Page 9 of Always Another Sunset

“Oh, this is so beautiful,” the bride gushed as she moved to the water’s edge. “And is that a waterfall?” Bella watched her turn to her husband. “Baby, come on, I want to swim over there.” Then she paused as if only just noticing Bella was already in the water. A sincere smile of pleasure crossed her face. “Now aren’t you glad you decided to hike a little?”

Even though the timing of the woman’s arrival was horrible, Bella couldn’t help but return the smile. “I am. Very much,” she answered and could not mean it more.

10

JC’s employee and partner was one of her favorite people in the world. She and Blake more than worked together but were good friends and often hung out on Friday nights. The guy had a wonderful girlfriend named Heather, who was as friendly and fun as he was. Because JC had no other relatives on the island, they often treated her like family for holidays and special events.So, I’m going to miss him, she thought as she watched him pull off his T-shirt before diving into the water.Because after his horribly timed interruption, I’m going to kill him.

Although she didn’t mean it literally, the frustration she felt over his interruption was genuine. If the three others from their tour group hadn’t descended on them when they did, she was certain Bella would have let JC kiss her. A look in the woman’s dark eyes, the way her lips had slightly parted, and how she had paused as JC drew nearer—every sign was a green light that she wanted the same thing JC did.And then, bam, here comes Blake,she thought, holding back a groan.And everybody jumped in the water.She wasn’t surprised the newlyweds were excited to swim in the lagoon though and certainly couldn’t blame anyone for the intrusion. It was simply a case of miscommunication and bad timing.

Looking at Bella, her old friend had turned away to move her hands casually back and forth through the warm water as she walked deeper into the lagoon. If she was frustrated too, JC couldn’t see it.But she’s definitely not interested in interacting with me in front of the others,she thought with a pang of disappointment.I’ll simply have to be patient.

Hearing splashing, JC turned to see Blake swimming toward her while the newlyweds went to check out the small waterfall. “Hey, there,” he said, clearing his throat before dropping his voice to a whisper. “I think I kinda, well, did I interrupt something?”

JC sighed. “Not exactly,” she answered, keeping her voice low too. “But if you were two minutes later, you might have seen me kiss her.”

“No way,” Blake said, eyes wide and starting to grin. “That’s awesome.”

Waving a hand, JC shushed him before Bella could overhear. Sound carried easily over the water’s surface. “Don’t get excited,” she said. “Like I said, youmighthave. I’m not sure what she’s thinking about me.”

Blake nodded. “Okay, okay,” he said. “Well, something to look forward to after we get back to the shore? Maybe you can go out on a date?”

Maybe, JC thought, not sure how to proceed. “I don’t know,” she said and decided it was time to change the subject. “Did you three get to the summit?”

“Yeah,” he said his face growing serious. “Ocean was getting choppier.”

Nodding, JC ran through their options in her mind. “Probably should cut this trip short,” she finally said, although usually the tour included a simple lunch of deli sandwiches and soda or water that Blake carried in a dry bag on his kayak. “I can offer them all a refund or credit toward a redo.”

“Okay,” Blake said, looking a little more relieved than JC had expected.Am I letting my desire to spend more time with Bella cloud my judgment?she wondered, not happy that it was even a question in her mind. Her client’s safety was the number one priority, and there should never be an exception.

JC watched the newlyweds splashing water at each other at the base of the falls. “Let’s give them another few minutes but go tell them know we need to leave soon,” she said to Blake. “I’ll break the news to Bella.”

The trick would be not frightening the woman while still being honest about why they were leaving early. Considering Bella’s concerns with kayaking to the island in the first place, a rougher ride back would not be popular.Maybe I shouldn’t have brought her over,JC thought, again feeling a pang of unease at her possible lack of good judgment. All she could do was hope the storm kept sitting offshore a little longer. Swimming toward Bella, JC also hoped the woman would forgive her if things got too scary.

“Hi,” she said, and Bella turned around, a gentle smile on her face. Encouraged, JC moved closer until they were only an arm’s length apart. “I wanted to let you know we will be heading back to the kayaks soon.”

Bella furrowed her brow. “Already? That doesn’t sound particularly reassuring,” she said, pausing for a second to apparently process the change. Then she looked hard at JC. “Is it because of what you saw at the overlook before? The bigger waves?”

“Yes,” JC replied, seeing no reason to try and hide the facts. “An early summer storm is coming our way, and I don’t want to chance it.”

“Chance what exactly?”

“Well,” JC said. “Mainly being stuck on the island until it passes.”

Bella blinked at JC,not able to tell by the look on the woman’s face if she was serious or not.It seems like an unlikely thing to joke about being trapped,she thought.But I remember she was funny in college. Still, not in a way to make a person worry.“Could that actually happen?” she finally asked. “Us being stuck here in a storm?”

“Yes, it could happen in a worst-case scenario,” she answered, motioning toward the beach. Realizing JC wanted them to get out of the lagoon immediately, Bella followed the woman as she started walking through the water toward the shore. “But we won’t let it because we are going to take off before the storm gets here.”

Feeling a tiny bit more assured, Bella hurried to her pile of things the moment they stepped on the beach. Grabbing her baggy T-shirt, she quickly shook the sand off it, ready to put it on. There was no sense letting JC see her love handles even if they were in a hurry to get back on the trail to the other beach. While she pulled it over her head, the newlyweds and Blake swam up and climbed out of the water. “Sorry about this,” JC said once everyone gathered around. “I didn’t anticipate the storm coming in early enough to have to cancel, but I can give refunds or credits toward another later trip.”

“I was wondering about that storm forecast,” the usually quiet husband said. “Things looked to be getting choppy from what I could see from the summit.” He put his arm around his wife’s waist. “Leaving seems the smart thing to do.”

“And we can take a credit toward another trip,” the woman said, her perpetual cheerfulness not wavering. “I love it here, and we will definitely be back soon.”

Not sure what to say, Bella certainly didn’t want JC to have to issue her a refund but was very unlikely she would ever kayak again. Once seemed enough, and she dreaded the trip back over the water as it was. “We can work something out,” she mumbled, then caught herself as the thought her statement could be taken as an innuendo made her blush. “I mean, I am sure a refund or a redo will work.”

JC grinned. “I appreciate that from all of you,” she said. “Everybody got their stuff?” Grabbing her bag and putting it over her shoulder, Bella nodded. The others did likewise, and then they were off up the trail the way they had come. If Bella thought she had hiked fast with JC before, it was nothing compared to the pace Blake set to get back to the kayaks. Winded in only a few minutes of navigating the rocky trail, she started to slow her steps. JC was behind her and put a gentle hand on her back. “Blake,” she called up the line. “Let’s slow down a little.”

“No,” Bella said, shaking her head, while she drew in a deep breath. “I can keep up, and I don’t want to cause us trouble getting off the island.”

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