Fear is the killer of fun.
Sam, standing directly in front of me, holds out his hand and says, ‘Come on, lover boy.’
Dressed in a T-shirt and my tight– and now dry– swim shorts, I stand before him. Nobody looks at us. Nobody cares that my swim trunks are so tight they leave little to the imagination. No one cares that our dancing is out of sync to the music, or that Sam’s moves could win an award for the worst dancer in the world.
What matters is this moment, as the song changes to ‘Hot’ by Inna.
My body loosens as Sam dances around me, sometimes touching my hand, other times smiling and hyping up my moves by clapping his hands, cheering. Every touch of his is a jolt of excitement. Of desire. Fear slips away, drowning in the surrounding water. Like Venus, I feel born from the waves, a beauty that until now has evaded me. Sam’s moves make me giggle, then belly laugh, and for once I don’t care what others think. Need for external validation fades into the background.
Sam places his hand in mine, twirling me like we are a married couple. His gaze sweeps me up like a crashing wave, andwith each move of my feet, I get closer, until our bodies graze one another. He’s firm, moving his hips with mine, my hands trailing down his back and finding his hips. He bites his lip, his eyelashes fluttering, a smouldering smile. Our hips move as one, stepping in rhythm together. My breath deserts me. His jawline could cut me and I wouldn’t care. With reckless abandon, I let my fingers trace it, because in this moment there are no consequences.
His head tilts with my touch, his eyes closing, his lips parting.
The survivalist in me tells me to stop, but my fingers reach for him, wanting to touch his lips, to feel parts of him that I shouldn’t feel. Heart thudding, I’m inches away from letting my fingers trace his bottom lip, when Linen Shirt man bumps straight into Sam, knocking him out of my orbit. Sea spray hits me for good measure, cooling me off.
‘Shots.’
Tequila and lime are thrust into my hands, Sam’s hands, hands that were on me moments ago. He watches me. I watch him. Still entangled even though we are apart.
Salt on skin, lime on taste buds, a burning fire at the back of our throats. We grimace and laugh, surviving what feels like a huge milestone. My eyes flicker to Sam once more, only to see his deep stare. His lips quirk, and so do mine.
Land comes towards us, a mirage caused by too much alcohol. Sam takes my hand and guides me to the edge of the boat, where pine trees sway gently in the breeze, and water laps the edges of the rocky shore. His hand rubs the top of my back.
Our eyes meet.
We lean in.
And then…
‘What the hell are those?’ Martha shouts from the front of the boat.
A caw, high pitched, replaces the sound of the boat’s engine, and I realise the music has been cut as we’ve approached land.In the branches of low-hanging trees are peacocks, feathers rippling in the sun.
One peacock fans its feathers at the approaching boat.
‘Stunning,’ Linen Shirt man says.
‘Aegina island,’ the pirate says. ‘Ye can go on land, but beware of the golden feather. ’Ere, take this treasure map.’
I don’t want to ask why we have to beware of a golden feather, so instead disembark the boat with Sam by my side, adrenaline rushing through me. Did I misread that situation, or was Sam leaning in to meet me?
‘X marks the spot,’ Sam says, tapping the map.
There’s a trail marked out towards what looks like the other end of the island. I look back to the boat, catching the eye of the pirates waving at me in encouragement.
The rest of the group sees the island as an adventure, like we’re in an episode ofSurvivor. They clamber over rocks and disappear down streets. There’s life here, but it’s quiet, small shops and hopeful restaurateurs.
We’re alone now, side by side, so close the heat from his skin feels hotter than the sun.
‘We don’t have to leave for a little while.’ Sam’s eyes crinkle. ‘Follow me. I’ve got a plan.’
Chapter Twenty-Six
WILL
Day Three
Water splashes over Sam’s feet, his back turned to the expanse of blue that stretches away from him, going on forever, leading everywhere yet nowhere all at once. My feet sink into sand shaded by overhead tree branches, the soles of my feet warm.
