Chapter 38 Ore
Chapter 38
Ore
They found Mel cowering in the corner behind the third row of seats. The room really was a ‘cinema’ room, complete with red velvet upholstery, cupholders and long horizontal speakers built into the walls.
It had been a less treacherous journey than the one to the wheelhouse, but on a few occasions Ore had found herself falling into Daniel’s arms. It was almost comical how he always seemed to be right there whenever she stumbled.
‘Mel, there you are. Everyone’s been looking for you.’ Ore knelt down. Mel had been crying and she instinctively leant in for a hug. Ore was slightly taken aback but settled into it.
‘I couldn’t sleep, so I came down to watch a movie but then the boat was rocking so much and I tried to get up the stairs but I fell and hurt my ankle.’ Mel’s voice was muffled in Ore’s shoulder.
‘Let’s have a look.’ Ore pulled back and looked down. Sure enough Mel’s foot was swollen; the side of her ankle had already begun to bruise.
‘Can you walk on it?’ Daniel asked, his voice calming, to Ore at least.
Mel shook her head.
‘That’s fine. We’ll just stay with you here,’ Ore said reassuringly and Mel gave her a small, sad smile.
‘Your dad is really worried about you.’ Daniel knelt down too.
‘Really?’ The hope in Mel’s voice was a little heartbreaking, thought Ore.
‘Of course, he’s been looking for you everywhere,’ Ore added. It wasn’t quite true but she supposed that for a billionaire, sending your staff to look for your lost daughter was akin to a normal person doing it themselves.
Daniel got out his radio. ‘We’ve found her.’
Vicky’s reply came immediately. ‘Oh thank God, where are you?’ Before Daniel could answer they heard Vicky relay the message – ‘they’ve found her, Mr Regas’ – and then in the distance Chuck’s voice: ‘They’ve found my baby?’
Mel’s smile got a little brighter.
‘We’re in the cinema, she’s hurt her ankle so we’re going to stay with her until everything’s calmed down a bit,’ Daniel explained.
‘Copy that. Good work, Captain.’
‘It was Ore who found her.’
There was a beat, and then, with an edge of reluctance Vicky replied, ‘Thanks, Ore.’
‘Don’t mention it,’ Ore called back as she settled down beside Mel.
Vicky didn’t elaborate; the radio crackled into silence.
Mel incrementally lowered her head onto Ore’s shoulder. Daniel sat on the other side of her.
For the next few hours, the three of them sat there, huddled in the corner, intermittently relaying their experiences of the night and then falling into long, comfortable silences.
It was hard to keep track of time in the dark, windowless space, but Ore supposed it was nearing morning when she heard footsteps approaching. Mel was snoring softly. At some point in their exhausted state, Daniel and Ore’s hands had found each other, and when the door opened, she pulled her palm from under his suddenly.
Vicky was the first to march in, closely followed by Chuck.
‘Oh, sweetie,’ he cooed, rushing over to Mel and scooping her into his arms. It was a disconcerting sight, to see him express such fatherly tenderness, and Ore, Daniel and Vicky all lowered their gaze away from the intimate moment.
‘Dad,’ Mel started, before bursting into tears. ‘I was so scared.’ Chuck gathered her into a tighter hug.
‘Oh, pumpkin, I’m so sorry. They told me you hurt yourself? Let’s get you to Gerry; he hasn’t practised for years but I’m sure he knows his way around a sprained ankle.’
Mel nodded meekly and the pair made their way out of the cinema, Mel limping and propped up by Chuck’s arms around her waist.
Vicky let out a huge sigh and for a terrible moment Ore worried she might cry. She didn’t. Instead she turned to Daniel and Ore, hands on hips.
‘Well that was an absolute nightmare. You two look terrible. I suggest we all get a little bit of shut-eye before we have to be at breakfast.’ Ore couldn’t tell if she was joking; surely the crew wouldn’t be expected to carry on the day as normal after this?
‘Agreed,’ said Daniel. Vicky turned and left without another word.
Ore felt shell-shocked. Daniel leant back against the wall. They were sitting shoulder to shoulder and Ore was suddenly extremely aware of that. They didn’t speak and after a while their breathing matched pace.
‘I’m so sorry,’ Daniel said finally, quietly.
‘About what? You couldn’t have known about the storm.’
Daniel didn’t reply straight away and then: ‘Actually I did, but I let Chuck talk me into going through it. He’s completely obsessed with getting to the reef as quickly as possible, God knows why. I swear I’ll never listen to him again.’
He looked so determined and serious that Ore snorted at the earnestness of it all. ‘Well, that seems unlikely, but yeah, maybe when it comes to risking the lives of everybody on board …’
Ore had meant it to sound teasing, but when Daniel turned to look at her his eyes were brimming with pain and remorse.
‘Oh, Daniel, sorry, I was just kidding. Too soon I guess?’ She smiled, trying to lift the mood, but he dropped his head.
Now her heart was aching for him. She lifted his chin up to meet her gaze. ‘Daniel, it’s not your job to protect everyone, but for what it’s worth, without you here, and your insane ability to keep your cool in the midst of chaos tonight, this could all have ended very badly …’
‘I’ve put you in danger, Ore … I need to tell you something …’ Daniel looked up at her, his eyes full of sorrow, and something inside of her snapped. She pressed a finger to his mouth to stop him saying any more.
There was a split second where she knew that she had the chance to lean back, to choose an awkward apology over the crossing of a line, but she didn’t. His lips met hers softly, and she melted into him, her hands moving to cup his face, to pull him in closer. He let out a sound like a whimper and the pressure of his mouth on hers deepened. She felt a jolt deep in the pit of her stomach, and the warmth of his breath felt as though it was enveloping her whole body.
He pulled away suddenly, and in the soundproofed room, their jagged breathing was the only thing she could hear. She had a sense that his better judgement might be kicking in, but she wanted one last taste before it took over.
She reached out, and pulled him back to her, pressing her body against his and sighing with something like relief when his arms snaked around her waist. She realised that she had been waiting for this, maybe not consciously, but now that they were here, it felt inevitable and somehow fated. She had never felt this way before, a combination of desire and total serenity, something both foreign and divine.
Her arms encircled his neck and she found herself suddenly horizontal, her back arching against the plush, dark-carpeted floor. Daniel’s hands glided down her side, hooking around her thigh as he settled his weight on top of her. They were entangled with writhing limbs and hot breaths. Ore had lost sense of where hers ended and his began. Time became languid, her thoughts crystallising into simple desire. As he trailed kisses down her neck, she found herself thinking about how new this feeling was. Her body was excited, she was turned on, but she was also calm, comfortable, unrushed, able to fully indulge in the tingles of pleasures that were erupting all over her body. She felt safe.
She nestled her face into his neck and inhaled the sweet mix of him: hints of cocoa, musk and something like sea salt; it was dizzying and startlingly familiar.
She heard herself moan as his fingers began fumbling with the buttons on her shirt. Her head tilted back, to give him better access. And then his hands retreated. For a moment she thought maybe she was about to wake up from a dream, that this was a fantasy her own brain had concocted and was now overwhelmed by. She kept her eyes closed, wanting to hold on to this moment for a few seconds more. Her breathing slowed and she felt the weight of him disappear.
As she floated back into the confusion of reality, she realised what was happening. Finally she worked up the courage to open her eyes. Daniel was kneeling, just out of arm’s reach, his gaze trained to the floor in front of him. She got the sense he was trying very hard not to look at her. Sheepishly, she sat up, curling her knees under her chin. She felt mortified.
After what felt like an eternity of silence he said softly, ‘Sorry, Ore, I’m not sure what came over me. I think it’s been an … intense night … maybe we should try and get some sleep.’
His words echoed around her head, but they felt meaningless. He might as well have been speaking in ancient Greek. She was aware that she was nodding, and though they were resolutely avoiding eye contact he must have sensed the movement because he stood up and awkwardly laid a lumpen palm on her shoulder before walking out of the room.
Ore didn’t know how long she stayed in that room. The stillness of the soundproofed air was a safe haven away from what she assumed was the chaos above deck. It was the furious buzz in her back pocket that finally roused her from her dazed state.
‘Henry, hi.’ She tried to hide the exhaustion in her voice. She realised with a jolt of terror that she had promised Henry a first draft today.
‘Ore, how’s it going?’ He was also trying to hide something, but his thinning patience was obvious in those few words.
‘Well actually we had a pretty mad night, a cyclone.’
‘Christ, are you OK?’ Henry’s voice was momentarily tinged with concern and Ore was grateful that the drama of the previous day might buy her some sympathy – and some time.
‘Listen I just wanted to check in, in case you wanted to talk anything through before you send over the first draft … tonight.’ Ore was feeling overwhelmed. She took a deep breath and managed to reason that if she went to bed now she could probably sleep for a few hours and still have time to send something a little rough over to Henry later.
‘Sure, Henry, tonight.’
‘Great.’ Ore could hear the relief in his voice. She hung up without saying goodbye and dragged herself back to her cabin.