Paradise Wild (Wild At Heart Book 2) by Christine Hartmann Page A

blue and green shape with a funny bump like a BMW antenna between its eyes. Out of nowhere, a large bulk caught the corner of her eye. She screamed down her tube again and turned toward it.
    The enormous sea turtle swam unconcernedly past, its shell longer than her torso, its yellow and brown flippers blending in with the mottled light. Ellie followed it at a respectful distance, transfixed. After surfacing for air, it floated gracefully downward, limbs outstretched like a Star Trek Klingon Bird-of-Prey, to a resting place under a rock.
    Ellie surfaced, awestruck. She struggled in the strangely heavy waves to look around for her companions.
    I have to show you this.
    But she didn’t see anything. Except the moored sailboat she had noticed from the beach. It had been small and enticing then. Now it loomed large and parallel to where she swam. The umbrellas on the beach, in contrast, seemed miles away. She looked down.
    Oh, no.
    The ocean floor was distressingly distant. Music reverberated in her head, this time at much higher volume.
    Dah-dum. Dah-dum.
    Ellie spotted orange dots close to shore.
    Snorkels.
    A high wave swamped her. Water filled her snorkel. The gurgling noise of her own breathing terrified her. It sounded like she was drowning. She sucked in salt water with her next gulp of air and spat the snorkeling tube out. She gasped.
    Dah-dum.
    All her limbs tingled.
    What was that?
    She stuck her head in the water and spun around like a top, checking the deep for an approaching shark. Her head emerged, sputtering. Another wave splashed against her face and she took in more water.
    Dah-dum.
    She felt the jaws clamp her arm. She yanked it free, screaming and kicking.
    “Hey, don’t panic.”
    The words took a few moments to register. Ellie swiveled toward the speaker. She saw a black-masked man with a snorkel dangling from the side of his face. The eyes visible through his mask registered concern. He held his hands above the surface.
    “You looked like you were in trouble.”
    Ellie coughed as another wave sloshed against her.
    “Put your snorkel back in.”
    She shook her head, hacking.
    “The waves will keep coming. Put it back in and let me get you back to shore, okay?”
    Ellie nodded and replaced her snorkel.
    “That’s it. Now give me your hand.”
    The man held his hand out to her. She clenched it with a strength borne of terror.
    The man chuckled. “What a grip.” He smiled and Ellie exhaled. She nodded and gave him a thumbs up.
    “Okay. Here we go. Kick along with me and we’ll get there faster.” He replaced his snorkel and put his head in the water. Ellie followed suit.
    As they traveled slowly toward shore, she periodically glanced at her companion. He met her looks and nodded. She felt her heartbeat gradually slow. As the ocean floor ascended to meet them, her breathing grew steadily calmer. Finally, he motioned for her to stand.
    Ellie ripped off her mask.
    “Tera firma. Thank goodness.”
    The man looked pleased. “Welcome back.” He pulled off his own gear. His wavy, dark brown hair glistened. Ellie noticed for the first time his thick, smooth chest and bulging biceps.
    She rubbed the tension out of one shoulder at a time. “I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t been there. I totally panicked.”
    “Was this your first time out?” He bent to remove his fins.
    “I was in a class.”
    “An invisible class?” He squinted at the ocean. “I didn’t see anyone out there with you.”
    Ellie had trouble removing her eyes from her intriguing savior. But she finally shaded them and scanned the horizon. “Over there. By the rocks. I think that’s them.” She smoothed her hair, preparing to put her mask back on.
    The man shook his head derisively. “You’ve got a lousy instructor if he hasn’t noticed you’re gone. You should get out and rest. You had quite a scare.”
    Ellie tugged with elaborate nonchalance at a string of seaweed tangled in some strands of hair. Her