Read The Love Detective for Free Online Page B

promise?’ I demand.
    ‘Cross my heart . . . Elton,’ she teases, reading my mind.
    A giggle escapes. It’s impossible to stay annoyed at my sister. We both start laughing and, having grabbed my bags and paid the driver, we throw our arms around each other and walk inside.
     
    After the noise and madness of the journey from the airport, Rising Bliss is an oasis of calm and relaxation. In fact, if you looked up ‘bliss’ in the dictionary, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a photograph of this place instead of a definition, I decide, as we walk through the garden, which is filled with hammocks strung from palm trees and the scent of frangipani flowers, towards reception.
    Inside I discover the scent of incense, and the sounds of soft chanting, and Biju, the small, plump owner who, after checking me in, shows me to my room. The retreat has a main guesthouse perched on the cliff overlooking the ocean, but I’m staying in one of the individual huts, which are reached by a steep path leading down from the cliff top.
    ‘I trust everything is pleasing for you,’ puffs Biju, who’s insisted on carrying my suitcase and is sounding like a steam train as we finally reach the beach. Mopping his brow with a huge red handkerchief, he opens the door to a small hut tucked underneath a palm tree and ushers me and Amy inside.
    Being a yoga retreat, I’ve been expecting a single bunk and no-frills accommodation, but instead there’s a large double bed with pristine white sheets, across which are scattered a gorgeous arrangement of flower petals.
    Even better, it’s all mine, as Amy’s checked into the main guesthouse. As much as I love my sister, I still haven’t quite got over the shock of having to share my bedroom with her when she was born. Plus, she’s so untidy, you need a map just to locate her bed underneath all her clothes.
    ‘Wow, this is so lovely,’ I smile.
    There’s just one thing.
    ‘There’s no mosquito net,’ I say, looking up at the ceiling where one should be hanging.
    ‘Oh, you don’t need one here, you will be fine,’ smiles Biju, whose cherubic face boasts a big grin and an even bigger black moustache.
    ‘Are you sure?’ I say uncertainly, ‘it did say in my guidebook—’
    ‘Rubes, stop worrying,’ chastises Amy, ‘I don’t have any bites, look!’ As evidence she waggles her long bronzed limbs at me.
    ‘Hmm, it’s just, you know how mozzies love me . . .’
    ‘No mozzies!’ beams Biju, rolling up his sleeves to reveal two hairy forearms as he makes a noise like a mosquito. ‘ Zzzzzzzzz . No!’ He looks delighted.
    ‘OK, well if you say so,’ I smile, reassured. ‘You should know.’
    Biju smiles even more broadly, his chest inflating at the compliment. ‘I will be at your service at reception,’ he says, giving a little wobble of his head, before leaving the beach hut.
    The beep of a text sounds and I automatically reach for my phone. But it’s not mine, it’s Amy’s.
    ‘Who’s that?’ I ask out of interest.
    ‘Just a friend,’ she says casually, but I notice her quickly texting back in a way that tells me it’s more than just any friend. ‘OK, well I’ll leave you to unpack.’
    ‘Where are you going?’
    ‘Oh . . . um . . . I’ve just got a few errands to do,’ she says quickly. ‘Let’s meet down at the beach in half an hour.’
    ‘OK, great,’ I smile, giving her a hug goodbye. ‘See you soon.’
    She gives me a little wave and I watch as she hurries across the sand and disappears behind a palm tree. Yeah right, errands indeed. I wonder what she’s up to? And more importantly, knowing my little sister, should I be worried?
     
    Yes. I should.
    I should be very worried.
    But not about Amy.
    Fifteen minutes later I’ve finished unpacking and am facing the unfaceable.
    OK, Ruby, deep breaths.
    Standing in my room, I screw up all my courage. There are lots of ways people are brave. Rescuing children from dangerous riptides. Parachuting out of aeroplanes.