Finding Paradise

by Barbara Dunlop

  By the time Cobra pulled the raft onto the sandbar where Breena and Badger had driven in on ATVs to set up a folding table and a grill, the women were chatting fast, their excitement level high as they greeted their friends from the other rafts and exchanged stories.

  * * *

  * * *

  Marnie stood in the sunshine on the sandbar with Mia, finishing their chicken wraps and sweet, creamy coffee. The wraps had a Tex-Mex flair, and the hot spices hit the spot after the cool ride down the river.

  “Have you done this before?” she asked Mia.

  “First time for me. Silas has a boat and says we can take river trips next summer. But we’ve been too busy building the house to have any fun.”

  The statement amused Marnie. “Really? No fun at all? Spending your nights cuddled up with Silas?”

  “Okay, I’m having some fun.”

  “That’s a relief. I’d hate to think you’d given it all up for nothing.”

  “It wasn’t for nothing. And I didn’t give it all up.”

  “You gave up a lot.”

  “And I got a lot.” Then Mia looked like inspiration had struck. “You should come see the house before you go. They’ve finished the flooring and installed the kitchen cabinets. We’re about ready to move in.”

  “I’d love to see it. Will we have time before dinner?” Since they were flying out tomorrow morning, there weren’t many options.

  “We should have.” Mia drained her cup.

  “You must be looking forward to moving.” Marnie pictured Raven’s rustic little cabin.

  “Raven’s place isn’t so bad.”

  Marnie pasted Mia with a look of disbelief. “Seriously? Not so bad?”

  “I got used to it over the summer.”

  “Talk like that, and the princess sorority’s going to kick your butt to the curb.”

  “It’s amazing what you can get used to if you try.”

  Marnie knew she could get used to almost anything. She’d spent years living with few creature comforts and even fewer indulgences. But she didn’t want that life now, not when she had a choice.

  “I’ve gotten used to year-round sunshine and day spas,” she said.

  “Not to mention evening cocktails on the Brandy Bistro deck.”

  “See, you do miss it.”

  “In my weak moments.” Mia focused on a spot beyond Marnie’s left ear. “Will you take a look at that.”

  “What?” Marnie turned to see where Mia was looking, and her breath caught in her throat.

  “It’s a moose and a calf,” Mia said. “No, wait, two calves.” The animals were only fifty feet away, standing partway in the water.

  “Should we be scared?” Marnie took a step back so she was level with Mia instead of being closest to the wild animals.

  “Hey, Riley,” Mia called softly over her shoulder.

  Riley looked up from where he was talking with Scarlett and Willow.

  Mia pointed.

  “Cobra,” Riley called in the same soft tone. “Moose.”

  Marnie’s attention went to Cobra crouched beside one of the rafts. He rose, and she inhaled, taking a good long look at his form and his face. She’d expected him to come talk to her during the lunch stop, but he hadn’t. She didn’t know what to make of that.

  “Keep still and quiet,” Riley told them all. “They’re far enough away, but we don’t want to startle them.”

  Willow put on her helmet and switched on the camera, a huge grin coming over her face. “This is fantastic,” she whispered.

  “Shhh,” Riley said.

  “Can they hear us?” she asked him.

  “See the size of their ears?” As he spoke, the mama moose’s ears twitched, moving in all directions.

  Marnie caught Cobra’s eyes and held them.

  A small gasp came up from a bunch of the women, but he didn’t break their gaze, and neither did she. She tried to read his expression. She tried a little smile to see if she’d get a reaction.

  “It’s coming.” Scarlett sounded startled.

  “This way,” Kathleen added.

  “Everyone walk slowly over to the rafts,” Riley instructed. “You don’t have to get in. Just be ready.”

  Everyone moved toward the river, all except Cobra, who came Marnie’s way instead. She met him partway, and he urged them toward the raft.

  “Do we get in now?” Scarlett asked.

  “Will you look at them,” Willow said in a tone of awe.

  Riley and Nicholas moved to stand next to Cobra, blocking the moose from the women. All three of the men raised their arms, moving them slowly in the air like they were herding cattle.

  The moose stopped, and the calves stopped with her. She turned her head, as if she were focusing on them with one eye. Then with a snort of disgust, she turned to the trees and took off at an ungainly gallop.

  Willow was the first to speak. “I got it all.” She was standing next to Riley where she had a clear view of the moose.

  “You want to be careful around those,” Riley told her.

  “You were standing right here,” she said.

  “You think I can protect you from a moose?”

  Willow looked confused. “No. I meant I was in no more danger than you were.”

  Riley rolled his eyes. “You don’t think I know moose behavior better than you?”

  “That’s why I took your lead.”

  Breena had made her way back to the grill. “We’re shutting these down. Last call for wraps.”

  “I’ll take one if they’re left,” Nicholas said.

  “We’ve got three,” Breena said. “And monster cookies for dessert.” She held up a box.

  “Cookies, yes,” Mia said, surprising Marnie as she headed for dessert.

  “Cookie?” Cobra appeared beside Marnie.

  “Not for me.” Marnie had already overindulged calorie-wise this weekend, and the name monster cookie implied a size and sweetness that would take her a long time to work off.

  “You sure?”

  “My hips are sure.”

  He grinned. “Nothing wrong with your hips.”

  “I know, and I’m keeping it that way. But go ahead.” The cookies were looking very popular.

  “I’m good,” he said, gazing at the cluster of people around Breena. “Your stomach okay?”

  “Why? The wraps tasted great.”

  “I meant from motion sickness.”

  “Oh. No. I feel fine.”

  “Good.” He paused for a minute and she thought about Raven saying he was usually quiet. “So, you’re liking the trip?”

  “It’s exciting. Very wet.” She gestured around the beach. “If it weren’t sunny, this could be quite miserable.”

  He looked to the sky. “We could build a campfire if we needed it. It is getting late in the season for rafting. Riley’s out of the field now.”

  “The field?”

  “Most of his river trips are longer, weekends or weeks long.”

  “So, camping?”

  “Camping.”

  “With tiny, little tents and dried food, like that?”

  “Like that. You can take more gear on a raft than if you’re backpacking or canoeing, but it’s rustic.”

  “I’m not a fan of rustic.”

  He chuckled. “Never would have guessed.”

  She gave him a frown. “Are you mocking me?”

  He returned her gaze with good humor. “No. I admire someone who knows what they want.”

  Marnie had known what she wanted—more precisely known what she didn’t want—since she was a young girl. “I’m not sure why anyone would choose hard, cold and grimy when you could have soft, warm and clean.”

  “Hard to imagine,” he said.

  She tried to
guess what he was thinking. “Are you happy here?”

  He pointed to the sandbar. “Here?”

  “In Paradise.”

  “Yes. I’m not so much for warm and cushy.”

  She could see that. And she could admire that. “I guess you know what you want too.”

  He sobered and something shifted in his gaze—boring into her, sucking the air from her lungs.

  The sun seemed hotter, and the river roared louder, and the dried leaves scuttled sharply over the bare rock behind.

  “In fact, I do know what I want,” he said.

  “All right,” Riley called out from the lead raft. “Let’s get back on the water.”

  Chapter Eight

  What Cobra wanted was Marnie. He hadn’t said the words out loud, but they were a full-on shout inside his head.

  The second leg of the river was shorter than the first, but it held some of the most exciting features. They started off with a stretch they called the Washing Machine, where water bubbled white and frothy among the rocks. It was tricky to navigate, with a very specific path through.

  It culminated in a whirlpool, and Cobra cut back the power on the outboard and let the raft spin around a few times before he corrected their course and headed into a flat stretch. Predictably, his passengers loved it.

  There were a couple more rapid sections before they rounded a tight corner into a steep gorge where the temperature dropped about five degrees. At the outlet of the gorge was the highlight of the trip, a shallow, tiered waterfall where the bow of the raft got airborne for a few seconds over the final drop.

  “This is the exciting part,” Cobra called to his passengers. He dialed back the power again, wanting to make sure Riley was safely through the feature and Nicholas was far enough ahead before he made his start.

  The sound of the falls came up around them, and the women’s eyes got wide.

  “The waterfall?” Willow asked, excitement in her tone and a wide grin splitting her face.

  “Everybody ready?” he asked.

  There was a chorus of yeses and nods all round.

  He could see Riley out the other end, and Nicholas was crossing the calm stretch before the final drop. He hit the power and sent them over the first lip, aiming for the channel just east of Billy Goat Rock. After that he’d traverse the river to the far eastern shore, taking a narrow channel between two jutting boulders. It looked dangerous, but it was the safest way through, fast but deep.

  They rocketed out the far end, wallowing through a field of rolling rapids to three giant waves and the down-rush into the calm stretch. He caught a glimpse of Nicholas heading into the last waterfall. Something looked off with his approach. Cobra squinted and saw Nicholas frantically twist his head to check the outboard.

  Cobra swore under his breath, knowing something had gone wrong. But his attention had to stay on his own raft. He churned through a field of rapids and over a drop, as the women whooped with excitement and water sprayed up to soak them all.

  He looked up as soon as he could, seeing Nicholas’s raft sideways, off the route, heading for a dangerous drop-off.

  “Hang on tight,” Cobra shouted to his passengers while he poured on the power.

  “What’s—” Scarlett started to ask, but then she looked at Cobra’s expression and clamped her jaw shut.

  To Cobra’s horror, Nicholas’s raft took the falls in the wrong spot. It tilted to one side, sending Marnie flying out and splashing into the water.

  Cobra’s stomach dropped to his toes, and a surge of adrenaline charged his system. He strained to see her in the dark green water as he took his own raft through the center of the channel, bypassing the features they usually ran for fun, taking the safest and fastest way forward.

  Nicholas’s raft righted itself, with everyone else still clinging on. He looked frantically back, but without power there was nothing he could do to help.

  Cobra spotted a flash of orange in the river and swore out loud this time.

  Marnie was caught in a whirlpool, getting dragged under the water.

  He pointed the raft her way and gunned the motor.

  “Marnie!” Scarlett screamed.

  “Get her!” Olivia shouted.

  “Go, Cobra, go!” Willow leaned forward as if she thought her aerodynamics would help them move faster.

  Cobra watched the orange life jacket. He saw Marnie come up for a breath, but then she was gone again, and he lost his visual.

  He was almost there . . . just another minute.

  He spotted her and cranked the steering. Then he cut the power to stop the prop from cutting her. He leaned way over the side of the raft and plunged his arm into the water.

  She wasn’t there.

  He couldn’t feel her.

  Sheer, blind panic took over.

  He reached again, felt frantically around. His hand brushed her life jacket and grabbed onto a corner with a death grip, hauling her bodily out of the water, dragging her into the raft, onto his lap, wrapping his arm tight around her.

  She coughed up some water.

  The raft was spinning in the whirlpool, and he restarted the motor, righted the raft and headed for the calm water.

  “You okay?” he asked Marnie, holding her tighter against him. His heart was still beating out of control and his lungs labored to oxygenate his bunched muscles.

  She was freezing cold in his arms, and he was flashing back to the second when he’d thought he’d lost her.

  She managed a nod.

  “You hurt? Hit your head?”

  When she shook her head no, his heart rate finally began to steady.

  The other women gaped at her in alarm.

  “I’m okay,” she rasped to them. “I’m okay.”

  Willow had the presence of mind to wave at the raft where Nicholas was standing and give him a thumbs-up.

  Nicholas slumped in his seat and buried his face in his hands.

  The rest of the trip was through relatively calm water, and Nicholas would be able to steer with the paddle. He was out of danger now.

  Cobra tucked Marnie’s freezing hands into his palm, assuring himself she was safe, she was fine, he hadn’t lost her. “We’ll get you warm soon. We’re only twenty minutes out.”

  Her teeth were chattering, her lips were blue, and she was shaking against him. She was showing the early signs of hypothermia, but that was better than the late signs of hypothermia.

  “Feeling cold is a good sign,” he told her.

  “Then I’m doing great, all things considered,” she said, voice shaky.

  “It’s when your body stops trying to warm itself up that you’re in real trouble.”

  “I know.”

  He adjusted his hold, pressing his chest against her back and splitting his thighs to hold her in between them for warmth, not sure he’d ever be able to let her go.

  They caught up to Nicholas, and Cobra could see Riley was backtracking. He must have guessed something was wrong.

  “You okay?” Nicholas called out to Marnie, his face pale and drawn.

  “She’s good,” Cobra answered for her. “Freezing cold. We’re going in fast.”

  “Good. Man, I’m sorry,” Nicholas said.

  Marnie shook her head at him. She’d obviously known the outboard quit on him.

  “Nothing you could do,” Cobra assured him. “At least you didn’t flip all the way over.”

  But Nicholas just shook his head in regret, obviously replaying the incident over and over, wondering what he might have done differently.

  Cobra understood. It might not have been Nicholas’s fault, but it would likely take the guy a while to get over the accident.

  “What happened?” Riley shouted out as he arrived on the scene.

  “Marnie went in,” Cobra called back.

&nbs
p; “Cobra fished her out,” Willow added. “You should have seen him.”

  “She needs to warm up,” Cobra said. “We’ll see you back there.”

  Riley gave him a wave, and Cobra twisted the throttle, pointing the raft for town.

  * * *

  * * *

  Marnie was toasty warm now, a wool blanket wrapped around her as she sipped a cup of tea next to the wood stove in the Rapid Response reception lounge. The dozen seats were filled, and many people were left standing as they chatted about the thrills of the river trip.

  Everyone had finally stopped fussing over her. She was grateful for that. Her spill had been frightening and freezing, but it was over now, and she was perfectly fine.

  “I got the whole thing on video,” Willow said, taking the chair next to Marnie. “You mind if I post it?”

  “I don’t think it would be the best advertisement for Paradise,” she said. It would be hard for Mia and Raven to get the next batch of women up here if they thought their lives might be in danger.

  Willow blew out a breath. “Good point. But do you want a copy?”

  Marnie was about to say no. She didn’t particularly want to relive those few minutes.

  “Cobra was amazing,” Willow said as she scrolled through her phone.

  “Sure,” Marnie said instead. “I’ll take a copy.” She was probably nuts to do it, but she knew she’d watch the footage of Cobra after she got back to LA.

  “You should have seen the expressions on his face,” Willow continued. “I swear, if he hadn’t grabbed you on the second try, he’d have dove right in after you.”

  Marnie doubted that. Nobody would willingly go into that icy swirling water. Plus, he would have been sucked under along with her, and what would have been the point of that? She shuddered now, remembering the strength of the current.

  Willow touched her arm. “You sure you’re okay?”

  “Perfect. You should go get ready for tonight.” It was coming up on five o’clock, and cocktails at the dinner dance finale started at six.

  Willow looked up and gave a sigh.