a visit to the ladies’ room first.
Three minutes later, Elaine plunked her butt into a plush leather chair, groaning as her oversized purse slid off her shoulder.
“Are you ready?” Anna asked.
“No, but I’m working on it.”
A waiter showed up to take their drink orders. Once he was out of earshot, Elaine leaned closer to Anna and whispered, “Have you tried any of your birthday toys?”
A blast of heat crept up the front of Anna’s throat.
Elaine waved her hands in the air. “Never mind. I don’t really need to know,” she said. “But let me tell you, they work. I bought myself the same set, and between them and what you learn tomorrow, you’re going to be a whole new woman by the time the new year rolls around.” Lifting her glass, mischief playing at the corners of her mouth and eyes, Elaine toasted Anna.
“Here’s to the adventures of Ruby and Saffron.”
Chapter Three
Anna, Elaine, and two dozen others were ushered into a room with tall windows lining the two exterior walls. Gauzy curtains filtered the late-morning light, and pillows arranged on the floor in a wide oval beckoned, each one situated on a yoga mat.
In the center, a circle of lit candles ringed an oversized vase of white orchids. Subtle instrumental music played in the background. Like everyone else, Anna had left her jacket, boots, and handbag at the periphery of the room, drawn a number as she walked in, and seated herself at the corresponding spot on the floor. The fact that there was a recognizable order to everything was comforting. Her new clothes were comforting too, like she wore her favorite blanket, one that had been upgraded to a cashmere blend.
Then again, they’d arrived less than five minutes ago. Those fuzzy feelings could go to hell in a handbasket at any moment. She scanned the room for emergency exit signs and found it anxiety-producing that she and Elaine were separated by three cushions. The one to Anna’s left stayed empty until moments before the leader’s introductory remarks.
“Good afternoon, and welcome to the Intimate Breathing Workshop. My name is Gaia Moonflower.”
Anna kept her eyes on the speaker in the center of the room as a man sat next to her. When he settled, she darted a glance without turning her head. Her stomach clenched. She recognized the guy from the market, the one who couldn’t find the coffee grinder. Elaine was sitting too far away to let her know someone from the island was sharing their circle of intimacies. It didn’t matter that she didn’t know him well. She knew how he liked his beans ground, and that was one step closer to knowing if he preferred to brush his teeth before or after his first cup of morning brew.
“Each of you is here for your own reasons, and each of you, no matter where you are on your journey of self-love, holds untapped potential you want to explore.”
Did shopping for lingerie count as part of her journey? And what about her impending trip to Mexico? That certainly qualified as a journey. A big one. And what about the man sitting beside her? What had brought him to her island?
“One of our goals this afternoon, and over the rest of the weekend, will be to provide you with tools to help you meet that potential. Today’s workshop is an introduction to our work. If any of you decide you’d like to learn more, we do have a few spaces available
