He’s full of shit just like I am, but as long as it doesn’t impact Kat and me, I don’t give a fuck what he does.
“They’re bringing us snacks,” Anya announces, striding alongside the edge of the boat. She throws her hands emphatically into the air just as she trips over the hatch and tumbles over the railing.
Chapter 20
Kat
Anya screams, her drink splashing everywhere as she tries to recover her balance but falls overboard.
My heart lodges into my throat as I jump up.
Holy shit was followed by the uncharitable thought, at least it wasn’t me.
I can’t help but wonder if this is what all those other people on our Coco Loco booze cruise felt when they saw me go overboard.
“Fuck!” Vander stands and crosses to the side. But instead of diving in after her, he yells, “Fedor! Get her!”
Fedor is in the middle of doing something with a sail, but Dane is quicker. He rushes to the side and in one swift movement, dives into the water toward where Anya is splashing around.
With an eye on the boom so I don’t get whacked in the head and join them in the water, I move to the back of the boat as well.
Fedor tosses me a life ring. “Throw this out there while I pull down the sail so we can turn on the motor.” He reaches for the ropes, leaving me with the orange floatation device.
Vander rips it from my hand before I can toss it, whipping it out like a Frisbee toward Dane and Anya. He’s short about fifty feet.
“Fuck. Of course she’d get blitzed and fall overboard. Just like Anya.”
I shoot him a look. “Hey, it can happen to anyone. I’ve done it.”
Dane’s strokes cut through the water effortlessly, and he’s within twenty feet of her in moments.
“Do you see any sharks?” I’m scanning the surface, trying to see any fins between the small whitecaps that have cropped up since we started sailing.
“No. You?”
“No.”
Well, at least that’s one worry we don’t have at the moment.
Dane reaches Anya and she throws herself at him, clinging to his shoulders, and a whole new set of fears crops up in my brain.
She could drown them both.
“She needs to calm down.”
“I don’t know if she can actually swim,” Vander says, his voice contemplative.
“Are you shitting me?” I spin around to stare at him. “And you didn’t go in after her immediately?”
What a sorry excuse for a man.
Maybe I’ve had Dane in my life long enough to take it for granted that he’ll always rescue me if he’s there. He’s not just strong and capable—he doesn’t stop to consider his own safety before springing into action.
“I was getting there. Your husband apparently has a much larger hero complex than I do, however.”
It’s a cop-out answer, and we both know it.
I turn my attention back to Dane and Anya. He has her secured and is swimming them both backward toward the catamaran, which thankfully has stopped since Fedor lowered the mainsail.
Dane reaches the life ring and shoves it in front of Anya. She latches on, and Vander picks up the end of the rope and begins pulling them in. Dane holds on to Anya, kicking them forward to propel them toward us faster.
Once they reach the side, Fedor drops the ladder. Anya climbs up first, her face pale, eye makeup smeared down her cheeks.
“Are you okay?” Vander asks her.
She nods. “I’m not usually so clumsy.” The words come out hushed. A tear wells in her eye. “But my swimsuit is ruined.”
Of all the ridiculous things to be worried about right now . . .
I hold back my comments as Dane climbs aboard. “Babe, are you all right?”
He nods and shakes the water from his hair as I hand him a towel. “Fine. Just a little extra swimming to replace the cardio I missed out on today.”
Of course he would make light of the fact that he just dived off a boat to save a woman who may or may not be able to swim.
Anya turns toward him and lifts her chin. “I think the shots caught up with me a little too fast. Thank you for coming in after me.” She shoots a sideways look at Vander.
“No problem,” Dane says, tossing the towel down on the bench.
“I think we should shelve that game, regardless of how much fun we were having,” Vander replies. He turns to Dane. “We owe you a debt of gratitude. Since we can’t buy you dinner or drinks, given the resort is an all-inclusive, I’ll need to figure out something else we can do.”
“Don’t worry about it. Anyone would’ve done the same.”
I don’t point out the obvious—that Vander didn’t do the same.
“Would you still like snacks, Miss Anya? We have fruit and plantain chips and a few other items ready for you.”
“Yummy. Sounds delicious,” she says. Apparently Anya’s appetite recovers faster than anything. “Probably a good idea to soak up the alcohol.”
Two hours later, we gather up our items and disembark from the catamaran. Vander and Anya walk ahead of us until Vander pauses at the end of the pier and turns to Dane.
In a conversational tone, he says, “I think I know how we can repay you. Why doesn’t Anya come to your room tonight and suck you off?”
Chapter 21
Kat
I choke on saliva, coughing hard.
What the hell did he just say? He didn’t say what I think he said. Did he?
I look at Dane, and his expression is dark.
Yep. He totally said what I think he did.
Dane forces a laugh. “Thanks for the offer, but I’ll pass.”
Vander looks at us both. “Come on, you already asked the question. You know you’re interested.”
What question?
Then I remember the never have I ever question Dane threw out there about swingers. He knew. He figured out what they were, and that was his way of confirming it.
“Didn’t mean anything by it. Just confirming my suspicion.”
Vander eyes him. “Well, you were right, so what do you say we make this vacation a whole lot more interesting for all of us?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Dane replies, and Vander looks at me.