“Sure,” Carissa says.
“We need to refold the napkins in the galley before we leave,” Gigi tells her assistant when she reaches us. “They are supposed to look like swans, not sad paper airplanes.”
Carissa’s expression falters, and Gigi lightly touches her arm.
“It’s okay.” Gigi smiles. “I’ll show you the trick to refolding them. It took me awhile to figure it out too.”
“Since when did you turn into Martha Stewart?” Beth asks as Carissa heads below.
Gigi shrugs. “Just want to be a good host.”
Beth lifts her empty champagne flute. “Believe me, you are.”
Gigi starts to follow Carissa, then turns to Beth and me. “If you guys don’t mind, I’ll need some help taking videos since there isn’t room for my assistant to come along. I’m going to needa lotof content for this trip. My sponsor is paying top dollar for me to promote them.”
I lean into Beth as Gigi continues toward the companionway. “You didn’t tell me we’d be filming Gigi the whole time,” I whisper.
“We’ll get Emma to do it.” Beth cracks a smile. “I’m sure she takes a lot of selfies.”
I turn so that my back is to Gigi. “It looked like the captain was telling Gigi something serious. Do you think she was telling the truth about the vegetarian thing?”
Beth squints from the sun as she eyes Gigi before she disappears below deck.
“Nope.”
Chapter Five
Present: Day One at Sea
“On your life vest, or PFD, you’ll also find a whistle that you can use to signal for help and notify others of where you are.” Captain Nojan lifts the whistle attached to the life vest he’s donned for the safety demonstration. “If for some reason your vest doesn’t inflate if you fall overboard, pull on this toggle.” He lifts the lime-green plastic handle attached to the base.
Still docked at the marina, I stand against the railing on the foredeck between Gigi and Beth, where all four of us are lined up wearing life preservers across from the captain and Adam. I feel beneath the black life vest slung around my neck, making sure it has the toggle Nojan is referring to.
“Safety is my number one concern on this journey.” Nojan scans our faces. “There are four things I want you to remember. First, when you’re moving about the boat, use one hand to hold on at all times. I want you to use the old proverb: One hand for yourself, and one for the ship.” Nojan holds a hand in the air while grasping the shroud beside him with the other. “Second, always ask my permission to go forward of the cockpit.” He gestures toward the bow. “Third, always wear your life vest when you’re on deck.”
I glance at Gigi, who’s adjusting her thin life vest to make sure her cleavage is visible through the middle. Beside me, Beth grips her straps and casts a nervous glance at the water.
“I’m going to need to take mine off while filming my content, though,” Gigi says.
The captain shakes his head. “Not when you’re on deck, you won’t. Even on agoodday, the open ocean will be ten times rougher than these protected waters of the Sound.”
Gigi cocks her head, and even behind her oversize sunglasses, she looks unconvinced. I follow Beth’s wary gaze to the water lapping gently against the hull. The back of my leg brushes against the thin, low cable railing I heard Nojan refer to earlier as the “lifeline,” although there doesn’t seem to be anything “lifesaving” about the flimsy cable that comes just above the top of my knee.
Nojan grabs a loop attached to the base of his life vest. “After we pass through the Strait of Juan de Fuca and get out to open ocean, you will also need to tether yourself to the ship with a line before moving about the deck. Our charted course will take us over two hundred miles offshore. The first day at sea can be rough for everyone as you get used to the rhythm of the ocean. It usually takes only a day or two to get over the initial seasickness you may feel while your body adjusts to being on the ocean.” He turns to Gigi. “I wouldn’t expect you to be feeling good enough to be filming much content during that initial period.”
A day or two?I gaze out at the calm waters of Puget Sound. I’m normally not prone to seasickness, but the only time I’ve been out on the open ocean was on a cruise.How rough is Nojan expecting it to be?
“Why so far out?” Beth asks. “I thought we’d hug the coast more on our way to San Diego.”
“Good question, Beth. The sea state is better, and there are fewer ships, crab pots, et cetera. It’s the most ‘comfortable’ route, if you will. This boat, the Emerald 55, is the first of its kind to be completed, and there are currently three more in production at the Emerald Wave shipyard on Lake Union. This ship was designed as a blue-water boat,which makes it optimal for ocean sailing. I believe you’ll find it quite comfortable once you get used to being out on the open waters.”
As he continues with the safety instructions, I try not to dwell on all the worst-case scenarios that flood my mind. My gaze moves up the towering mast and lingers on the weather vane at the top. I had no idea the mast would be so tall; it looks higher than the boat is long. I watched a reality show once in which a sailor had to climb to the top of their mast to repair something at sea. The thought of climbing to the top, even while docked, sends a shiver down my spine.
“Lastly, always be mindful of the boom.” He swivels to rest his hand on the thick gray beam that’s secured perpendicularly from the tall mast beside him at his shoulder. “Many people have died getting hit by these, either thrown onto the deck or into the water. The boom can swing out ninety degrees across the cockpit on each side of the boat, one hundred and eighty degrees in total. We have something on board called a boom preventer that will keep the boom from swinging too far in the event of an accidental gybe or tack. But—”
Gigi lowers her sunglasses to the tip of her nose. “An accidental what?”
Nojan stands tall as if making a conscious effort to be patient. “A change of direction. But even with a boom preventer, accidents still happen. So, when you leave the cockpit, keep your weight low by bending at the knees and make sure your head and body are not in the way of the boom when moving about the ship. Understood?”
