“A long time. I tried to swim to shore, but the undertow wouldn’t let me.” She looked up at Jesse. “At first I forgot what Daddy told me about how to swim if I got caught in one. I kept getting farther and farther from the shore. Then I remembered how Daddy said I was supposed to swim with the current. I tried, but it kept pulling me under. I thought I was going to drown.” Fresh tears sparkled in her eyes.
“It was strong.” Kaia wasn’t sure she could have overcome the undertow, and she was a strong swimmer. Thank the Lord Nani had been there, even if the dolphin had reacted to instinct rather than communication.
Heidi leaned over and vomited seawater on her uncle’s feet. He didn’t react much, just grabbed a towel Ensign Masters handed him and wiped his niece’s face. The ensign upended a bucket of water onto Jesse’s feet and the surrounding deck.
“Your mother is going to have to know about this escapade,” he said sternly.
Heidi nodded. “She’s going to be mad.”
“We’re just glad you’re okay,” Faye said. She seemed to be recovering some of her color. “Here, let me clean that up.” She knelt and began to swab ineffectually at the mess. She finally gave up and let the ensign use his mop.
The wind blew Faye’s black hair around her head and whipped it into her face. She brushed it out of her eyes. “Jesse, I hope you won’t hold this against me. I don’t want to give up my friendship with Heidi.”
Heidi’s eyes grew wide. “Does this mean I get to go back with Kaia?”
Faye flinched and covered her mouth with her hands. “She’s not been very happy,” she admitted. “I think she misses her mother.”
“I realize that,” Jesse said. He patted her shoulder. “If you’re still willing to keep Heidi, I think we’ll keep to our arrangement.”
Faye’s shoulders sagged. “Mahalo, Jesse. It won’t happen again.” Her dark eyes blinked rapidly, then she turned and gazed at Kaia. “I’ve been wanting to meet you, Kaia. Curtis has said such great things about you.”
Kaia frowned. “Curtis has?” She couldn’t imagine what her boss could have said. They’d butted heads right from the start.
“Curtis says you’re brilliant.” The boat lurched in the waves, and Faye almost tumbled to the deck. She caught herself against the back of Jesse’s seat.
Kaia hadn’t put the two together. In fact, she found it hard to imagine the pragmatic Curtis with Faye. But maybe she was judging the woman unfairly. Just because she wore nice clothes and shoes didn’t mean she was shallow. Kaia had to admit her twinge of envy might have affected her first impression of the woman.
In fact, maybe Faye could be her ally to help Curtis understand the importance of her dolphin research. “Make sure you tell him about how Nani saved Heidi today,” she said. If only Nani had found Heidi because she’d understood the language. Still, Heidi was safe, thanks to Nani.
“Oh, I will,” Faye assured her. She hesitated for a second. “Why don’t you meet me and Heidi for breakfast when you get off work tomorrow?”
Faye could be the help Kaia had been looking for. She had to convince Curtis that the real future of Seaworthy Labs lay with research into dolphin communication, even though Nani had failed her again.
“I just might do that.”
Eight
Jesse parked in front of Kaia’s charming cottage. “Cute place,” he said. He grabbed Kaia’s knapsack. “I’ll carry this for you. Heidi’s sleeping anyway.”
Kaia yawned and nodded. She stepped over a hose and pushed open the door.
“Holy cow,” Jesse muttered. He realized he’d said it out loud when he saw Kaia’s cheeks go red. “Sorry, but—wow.” He dropped the knapsack and picked up a discarded T-shirt.
Kaia grabbed it from his hand. “It’s not like I haven’t been busy,” she snapped.
“Yeah, sorry.” He’d never pegged her for the messy sort. It was a good thing they weren’t in a relationship. A mess like this would drive him crazy.
He stepped over a catnip mouse and looked around then realized he hadn’t thanked Kaia properly when they’d docked. “I really appreciate all you did today. You saved Heidi’s life, you and Nani.”
She didn’t meet his gaze. “That’s okay. I’m glad we were there. I was surprised you decided to let Heidi stay with Faye when she obviously wasn’t watching her closely enough.”
“I almost didn’t. But I looked at Heidi and realized she was hoping to get Faye in trouble. It could have happened to anyone. I wandered off from my mother often enough. Especially when another child was in trouble. Faye has a good heart.”
Maybe he was right. Kaia was beginning to realize Jesse had good judgment about people. She glanced out the window. “Here comes Bane.”