Chapter Nine
Seth
Sunlight shimmers off the water as I pilot my boat out of the channel, into the endless blue of the ocean.
Gulls coast in lazy circles overhead, their cries sharp against the hum of the motor.
I can’t remember the last time I spent a Saturday not working, much less on the water.
But there is no place else I’d rather be than right here with Ellie.
She’s sitting on the padded bench in a sexy peach bikini, her hair blowing in the breeze, her long legs stretched out, one foot resting on the cooler as she tucks her sketchbook and colored pencils into her bag.
She was at it for a while, her lips pressed together, pencils moving swiftly over the page, stopping every now and again to assess her work with a thoughtful expression.
She puts on her sunglasses, and they hide her eyes but not the little smile tugging at her mouth as she tilts her face toward the sun. She looks comfortable and happy, like she belongs here. Hell, it feels like she belongs here, and that unsettles me in ways I don’t want to examine.
I’ve never shared Missick with anyone outside of family.
I can still picture him teaching me to dive and navigate reefs.
I can still hear the devastation in his voice when he called and told me about his mother’s diagnosis.
He’s blood in every way that matters. I never bring women into my inner circle or let them get close to anything real in my life.
Not my family, not the places that matter.
Those people and places are sacred, too important to risk with unknown factors.
Yet somehow bringing Ellie into that circle didn’t feel like a risk. It felt right.
I tighten my grip on the wheel, startled by how badly I want her woven into everything I keep private.
“Why do you have a boat here if you don’t come to the island very often?” Ellie asks, drawing me from my thoughts.
“Same reason I have a big house when I’m only one person. In case my family wants to use it.”
She smiles. “I can’t think of a better reason.”
The simplicity of how she says it catches me off guard.
Most of the women I’ve gone out with circle like hawks around what I own, as if material things are the sum of who I am.
I hadn’t realized how conditioned I’d become to expect that, but something inside me eases with Ellie’s response.
It’s a relief to be seen for more than the weight of my name.
I ease the throttle back, letting the boat glide to a safe spot, not too close to the reef, while I get my head on straight. When I drop the anchor, Ellie pulls her knees up, nibbling on her lower lip, like she’s second-guessing getting in the water.
From what she’s told me, I bet she’s thinking about the dangers of snorkeling and weighing them against the need to stay safe for her father.
I know how that feels. Not for my father, but for my siblings.
They can hold their own, but I’m the one they come to when they need answers they’re not ready to face.
I’ve always been their sounding board, their grounding stake in a life that never slowed down.
Hoping I can take the edge off her worries, I go to her and lean down, bracing my hands on the boat on either side of her, and press a kiss to her forehead before meeting those beautiful hazel eyes. “Nervous, sexy girl?”
She holds up her finger and thumb about an inch apart and mouths, Little bit.
I sit beside her, pulling her closer. “We don’t have to snorkel,” I say coaxingly, brushing my fingers lightly along the back of her neck. “I can entertain you in other ways.”
“Now who’s the master distracter?” she teases, the worry in her eyes and the tension in her shoulders easing.
Mission accomplished.
“I learned from the best.” I hug her against my side. “The ocean is a whole different type of beautiful than anything you’ve probably ever seen. I’d love to share that with you, so why don’t you tell me what you’re worried about?”
She wrinkles her nose adorably. “Sharks.”
“That’s understandable, and it’s a valid concern since we’re going into their habitat. But I doubt we’ll see the kind of sharks you’re worried about. We may see a reef shark or a nurse shark, but they usually keep their distance. I’ll keep an eye out, and I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Usually doesn’t sound promising.”
“Well, we’re going into their ocean, so I can’t promise they won’t get curious and come check things out, but they don’t have a history of being aggressive, so try not to overthink it.”
Her mouth quirks up at the corner. “Easy for you to say. You’ve done this before.”
“Which is why I know how to keep you safe.”
“Okay, but just so you know, if something with big teeth shows up, I’m climbing on your head.”
I laugh. “I’d rather you climb into the boat, but whatever makes you happy. What else is worrying that beautiful mind of yours?”
“Sharks are my biggest worry, but what if water gets in my snorkel?”
“It won’t. Our snorkels have float valves that seal the breathing tube when it’s submerged. Why don’t I show you how everything works, and if you’re still too nervous, we won’t do it. How does that sound?”
“Like I’m a big chicken,” she says with a sweet smile.
I pull her into a kiss. “You’re not a chicken. You’re a realist, and I appreciate that more than you know. Any time you go into another creature’s habitat, you should be aware of the risks. But I’ll be by your side the whole time. Unless we see a shark. Then, apparently, you’ll be on my head.”
I tug her into a kiss, and then I go over safety measures and teach her how to use the equipment.
We laugh and kiss and joke, and by the time we finally get in the water, she’s less nervous and more excited.
We stay by the boat as she gets comfortable with the fins and mask and breathes steadily through the snorkel.
When she gives me a thumbs-up, we swim away, and the reef unfolds beneath us in an amazing array of colors.
Parrotfish nibble on algae lacing the coral that maps the ocean floor in hills and valleys of purple, orange, and yellow.
Ellie’s eyes widen behind her mask as she takes it all in, tapping my arm and pointing at the incredible beauty around us, none of which is more beautiful than her.
She points to a school of vibrant tropical fish swimming past, as if I might miss it, and a few minutes later to a spiny lobster crawling across the ocean floor.
I stay close and keep watch, knowing that the sight of a shark could send her into a panic, wishing I hadn’t left my underwater camera in the boat so I could capture these firsts for her.
I won’t make that mistake again. She’s as taken with the sights as I am by her, turning her head left and right to catch every shimmer of movement.
The wonder lighting her eyes is mesmerizing.
She looks free, unencumbered with the worries back home, at least for now, though I know they’re never far from her mind.
She’s been trying to be discreet when she checks her phone, doing it while I’m driving or otherwise distracted.
She might be checking messages from clients, but I have a feeling it’s family she’s worried about.
Streaks of sunlight pierce the surface, turning the ocean floor into rippled silver.
A sea turtle drifts lazily by, and Ellie swats my arm in sheer delight.
Her shoulder brushes mine as she kicks beside me, her hair streaming out in dark ribbons.
I force my attention away long enough to scan the reef, and when I turn back to her, she takes my hand, kicking faster, following a school of fish and beaming at me from behind that mask.
We snorkel for a long time, taking in the sights, swimming hand in hand, admiring some of Mother Nature’s best work. When we finally make our way back to the boat, the second we surface, we pull the snorkels out of our mouths and take off our masks.
“Did you see that turtle?” she exclaims. “And the coral? Oh my God, the purple looked like velvet. The fish are so bright, they look fake! It’s like swimming in an aquarium.”
As she raves about what we saw, her voice full of awe and the sun glistening on her shoulders, her gorgeous smile reels me in.
I’m hit with a soul-deep urge for more. More of showing her the world, earning this type of joy, more of her.
I know it’s crazy to feel this way after only a couple of days, but I feel it with the same certainty I feel the sun on my skin, like it’s a solid, unshakable truth.
Ellie looks around, like she’s seeing the world through a new lens.
I know that feeling, sweetheart.
When our eyes meet, the pull is instant and electric.
Even the ocean seems to hold its breath as we reach for each other.
Our mouths come together in a rush of salty kisses, and the unstoppable heat between us takes hold.
Fumbling to hang on to our masks and snorkels, we break away long enough to toss them into the boat, laughing as we peel off our flippers and throw them in, too.
We come back together like we need each other to breathe.
In that moment, I feel like I do.
With the sun beating down on us and the water lapping at our bodies, heat sparks everywhere we touch, and we give in to our desires.
With every scorching kiss and every sexy laugh as I try to keep us afloat, the world slips farther away.
Until there’s nothing left but the feel of my sweet beauty wrapped around me and the sea holding every secret we create.