Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 53081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
It was hard to take his eyes off her. Her thick brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She was petite but fit. Her eyes were dancing with excitement. Was she joining his dive?
His phone buzzed, and he looked down to see that his roster of the guests going out on the water with him had been updated to include Isla. A message from Sadie followed quickly.
Hey! Isla just appeared. She immediately booked your excursion, changed in the restroom, and checked her luggage until a room is available.
He schooled his features not to give away his inner thoughts and plastered his best friendly dive-instructor smile on.
“Sorry to rush in at the last minute,” Isla said as she hesitated beside the boat.
“No problem. The desk just notified me you’re going out with the group. We’re gathering over there in the shade to get our gear on,” he said, pointing her in the right direction. “My assistant, Jack, will get you set up.”
Waving a hand to invite her to precede him, Caesar forced himself not to focus on her curvy body as they walked to the covered area. Having done this orientation a few hundred times already, he shifted easily into giving the pre-departure safety information to the group.
“Okay, now on to the fun stuff. Jack, here, is my assistant on this trip. He’s going to help me get everyone set up with a wet suit. We’re all going to have great fun getting them on, and then we can head out to see all we can enjoy under the water's surface.”
Several minutes later, everyone was suited up and ready to go. As usual, most looked excited, some nervous, and two were embarrassed by their wet suit, which wasn’t flattering. Isla had flown into her suit with the ease of someone who dived regularly.
“Looks like you’ve done this before,” he said after calling everyone back together.
“A few times. I love the water and try to explore it wherever I am,” Isla said.
“That’s a good goal to have,” Caesar said. “Have you dived in New Zealand?”
“No, never.”
“Mr. Caesar, are sharks going to eat us?” a precocious eight-year-old boy asked. He looked excited by the prospect while his mother was horrified.
“Bradley James! Stop trying to scare me,” she ordered.
“Oh, there are sharks out there,” Caesar admitted, trying not to grin at his mother’s use of his middle name to warn him to knock it off. “If we’re lucky, we’ll see several different kinds. They won’t bother us if we leave them alone.”
Looking directly at Bradley James, he stressed, “Bothering them would be bad.”
The young man swallowed hard and nodded.
“We’ll start out on the water's surface with everyone using snorkels. You’ll get to see a lot of things. After that, some of you may choose to lounge around on the deck and relax in the sun. Those of you with scuba certification can join me below the water.”
“Can I go?” Bradley James asked, raising his hand.
“Not this time. You can take a scuba lesson with me in the cove later this week if you’d like to learn how to breathe with the tanks,” Caesar said easily and then watched Bradley immediately nudge his mother. There was no doubt he’d see Bradley again.
“Will there be other scuba divers out there?” Bradley asked.
“No. Danger Bluff guests are the only ones with access to scuba diving in this area. Boats can come into the bay for lunch, to swim or snorkel, but the diving and other amenities are only available to guests like you. That helps preserve the ecosystem and keep everyone safe,” Caesar explained.
After answering a few more questions, Caesar and Jack herded everyone to the boat. Each took a position on the side of the boat to help their passengers board. To Caesar’s pleasure, he noted Isla in the line in front of him.
“Come aboard,” he invited before holding his hand out to help her step onto the deck.
“Thanks.” Pushing her oversized sunglasses up, she hurried to where the others had taken a seat. “Hi, everyone! Isn’t this exciting?” she asked, greeting the other guests.
“This is our first time on a boat. I hope we don’t get sick,” Bradley’s mom said. “I gave everyone a motion-sickness pill.”
“That should help,” Isla said with a supportive nod.
Caesar smiled at the group. “Let’s start with that before we leave the dock. If you’re feeling ill, there are barf bags alongside every seat. Even if you’re only slightly queasy, grab one to be prepared before you need it. In the extremely unlikely case that we will need life jackets, they’re in the lockers running down the middle of the boat.”
He checked for questions again before moving to unfasten the mooring ropes and push away from the dock. “And we’re off!” he announced as Jack started the engines and got underway.