Page 52 of Obsession Under the Southern Stars

“You were smiling.”

“It looked pretty.”

She doesn’t say anything, and I pick up the hairdryer. I turn it on and start drying her hair. I run my fingers through it, lifting it at the roots and enjoying watching the strands blowing around her head, remembering how it floated under the water. It’s so dark and shiny, with that unusual purplish hue, and it feels like silk beneath my fingers. I can smell the strawberryconditioner she used beneath her dive cap. This girl makes my mouth water.

When I’m done, I turn off the hairdryer, then brush her hair again, smoothing down the locks so it hangs like a dark curtain.

She turns her head, although she doesn’t lift her gaze to mine. “Thank you.”

I lower the brush reluctantly. “You’re welcome.” I clear my throat. “I’ll be back in a second.”

I go out to the tumble dryer and open it. My hoodie is dry now, and I leave the other clothes tumbling, but take the hoodie back into her room. She’s sitting back against the pillows again, and I hold the hoodie out to her.

She looks at it, and her lips curve up as she takes it. She pulls it over her head and down her body, then leans back, tugging the sleeves over her hands and burying her nose in the front so she’s immersed in it. “It still smells of you,” she murmurs.

I sit beside her again. “Can I get you something to eat?”

“Maybe later. I’m really tired.”

“Yeah, me too.” With some surprise, I realize it’s true. I’m fairly fit, and rarely feel exhausted at the end of a dive, but I guess the emotional trauma of the day hasn’t helped.

“Joel…” She hesitates.

I tip my head to the side. “What?”

She’s pulled the front of the hoodie up so it covers her mouth and nose, but her green eyes suddenly fill with tears.

“Hey…” I frown and rest a hand on her arm. “It’s okay.”

She swallows hard. “Will you come and give me a hug?”

“Of course,” I reply, covering my surprise. I go around the bed and climb on the other side, on top of the covers. There’s a stack of pillows, and I sit up against them, surprised again as sheturns onto her side and curls up next to me. I put my arm around her, and she snuggles right up to me.

I kiss the top of her head. “It’s okay.”

“I was so scared.”

“I know.”

“You saved my life.”

I sigh. “Honey…”

She shakes her head, so I don’t say anything more.

The rain hammers against the window, but in the room it’s quiet and warm, and it’s not long before we both doze off, safe and secure in each other’s arms.

Chapter Twelve

Zoe

When I next open my eyes, I’m alone.

I’m curled up in bed, fully dressed, hugging a pillow. The one next to me still bears the indentation of Joel’s body. I pull it toward me and bury my nose in it, not expecting it to smell of his scent as he’s been in the ocean this morning, but to my surprise it does, a little. He must have had a quick spray when he got changed, or maybe it lingered on his clothes. I close my eyes and inhale, remembering how—when I asked him to—he put his arms around me and kissed the top of my head.

He brushed my hair, too, reverently, with long slow strokes. He slipped his fingers through the strands as he dried it with the hairdryer, the same way he did under the water when I removed my dive cap at the safety stop.

My pulse begins to race at the memory, and my heart bangs on my ribs. I sit up, swallowing hard. I don’t want to think about that now.

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