Page 43 of Vitamin Sea
Jack noticed and offered her his hand.
“You’re okay,” he said quietly, placing his hand on her arm in reassurance. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
She grasped his outstretched hand, using it for balance as she stepped into the boat. He gave her hand a squeeze as he climbed in himself and took a seat beside her. With the life jacket and Jack’s presence, Chloe felt reassured and the panic that had started rising in her chest settled down.
Daniel and Lala were busy flirting; Daniel scooped up a handful of ocean water and splashed Lala with it as the boat rocked with the motion of the waves.
“You’ll be okay,” Jack leaned in and repeated to Chloe while giving her a soothing pat on her hand.
In that moment, she felt relaxed.
Seconds later the motor rumbled; salt water splashed over the bow as the tender cut through the waves and headed towards the catamaran. Which could more accurately be described as a huge yacht.
From the shoreline it had seemed pretty big, but up close and meters from it, it looked positively massive. Of course, she knew it was all part of the resort’s attempt to woo her and, in turn, result in them getting a good review. As she did every time she was on a luxury vacation, Chloe felt a sense of gratitude for her good fortune. She would never be able to afford luxury vacationslike these on her editor’s salary. But as an editor who exclusively traded in travel, the perks were incredible.
“Ola, señors and señoritas!” they were greeted by the captain, who introduced himself as Captain Ronaldo, once they were aboard the yacht. He gave them a tour of the catamaran and explained what they would be doing for the day. In the main interior the on-board chef presented them with a spread of fresh fruit, juice, bacon, eggs, and assorted bread and pastries. It was enough to feed a football team, and the four of them eagerly dug in.
“Mimosas?” the chef asked, to which Chloe and Daniel enthusiastically accepted.
The cork popped and bubbles started fizzing as the captain started up the yacht and they began a smooth glide across the water.
One of the crew members, who introduced himself as Carlos, put on some salsa music and after they finished breakfast, they headed for the front of the yacht with towels, drinks, and sunscreen.
“This is the life,” Lala remarked, splayed out on a towel in her bikini.
The sun was already heating up the air, promising a sweltering afternoon, and they were intermittently misted with water as waves crashed against the boat. There hadn’t been any wind on the beach that morning, but it was hard to tell if there was any out on the ocean, given the speed with which the catamaran was sailing.
The four of them chatted amiably while sitting on the front of the yacht with Chloe still wearing her life jacket. Before she knew it, they were pulling into an area that Carlos told them was called Monkey Head Rock. He pointed to the large rock formation that jutted out from the ocean. Chloe had to admit it was aptly named—it did bear an uncanny resemblance to a primate’s head.
“It’s a good place for snorkeling,” Captain Ronaldo told them, maneuvering the catamaran close to a cove.
Chloe wasn’t sure she was feeling up for snorkeling—the thought of putting her face in the water and relying on a plastic tube to keep her alive made her heartrate increase—but paddleboarding struck her interest.
The captain turned the engine off which allowed for the slapping of the waves and screeching of the seagulls to be fully heard. The sky was crystal clear and a bright, exuberant blue; Chloe watched as pelicans soared above the ocean and dove into it periodically to scoop up fish.
She closed her eyes and took a deep inhale, holding her breath for a few seconds before letting it out. She had never meditated before, but she imagined that this was the feeling that practitioners were talking about when they mentioned getting into a Zen state.
Her travel assignments were rarely stressful, but there was something lighter about this one. Notwithstanding the fact that two days ago she had almost died. Or maybe the lightness had something to do with that?
Carlos and the other crew members assembled snorkeling gear at the back of the boat and Daniel and Lala donned fins, goggles, and snorkels and jumped into the ocean. Jack had held back, cognizant that Chloe might not be feeling comfortable with the prospect of going into the water.
“I think I’m going to try the paddleboard,” she told him.
Jack offered to join her.
“It’s okay, you don’t have to,” she said, feeling self-conscious. “You can go snorkeling if you want, I’ll be fine.”
“I want to go with you,” Jack said. “If you wanted to stay on the catamaran and not even go into the water, I would be okay with that too.”
Chloe smiled as Carlos unhooked two blue paddleboards and put them down on the platform.
Jack helped Chloe onto one of them and passed her a paddle. She stayed on her knees and waited for Jack to get on his before they began to paddle towards the cove where she could just make out Daniel and Lala’s snorkels.
Ocean water splashed over her knees and Chloe squealed at the coldness.
“How are you doing? Are you okay?” Jack asked, aware that she might be having second thoughts.
“I think I’m okay.” She sounded surprised. Which she was. Nearly drowning had been traumatic; she almost couldn’t believe that just two days later she was already back in the water. “The water is just really cold.”
