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One thing she admired about Grant was that he approached every situation with confidence, but his confidence when he was at the helm of his boat was on a whole other level. It was as if he was born to be at sea. As if standing on a ship in the ocean was where he was most at home, and she loved getting a chance to witness him doing the thing he loved.
“Who taught you to sail?” She wanted to know more about this passion that brought him to life. Really, she just wanted to know more about him.
“My dad.” A fond, reminiscent smile tugged on one corner of his mouth. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone love to be on the water more than he did.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to meet him.” Although, she was pretty sure she had a good idea of what Mr. Torres’ love for the ocean looked like. She had a feeling it was the same passion she was admiring on the man next to her.
“Me too. He was an amazing man. There’s not a creature that’ll be on this reef today that he wouldn’t have known. There wasn’t a shell he couldn’t identify or a plant he couldn’t name.”
“I bet he was really proud of you.”
“I hope so.” Grant pressed his lips together as if thinking about a memory of his father. Molly stood quietly next to him, not wanting to interrupt his moment. After a few silent seconds ticked by, his easy grin returned. “Did you know that a quarter of all marine life live on a coral reef? To put it in perspective, that’s more than four thousand different species.”
“I did not know that.”
“And luckily for you, you’re about to get to experience a little slice of that first-hand. There’s the reef.” He pointed to an area in front of them where several boats were tied up to buoys and dozens of people were face-down, snorkels-up in the water.
The boat slowed, and he and Mateo worked to getDream Catchertied up to the buoy. Almost as soon as Grant killed the engine, the other three jumped in the water and swam off in different directions.
Molly waited on the deck, enjoying the warm sun on her skin, and took in her surroundings while Grant put up the dive flag and set a couple of other things. As promised, the coast wasn’t far away. And to make it even more picturesque, this particular part of the beach was part of the state park. Instead of the beach being lined with houses and condos, the natural grass-covered sand dunes went back as far as she could see.
“So did you bring that fancy gear just for show, or are you going to put it to use?” Grant joked as he joined her on the deck.
“I was just waiting for my swim buddy who was being rather pokey,” Molly teased.
“Well, the wait is over.” He pulled his T-shirt over his head and tossed it on the bench, then opened one of the storage bins and pulled out a set of snorkeling equipment. “The water’s calling, swim buddy.”
“Lead the way.” She put her hand in his and a thrill streaked through her like a bolt of lightning. It was so powerful and also so unexpected that it almost knocked her backward.
She followed him down the five steps that led to the water, trying desperately to push away the sensation. Friends. They were just friends. Absolutely nothing more.
He stood on the bottom step that bobbed below the surface every time the boat rocked and pointed to the step she was standing on. “If you don’t want to put your fins on in the water, you can sit here to do it.”
“Okay.” She let go of his hand and sank down, carefully stacking all her gear next to her. Grant, meanwhile, jumped into the clear, shimmering water. He swam up to the surface and gave his head one big shake to get rid of the water.
“You’re such a pro, you can put on all your stuff in the water?” Molly eyed him as he floated on his back and slipped on his fins with the same ease as slipping on a pair of flip-flops on land. She, on the other hand, was still trying to jam her foot into the tight rubber that she was convinced was a couple of sizes too small, even though Ellyn had assured her otherwise.
“Don’t worry, by next time, all this will feel like second nature.”
“I’m going to have to take your word for it.” She gave a small grunt as she wiggled her foot and tugged at the fin to get it on.
With his fins already on, he pulled on his mask, resting it on his forehead while he waited. “By the way, I should probably warn you. The ocean is addictive. Once you get a taste of snorkeling and get salt water in your blood, it’s hard to stay away.”
“That’s what you keep telling me.” She managed to get her first fin on and stopped to catch her breath.
Although, she had to admit, she’d already started to see his point. She’d only been here a little over two weeks, and already she loved this place more than she’d ever imagined she would. But she’d walk away when her assignment was finished because that was her whole reason for taking this job. She didn’t want roots.
“That’s because it’s true.” He clasped his hands behind his head and lazily floated on his back, as if to prove his point. “Hey, by the way, I already have your next excursion planned.”
She picked up the second fin, hoping this one would be easier. “Shouldn’t I at least master getting my snorkeling gear on before we start talking about our next adventure?” She tugged at the fin.
“Trust me, you’re going to like this one. It doesn’t involve flippers or snorkels or climbing tons of stairs. But it does involve an early wakeup call. Like, really early.”
“And what exactly is this really-early-but-on-the-ground excursion?”
Grant shook his head. “Nope. It’s a surprise. I just wanted you to save the date on your calendar.”
She supposed it didn’t hurt to have a full calendar while she was here. She was making the most of her time, which was very different than laying down roots. “Date saved.” She finally slipped her second foot into the fin and held her flippered feet out in front of her to wiggle her toes.
