Free Ladyfish by Andrea Bramhall

life. But she also felt like Finn had a right to know Oz was snooping. She looked at Finn, still signing paperwork, the sun making her skin glow. Her stomach flipped and she pressed a hand to it. Shit .

Chapter Ten
     
    Finn was still working her way through the forms when Oz took her seat again. She shuffled the manila envelope to the bottom of the stack and started looking over the information in front of her, though she didn’t really see any of it, absorbed as she was with the turn her life had taken.
    “Oz?”
    “Hmm?”
    “Is everything okay?”
    “What?”
    “With your uncle? Is everything okay?”
    “Oh, yeah, it’s fine. I asked him to get some information for me, and we haven’t seen each other for a while, so he decided to pop down and see me.” She turned back to her papers.
    “Oz? What’s a ladyfish?”
    “It’s a fish.”
    Finn snorted. “I guessed that much. Why did your uncle call you ladyfish?”
    “It’s just a stupid nickname. It’s renowned to be a particularly difficult fish to catch, has a tendency to take the bait from the hook, and when it is caught, it’s supposed to be more difficult to land than a barracuda or a shark.”
    “Ah, okay. I can see that, I guess. So, Ladyfish. No long-term girlfriend?”
    Oz stared at her before slowly shaking her head.
    “Ever?”
    “Never.” Oz looked back down at the papers in front of her and didn’t notice Finn move until she felt a hand resting gently on her shoulder.
    “It’ll be a lucky girl who finally finds the right bait, Ladyfish.” She squeezed her shoulder gently and then made her way toward the bathroom. Oz sighed as she watched Finn saunter away from her. Shit, shit, shit.
    She couldn’t drag her eyes away from the sight of the loose-fitting black board shorts and forest green tank top that hung loosely on Finn’s small frame. Her long auburn hair hung down her back, almost to her waist, the sun catching highlights of red and gold. A gentle smile curved her lips, but it was her laughing eyes that made Oz shiver. She had eyes that shone like emeralds in the sun, and Oz wondered what they would look like in a moment of passion. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn’t notice Finn come back.
    “I finished with those papers you gave me, so what’s next?”
    “Swim test.”
    “I did one back in the UK. They said they sent the results to you with the other paperwork.”
    “I think there may have been a mistake with the times so we have to repeat the tests. Sorry.”
    “What did they put down?”
    “Twenty-six point two one.”
    “For the fifty? That’s about right.”
    “Are you kidding me?”
    “No. I told you I swam when I was younger.”
    “Not in the Olympics, you didn’t.”
    “Not quite. I couldn’t break twenty-six seconds. I needed a few more inches in height, really. Don’t say it.” She wagged a finger in Oz’s direction.
    “I wouldn’t dream of it,” she said as she smothered her laughter.
    “So do we still need to do the swim test again? I really want to start getting into this, and I know there’s a lot to learn.”
    “I’ll let it go. Here.” She pushed a book in front of Finn. “This is what you need to start studying. We’ll go over it tomorrow with the rest of the class, but if you can prepare ahead with the material you can also be looking at the presentation for teaching styles and techniques too. That will help you later on when you have to teach the course you’re going to attend tomorrow.”
    “Okay. Is there somewhere I should go out of the way or am I okay to hang out here?”
    “You can hang out here or there’s a training room empty today, so feel free. If you want to go back to the hotel, that’s cool too. We can always meet later so I can show you the house if you like?”
    “No, I’ll hang around here.”
    “We also need to get your equipment. Wet suit, dry suit, your buoyancy control device or BCD, fins, mask, et cetera. I would recommend a dive