“Wait up!” he yells back. “We need to sign some paperwork with Yasser first.”
I turn back around to follow him inside the small building, where we sign our waivers. Logan assures me this is for legal reasons and that there’s no actual danger.
Behind the counter stands a jolly-looking man with salt and pepper hair and a wrinkled face creased with laugh lines. He has a tidy mustache and warm, twinkling eyes. I assume this is Yasser. He pipes up to add:
“I’ve been running this business for thirty years, and we’ve only ever had two incidents!”
Instead of making me feel at ease, his comment adds a twinge of uncertainty to the whole thing. I hadn’t really been feeling nervous before he’d said anything, but now …
I turn to Logan and cross my arms. “So you’re sure you know how to operate this thing properly?”
“Of course. Come on.” Now it’s his turn to cross his arms. “Besides, it’s really not that complicated. Any idiot can drive that thing.”
“Not any idiot,” Yasser interrupts. “Remember Ollie?”
“Oh, right.”
I frown. “Who’s Ollie? What happened to Ollie?” My breath starts to speed up. “Are you trying to make me nervous on purpose or what?”
Logan chuckles and places a hand on my shoulder. The sensation immediately soothes me. I’m tempted to move in closer and lean my head against his chest, but I hold back. “You don’t have to worry about it. Really, it’s fine. We’re gonna have fun.” He drops his hand away and turns to face Yasser. “So we’re good to go?”
“Yup!” Yasser hands a pair of keys to Logan. “She’s all yours.”
I’m no longer as giddy as I was before now that these two men have seeded some doubt about the safety of the whole thing. Still, I follow Logan outside and towards the docks. I stare out toward the sea. Beyond the wavy shore, the waters seem relatively calm. There’s a flock of seagulls circling nearby, filling the air with their cries. It’s a beautiful, sunny day. A perfect day for such an outing, actually.
This will be fun. Yup.
“Which one’s ours?” I ask Logan as we make our way on the shaky docks.
“This one right here.” He stops right in front of a large yellow Zodiac big enough for … I don’t know, fifteen, twenty people?
My eyes go wide. “Are we going to be heavy enough to hold this thing down? It’s huge!”
Logan laughs and hops on board to deposit the lunchbox of snacks he brought along. “It looks light because of the inflatable sides, but you don’t have to worry. This thing’s not going anywhere. Unless we get a tornado or a hurricane or something … which rarely happens.” He steps back out and extends a hand. “You can go in first, and I’ll untie it.”
I take his hand, and a spark runs through me. I go still. “You good?” he asks, his brows furrowed.
“Yup, yup,” I reply as I nod, maybe a little too enthusiastically. I step over the side of the Zodiac, which is quite a feat for my short legs. Good thing Logan is holding my hand to give me a boost, otherwise, I would have probably fallen right into the water.
“You can get settled anywhere,” Logan tells me as he starts to work on the knots. I look around the Zodiac—although it’s roomy, there’s not much seating space. I assume people would typically stand during most of the trip. But one large seat extends at the back, and two seats are next to the captain’s spot. I make my way to one of those two seats, although the one in the back looks more comfortable.
Why?I ponder the question as I sit.Did I sit here to be closer to Logan?Obviously, and that’s not good news. If I’m already too obsessed to sit far away from him, I don’t have a chance. So I get back up and make my way to the seat in the back instead. I glance back at Logan. Luckily, he hasn’t witnessed any of my awkward back and forth. He’s still busy focusing on the knots.
It only takes him a few minutes to finish up and hop on the Zodiac. He’s not that tall, but in comparison to me, his entry looks easy. Then I remember he has done this several times before.
Logan opens a metal chest near the side of the boat and brings out two lifejackets. He throws one my way. “Bundle up.” We both put on our lifejackets, and Logan takes the captain’s seat.
He shoots me a glance and a smile. “You ready?”
I nod, trying not to smile too hard. The previous anxiety I had about his skills is completely gone. Evaporated. The way he confidently smiles at me, the way his hazel eyes warmly twinkle in my direction, the way he looks like he was born to be here …
I want to melt.
Focus, Avery.
Logan starts up the motor, which starts rumbling below my seat. The vibration is soothing, almost meditative. And before I know it, we’re driving away from the docks, speeding toward the blue waters of the North Atlantic.
The wind starts to pick up, and I notice my hair flying all over the place. I laugh and try to tame it with my hands, but it’s useless. I give up and let it whip against my face. Logan glances back at me and grins, his focus returning to the waters ahead.
