The Vows He Must Keep

Valerio was stubbornly silent as he waited for her at the end of the wooden deck, and only gestured for her to follow him down the rocky steps in the cliff face towards the tiny bay below. He carried a small bag over his shoulder and stopped occasionally to help her down as the steps began to grow steep.

He tried and failed not to be distracted by how carefree she looked in simple knee-length capris and a tank top. She hadn’t got a scrap of make-up on and her curls were tied back from her face with a colourful silk scarf she’d found in one of the kitchen drawers.

He’d been unsure of what she was thinking from the moment they’d spoken that morning, so he was glad he’d arranged today’s trip before the events of last night.

It sounded so simple...calling it ‘the events’. As if it was a small blip they could just forget about and move on from. But maybe that was what she wanted?

The thought caught him unaware, making him almost miss his footing on the steps.

She’d been skittish around him all morning—maybe she was having second thoughts? Surely if that was the case he should be relieved. And yet the thought of her drawing a line under whatever this was before he was ready made something tighten in his gut.

It was simply pride, he assured himself. No man wanted to feel rejected—especially not by the woman they were about to marry.

They emerged through the foliage onto the most beautiful little pebbled beach. The gentle curve of the land had created a perfect shallow pool where they could see tiny fish swimming.

Valerio gestured towards the end of the inlet, where a small wooden dock had been erected. The dock housed a single sleek black speedboat. ‘I had this skippered over from the marina—figured I’d take a chance while we’re here to get up to speed on our latest toys.’

‘Oh, I see how this is. You get to do some work but I’m not allowed to?’ she jibed, accepting his hand as she stepped down into the boat.

‘This has never been work to me.’ Valerio inhaled deeply as he fired up the engine and set his hands firmly on the wheel. ‘Dio, I forgot how good this feels.’

She sat back, watching the waves while he focused on pulling out from the small dock and gathering speed as they moved out onto open water. The boat was effortlessly smooth, and Valerio knew he was an expert at the helm. The familiar feeling that he had every time he was out on the water washed over him. It was as though he had finally come home.

He’d always had this affinity with the sea, this soul-deep connection. It was the thing that had bonded him and Duarte—their passion for sailing and exploring the world without fear.

Something within him stilled as he realised he had barely given his best friend a thought since the night before. Perhaps it was just the natural evolution of grief—the intensity of the pain wasn’t any less but the frequency was bound to change and lessen. Guilt threatened, but he pushed it away, refusing to sully what he’d shared with Dani. He refused to mark it as wrong, somehow, when it was possibly the most right he had felt in a long time.

‘Where are we going?’ Dani moved to sit beside him, speaking loudly above the noise of the speedboat crashing its way through the waves.

‘You’ll find out soon enough.’ He smiled, his hands moving to take hers and place them on the helm. ‘But for now it’s time to ease you into your new life as an explorer. Step one: you will now captain this boat.’

She shook her head. ‘No! I’ve never had the first idea how to drive one of these things. Take it back.’

She squeaked as he took a step away, leaving her alone and holding on for dear life.

‘Just relax and feel the power in your hands. Feel the hull slice through each well.’ He spoke next to her ear. ‘Keep your eyes straight ahead. Brace your body and move with the water. Don’t fight the current... Ease against it.’

Impulsively, he gently kneaded the tension in her shoulders. ‘You’re fighting it, Daniela. Breathe in deep and exhale... Lean into it.’

She rolled her eyes, doing as she was told, loosening her grip and easing forward. Her resulting smile was dazzling as she moved the boat over the swell without any tensing at all.

‘Careful, now—I might start to think you’re enjoying yourself,’ he teased.

‘I’m just very eager to earn that phone back.’

She pursed her lips against another smile as his hands covered hers on the wheel, joining her as they navigated over the water together.

Valerio had congratulated himself on his innovative idea of getting Dani to drive the speedboat to their surprise diving lesson excursion in Rodney Bay. But once he’d achieved the task of getting her out in the open water with their instructor, she had asked a million questions. The man had explained that this kind of diving was called Snuba—a cross between snorkelling and scuba diving—and that they would be connected to a small raft by air lines and safety lanyards the entire time.

Valerio tried not to laugh as Dani finally finished wrestling with the large diving mask on her face and took a long look at the depth of the water before them.

There was no certification required, because it was quite safe, but Dani still looked terrified now, as she stared down over the side of the boat.

Valerio advanced on her, his own mask making his voice sound muffled. ‘We can just go back to the marina if you want?’

As he’d expected, she narrowed her eyes on him in challenge and turned to the instructor as he finished securing her weight belt, regulator and air line to the small safety raft. But as she moved to ease down the metal ladder on the side of the boat, her foot slid and she tumbled rather ungracefully sideways into the sea.

Valerio felt a shout leave his throat, moving to dive in after her, but the diving instructor stopped him with a hand on his chest, showing him he had a firm grip on her safety harness.