Heart's Passage

by Cate Swannell

  "Excuse me?" It was Sarah, the quieter one of the two attorneys. "I heard that it's hurricane season here. What happens in that case, or any bad weather?"

  "You heard right, it is cyclone season—that's what we call hurricanes, by the way," Jo replied. "But the long-range forecast for the next few weeks is very good, so I'm not anticipating any problems, though we might get the odd tropical storm in the evenings. Nothing that should worry us, however. As I said, we're never going to be so far away from a good anchorage for us to run into any kind of trouble."

  "Is it safe to swim here?" Cadie asked.

  "If it's safe to snorkel and scuba dive, Cadie, it's a good bet it's safe to swim," the senator said, somewhat derisively.

  "Actually it's a fair question," said Jo, earning a grateful smile from Cadie. "These are tropical waters. That means there's a lot of wildlife, and not all of it is friendly. But if you stick to a few simple rules then you're going to have no problems at all, and you're going to see some gorgeous things down there."

  "So what are the rules?" That was Larissa.

  "At this time of year, the main things to look out for are jellyfish. The box jelly has a big square bubble on top and very long, trailing tentacles. So does the Portuguese man-of-war, but its bubble looks like a fat cigar with a sail on top. If you see any, stay right out of their way. They're very nasty. But the best rule is, when in doubt, don't touch. Everything around here is a national park, by the way, so by law we're not allowed to remove anything from its natural habitat anyway."

  "What about sharks?" Therese this time.

  "I've never seen one here." She waited a beat. "At least not one that was hungry." Paul and Jenny laughed, and she could see Cadie grinning, but the rest of the passengers were still looking apprehensive. "Seriously, people, there is nothing to worry about if you act sensibly, don't touch and never swim, dive, or snorkel alone."

  "What if we hit something and start sinking?" This was from Kelli, a long, tall redhead with a strangely distracted look that Jo was all too familiar with. She'd be keeping an eye on that one.

  "It's not going to happen. But we have a dinghy, and life vests for everyone, plus we have the radio, and three cell phones between us. We file our position and course plan with both our office and the Coast Guard twice a day. Rescue is not far away, even if we're out on the reefs."

  Finally everyone looked reassured.

  "So where we do we go now?" Cadie asked.

  Jo tapped Jenny on the shoulder. "Jen, can you get the map from the charts drawer, please?"

  "Sure, Skip."

  Jo waited till Jenny had unrolled the big map of the Whitsundays on the cockpit's central removable table.

  "We're here." Jo pointed at Hamilton's marina. "It's," she glanced at her watch, "about 2pm. We could leave now and go anywhere amongst the islands and be there by dinnertime." She smiled. "My personal recommendation is, as it's a full moon and a clear night is forecast, it might be a nice way to start your vacation by making it right up to Blue Pearl Bay, here." She pointed. "On the opposite side of Hayman Island from the resort."

  Toby grinned. "Sounds like a plan to me," he said. "Can we help, you know, drive?"

  "Sure," she laughed. "The only other rule onboard is that when it comes to anything to do with this boat and its wellbeing, my word is absolute law." She smiled toothily. "That goes for Paul and Jenny, too. So, yes, please do pitch in, but my advice is that these two know how to make this boat run, so it's a good plan to listen to them."

  Toby nodded enthusiastically.

  "Hang on a minute."

  Jo smiled quietly to herself. She had been waiting for the dissenting voice to pipe up. "Yes, Senator?"

  "What if we want to go somewhere you don't want to go?"

  Jo tilted her head quizzically. "You're the paying customers, Senator, so we always want to go where you want to go. The limits to that are that I won't put this boat anywhere it's not designed to go, nor will I put it, or you, anywhere that is dangerous."

  "What if we insist?"

  Then you're an idiot, the crewmembers thought. "Naomi..." Cadie tried to soothe her pugnacious partner.

  There's always one, thought Jo. Always one who wants to play the power game. "Senator, we are here to make sure you have the vacation of a lifetime. We're experts in our field, just like you're an expert in your field. You wouldn't trust us to run the country, and with all due respect, we're the best qualified to make decisions about the boat and where to put it. And the bottom line is, when you signed your booking form and sent us the check, you effectively signed a contract agreeing to those conditions."

  Jo held her breath. Some people accepted that part of her spiel, and some people didn't. To her eye the cantankerous senator looked like one who wouldn't. But she was saved from further negotiations, by of all things, an attorney.

  Therese laughed and patted the politician on the thigh. "She's right y'know, Nay. You're just gonna have to lie back and enjoy it."

  Jo had to give the senator credit. She recovered well.

  "Pass me that bottle of champagne and I'll think about it," she replied grudgingly.

  Jo grinned, winking at Cadie who had flashed her an apologetic look for her partner's stubborn streak. "Looks like it's Blue Pearl Bay then?" She waited as affirmatives came from around the cockpit. "Okay, let's go."

  Paul and Jenny swung into action, asking for volunteers and giving quick tutorials to those willing to get involved in the action. Jo dropped down into the cockpit and made her way to the helm.

  It didn't take long for them to be on the move, using the engine to maneuver the yacht out of the marina towards the harbor mouth and then through into open water. The breeze had picked up since the morning and Jo was sure she could coax the Seawolf up to nine or 10 knots for the fast run downwind to Hay-man Island. Her passengers were in for a treat.

  Cadie was exhilarated. She had volunteered immediately for crewing duties and had helped Jenny hoist the mainsail while Toby and Jason manned the big winch known as the coffee-grinder. Paul and Jo had shouted encouragement to the new recruits as the yacht had slipped through the narrow entrance into open water just as the mainsail was lifting and filling with wind.

  It had been harder work physically than she was expecting but she certainly didn't mind that. She felt satisfied and intrigued by the feeling of the moving boat under her feet.

  In some ways it's like riding a horse, she thought as she made her way forward, fighting to keep her balance without looking like too much of a landlubber. Landlubber...is that really a word? Cadie found herself giggling as she reached the prow of the yacht. She was pleased to find a waist-high rail around the point—she made a note to ask Jo what that was called—and she carefully wedged herself in.

  She looked down and had to laugh at the sheer sense of freedom she felt. Clear blue-green ocean disappeared under her feet as the yacht cut through the water. Cadie felt like she was hanging in space above the waves. It was a smooth ride and she reveled in the feeling of the sun, wind, and occasional light spray of salt-water on her skin. She resisted the urge to have a Titanic moment for about five seconds.

  Oh, what the hell, she thought, and threw her arms out wide, laughing at herself and generally feeling like she'd discovered the secret of life.

  Back at the helm, Jo couldn't help grinning at the blonde woman's exuberance. It wasn't the first time the tall skipper had seen a passenger make exactly that gesture, but it was the first time she'd felt that joy right along with her client. For about the 50th time since meeting Cadie that morning, Jo wondered at the unreal sense of familiarity she felt around the attractive American. Where the hell have I seen her before?

  The rest of the passengers were finding places to sit around the deck. A couple who were settling on the leeward side were in for a bit of a shock when they turned north and the boat really picked up speed, but Jo figured that was all part of the fun of learning how to sail.

  Warily she watched as the senator app
roached and stood just behind her right shoulder as the skipper stood at the helm. Jo's hackles rose in an eerie echo from a darker time. She felt herself moving onto the balls of her feet reflexively. She hadn't felt that automatic response since... since Marco. Down, girl. She's just a customer. Relax.

  The senator leaned forward so she didn't have to shout. "Don't think I didn't notice how you were looking at my partner back at the hotel, Miss Madison. Not to mention that charming little handshake."

  Jo's senses tingled and she itched to retort. But her better instincts, the ones that had re-emerged in a back alley of King's Cross and the ones that owed Ron Cheswick more than a few favors, kept her silent. The customer is always right, Jo-Jo, she reminded herself sternly.

  "Stay away from her. Or I will make sure you never set foot on a commercial vessel again," rasped the senator. The stocky woman took that moment to walk away, moving to sit next to the two attorneys up near the mast on the starboard side.

  Jo took a long, shuddering, deep breath, fighting hard to still her nerves. She focused on the point on the horizon she was aiming the yacht for and tried not to lose her cool completely.

  What the hell was that? She frowned, trying to concentrate on the sailing, rather than the urge to punch the senator's smug face. One handshake and she's making threats. Jo whistled quietly. Woman's got a problem. The back of her neck prickled disconcertingly.

  An hour later the Seawolf was in top gear, nudging 10 knots and listing over at 45 degrees to port as she ploughed her way north through the heart of Whitsunday Passage. Those passengers on the lower side of the deck had learned pretty quickly how to stay dry, and had scrambled up onto the high side. The two men had their legs hanging over the side.

  Cadie was soaked to the skin and loving every minute of it. She'd stayed at her spot at the prow and had been caught a couple of times as the nose had dipped down one of the larger waves. She looked down and was stunned to see a pod of dolphins racing along in front of the yacht's bow. She glanced back over her shoulder and yelled to Toby and Jason. "Guys! Check this out!"

  The two men scrambled forward and Cadie frantically started clicking off photographs with her digital camera. Soon all the passengers were forward of the mast, leaning out to see the creatures in action. Paul joined them.

  "Paul, how can they do that?" Cadie asked. "How can they go that fast?"

  "Oh, they can go much faster than this," Paul said. "We're doing about 9-10 knots right now, but they can intercept boats doing up to 30 knots. And then they just surf."

  "Surf? You mean on the bow wave?" Toby asked.

  "Yeah, but not just that. See, as the boat moves forward it pushes water in front of it and that sets up a pressure wave. That's what they're riding. The bow wave is just the bit of that above the surface that we can see."

  "They're playing with us." Cadie laughed as the dolphins leapt over each other, gamboling through the water.

  "They sure are," Paul agreed with a smile. "But they're also being pretty smart. They're hitching a ride and saving themselves some energy."

  "How cool is that?" Jason asked.

  Meanwhile back at the helm, Jenny took the opportunity to talk to her boss. "How are we doing, Skipper?" she asked.

  "Pretty good I think, mate," Jo replied. "We ought to be at Blue Pearl by 6.30, 7 o'clock."

  "We're going to need some more liquid supplies in the morning, Jo-Jo, if they keep drinking like they have done this afternoon," Jenny said.

  Jo frowned. "Yeah? How many cases have we got?"

  "Still got two, but they've almost finished one and it's not 4pm yet. We've still got dinner to get through, and you know how the first evening is always a long one."

  Bloody hell, Jo thought. "Okay. Give the office a buzz, Jen. Order up whatever you think we're gonna need. I don't think we'll be going too far from Blue Pearl for at least the next day."

  "Okay, Skip."

  As promised, the Seawolf slipped into Blue Pearl Bay just on moonrise that evening. It was still light enough for Paul to be able to direct them through the forest of bomboras—tall towers of coral that rose from the sandy bottom up to just below the low tide mark—to a safe anchorage.

  Jo dropped the anchor and started helping him tie the boat down for the night. Her guts were still roiling from her encounter with the senator but she wasn't about to let that show, especially since she could feel Cadie's eyes following her.

  Jenny had been below preparing dinner. She started to bring platters of food up for an al fresco meal out on deck. Plates full of fresh seafood—prawns, Moreton Bay bugs, crabs, lobsters, oysters, mussels, and bowls of salad, were passed around.

  Jo wandered down into the main cabin and sat down on the small sofa, escaping the laughter and chatter up on deck for a few minutes.

  Long day, she thought. Long, weird day. She'd stayed away from both the senator and Cadie—something over which she felt a pang of regret. The young blonde was clearly in seventh heaven and there was something about that kind of enthusiasm that Jo craved to be near.

  But this wasn't her vacation. It was her job. She sighed and moved across to the yacht's sound system. Running her finger down the stack of CDs, she settled on an old favorite and pulled it out.

  That should soothe some nerves. Including mine. She flicked the stereo on, settled the disk into its slot, and adjusted the volume.

  Back on deck it was a perfect night. The full moon ascended above the rise of Hayman Island like a huge silver dinner plate, bouncing incandescent rays off the glass-smooth water.

  Cadie sat with her legs dangling over the side, gazing down in too deep dark depths that were so clear she was sure she could see occasional flashes of phosphorescence as fishes darted past. She couldn't wait to see this in the daylight, though the night view was certainly enchanting. And romantic. She looked around and noticed that the three other couples were sitting with each other, talking and eating. Naomi was talking with Jenny, coaxing another bottle of champagne out of the hostess.

  She sighed. It had been such a strange, wonderful day. The highlights had been very high—being out here on the ocean, actively involved in sailing the yacht, surrounded by such beauty. It was a whole new world.

  And then there was Jo.

  All day long Cadie had felt the tall skipper like a presence in the back of her mind, constantly. From the moment their eyes had met as the Seawolf had pulled into her berth at Hamilton Island, to right now. It was like there was an already established connection between them. Something so familiar. So... safe. Known. All day they had caught each other's eye and exchanged smiles. She had noticed, with some disappointment, that the dark-haired woman was keeping her distance. And she was beginning to have a suspicion about why.

  The lowlights had been not unexpected, but disappointing, and somewhat hurtful, nonetheless. As soon as she had seen the group of friends at O'Hare, Cadie had known that Naomi was either completely oblivious about the state of their relationship, or just unwilling to put herself in a position to have to discuss it. That said a lot. She suspected that her relationship with the senator had slipped so far down Naomi's list of priorities that it just hadn't occurred to the older woman that some work was needed.

  And then there was that bizarre burst of possessiveness back at the hotel. Over a handshake.

  We weren't that obvious, were we? Cadie smiled to herself. Well, maybe we were. But it was a handshake, for God's sake. It's not like we dropped to the floor and went at it like animals. She found that thought oddly distracting.

  Just at that moment, hauntingly beautiful music began emanating from below decks.

  Ohhh that's perfect, Cadie thought, as she leaned back, elbows on the deck, staring out across the bay at the full moon. I'm beginning not to care about Naomi's moods. This place is too sublime to spoil with pettiness like that. She closed her eyes and let her mind drift, with the yacht, on the tide.

  Jo stepped back out onto the deck, grabbed a plate of food, and settled into an unoccupied
corner of the cockpit.

  It seems to be a pretty happy boatload so far, she thought. The passengers were chatting and laughing as they ate. She noticed Cadie was sprawled on her back on the deck, seemingly asleep, with a large tiger prawn, half-eaten, lying on her belly. Jo grinned at the picture, but her brain resisted the temptation to go where her baser instincts were leading.

  Across from Cadie, Paul was balancing a fully loaded plate on one knee while he did some running repairs to a sail with an industrial-sized needle and thread. Jenny was still below decks, keeping the food and drink available.

  "Jo?"

  The dark-haired skipper raised her eyes and found a pair of sea-green ones gazing back at her. Jo lifted an eyebrow in response.

  "Nice choice of music," the blonde said, liking the ethereal quality of the instrumental piece. "It's beautiful," she said noticing how the moonlight had turned Jo's blue eyes silvery.

  "Sure is. Glad you like it."

  There was a long pause. At least it felt that way to both of them. Other conversations went on, but Jo felt like she and Cadie were anchored together in a slowly circling eddy, the other voices swirling around them.

  Jenny came up from below carrying a large tray of chocolate mousses and broke the moment. "Here, Skip, make yourself useful," the hostess said, thrusting the tray in Jo's direction.

  Jo accepted it and pulled herself upright. She wandered around the deck passing out the rich desserts, coming to the still-prone Cadie last of all.

  "Can I relieve you of that prawn, madam?" she asked playfully.

  One green eye came open. "What prawn?"

  Jo pointed silently at the large half-eaten crustacean on Cadie's stomach. "Ohhh. No fear. It's too good to waste." Cadie sat up quickly and popped the morsel in her mouth. "Mmmm nevegy wasde fommmvvd."

  "I can see that," Jo said, handing her the bowl of mousse and a spoon. "Here you go. That'll top it off nicely."

  "Ooo chocolate. Excellent. Thanks."

  Cadie reached out to take the bowl, her fingers brushing Jo's accidentally. Both women gasped at the contact, letting it linger just a little before withdrawing. Blue eyes met green again in the moonlight.