Page 29 of Viper

Troy muttered something under his breath then dunked his head beneath the surface and came back up, situating the goggles over his eyes and leaving the piece out of his mouth. Without another word, he dove deep, his flippers splashing at her.

Of course he’d be a natural. Chantal had already disappeared under the water, so Paige pulled on her goggles, left out the mouthpiece, and followed suit.

The aqua water rushed over her head. She could see right to the bottom of the ocean floor, no more than twenty-five feet away. As she swam deeper, the water turned colder, but she didn’t slow.

She spotted Chantal skimming along the bottom. A stingray wriggled up from the ground and shook a cloud of sand off its back as it scuttled away from Chantal. Her friend turned and, spotting her, pointed eagerly at something bobbing in the water between them.

Paige slowed and watched a teeny seahorse move by. Its cute, curled, pink body reminded her of some kind of mythical creature. Troy glided toward her, and she gestured to it. He stopped and shifted so he was upright, pedaling his hands at his sides to keep himself from floating to the top.

His eyes widened on the seahorse, then his gaze flicked to hers and he pointed upward. She followed him to the surface, lifting her mask. By the time she had the water pushed away from her eyes, Troy filled her vision, his excited face lit with disbelief.

“Holy shit! Did you see that?”

She grinned. “I know, aren’t they incredible? I’ve only seen a couple since I started diving, but they always amaze me.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it. What else can we find?”

“Eels are pretty cool. Did you see the stingray?”

“No, I missed it.”

“They can be dangerous, so be super careful if you get near the bottom. Oh, we might find an octopus if we’re lucky.”

“Let’s go back down.” He repositioned his gear, inhaled a deep breath, and disappeared.

Happiness spread through her. She’d been a little nervous to take Troy here on a date. Not everyone loved the ocean. Not everyone respected its beauty and danger. Having the man she cared about take joy in the thing she truly loved made her heart happy.

She sucked in a huge breath and resubmerged. On her way, she passed Chantal swimming up for air. The woman could hold her breath at depths Paige hadn’t even thought possible.

Black trunks caught her eye, and she kicked in Troy’s direction. He was relatively close to a colony of coral but stayed away from the jagged organism, which was a relief. The bright colors always drew her attention, but one or two cuts had taught her to keep her distance.

She swam up to where Troy hovered, frozen. His large eyes turned toward her. He pointed below him, and she spotted a nurse shark. Troy quickly grabbed her elbow and hauled her behind him.

If she could have laughed without swallowing a gallon of water, she would have. Instead, she shook her head and gave him a thumbs-up, silently telling him the large animal wouldn’t hurt them.

He nodded in understanding, then pointed to the surface. Once again, they kicked to the top.

“That was a nurse shark,” she explained, swiping the hair from her eyes. “The most docile of the shark family. They pretty much ignore us.”

“Well that’s good.” His attention drifted toward shore.

They’d traveled pretty far. Paige always tried to be aware of her location in the water. It was easy to drift.

“Someone’s here.”

She followed Troy’s gaze. Twisting to face the shore, she searched the beach, rocks, and trees, but she was too far to make out more than shadows and swaying branches. “I don’t see anyone.”

“I saw someone behind the trees. I’m sure of it.”

She swallowed. “Do you think . . . ?”

No, it couldn’t be Craig. The police were after him. He’d likely traveled far from Florida to avoid getting caught. But a nagging sensation in the pit of her stomach urged her to sink below the waves, where she felt safer.

“Stay close to Chantal. Let her know there might be danger. I’m going to check it out.”

She gripped his arm. “No way! What if⁠—”

“It wasn’t a question, Paige.” He fit the gear back over his face. “Stay here,” he said, more firmly, then swam beneath the surface toward the shore.