Page 6 of Changing Tides

“Will you just change?” she huffs.

“Relax. I brought a couple of gorgeous tropical maxi dresses. I plan to slip one on before dinner, but seriously, you can’t wear those shoes on the boat.”

She goes to the bedroom and returns, sans jewelry and wearing a pair of flat pearl-white sandals.

“Better?”

“Much,” I reply.

When we arrive, the boatCoral Kingis waiting in slip B-3 at Huaka’i Basin Boat Harbor on Waikiki.

After a short safety presentation, we are all fitted with life jackets and equipment before boarding the craft. We set sail for a snorkeling site in Turtle Canyons, where Hawaiian green sea turtles congregate above the reef.

“Do you think one of them would give me mouth-to-mouth if I were to drown?” Amiya asks as her chin lifts to the crew in red swim trunks, seated across from us on the boat.

One is helping a small child strap on the flippers the excursion provided.

“I knew I should have worn my sexy shoes,” she whispers.

I elbow her side.

“You are,” I say as I raise my right leg and wiggle my foot, which is wrapped in orange rubber.

She starts to giggle when her eyes go wide. She does her best ventriloquist impersonation when she speaks without moving her lips. “Oh my God, one’s coming over here.”

I turn my head to see one of them approaching us, and I start to greet him when my long flaxen hair is caught in the breeze coming off the cerulean water and obstructs my view. By the time I have it contained by a ribbon, he has passed by and taken a seat next to the tour guide, Alex, at the back of the boat. He is staring in our direction, and his lips lift in a sexy half smile.

“I’m so glad you made me do this,” Amiya says.

When the engine comes to a stop, Alex stands and instructs us all to create a single-file line.

With my snorkel gear in hand, I feel a tingling mix of excitement and anticipation as we follow the others who drop from the steps of the vessel into the ocean, one by one.

I adjust my mask and fins, and my heart races when it’s my turn to leap.

Taking a deep breath, I close my eyes and drop. I keep them closed until I feel the cool embrace of the sea enveloping me andkick my way to the surface just as Amiya takes the handsome crew member’s hand and lets him help her down.

Once she is by my side, we swim to the others who are skimming the water.

Alex explains what we will see and the boundaries we are to adhere to as he makes his way into the center of the group. Then, we have forty-five minutes to explore the roped-off area on our own.

Amid the vibrant coral formations and the kaleidoscope of colorful tropical fish, the giant green sea turtles swim so close to us that we can almost reach out and touch them.

I am in complete awe.

My only complaint is that the crowd is so large, and as other boats come close to the reef, their parties join us in the water.

We are literally elbow to elbow by the time the last vessel anchors.

I am skimming the rippling water, watching a spinner dolphin playing just outside the ropes when a figure catches my eye.

A man with a muscular back and a mop of unruly, dark hair is swimming effortlessly through the water. I watch as he gracefully navigates around the other explorers, his movements fluid and mesmerizing. When he surfaces, I recognize the playful blue eyes behind his mask. It’s one of the guys who was surfing the day we arrived.

My attention is pulled from him as a flying fish emerges and crashes back down in front of me, and I let out a surprised scream.

“Avie, are you all right?”

I hear Amiya’s concerned voice, and I turn to see her wading with Alex and his coworker.

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