“You bet it is,” said Lois. She held out a pair of binoculars. “Here, take a look, the others are waiting for you.”
Jessie took the binoculars and scanned the shoreline. She zeroed in on the three people standing on the beach and she breathed in as she recognized Nick Garrett.
It was really him! At the first glimpse of that unmistakable tanned face and dark blond hair Jessie felt her heart grab before it kick-started again with a thud. Nick’s arms were folded and he was nodding as he listened to the man next to him, his dark brows dipping into a concentrated frown, shadowing his eyes. Jessie realized she was holding her breath and she let it out, wondering what she was going to say when she actually met him. Just say hello, she told herself, tell him how much you like the show but be normal. Please don’t start giggling or fawning or anything embarrassing like that.
She lowered the binoculars as she realized that Lois was talking to her.
“It’s a pity we had that trouble with your flight but don’t worry about it. The others have already had one night on the island but we won’t be officially starting the competition until tomorrow anyway. I’m sure you’ll have plenty of time to get settled in. Now, what we’re going to do is drop you into the water about a quarter mile from shore. Your bio said you could swim?”
Jessie nodded.
“Anyway, Kenny and I will be alongside in a motorboat so you won’t be in any danger, we just want to get the shot of you, literally, washing up on shore.”
Jessie nodded again, too nervous to speak.
THE WATER WAS WARM and the sun glinted sparkles into her eyes as she was lowered into the sea. She had looped the evening bag over her shoulder and across her chest and it bobbed alongside her.
She treaded water for a moment, feeling her muscles loosen and then struck out for shore. At least her dress and shoes didn’t weigh her down, which was about the only good thing that could be said for them.
She heard the thrum of the motorboat and paused, treading water again as it came up beside her.
“How are you doing?” said Lois, yelling to be heard above the sound of the idling motor.
“Fine,” called back Jessie.
“Okay, we’re right here if you need help. You look great.”
Jessie looked at Kenny whose face was hidden behind the camera and he gave her a thumbs-up. She grinned and turned back towards the island. She struck out resolutely, getting closer to the dream island with each pull of her long arms. Her mind was flitting about wildly. She wondered what the other contestants would be like and what sort of challenges they were all going to face. Would they be at each other’s throats at the end of the ten days or would they have made friends for life? Was there any hope at all that she might even win the money?
She was about thirty meters from shore when she felt the strap of her evening bag slip off her shoulder and down over her arm. She grabbed wildly for it but it glided through her fingers and down around her waist. She could feel the bag knocking against her ankle and she knew she’d have to catch it before it had a chance to slip away entirely.
She stopped, kicking rhythmically to keep her head above water while her hands swept around her, clutching for either the bag or the strap. She glanced towards the shore and she saw Nick come down towards the shoreline. She waved reassuringly and dipped her hands under again to search for the bag.
She couldn’t feel anything so she took a deep breath and ducked her head under the surface, searching for the glittering prize. The strap was caught on her shoe and she struggled with it, trying to unhook it. She came up, treading water while she caught her breath. The sun flashed off the water, dazzling her and she ducked under again, clutching at her foot. The strap had wound around her ankle so it was almost a minute before she got it off and she burst her head to the surface again, gasping for breath. She shook the water from her face, her heart thumping with triumph and she gulped in lungfuls of air to pump her up for the last stretch.
Suddenly she was yanked forcefully through the water as a huge arm was thrust around her neck.
“It’s okay, I’ve got you,” came Nick’s voice in her ear. Spumes of water sprayed on either side of her face as he tugged her along in a lifesaving grip.
Jessie spluttered as she caught a mouthful of water and she tugged at his muscular forearm, trying to break free. She opened her mouth to tell him she was okay but another splash caught her, setting off a fit of coughing. Nick swam like a shark, dragging her body along as if she were nothing more than a rag doll and eventually she just gave up trying to escape because his grasp was unbreakable. He was obviously intent on saving her so she just clung grimly to his arm as his strong legs kicked between hers. She caught a glimpse of the boat speeding along beside them and she tried to signal to Lois and Kenny that she was all right but they didn’t appear to notice and Nick just seemed to take her flailing arms as a sign of further distress because he tightened his grip and swam all the harder.
She was coughing again by the time they reached the shore and a sudden wave of dizziness overcame her as he laid her down on the sand. She closed her eyes against the glare of the sun and concentrated on getting her breath back. She became aware of Nick’s hand on her throat, checking her pulse.
“She’s okay,” he called as the motorboat pulled up onto the sand.
Jessie gasped as he lay his head down across her chest. She could feel water from his hair dripping onto her bare skin. “Good breath sounds,” he went on. “No water in there. I think she’s just fainted.”
“Excuse me,” said Jessie archly, “I haven’t fainted and would you mind getting your head off my chest.”
Nick’s head rose sharply and Jessie struggled to sit up. “I haven’t fainted because I wasn’t even in trouble in the first place. I was just…” She broke off, searching the sand around her. “Oh, no, my bag, where is it?”
“What?” said Nick in bemusement.
Jessie clambered to her feet, unceremoniously using Nick’s shoulder as a prop. “My bag,” she said insistently. “I don’t believe this, you lost it.”
“Are you okay?” he said.
She looked at him. “Am I okay?” she said derisively. “Of course I’m okay. For your information tough guy, I was doing just fine until you came along.” She pointed out towards the ocean. “I was just treading water and trying to catch my bag when you came storming up and almost killed me. What on earth were you thinking?”
He stood up, eyes flashing. “What was I thinking? Oh, I don’t know, maybe when I see someone struggling in the water I just assume that they could use some help. Why did you wave at me if you weren’t in trouble?”
“I was just waving hello!” Jessie exclaimed, her embarrassment making her defensive.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said angrily. “You stop swimming to wave hello and then you sink underwater a couple of times just for good measure? What is that, your idea of a joke?”
She was about to fire back another retort when she spotted a familiar red shape that was rolling in the small waves nearby.
“My bag,” she cried gleefully, stumbling towards it.
“Oh, great,” said Nick, following her. “You found your bag. I’m so glad. We wouldn’t want you to go through the next ten days without your makeup.”
She made a face at him and bent over to pick up the bag. Unfortunately she caught it by the bottom and released the contents in a shower as she lifted it. She fell to her knees and grabbed at the sewing kit as it tried to float away on a wave and she dug the penknife out of the wet sand before thrusting them back into her purse.
Nick’s