Page 94 of Swept Up In You

“Remember, Sam, follow the brightest star. I’ll see you on the seas soon!” Matt called out as they reversed the boat out.

Sam choked out a laugh. “You’ll have some catching up to do,old man!”

They waved to their friends, family, and life as they knew it.

No matter what the sea threw at them, they were ready to take on this new adventure—together.

Epilogue

Twelve months later…

“Hands above the table where we can see ‘em!” said Marie on the screen in front of them.

They wiggled their hands in front of the camera, laughing.

“It’s a little rough out here today, Marie. It’s not our fault if we have to grab random things to steady ourselves,” said Sam with a wink.

“Sure, sure. Well there’ll be no cheating under my roof and no funny business.”

“Yes, ma’am. All hands above deck!” Taylor shouted, making Sam crack up beside her.

“Ha. Ha,” said Marie dryly, as she took her defensive roll inDice Throne. Taylor had stashed their own set on the boat so they could play along. With more time on their hands to practice, they were both getting extremely good at it, which Sam was very happy about. She was now, well and truly part of the games crew.

Time had flown by, and boat life was everything Sam could’ve hoped for and more. Taylor had developed a knack forfreediving, and some days they ate like queens with a successful catch—like a huge one-clawed crayfish she’d hauled up the other week.

Belle had grown an even bigger affinity for the water over time, and they were afraid that one day she wouldn’t want to get back in the boat.

The days Sam loved most though, were the slow days. The light streaming in through the hatch, warm on their faces, her limbs intertwined with Taylor’s, a puppy snoring softly at their feet and no plans for the entire day. Just the water lapping lazily at the hull, a soft tinking from the mast above, the salty sea air filling her lungs. Those days were bliss. She cherished every minute of them.

The storms, wind and towering swells? Not so much.

They were heart-poundingly chaotic.

They’d both get tossed about the boat ending up battered, bruised and exhausted (Belle was safely harnessed). Thankfully, they’d only been through a few extreme weather events so far. Taking their time had its bonuses, and they only sailed when they absolutely had to through bad weather.

As for their relationship, they had certainly thrown themselves into a pressure cooker by living together so quickly, and on a boatwitha dog, no less. They’d made sure to give themselves options if it blew up in their faces… but it never had. Sure, they’d bicker like an old married couple on occasion, but they were a team. Their skill sets ended up being very complementary to each other.

Sam was impressed she’d picked up a few maintenance tricks from Taylor, while Taylor could now steer the boat happily without worrying she was going to make them sink.

They’d made it all around the east coast of Australia and were now in the tropics of Far North Queensland, heading to PortDouglas to spend a couple of weeks with Alex and Will, who’d made good on their promise to meet up and Sam couldn’t wait.

“Sam?” Hayley said.

“Yeah?”

“Your turn.”

“Right!” Sam replied, adding a card to her hand before picking up her dice. Marie had just lost her remaining health and was officially out of this round, joining Adam, Jess and Heath, so it was down to Taylor, Hayley and Sam.

She rolled her dice once, twice and—“Ultimate!” Sam squealed, jumping up and down on the couch as she landed the unavoidable dice attack that could obliterate.Yes!

Hayley tried covering the webcam with her hands.

“I can still hear you, Hayley. How many health points has your character got?” Sam asked.

“Kertschhhhhh—oh, Sam,shhhhht—you’re breaking up—shhhhhht—we can’t hear you.”

“Wow, that grin is evil,” came Adam’s voice in the background.

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