One Way Ticket

by Tricia O'Malley

  The group gathered at the beach all followed to where he was pointing.

  “Yes, I see,” Lily said.

  “Now, look out further. See that line of dark? And see where in some spots the rocks actually come out of the water? That’s an entire line of reef that has grown so high that it reaches the top of the water and in some spots…through the surface.”

  “Oh,” Lily said, still sounding confused.

  “Which means that if a shark even could get over the top of the reef, it would have to be a very, very, very small one. Understand, darling? It’s highly unlikely that Horatio will come to any harm right now.”

  “Oh, phew. I was worried.” Lily looked adoringly up at Whit. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and squeezed her closer.

  “Not a thing to worry about other than the possibility that he will drown from his own panic attack.”

  “Jack’s there. He’ll handle it,” Nadia said, a note of admiration in her voice as Jack reached Horatio. Uh-oh, Paige thought, and made a mental note to try and keep those two focused on Horatio or she’d have the mother of all temper-tantrums on her hands in the form of one insecure Horatio.

  Out in the water, it looked like Horatio was arguing with Jack, before Jack managed to cut him off entirely by hauling him onto the life ring and dragging him back through the water. It didn’t look easy, Paige thought, but she noticed how neatly Jack managed to slice through the water, with strong kicks bringing them quickly to shore. When they reached a point where their feet could touch, Jack stood and dragged Horatio a few more feet before stopping and looking patiently down at the yoga instructor.

  Nadia was the first to break the silence.

  “Oh, Horatio! Are you okay?” She dashed into the water and bent over him. Paige pressed her lips together as Horatio struggled to get off the life ring and ended up rolling over to splat face-first in the water. When he stood, looking like a wet chicken, his expression was indignant. “You poor thing.”

  “I’m bleeding.” Horatio walked from the water and pointed to where a long scrape bled lightly on his foot. “Sharks were closing in on me.”

  “Were they?” Jack asked, lifting his chin in mock surprise.

  “They were! I saw two of them! Big ones, too. They smelled the blood, I’m sure of it.” Horatio insisted. His eyebrows went up when more than one person laughed. “How can you laugh? I almost died! They were there. They were coming for me!”

  “But…” Lily said, looking up at Whit. Paige noticed she hadn’t dropped her arms from around him.

  “How did you get cut, Horatio?” Paige smoothly intercepted Lily’s explanation. The group around them had grown and more than one person was now outright laughing at Horatio. The man’s face had grown deep red, and Paige knew a temper tantrum was on its way.

  “I accidently kicked a rock. I was so focused on the beautiful coral and communing with Mother Ocean that I must not have seen it. It really hurts. I must be cut very deeply.” Horatio pushed his bottom lip out.

  “You probably kicked the coral,” Jack said, hoisting the life ring around his arm, “which is why it stings so much. Likely a very shallow scrape, but the coral has its own protective mechanism, which is why it stings for you. It’s a living animal, after all, and you shouldn’t kick it.”

  Oh man, Paige thought, as Horatio’s expression grew mutinous and the rest of the group shook their heads in admonishment. This is not gonna be good.

  “Excuse me, but you have no idea what I did or did not kick. I told you it was a rock, didn’t I? And clearly the sharks smelled my blood which is why they were circling. I’m lucky I didn’t lose my foot!” Horatio stomped the offending foot into the sand. Paige had to wonder how much it really hurt if he was stomping with it.

  “Sure, buddy. It was a rock then. I didn’t see any sharks though,” Jack said, an easy smile on his face like he was trying to placate a toddler. “Likely just a bit of panic kicking in for you. It’s nothing to be ashamed of though. You are out of your element and you got hurt. That can kick up your adrenaline pretty easily and throw you into a panic.”

  “I was not panicking.” Horatio held a hand to his chest. “I was calm. I was merely worried about the sharks with my blood in the water. That’s a normal thing to be worried about.”

  “Except there were no sharks,” Jack continued. “But you’re not wrong – sharks can certainly smell blood. However, this was all just a combination of you getting hurt and a simple panic response. It’s okay now. Everything’s going to be just fine.” With that, Jack patted Horatio on the arm, and then moved through the crowd that opened up to make way for him. He shot Paige a wink as he went past, and she could only shake her head slightly. She wanted to laugh, god she wanted to laugh so hard, but knew she was going to have to put her big girl pants on and baby Horatio’s ego for a while. At least Whit had disappeared, Paige realized. That was one less problem she’d have to navigate.

  “I did not panic.” Horatio sniffed and looked around at the rest of the group standing on the beach. “There was blood in the water.”

  “But Whit said sharks can’t get in here.” Lily, in a scrap of a bikini, put her hands on her hips as she looked up at Horatio. “And Whit says you probably did hit coral. It stings, you know.”

  “Oh, Whit says, does he?” Horatio strode across the sand, casting a disgusted look at Lily. “What does Whit even know? The man doesn’t do yoga, and I’ve never once seen him swim in the water. He’s certainly no expert.”

  “But…he’s the owner. Don’t you think he knows the water here?” Lily asked, tagging along automatically after Horatio.

  “Whit doesn’t know shit, Lily. I’m the one who was out there. I know what I was facing!”

  “Yeah, Lily. We’re just lucky Horatio is alive, aren’t we?” Nadia said, running after Horatio and hooking her arm through his.

  “Of course.” Lily schooled her expression. “We were very worried for you. It must have been so scary to be out there on your own like that.”

  “I wasn’t scared,” Horatio scoffed and tossed his hair over his shoulder. “But you have to take blood in the water seriously. The sharks, you know, they can smell it for miles. It’s a big deal.”

  His voice trailed off as they walked out of sight, and Paige turned to the rest of the group, a professional smile on her face.

  “They only get nurse sharks here,” Hal said. “I looked it up before I came. Well, at least in near shore. And those sharks are like big puppies. You guys don’t have to worry if you go in the water. In fact, having the reef like it is probably means the snorkeling is actually really good.”

  “Do you think so?” Another woman asked.

  “Well, I’m a diver and I typically jump in the water when I see sharks.” Hal laughed. “But Jack wasn’t wrong. It was more likely that Horatio just scared himself and set off a panic reaction. Frankly, he’s lucky he didn’t drown, what with all the flailing about he did.”

  “He’s obviously not confident in the water,” another woman said.

  “We offer snorkel gear if anyone else would like to give it a go. It sounds like Hal is pretty familiar with coral reefs. Maybe he’d be willing to take a few of you out if you’d like to explore?” Paige spoke, wanting to divert the group from talking much more about Horatio. She didn’t care if they dethroned him after this trip, but she wasn’t ready to deal with his fall from grace during the retreat.

  “I think I would like to. If there really aren’t any sharks?”

  “Even if there are, they’re really cool. I promise. You’ll be fine.”

  Soon, Hal had an interested group of snorkelers hanging on his every word, and Paige left them to return to the reception hall to deal with whatever fire needed to be put out next. There, she found Whit and CeCe at their permanent spots by the bar and Jack nowhere to be seen.

  “Sharks.” CeCe sniffed, taking a sip of her martini. “There haven’t been sharks here for years. Except for that one that got stuck after the
big swells from that one storm. Remember that, darling?”

  “I certainly do, my sweet. It was a group effort to get him back out over the reef. Right tricky, it was.” Whit beamed down at his wife and they began to reminisce.

  “How long have you lived here?” Paige asked, accepting her glass of soda water and lime from Mariposa. The bartender knew now to only give Paige a drink if she specifically requested it. Paige had promised herself once this group was gone, she was going to get good and shit-faced. But until then? She was going to keep her wits about her.

  “Oh, a few years now, right?” CeCe squinted at Whit in question.

  “Probably that. Maybe a few more. It all blends together, doesn’t it now?” Whit laughed and shrugged. “Long enough, I suppose.”

  “Oh, you think? Has the time come?” CeCe twinkled up at Whit.

  “For another project? Maybe. We’ve got so many projects here still, darling.”

  “Oh, we do at that. We’re just so busy.”

  Paige had come to realize they were constantly nattering on about all the projects they were doing, however she’d yet to see any physical evidence of these projects. It was beginning to become a bit of a running joke in her mind – two points every time she could spot a possible project. Or any evidence of CeCe or Whit actually working on said projects.

  “Well, it’s a nice spot. I think the guests are really happy here,” Paige said as she wasn’t really sure what CeCe and Whit were going on about.

  “I would hope so. We certainly poured enough money into it, didn’t we love?” CeCe’s words sounded more like a criticism than a compliment as she looked at Whit. Paige eased back as the two began to argue in hushed tones.

  “So Jack saved Horatio, huh?” Mariposa smiled a mile-wide grin at Paige. “What I wouldn’t have given to see that.”

  “Oh, it was worth every hour of angst over that man. Jack dragged him in like a turtle flailing on its back.”

  “Oh my god. Tell me everything.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  The days drew out, falling into a pattern of yoga classes, a daily Horatio hand-holding session, and heightening tensions between several members of the group. Paige found it oddly like watching a soap opera from afar, except, she had a direct part in the outcome as the players often came to her to gripe about each other. A few of the top complaints: Whit disappearing on late-night beach walks with different women. The men all falling head over heels for Mariposa – even though many of them were there with their partners. Horatio not getting enough attention. Oddly enough, CeCe was never at the center of complaints – as both men and women alike warmed to her cheerful personality.

  Except for one person, that is.

  Paige had been on her way to her office to escape Horatio one day when she’d happened upon a whispered argument between Jack and CeCe. They’d dispersed when they’d seen her – Jack shooting her a glare before disappearing into the garden. CeCe had pasted a smile on her face and chattered at Paige about a project she was working on in their personal quarters – something about refacing a cabinet. The day CeCe refinished a cabinet was the day that Paige would see a shark walk on land.

  She’d had a moment to overhear a bit of their argument before they’d cut it off at her approach. It had sounded like it was about CeCe’s and Jack’s past. There had been something about finances and money owed…but she hadn’t been able to make it out. Paige hoped that Tranquila Inn wasn’t in trouble. Because as weird as everyone was here, she was starting to find her own pace and thought she could end up enjoying this job. She’d yet to see anything else of the island, but one of these days she planned to explore more. The problem was – and this was something she always ran into – the balance between her work and her life was seriously skewed.

  “Hey.”

  Paige looked up to see Jack at her office door.

  “Hey.”

  “I’m heading into town for a supply run. Want to come with? It’s been brought to my attention that you haven’t left the hotel once since the last time you went to town.” Jack smiled at her like he was asking her to skip school and go smoke dope in the parking lot.

  “It would be nice to have a change of scenery. Do we really get to go play?”

  “Boss says it’s okay.” Jack looked at his watch. “Meet me out front in fifteen?”

  “That should work. I’ll just go grab my purse and put my stuff away.” Even though she still had a ton of paperwork, Paige found herself excited at the prospect of a little downtime. She’d taken to retreating to her office as much as she could lately. Managing Horatio was like trying to calm down a toddler that had been set loose in a candy store. It would be nice to be completely unavailable to him for an afternoon.

  Paige changed into a flowy dress in soft blue with simple white beading stitched at the neckline. She’d taken to throwing her hair up in a loose bun on her head due to the heat and continued with her no-makeup theme. Grabbing her purse, she paused as she glanced in the mirror.

  She looked relaxed, Paige realized. For the first time in ages, there was color in her cheeks and the tension lines in her forehead had smoothed out. Paige added some simple silver hoop earrings and grabbed her cell phone. She wanted to take pictures for Jane, who had been pestering her for updates on the whole Horatio situation. Paige had been too busy to give her much detail, but perhaps she’d get a chance to send some photos of the island to her friend today.

  Humming, Paige locked her cottage and made her way to the reception hall where CeCe found her immediately.

  “Hello, gorgeous. You look cheerful today. Are you off with Jack then?” CeCe fingered the long gold rope chain at her throat.

  “I am.” Paige tilted her head at CeCe in question. “Is that okay?”

  “Perfectly alright. I can’t imagine why you’d think I’d be bothered.”

  “If you need me for anything here, I’m happy to stay.”

  “Of course not, darling. I’ve got everything under control. I could run these retreats with my eyes closed.”

  “Of course.” Then why had she hired Paige?

  “Take as long as you need, darling. I must be off. I’m in the middle of a project.” CeCe winked at her and headed for the bar. Paige wondered if her project was finishing the martini that Mariposa had left for her. Turning, she hightailed it to the front drive and found Jack waiting in the battered Suzuki. Her breath skipped as she studied him unnoticed for a moment. He’d pulled a baseball hat on that had the Tranquila Inn logo on the front and mirrored glasses shaded his eyes. A dark blue t-shirt contrasted nicely with his tan, and he drummed his fingers against the doorframe to the beat of the music from the radio. When Jack saw her, he flashed her a wide grin, and a delicious little shiver went through Paige.

  Do not sleep with the boss.

  She shouldn’t have to remind herself of that, Paige thought, as she climbed into the little SUV. Like…that should just go with the territory. Jack was off-limits. She was living out of a duffle bag in another country and had no solid life plan other than to get through this retreat. Hopefully, she would make a good impression on her employers and they would let her stay around long enough to figure out what her plan was. Which made it imperative that she kept her mind away from naughty daydreams and on her future instead.

  “What’s with the look? Do you not want to go to town?” Jack asked.

  “Oh. No. I do. I was just having a moment of contemplation.”

  “It didn’t look particularly fun. Might I suggest avoiding that in the future?”

  Paige laughed and leaned back against the seat, looking out the window as the SUV trundled over the rough drive through the brush to get to the main road.

  “It was my future I was contemplating though.”

  “From that look, you may just want to take your future day by day.” Jack reached over and turned up the radio, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel, and Paige took the cue that he didn’t want to talk. Which was fine. She didn’t much feel lik
e talking either. That was the one thing about customer service – she found herself talking all day long. Grateful for a reprieve, Paige let the music and the island breezes wash over her as they wound their way along the coast into town. It was one of those perfect island days – cloudless and breezy – and the sun turned the water a perfect shade of turquoise blue.

  It wasn’t a bad spot to hunker down, Paige mused, as Jack looked for parking in the little downtown. She was sure the island had its problems, as did she, but for once, Paige was going to take someone else’s advice and try not to think too much about her future. She’d land on her feet, as she always did, no matter what the future held.

  “We need cleaning supplies for our housekeeping department and a few kitchen staples for Martin. After that, I think we might be able to sneak in a cheeky beer if you’d like?”

  “Can we go back to the same spot we were at before? I liked that bar.”

  “Yeah, no problem. Let’s get through our errands quickly.”

  An hour later, they had acquired everything on their list. Paige was sweaty once again, having helped haul the packages to the Suzuki.

  “How do you know people aren’t going to steal your stuff?” Paige wondered, looking dubiously at the mound of packages in the back of the little SUV. Jack hadn’t bothered to lock the doors, nor had he rolled the windows up. Anyone walking by could reach in and grab the contents of the backseat.

  “Most people know my car. And if they need to steal cleaning supplies or flour then they need it more than we do.”

  “That’s a very trusting attitude,” Paige said, falling in step next to Jack as they wound their way down a narrow side street and out to the harbor walk. “Don’t you worry that people will take advantage of you? Especially if they think you can afford it?”

  “I choose to believe in the good in people.” Jack shrugged as they reached the little thatched-roof bar. “We’re a small island. Word gets around if things get stolen.”