Page 14 of Passions & Peonies

Buzz.“Fine. I want you back in ten minutes. I have a lot to do today and standing behind the counter isn’t one of them.”

Buzz.“I owe you. Thanks!”

I don’t respond and hook my walkie-talkie to my shorts. With my checklist in hand, I head back to the office. I stop along the way to fix a rope connected to a dinghy. I hear some giggles.

“Look at the size of this vessel! It’s huge,” one woman says.

I freeze and stay low.Wait a second. Is that— I eavesdrop some more. My stomach clenches with excitement.

“What kind of vessel are we talking about here? A boat or something else?” They both burst out laughing.

“You’re sick.” More laughter.

“Yeah, but that’s why I’m so much fun.”

I’d know that perky voice anywhere. I stand up and walk around one of the large boats. My breath hitches. Blond hair with pink streaks mingles with the sea breeze, revealing her slender bare back. Her giggles find their way over to me. I can’t believe she’s here.

Buzz.“I’m on my way back. Is the coast clear?”Shit!This damn thing is so loud.

Both girls turn around at the same time. Lacey pushes her hair away from her face with her sunglasses.

“Lacey? I can’t believe you’re here.” My first instinct is to hug her, but I don’t follow through when her face morphs into anger.

She props her hands on her hips. “Are you mental? Yesterday, you said you’d never seen me before when I ran into you on the way to the pool. And suddenly you remember my name? Maybe you are a drug addict with your shady sunglasses.”

Fuck. She’s the girl Josh was talking about.

“Lacey, it was all a misunderstanding. I can exp ”

“There you are. Why didn’t—? Oh.” Josh has arrived.

I remove my cap and sunglasses, and so does Josh. Lacey’s mouth drops wide open. Her eyes dart from me to him. Her friend’s head bobs all over the place, not knowing where to look.

“There’s t—two of you?” She points her finger at us and takes one step back and then another.

I stretch out my arms and hop forward. “Watch out!”

She squeals and flails her arms. We all scream at the same time and watch Lacey fall backward into the water.Fuck!I drop my stuff on the ground, yank the walkie-talkie off my shorts, and swiftly take off my shoes. Then I dive in after her.

Her arms flap everywhere as she gasps for air, splashing water into my face. I pull her into my arms. Her legs wrap around my waist. I’m glad I’m wearing cargo shorts instead of thin swim trunks. For a split second I think of her in my arms in the plane.

“Breathe.” Her sunglasses hang off her chin. She pushes the hair away from her face and wipes the water from her eyes. She moves her head back when she realizes how close our faces are. Her gaze caresses my lips. “I’ve got you. You’re lucky there wasn’t a boat in the slip.”

Her eyes spit fire, and she pushes me away. “I used to be a lifeguard. I can swim, thank you very much.” She shoves her sunglasses into her wet hair on the top of her head.

“I was just trying to help you.”

“I don’t need your help,” she snaps.

“Lace… Lace… one of your flip-flops is floating right behind you. Grab it before it sinks,” her friend shouts and points. Lacey twists around and smacks the water when she grabs it.

“Throw it to me,” her friend instructs. She whips it at her.

“Great arm. Did you ever play softball?”

She glares at me. Okay, not the time to make jokes. She looks back at her friend.

“It doesn’t matter if you have one of them, because I don’t see the other one anywhere. I can’t walk around with one damn flip-flop!”

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