Escape Read Free

her breakfast.
    Where’ s Rudy? Hadn’t he said he taught this class?
    When the group had a five minute break, Lucy plucked up the courage to approach Rachel.
    “Hey Rachel,” she s aid. “I thought Rudy taught the induction ?”
    She had hoped it would sound like a casual question, but the woman turned to her with a flash in her blue eyes.
    “You can’t just come to the class hoping to pick up men,” she snarled. “Diving is about more than that.”
    Lucy reared back in shock. “No. That isn’t what I meant. I was just asking because he said...”
    But she wouldn’t let Lucy finish. Instead, she turned away, dismissing her as though she were a child, and addressed the group.
    “Right guys,” Rachel said, loudly, clapping her hands together. “You’re never going to know what it really feels like until you’ve been there. So if everyone is ready, I suggest we head to the pool.”
    Lucy felt as if someone had punched her in the stomach. What had she done to deserve such a rebuke?
    “Are you okay?”
    Lucy t urned at the sound of the voice. A girl she recognized from the boat trip over to the island looked at her expectantly.
    “Sorry?” she said, surprised someone was talking to her. The girl was pretty—brown eyes and short dark hair. She had the kind of skinny, tanned look most of these travelers seemed to sport.
    The girl lowered her voice. “I thought she gave you a bit of a hard time and I wondered if you were okay.”
    “Oh, yeah. I’m fine, thanks. I think she’s taken a bit of a dislike to me.”
    The girl grinned and Lucy immediately warmed to her. “I think she’d take a dislike to anyone who doesn’t wear trousers.”
    Lucy grinned back.              
    “I’m Stacy,” she introduced herself, and then nudged the girl next to her. The other girl looked up, realizing she had been pulled into the conversation.
    “Hi, I’m Leanne,” she said with a smile.
    “Lucy,” she told them.
    Rudy poked his head through the door and Lucy’s heart jumped up a notch.
    “How’s it going in here?” he asked Rachel. “All set?”
    She flashed him that million-dollar smile. “Sure thing. We’re just heading out to the pool.”
    “Great, I’ll get everything set up.” His eyes flicked across the group, briefly stopping at Lucy. He gave her a small, half-smile, before his gaze passed over her. The heart that had just skipped a beat, now sa nk to the pit of her belly. Someone like him would never think of her as being anything special.
    Lucy followed everyone out of the room and headed toward the pool. The area was designed to be more functional than aesthetic; oxygen tanks and breathing apparatus had replaced the sun beds. The outside of the pool was a simple paving. It was the least exotic part of the resort.
    At the back of the pool, working on the equipment, was Rudy. He had taken off his shirt and the sight of his half-naked body sent tremors through her. He was perfectly formed, with just the right amount of muscle, and smooth, tanned skin. She guessed he was naturally fit from all the diving—he didn’t seem like the type to pump iron in the gym.
    Despite the blandness of the swimming pool, Rudy’s presence somehow made the place look exciting.
    “As I’m sure you all remember,” Rachel said, addressing the group, tearing Lucy’s attention away from Rudy, “the most important thing when you’re diving is to make sure you have a buddy. If you have a buddy, then anything that may happen can be resolved. If you ever try to dive alone and something happens—you lose your mouth piece, your air runs out, you get your lines caught on something—then you are as good as dead. Do you understand?”
    Everyone nodded obediently.
    “So the first thing everyone needs to do is find yourselves a buddy.”
    Lucy felt as if she was back at school and was about to be the last one picked for the team. Everyone else already had a buddy; they had arrived at the resort with friends .