Good Girl

by Tricia O'Malley

  From here she could look out for miles, with nothing to obscure her view, and see what seemed like a million shades of blue. On the horizon, waves tipped over into little splashes of white. The water shifted and moved, and the more she watched it, the more she seemed to see.

  “It’s why I moved here,” Lucas said, coming to stand next to her, his shoulder pressing into hers.

  “It’s like looking into Mother Nature’s soul. Look at this gift she’s showing us,” Samantha breathed, and Lucas looped his arm easily around her shoulders, pulling her gently into him so that her arm naturally went around his waist.

  “It’s different. Every day it’s different. She shifts and tumbles about and gets mad or cheerful. I’m constantly amazed at the many moods of the ocean. I never tire of it,” Lucas said.

  “Thanks for bringing me up here,” Sam said, looking up at him, her eyes tracing his strong jawline.

  When he glanced down at her, it seemed the most natural thing in the world that he would bend and press a kiss to her lips.

  Something shimmered in the air around them, and Sam felt it once again, like the night he’d been telling the story of the mermaids. The weight of it pressed against her skin and her heart seemed to whisper, Why not this one?

  Why not, she wondered, as she pulled away and turned to look back out at the water. She tilted her head, seeing a flash of something far out on the water. The fanciful part of her brain perked up immediately: A mermaid’s tail! Then she smiled and shook her head a bit; in all reality it was probably just a fish.

  “What?” Lucas asked.

  “I just thought I saw something in the water is all,” Samantha laughed.

  “Could have. Fish jump, and dolphins are often spotted off the coast here.”

  “Oh, dolphins! That would be fun to see,” Sam gushed.

  “Well, hopefully I’ll be able to deliver them to you at our next spot. Ready to move on?”

  Sam glanced balefully at him and stuck her lip out in an exaggerated pout.

  “Do we have to?”

  “Yes, unless you want to sunburn that pretty skin of yours. It gets hot up here near midday, and there’s no shade.”

  “I suppose if I must go.” Samantha sighed and glanced once more out at the horizon before turning back to the truck.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll bring you back here any time you want. How about a sunset date one night? It feels like you’re on top of the world,” Lucas said, brushing a hand down her arm.

  “I’d like that,” Sam said, trying not to do the thing where she poked holes in all the things that could be wrong with this man. She reminded herself to just sit back and enjoy.

  She’d promised Lola, after all.

  Chapter 26

  Samantha could barely keep the smile off her face as Lucas navigated the ragged dirt road down the other side of the cliffs. He did his best to avoid the potholes while Sam kept up a steady stream of chatter, exclaiming over the things she saw.

  “I’m surprised you like this so much,” Lucas laughed at her.

  “Why?” Sam demanded.

  “Because you’ve traveled all over the world for your job. I feel like you’ve seen loads of beautiful places,” Lucas said.

  “Well, I mean, I have. But most of them – at least where Paradiso properties are located – are just so…” Samantha tapped her lips as she thought about the right word. “They’re very manicured. You don’t get rough and undeveloped like this. Which, sometimes, is when you have the most beauty, no?”

  “I agree,” Lucas said, shooting her a small smile. “Rough around the edges can be really beautiful. I think Siren Island blends that well. We have enough modern amenities to meet our needs, and yet we have loads of wild spaces that haven’t been bulldozed by large hotel chains and Americanized. I hope it stays this way always.”

  “My company would be one of the ones to bulldoze this beach,” Sam said, feeling sad as she realized the truth of it. Usually she never saw properties until they were finished and occupied. Approving a building budget or managing rental income portfolios kept her looking at spreadsheets all day; she was never really exposed to what an area looked like prior to a build.

  “How does that make you feel?” Lucas asked, being diplomatic though she could imagine his thoughts. He’d pulled the truck beneath the shade of a few straggly palm trees, and they sat for a moment, looking out at the ocean before them.

  “Sad,” Sam said, turning to look at him. “I’m so far removed from that aspect of it that I rarely think about the impact it has on the communities or the environment around it. I suppose I’ve always been taught that tourism is good for places and that everyone welcomes tourist dollars. I forget what that can destroy, as well. Though I did spearhead one environmental campaign I’m very proud of,” Sam said, as they both opened their doors to get out.

  “What’s that?” Lucas asked, swinging a cooler over one arm, hooking two beach chairs over the other, and then grabbing the picnic basket with his free hand before she could reach for it. Even though it was such a man thing to do – like getting home from the grocery store and refusing to make two trips to carry the bags in from the car – the effect of seeing him carrying everything made her a bit giddy.

  “I watched a documentary called Chasing Coral and it made me realize how horrible sunscreens are – not only for your skin and your own health, but for the ocean as well. Though my boss got a little annoyed with me, I pushed a company-wide policy through so that only reef-safe sunscreen could be sold at any of our resorts and properties. Ultimately, the good press we got appeased my boss, but I’m just happy that I could make a bit of a difference.”

  “That’s awesome!” Lucas’s smile was wide on his face as he led her down a path strewn with gravel and bits of shells toward a makeshift palapa that had been constructed from fallen palm fronds. “You should be really proud of yourself. You’d be amazed what a difference that can make.”

  “Thanks, I appreciate that,” Sam laughed, feeling warm inside from his praise. “Everyone at work thought I was a bit silly, especially tucked away in the middle of the States like we are, but hey – I figured it was worth trying.”

  “And the ocean thanks you for it,” Lucas said, bending to put the chairs down beneath the palapa and dropping the baskets in the sand. “As do I. So are you ready to see what kind of difference you’ve made?”

  “What?” Sam tilted her head at him.

  “Out there? Ready for a snorkel? I’ll show you some of the pretty reefs you’ve had a hand in saving,” Lucas said.

  Sam looked around, worry lacing through her. They were on a completely deserted beach, with not a house, human being, or boat anywhere to be seen. What if there were currents? Or a shark bit them? There was nobody to help. How fast could an emergency vehicle get here? Were there emergency vehicles on the island?

  “Is there… like a designated swim area? How do you know where to go? Is there a lifeguard?” Sam stammered, looking around again. The waves went from friendly-looking to menacing in her eyes.

  “I promise I’ll take care of you. I even have a pool noodle in the car for you to float on if you’re not a strong swimmer,” Lucas said, stepping over to rub his hands up and down her arms.

  “I just… I’m not used to plunging into water where there’s nobody around to call for help, I guess. It’s just so… I feel like I’m on a deserted island here,” Sam said, looking up at him.

  “I’m CPR certified, I’m a rescue diver, I have a phone here that I can use to radio for help, and I promise not to take you anywhere that has heavy currents. I know this bay and these reefs really well,” Lucas said.

  “Okay… I trust you,” Sam said, but she assumed her look said anything but, because he threw back his head and laughed.

  “If you hate it, tell me and I’ll bring you in right away. But I suspect you’ll be so distracted by the underwater aquarium before your eyes that you’ll forget about your nerves right away.”

  “Let�
��s do this then,” Sam said.

  Lucas pulled a mask and snorkel from his bag, showing her how to fit it to her face and how to keep her hair from making the mask leak.

  “I suspect this isn’t my sexiest look,” Samantha said around the snorkel in her mouth and Lucas laughed at her again and took the mask off her.

  “I think you look very adventurous,” he teased.

  Even though he was teasing, it made Sam feel good inside to be thought of as adventurous. This was what all the people who were jealous of her job thought she was doing when she was traveling all the time – not sitting inside conference rooms. She kicked off her flip-flops, pulled off her coverup, and deposited her jewelry on top of it, making a little pile on the chair.

  “Will our stuff be safe here–”

  The breath left her as Lucas whirled her to him, devouring her lips in a slick open-mouthed kiss that flashed lust straight down to her toes. Briefly, she remembered the phrase “making her toes curl” before he took her under once more. She gasped against his lips, suddenly hungry for more. She’d always laughed at the saying, but now, as she curled her toes into the sand to try and brace against the onslaught that was Lucas and the need that raced desperately through her, she finally understood it.

  Breathing heavily, Lucas broke the kiss and pressed his forehead to hers.

  “Uh… wow,” Sam said.

  “I’m sorry, I’m doing my best to be a gentleman. But I’ve been dying to do that since I saw you walk out of the villa today. You looked like a tropical parrot, laughing in your colorful dress with the other two girls. It was like a painting of beautiful bright women, and it just lit me up inside knowing that I got to have you as my date today.”

  Sam released a long slow breath, and smiled up at him even as her brain churned. Damn it, Lola was right. She might not be built for one-night stands. Because if he kept talking to her like this, Samantha was certain she’d fall for him.

  Which could be a very dangerous mistake for her heart.

  “I’m really happy to be here with you,” Sam said, feeling shy. She wanted to be as open with her feelings as he was being, but couldn’t quite bring herself to let her walls down. “Everything about this feels surreal – like an enchantment.”

  “Well, then, let me continue the fairy tale and invite you to my enchanted reef.” Lucas bowed gallantly – well, as gallantly as he could with his arms full of snorkel gear – and Sam fought to keep the silly grin from her face.

  “I’d be delighted.”

  Chapter 27

  It really was like an aquarium, Sam thought, after she got past her initial nervousness. Not to mention the initial flooding of her mask and subsequent coughing fit that had Lucas patting her on the back to help her out. And she wasn’t going to even think about when she had tripped in her fins at the edge of the water before Lucas tugged her to his side and showed her that walking backward in fins made more sense. Nope, she wasn’t going to think about that at all, Sam decided as she floated next to Lucas. He’d hooked his arm loosely through hers and intertwined his hand with hers. It was silly that such a simple and sweet gesture would pull at her heartstrings so.

  There was so much to see! Sam’s eyes darted back and forth, trying to track all the sea life that flitted past her face. After the first few times she’d brought her head up to ask questions about the fish and subsequently swallowed a mouthful of seawater, Lucas had ordered her to just relax and look at everything. He’d brought along a nifty little water camera and had promised her he’d take pictures and answer all her questions after. Once that promise was secured, Sam felt more comfortable relaxing and just looking at the stunning dance of life that spread out before her.

  It was like a movie, she decided, where everyone had their own little part. Small schools of baby silver fish darted close to them, while a large rainbow-colored fish seemed to take bites out of the actual reef. A pair of black and gold fish almost in a flat triangle shape sailed past them, turning to look at them with eyes that looked to be ringed in gold eyeliner. Lucas made a halo motion above his forehead and she wondered what he’d meant, but stayed true to her promise to just float and watch everything.

  Sea fans waved in the gentle surge of the water, and corals in every color imaginable created a reef system where crabs scuttled to hide from them and black fish darted out at them as if to warn them away from their personal coral real estate. When a long slimy green thing poked its head from a hole, Sam clutched Lucas’s hand. She was pretty sure it was an eel and she knew they could bite. But Lucas just tugged her along, kicking them over the eel – which opened its mouth at them, looking for all the world like he was laughing at his own private joke. Sam found herself giggling into her mask at the thought.

  Lucas squeezed her hand once more, motioning excitedly in front of her face and Sam turned to see a large green turtle swimming lazily along the bottom. Her heart squeezed in her chest as she watched the sunlight play through the water, its beams dappling against the turtle’s shell, and she was surprised to feel her eyes slick with tears as he swam straight to the surface in front of her. He was so close she could have reached out and touched him. Instead she hung there, floating with Lucas as the turtle gulped air and turned to eye them. Deciding they were no threat, he hung around for a moment before diving deep back into the ocean, careening gently across the ocean floor, looking for his next spot to nestle into.

  It was amazing, this world that Lucas was showing her. For the first time in her life, Samantha fell well and truly in love with something – and it was the peace she felt here, floating in this water, with nobody demanding anything of her other than that she take joy in the beauty around her.

  A flash of silver caught her eye and Sam turned, once again feeling like she saw something out of the corner of her eye. When a large tail fin flitted out of the depths, she pulled Lucas instinctively closer, and charged forward as fast as she could in fins she wasn’t used to using. She had to see… there was something, just something outside the line of her vision disappearing off into the blue.

  When Lucas tugged her hand, forcing her to look at him, he raised an eyebrow at her, but she just shrugged her shoulders. Maybe she was imagining things. She must have just gotten too caught up in the moment and her mind ran away with possibilities, she supposed.

  Then the glint of something on the ocean floor caught her eye. Tilting her head, she pointed down to it. Lucas looked at it, then back at her, making a stop motion with his hand. For a moment, when he let go of her hand, Samantha’s heart picked up its beat as she realized she might have pulled them further out than they should be. What if a current swept them away? Forcing herself to breathe slowly, she watched as Lucas dove neatly down to the ocean floor and collected the item, tucking it in the pocket of his cargo shorts. Ascending, he hooked her hand once more and swam them gently toward shore.

  Once she could stand, Sam popped her head from the water, launching herself at a startled Lucas. He had barely pulled his mask off before she’d wrapped her arms and legs around his waist, and kissed him as thoroughly as he’d kissed her before they’d gone in the ocean. His hands automatically cupped her bottom, and Sam shivered against him, wanting more. She nibbled at his bottom lip, almost delirious with sensations that threatened to overwhelm her.

  “I take it you enjoyed that?” Lucas panted against her lips as he held her while the water lapped gently around them.

  “It was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. Can we do it again? After lunch? I want more. I can’t believe it – there’s so much to see!” Samantha gasped with excitement, though she wasn’t sure if it was over the man or the ocean or both.

  “We can go as much as you’d like,” Lucas laughed. “We can even get you scuba certified if you’re comfortable with it.”

  “Scuba? Shut up,” Sam said in delight, squeezing his shoulder muscles under her hands. “Yes, please. That sounds like something an adventurous person would do.”

  “Then let’s get you
signed up for your open water course,” Lucas said, letting her slide down his body. She sighed as she lost contact with him, but then thought back to what she had seen in the water.

  “What was the fish eating the reef? I swear I could hear it take a bite,” Sam asked as they walked to the palapa where their stuff was.

  “Parrot fish. They eat the reef and then poop it out as sand,” Lucas said cheerfully.

  Sam stopped in her tracks, staring down at the sand between her toes. “You’re saying I’m standing in fish poop,” she demanded, convinced he was pulling her leg.

  “Correct. Cool, huh?”

  “That’s such a guy thing to think is cool,” Sam decided, taking the towel he handed her and wrapping it around her body before plopping gratefully into one of the low-slung beach chairs. The breeze tickled her face lightly, and the waves continued to lap against the shore, and Sam looked once more at the horizon, searching for… something.

  “What did you think you saw when you tugged me out deeper?” Lucas asked, seeming to read her mind.

  “I don’t quite know. I thought I saw a large fin, or fish, or something. It was really quick – just a flash of light off of scales – and then it was gone. I’m sorry I didn’t get a better look, but I couldn’t bring myself to swim out any deeper.”

  “It’s smart not to swim too far out if you don’t know the water,” Lucas agreed, bending to dig around in the cooler.

  “What did you pick up off the sand?” Samantha asked as she accepted an ice-cold beer from him. She wasn’t typically a beer drinker, but something about the iciness of the beverage and drinking it straight from the bottle felt just right in the heat of midday.

  “Oh, right. It looked like a comb,” Lucas said, pulling it from his pocket. He studied it for a moment and then handed it over. “It’s really pretty, but I have no idea if it’s worth anything.”

  The comb was rounded, and upon closer inspection it looked to be crafted from a shell. Turning it in her hand, Sam gasped at the pearls inlaid on the outside of it in a crescent moon shape.