Free Her Moonlit Gamble by Emma Jay Page B

with the clip board asked wearily.
    "Andrew Norris. There." He checked in, pointing to his name on the clip board.  
    God, she really didn't want to do this on a boat full of tourists, but at least he couldn't walk away from her. She followed him on board.  
    He purposely sat on a bench between two groups, where there wasn't enough room for her. With a sigh, she sat across from him and prepared to humiliate herself.  
    "I'm a different person with you," she managed before the boat engine started and drowned her out.  
    "Why is that a bad thing?" he countered. Then, as if he didn't want to hear her answer, he turned his attention out over the water.
    It wasn't, but she wasn't going to shout her appeal over the sound of the motor, the waves against the hull, the clanking of the shark cage that was strapped to the stern of the boat. She sat back, frustrated, words swirling in her brain, none of them just right.
    After fifteen minutes of skimming over churning water that made her wish she'd brought her motion sickness medicine, the boat slowed and circled. The crew went to work, dropping the anchor, then lowering the cage into the water, securing it against the boat. Despite her desire to talk to Andrew, she turned to scan the water for fins. A few times her pulse tripped, thinking she spotted one, but they were only rougher waves.  
    Andrew stripped off his shirt, and Joslyn was aware of the attention of the other women suddenly shifting. He stuffed it into his bag, which he shoved across the deck in her direction. She looked inside and saw her bathing suit on top of a towel. Maybe he had hoped to see her after all, if he'd packed it for her. Gratefully, she snatched it up and lifted her head, but he wouldn't look at her. She slipped below to change.
    When she surfaced, the first group had already gone in the water. She scanned the group for Andrew, and he stood at the edge near the cage, one arm braced against a pole, mask around his neck, a cute blonde in a pink bikini standing under his arm, close enough that her body would brush his if they hit a good swell. Jealousy clouded Joslyn's judgment and she edged forward, working her way to Andrew's side. He handed her a mask and snorkel, again without meeting her gaze, damn him his stubbornness. His attention was on the sharks circling. A chill ran through Joslyn as she counted at least eight fins. Galapagos sharks, she knew, and sand bar sharks, smallish, not a particular danger. But still, the idea of getting in the water with them was almost as terrifying as losing Andrew.
    Once the crew member motioned that it was time for the second shift in the water, Andrew moved away from her, to the ladder leading into the cage. For the first time in her life, she chased after a man. She didn't care what other people thought, and climbed in after him.  
    The water was cool, refreshing after being in the sun, after being in the same clothes all night. She adjusted her snorkel and slipped beneath the surface. One shark swam close enough to the cage that she could have reached out and touched it, if she'd been an idiot. For a moment, she forgot about her problems as she watched the primitive beast swim past. God, it was fabulous and terrifying to be so close the creature with nothing between them but a few metal bars. She was mesmerized by his rough gray skin, the flutter of his gills, the curve of his teeth. His tail sent an eddy of water toward her.  
    The cage rocked, gently first, then again, harder. And then it tilted. Joslyn grasped at the handle inside the cage as other snorkelers tumbled into her, sending her crashing against the side. Her arm slipped through the bars and she snatched it back as fast as the water would allow. Even so, she felt the scrape of the shark's skin along her forearm. At the same time, her snorkel filled with water and she choked, pushing toward the surface.
    The water churned with panic. She shoved the mask up and cast her gaze about for Andrew. But in