CHAPTER10
kai
We woke in a tangle of arms and legs and blankets. It took me a few moments to remember where I was and what Mariella and I had done the night before. Even in sleep, she looked like an angel. Her hair tumbled over her shoulders. Dark lashes fanned her cheeks. I had to capture the moment, so I carefully slid my arm out from under her and reached for my camera bag.
Her eyelids cracked open when the shutter sounded. “What are you doing?”
“Capturing perfection.” I lowered the camera, wishing she could see herself through my eyes.
“You’ve got to be joking.” She rolled onto her back, clutching the sheet tightly against her chest. “I haven’t brushed my teeth since yesterday morning, and I’m sure my make up is smeared down my face from all that crying I did last night.”
“You look gorgeous.” I pulled up the last shot I’d taken and held the camera out to her. “See for yourself.”
She squinted at the screen. “How do you do that?”
“Do what?” I smoothed her hair away from her face.
“Make me look so good?”
“I’m just capturing what’s already there. You’re beautiful, Mariella. Anyone who says something different is a fucking idiot.”
She turned to me, her eyes full of warmth. “You’re just saying that because you got laid last night.”
“No,”—I cupped her chin in my hand—“I’m saying that because it’s true.”
Her cheeks pinked, and she turned away. “We probably ought to start heading back. Do you still want to dive to the Emerald Princess today?”
I let her get away with ignoring my compliment—for now. “Yeah. I need to get some photos since that’s the whole reason I came. I’ll have to go back and refill my air tank first.”
“Alright. I need to grab some coffee before we get going.” She grabbed her shirt from where it landed last night.
“I’ll get the coffee.” I left the camera on the bed and got up to pull on my clothes. After our conversation last night, I’d made up my mind that Mariella needed someone to take care of her. She’d been doing everything on her own for so long. She deserved to have someone put her first.
“Splash of cream and two sugars, please?” She stretched her arms over her head and the sheet dipped to expose a perfect pink nipple.
“If you want me to go get coffee, you’d better stop teasing me.”
Her smile sent rays of sunshine right through me as she tugged the shirt back over her breast. “Coffee first. Teasing later.”
I laughed, happy to see the light in her eyes. The way she looked up at me this morning was so different from the guarded shadows I’d seen in her eyes the day before.
“I’m going to hold you to that.” I leaned over and kissed her forehead. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
When I climbed back onto the deck, two large takeout cups of coffee and a brown paper bag in my hands, Mariella was ready to go. She’d tied her hair up into a messy bun on top of her head, exposing the soft column of her neck. Tempted to tug her back below deck, I stopped myself. I needed to finish my assignment before I let myself play.
“Your coffee, my star of the sea.” I handed her a cup.
“Thank you.” With one hand wrapped around her coffee and the other holding onto the steering wheel, she backed the boat out of the slip.
I stepped behind her, and she leaned against me as we made the long trip back up the coast. Too soon, I spotted the dock where we’d started our trip the day before. It looked exactly the same as it had yesterday, but everything inside me had changed.
We tied up the boat, and I helped Mariella fold the blankets and straighten the cabin before I carried my gear back to my rented SUV. Though I held her hand on the drive back to the campground, the closer we got, the more I felt her slipping away from me. When I finally pulled into a spot in front of the restaurant, she slid her hand from my grip and turned toward me.
“I need to check in with Bryan and make sure he’s okay with me taking another boat out this afternoon. Can you meet me back here in a few hours?”
“Of course.”
Her fingers fumbled with the handle on the door.