True to Me - Kay Bratt Page 0,32

She stood and slipped her shoes and then her sarong off, taking her time to build her courage.

She turned toward the ocean.

Please don’t eat me alive.

She approached the shoreline. A small ripple reached out and tickled at her toes. When she looked at Liam, he was wearing a wide, satisfied smile that she would’ve liked to wipe off his face.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of,” he said, coming in closer and holding out a hand. “The sea is your friend. It doesn’t want to hurt you. It wants to comfort you.”

She waved his hand off. The surf came rushing in this time and slid over her ankles in a threatening tease before backing off again. “I’m not going all the way in. This is enough. Come closer so we can talk.”

“Just a few more steps,” he said, his voice cajoling. “At least to your knees. You can’t really feel the rhythm of the water unless it’s up to your knees.”

That was nonsense, but Quinn didn’t want to argue. She took another step, letting her feet disappear. Something touched her foot, and Quinn jumped, then felt silly. She could feel her pulse rushing through her, but she realized it wasn’t logical to feel so alarmed by the water. She was born in Hawaii! The love of water should be running in her veins, just like it did in his.

It was frustrating, this knowing that she couldn’t beat the fear, no matter how irrational she knew it was.

When she looked at him again, the ingratiating smile was gone.

He held his hand out again. “You can do it, Quinn,” he said, his tone soft, comforting.

I am a strong woman, she told herself. Then she took a deep breath and another step. She cautiously took Liam’s hand, and he led her out a few more feet until the water was at her knees. Her hands shook, and he clasped her fingers tighter.

Quinn tried to pinpoint the emotions racing through her.

It felt terrifying.

And amazing.

She looked into his eyes, and a giggle bubbled up in her throat. When it emerged, he joined her, his laughter mingling with hers. He wasn’t making fun of her either. He was celebrating the milestone that he somehow instinctively knew she’d crossed.

She took another step with him leading her, the water waist high now. She marveled at the fact that she was in her thirties and had never been that deep in the ocean before. Her fear of the sea was a mystery to her. Her mother always told her that some people are born with different phobias, and that if she absolutely didn’t feel that she could overcome it, then not to worry about it. The water could always be avoided.

But Quinn had worried anyway. She wanted to be strong. Independent. Phobias didn’t fit into that description.

“It’s nice, eh?” he said.

She nodded. Her breaths were coming fast and ragged, as though she’d just run a mile. The current was stronger than she’d imagined, and she struggled to keep her footing. Another tickle against her ankle caught her attention, and she looked down, seeing a hand-size yellow-and-black fish inches from her.

“I can see a fish,” she said, surprised that the water wasn’t as dark as her imagination had predicted.

“It’s a yellow tang,” Liam said. He was staring down too.

She almost screamed, but it wouldn’t do to make those around her think there was a shark or something, when it was probably as harmless as an oversize goldfish.

Another wave came crashing toward them, and Quinn felt the sand shift beneath her feet. The waist-high water was quickly chest high, then chin high. She could no longer touch bottom, and she let go of his hands and began to tread water, trying to turn herself toward the beach.

“It’s okay, Quinn,” he called, his voice getting lost in the wind. He reached for her, but the force of the current pushed her farther away. “Just let the wave carry you.”

I will not panic.

Another wave came—this time a big one—and then Quinn was completely underwater and flailing. The wave toppled her until she didn’t know which way was up. She screamed, her lungs filling with the salty water that was strangling her.

Her eyes were wide open, and the salt stung. As she thrashed, trying to steady herself, a shadow came sliding in from her peripheral view.

It wasn’t Liam.

It was the biggest sea turtle that Quinn had ever seen. It was actually the only sea turtle she’d ever seen in real life, and at first she