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Patti turned her warm gaze to Hope. “Don’t work yourself too hard, child. I can’t even imagine how overwhelmin’ this must feel right now.”
“Thanks, Patti. I’ve never been afraid of hard work.” Hope gave her a smile as she stood up. “But I know when to take a break too. See you this afternoon.”
* * *
After a couple of weeks, Hope was a little less panic-stricken. She’d settled into a routine of spending mornings with Patti in the office, learning the details of operations, and afternoons on her own in other areas of the resort. She’d learned most of the chaos of paperwork on her desk was financial in nature.
Patti had nodded when she’d commented on it. “Yes, I tend to handle the front desk, restaurant, and housekeepin’ areas, and Steve handled all the financial aspects. I also tried to comment on guest surveys, but I’ve fallen off on that with all my other duties. Steve didn’t like to work on computers much.”
Hope turned her head sharply. “Well, I think responding to guest surveys is extremely important, so I’ll take that over from you right now. Steve should have kept up on that, not dumped it on you. The guests are the whole reason we’re here.”
Now she was settled enough to discover more about the resort’s other major area of operation. After finishing her breakfast, she approached a family who’d been there a week. “You guys are having a nice, long vacation. Good for you!”
“We’re going diving again today.” The boy, Noah, looked about fifteen. “This is the third time on this trip.”
“I’ll see you on the boat then,” Hope said. “I’m riding along today. I feel like a little fresh air.” She went back to her house to change into a swimsuit. Over it, she pulled on some board shorts and a staff T-shirt she’d had Patti hunt down.
Putting on a sunhat, Hope made her way down to the pier for the 9 a.m. departure. She passed through a tunnel of sorts with the compressor and gear storage room on one side and the dive shop/scuba classroom on the other. Alex’s apartment was overhead. On one wall was a whiteboard where divers signed up for the two-tank morning trip.
Hope continued down to the end of the pier, where a thatched palapa provided shade. Underneath it were several wooden benches. Tommy and Alex were busy preparing the boat for the morning, so she made her way over to the side of the pier near the ladder into the water. The turquoise sea was crystal clear with ripples of white sand visible on the ocean bottom. A myriad of colorful tropical fish darted about.
“Come on aboard, Hope!” Tommy called out, beckoning to her.
She smiled as he helped her into the boat. “I picked a good morning to join you. Looks like a beautiful day. How many divers do we have today?”
“Only two guys and the family of three,” Tommy responded. “Should be a nice mornin’.” She made her way to the covered bow area of the boat next to him and set her bag down on a broad shelf above the dashboard to keep it dry. Tommy, who looked to be in his mid-thirties, had ebony skin and tightly curled black hair. Behind her was a long row of white plastic half-cylinders that held the scuba tanks. Alex nodded at her from the stern where he was setting up someone’s gear.
She approached him. “Ok, Alex. What is all this stuff?”
“I’ll give you the brief version.” He took hold of the mouthpiece. “This is the primary regulator, and you breathe through this, the second stage.” He pressed the purge button on the mouthpiece, causing a hissing sound. Then he moved his hand up the black hose to the top of the tank. “It’s connected to the first stage, which attaches to the tank. This,” he put his hand on a vest attached to the tank, “is a Buoyancy Compensation Device, but everyone just calls it a BCD. It’s also attached to the tank, and you add or remove air to it during the dive to keep yourself neutrally buoyant.”
Hope held her hands up, laughing. “Whoa. That was the brief version?”
He shrugged a shoulder. “It becomes second nature after a while.”
“Well, I think I’m happy to stick with snorkeling for now.”
She shifted her gaze to his. Alex watched her with a small smile, his blue eyes sparkling. Her breath quickened, and a flutter tickled through her abdomen.
Where did that come from? Hope, stop it!
“It’s your call.” He spoke softly. “But you’re missing out on the best part, you know. Being able to breathe underwater is a pretty unique experience. It’s kind of a superpower.” She gave him a quick, polite smile in return before hurrying back to her spot on the bow.
She waved to the family as they boarded. The two other divers came aboard shortly after, and then they were ready.
“Good mornin’, everyone!” Tommy said with a smile. “I’m pleased to announce we have a special guest on the boat today. This is Hope Collins, the new owner of Half Moon Bay Resort.” Hope smiled as everyone greeted her. “Since you’ve all been aboard Deep Diver before, you can relax and enjoy the scenery while I go over the boat briefin’ with Hope.” Tommy proceeded to tell her about the safety features of the boat, including where life jackets and fire extinguishers were located. It was clearly a speech he made regularly, but she was pleased with his professionalism.
Alex untied the lines from the dock, and they started to idle away from the resort. “Where are we goin’ this morning, Alex?” Tommy asked.
“Anyone have any requests for dive sites?” Alex scanned the group, who all shrugged or shook their heads. “Ok, Tommy, let’s head for Turtle Gardens.” He turned back to the group. “It’s less than a ten-minute trip, so you guys might want to start getting into your wetsuits.”
Tommy throttled up, heading north. Hope took a deep breath of the fresh, salty air and removed her floppy sunhat, looking out over the flat ocean and feeling exhilarated. The warm sun on the stern section looked inviting, but she opted to stay out of the way of all the divers busy pulling on their wetsuits and preparing their dive gear.
Despite Alex’s explanation, it still looked very intimidating to her. He stood next to Tommy, chatting with him as he pulled his wetsuit over his board shorts. He peeled off his shirt and tossed it on the console in front of Tommy so it would stay dry. Tanned skin complemented his muscular chest and shoulders.
Hope immediately averted her eyes. After turning back, she was relieved he had the wetsuit all the way on and was zipping up the back, pulling the zipper leash over his head. He grinned at something Tommy said, and Hope could see he wasn’t trying to impress her—this was simply part of his daily routine.
After several minutes, Tommy throttled down, and Alex put on a dive mask. He made his way to the bow of the boat, grabbing a coiled rope. Putting on a pair of fins, he dove into the water with the rope and disappeared.
