Sitting at the stern, she was grateful for the shade of the canopy. Her pale, mole-studded skin wasn’t designed for the Mediterranean heat.
Opening her eyes, she saw the Greek flag dancing from the yacht railing in the light breeze. Yannis was gesturing beyond it towards a rocky pinnacle. ‘Only for very good swimmers, yes? Long way. But,’ he said, a finger poised in the air, ‘if you reach the island, if you very good at climbing rock, then you get big surprise.’ He smiled widely, his face turning boyish.
‘A surprise?’ asked Robyn, who was fixing her hair into a ponytail.
Yannis’s eyes twinkled. ‘Many hidden sea caves here … and sea washes in them and makes water hole. Natural swimming pool, yes? Very beautiful.’
‘You can swim in it?’ Fen asked, stepping out of her denim shorts. She looked every inch the athlete in a simple tankini, her body toned and vital. Eleanor wondered what it would feel like to dive from the side of this boat, to know you could just swim and swim, and your body had the power to carry you wherever you commanded it.
‘Dive from rocks – deep water. Twenty, thirty metres, yes? Very good for swimming.’ He angled a thick, tanned wrist towards his face, sunlight glinting off his watch. ‘You have an hour or two to swim, yes? Then after, back to boat for lunch, okay? No rush, no rush.’
‘Sounds perfect,’ Bella gushed, hands clasped.
‘Would you do my shoulders?’ Robyn asked Lexi, holding a tube of sunscreen.
Lexi squeezed lotion into her palms, while Robyn removed her T-shirt, keeping her back to the others. She folded her arms over her stomach.
I know that feeling, Eleanor thought.
From beneath the seat locker, Yannis lifted a plastic tub containing bright flippers and snorkel masks. He doused them with fresh water, then began handing them out, drops of water darkening the sun-warmed deck.
‘No, thank you,’ Eleanor said when he held out a mask for her. ‘I’m staying on board.’
‘You must snorkel! Beautiful clear water! So many fish here. Not like the other islands where dynamite ruin the coral. Here the fish are many – and big,’ he said, making a space between his tanned hands to demonstrate their size. ‘Come, you’ll enjoy!’
She liked the lilting, musical rhythm of Yannis’s voice, but enthusiasm alone couldn’t win her over. ‘Not for me.’
‘Please come in with us!’ Ana said, looping a mask around her neck. ‘We don’t have to go far from the boat. I’ll stick with you.’
‘I can’t swim,’ Eleanor said. She delivered the fact plainly and without embarrassment.
Hearing, the other hens looked at her as if she’d announced she’d just pissed in her shorts. Actually, that was a thought. If she needed a wee, well, then what? She eyed the plastic tub the flippers came in. That would have to do. ‘I’ve got my book for company. I’m planning on having a lovely time staying dry on deck.’ She smiled to put them at ease.
‘Reading on a boat in the morning sunshine? Sounds awful. I’m not envious at all.’ Ana winked.
‘Sure you’ll be okay?’ Lexi asked, wiping the remains of Robyn’s sunscreen into her hands.
‘Course! Now get in the water and leave me in peace.’ She intended it to come out jokily, but Eleanor saw from Lexi’s expression that she’d sounded brusque.
Behind them, Bella cursed as she tried to squeeze her swollen, scorpion-stung foot into a flipper.
‘Babe, I think you’re going to have to go barefoot,’ Fen said.
‘Bloody scorpion!’ she said, flinging the flippers back into the bucket.
‘Okay, ladies. We climb down the ladder, here,’ Yannis announced, taking Lexi by the hand （rather unnecessarily, in Eleanor’s opinion）。 ‘Is better I pass you flippers when you’re in the water, yes?’ His gaze travelled down her smooth, bikini-clad body. Eleanor didn’t blame him. There was something about beauty – male or female – that would always draw the eye.
Eleanor found her gaze roaming to Lexi’s stomach, looking for the first hint of a bump. It was hard to believe that Eleanor’s future niece or nephew was housed within such a perfect venue. She got a little thrill realising that she knew about the baby before Ed.
‘Wait!’ Bella called. ‘Photo first!’ She rummaged through her beach bag for her phone, then pointed it towards Lexi, who smiled gamely from within her snorkel mask.
‘Now the rest of you!’ Bella said, turning the camera on them.