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Portia was watching her steps down the steep path. ‘She had to be ready. She had to want to get better—and she had to have the right help. Some place that was a good fit for her. My mum and dad tried different therapists, different support groups and doctors. Finally, they found somewhere that specialised entirely on her condition. They were perfect for Immi because that’s where all the expertise was.’
Something about her words made him smile. He’d made the right decision. The charity he wanted to start would focus entirely on bipolar disorder. There were various mental health charities and helplines in Italy. There were other helplines for those who were feeling suicidal. But he wanted his charity to specialise and focus entirely on the one disorder that had affected his friend, and still affected his mother. Portia’s words just reinforced his decision even more.
The sandy beach was beautiful. Like a forgotten hidden private hideaway. Javier laid their towels on the beach and looked out over the clear azure-blue sea, rippling with tiny peaks of white. In the far, far distance there was a white yacht that looked as if it were moored for fishing.
Portia sagged down onto the beach and put her hands above her head and stretched out. He couldn’t help but watch, appreciating her long legs and the look of pure and utter relief on her face. Once she’d finished stretching she turned on her side to face him.
She had no make-up on, there was still a tiny trace of grime in her hair and it made him reach out to wipe it away. He leaned closer. ‘Hey, I never told you what my favourite type of exercise is,’ he said softly.
She blinked and right before his eyes her pupils widened.
All of a sudden he realised what he’d said. He almost laughed. But he just couldn’t do it. Not while he was here with her.
Portia was gradually sneaking her way under all the layers of armour that he had. She asked questions. But not like a reporter. She asked questions like a normal interested human being. He’d kind of forgotten what that felt like.
He knew what he had to do next. He’d finalised his ideas last night and his next steps would take him back to the mainland. But there was still time. Still time to tease out where this connection could take them.
He’d been making plans in his head. Some would need to be firmed up in person, and for that he’d need to go somewhere else. And he knew the perfect person to take with him.
‘Is it a secret, or are you going to tell me?’ she asked, then lowered her voice to a whisper, ‘And is it exercise for one, or for two?’
So she hadn’t missed the unintentional innuendo in his words. He actually wished it had been intended. He sat up and stretched his hand out towards her, inviting her to take it.
‘My favourite kind of exercise is the entirely natural kind.’
She raised her eyebrows and slid her hand into his. ‘Oh?’
He pulled her up towards him, letting her body collide with his, so he could slide his hand down her back to the small hollow where it seemed to fit perfectly.
She snaked her hands around his neck. ‘Why do I think that you’re teasing me right now?’
‘Me?’
She tapped her hands at the backs of his shoulders. ‘Yes, you.’
He laughed and lowered his lips so they brushed against her ear. ‘Okay, then. My favourite form of exercise—at least, until we’re better acquainted—is swimming. How about a race to the buoy out there? You wouldn’t come swimming with me the other day.’
It was like two different people in his arms. Her cheeks flushed a little at his hint of something else, then paled instantly at the second suggestion.
She kept her arms tightly around his neck. He turned so they were chest to chest instead of sideways on. She stared out at the distant buoy in sheer unhidden terror. ‘That? You want to swim out to that?’
Every muscle in her body had tensed against him.
He couldn’t understand. ‘Of course, it’s maybe half a mile? It’s an easy swim. We can do it together.’
She shook her head fiercely. ‘Oh, no. No way. Not me.’ Then she glanced at him. ‘And not you either. You’re not going out there.’
He started laughing. ‘Portia, what on earth is wrong?’
She looked at him incredulously. ‘What’s wrong?’ She swept her arm out towards the ocean. ‘Look at it. All beautiful and blue. All tempting. All come-and-swim-in-me.’
‘Exactly. Let’s do it.’
She screwed up her face. ‘Not a chance. Do you have any idea what could be out there?’
He pulled back to get a good look at her whole horrified expression. ‘No. What?’
She stared back at him. ‘Sharks,’ she whispered fiercely.
He shook his head. ‘You’re joking, aren’t you?’ He couldn’t believe it.
‘Of course I’m not joking. Every time I see someone swimming in the ocean I hear the Jaws theme tune playing in my head. I like the sea. From a distance.’
‘But just after we met you were in the sea with me.’
She gulped. ‘I wasn’t in the sea. Not properly anyway. I’ll paddle. But that’s it.’
Javier didn’t hesitate. He swept Portia up into his arms and started striding towards the ocean.
‘Don’t you dare! Stop!’ she yelled as she thudded her fists on his chest.
He laughed as he walked ankle deep into the waves. ‘What about here? Is this where you want me to stop?’
She stopped panicking for a second and looked down. The water was barely around his ankles. ‘Don’t go any further.’
He smiled and took a few strides further. ‘No!’ she shrieked.
&
nbsp; He stopped again. ‘Watch out,’ he said. ‘If you keep struggling, I might drop you.’
She sucked in a breath and froze.
‘How far would you actually go in the water?’
She still looked scared. ‘Maybe my knees. Definitely not the chest.’
‘Why not?’ He couldn’t help but be curious.
‘Stop laughing at me. I’d never get in the ocean back home. Sharks are all over LA. I’ve no idea if there are sharks around here.’
She did look panicked. He shook his head. ‘I’m sure there are basking sharks, but none could come this close to shore. And they’re quite harmless.’
She squinted at him as the sun’s glare fell over her face. ‘Do you really swim in LA?’
He nodded. ‘Every day. Have done for years.’
She glanced down again warily. ‘Well, I’ll never go deeper than my knees. I’ve had a recurring nightmare about sharks for years. I heard that if you punch a shark on the nose it stuns it, and it goes away. And they can come quite close to shore. That’s why I’d never wade out to chest height—too dangerous.’
He loved this. He loved that when he stripped back all the parts Portia Marlowe just made him laugh. She made him comfortable. She was fun to be around.
It didn’t help that he also loved the way she screwed up her nose and squinted at him in the sun. He loved the way she wasn’t obsessed about her weight.
‘Would you feel safer if I held you? I thought you wanted to wash the cobwebs out of your hair?’
Her eyes opened wide. ‘Oh, yes. That’s right. I did.’ She pulled a little closer to him as she looked at the clear sea surrounding them.
‘Okay, you can take a few more steps, then that’s it. You’ve got to stop.’
‘Okay, then.’ He couldn’t stop smiling as he strode up to his waist. ‘How about I just lean you back a little?’
