His? To swivel just enough to not be knocked over. To bend down. To hook me under the knees. To lift.
I felt the scrape of the railing over my aching ribs and stomach.
Then the free fall sensation in my gut as I flew overboard.
I sucked in a deep breath and threw my arms out in front of me.
Just in time for the cold water to envelop me.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Noa
I thought he was being silly.
But the longer he was gone, the more my stomach knotted, the more my mind raced.
Even if, objectively, I couldn’t imagine how there could be any sort of actual threat all the way out here.
First, because the only people who knew we were here were the club, Zayn, and the three people who helped us get on board.
Still, my pulse was a fluttering that made me feel queasy as I dropped onto the edge of the bed and reached for my stupid boot.
It would slow me down.
But without it, I wasn’t sure I could walk at all.
It was probably unnecessary. Chances were, Caymen would be back in another minute or two because it was, in fact, nothing. But I’d always rather be prepared.
Which was why I did a slow turn around the room, looking for something, anything I could use as a weapon if I needed one.
But it was all that lacquered wood and built-in items, so nothing fell and knocked us out if the ship rocked too hard.
Speaking of rocking too hard.
The current was weirdly choppy.
I widened my stance, trying to pretend my heartbeat wasn’t hammering.
I watched the clock on the TV as it ticked closer to five minutes.
It wasn’t a big boat.
Even with his achy feet and a slippery deck, there was no reason a quick check of the decks and cockpit would take longer than five minutes.
I let that last minute pass.
But the second I saw it change to six minutes, I was at the door, unlocking it.
Because what if he slipped?
What if the bandages on his feet and the slick decks or steps were a bad combination?
He could have fallen and knocked his head.
He could have fallen overboard.
My stomach lurched at that last one.
