Learning to Love (New Zealand Sailing #1)

Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

Ellie

By the time Saturday morning comes around, I haven’t seen him for a few days, but it feels like an eternity. The more he goes away, the more I miss him. I guess that’s the curse of the one left behind. He goes away on his adventures at sea, and I always stay back. Life goes on as usual. Daisy, Tayla, my job at daycare. Gardening. Maybe a movie. Sometimes a catch up with other friends from uni.

In school I learned about the myth of Odysseus and Penelope, and how she weaved when he was away, and I thought to myself, how ridiculous, why would she wait for him. Now I can see the answer why is LOVE . Penelope loved Odysseus so much, she waited for him. I wonder if I’m strong enough to do the same.

I’ve kept our relationship quiet so far, Tayla is the only one in my tight knit circle who knows I’m dating Sam. The press would have a field day, as they try to find out every single thing about me. Sam’s not a Hollywood celebrity, but he is recognisable, so I insisted we’re as discreet as possible. He’s not fussed either way, which came as a surprise to me.

I haven’t even told my parents yet that I’m seeing somebody. It’s only been a couple of months, but with Christmas in a few weeks, I’m curious what will happen. Will Sam visit his family, and I’ll visit mine, and then we’ll see each other at New Year’s?

Sam told me to get ready for a hike and swim today, so I’m wearing a two piece swimsuit under shorts, a tank top, sneakers, and a whole heap of sunscreen. I have no inkling of where he wants to take us today. Tayla thinks it’s one of the West Coast beaches, with their wild untamed beauty. Unfortunately the area is off limits for dogs due to the native birds setting up nests there, so my sweet Daisy stays behind today.

Sam’s car pulls up into our driveway, and I slip away, before Daisy wakes up the whole neighbourhood. I get into his car, drop my backpack, and lean in for a kiss. In a second our kiss deepens, and it feels like his hands touch as much of me as they can. I’ve missed him so much. I sigh, and lean back in my seat.

“I missed you.” He takes hold of my hand.

“I missed you too. Glad to see your hand is better”. I trail kisses on his hand, and calloused palm. “Where are we going today?”

He takes off his sunglasses and looks at me with the heat of a thousand suns. That smile of his just lights up my day.

“You’ll have to wait and see”.

We’re on our way, and I take the time to really look at him. He’s still the same Sam, scruffy cropped auburn hair, and a five o’clock face stubble. He’s dressed all in black, shorts, t-shirt, cap and sneakers. We haven’t talked about what happened with Corey since that disastrous dinner on Wednesday, and I know they went sailing together on Thursday and Friday while the boat was being fixed.

“How’s Corey?” I find myself giving voice to my thoughts. I place a hand on Sam’s leg, as if to remind myself that I’m indeed not jealous of the guy who’s known him for longer, and spends much more time with him. Oh, and hates my guts, for some reason or another.

“He’s well. Had a good time training for the Olympics together. No news really”.

Sam’s even delivery as always, makes me question what’s behind this. Did they reach a truce? Did Corey succeed in changing his mind, making him care less? I don’t detect any change in his demeanor towards me, so I guess it’s good news for me. I don’t want to battle with Corey. He’s such a big part of Sam’s life, we need to get on, if we are going to make this work. I file away for later to think about how to get closer to Corey.

I notice Sam starts the journey out West. Tayla was right, I bet she’ll be very pleased when she finds out.

We make small talk about my work, his team, what the weather has in store for us, then he makes a sharp turn down an unsealed road.

“Gosh, thank goodness we’re in your car. My car wouldn’t have made it one kilometre down this road”, I joke as pebbles and dust rise around us, and visibility is limited.

Sam looks so calm and collected, like he's gliding on water. We reach the end of the road, and I see a walkway through the native rainforest. Large ferns, Cabbage trees and giant Kauri trees over 50m tall, loom over us.

We grab our backpacks, and leave the car behind. This trail is unfamiliar to me, but I don't feel any fear walking by Sam's side. As we walk, we listen out for bird calls local to New Zealand. It's cool but humid under the vast canopy, and we keep walking on through the dense tropical forested area.

Sam moves with ease, his long limbs stepping over rocks and logs. I struggle a bit, but his steadying hand is always there to help me.

We stop a few times and take a few selfies.

“I want to put a photo of you on my Instagram”. His face is unreadable. His new determination to create memories together surprises me, but also makes me feel cherished.

“Are you sure it's a good idea? People will talk.”

He shows me his phone. “Pick a photo. Or how many you want”.

I scroll through the photos and choose one of both of us, walking side by side through the rainforest, and grinning ear to ear.

“Post this one. If anyone asks, you can say I'm your personal trainer”.

He laughs so much I think he'll explode. I'm much shorter than he is, and definitely not a fitness icon. My Instagram account is mainly photos of Daisy, my garden, and landscapes. I have a total of 15 followers, and that's counting Tayla. “Nah, you're alright”.

He posts the photo of us on his personal account, and though I'm dying of curiosity, I'll wait until later to see what mayhem he's unleashed. With some luck, it will be glossed over. After all, people shouldn't be interested in his love life, they should care about his sailing performance, right?

Keeping my fingers crossed around my back for that one, we push onwards hand in hand, until I can hear a distant sound.

“A waterfall!” I'm giddy with excitement. “I love waterfalls so much. How did you know?”

He looks very pleased. “I had no idea, just thought it would be a good place I could take you”.

Another five minutes' walk, and we've reached the base of the waterfall. I'm speechless. It's one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen in my life. Water cascades through three ledges and plunges into a clear blue pool below. Drops of water shimmer like jewels in the sun. I try to take a couple of photos but I can't do it justice.

Sam puts his hand on my back and I turn to face him. We share hungry kisses, and he lifts me onto a grass slope. We drop out backpacks with a thud on the ground, and our hands explore each other. One of his hands has a firm grip on my ass, while the other hand does wicked things to my breast. I can feel his hardness through his shorts and I know he's burning for me. The idea that this is a public place, that there could be other walkers, makes me want him even more than I thought possible.

Sam pushes down my shorts and swimming briefs, pulls down his own shorts, slides inside me with a moan, and starts moving with urgency. I've missed the feeling of him so much. It's like an emptiness only he can fill. His whole body is tensing up, and he comes deep inside me.

We hear some voices in the distance, and he gently takes me down off the grassy slope, pulls his clothes up, helps me lift my clothes, we grab our backpacks and slip away unnoticed.

“I have something else to show you”. Sam takes my hand, and leads me on a different path to the one we came on.

“Oh, you've shown me plenty”. My double meaning makes him laugh. He likes feeling wanted, my Sam.

The vegetation seems more sparse now, and I can see sand creeping in between the trees, and hear waves crashing in the background. He's taking me to the beach for a swim.

Sam

I didn't know how I'd feel seeing Ellie again after that shocker of a dinner on Wednesday night. I wasn't prepared for the strength of my feelings for her. I've never believed that absence makes the heart grow fonder, on the contrary. I think it dulls feelings, emotions. Or used to think that until I met, and fell hard for Ellie.

It's scary how one day you're your own person, and what feels like the next day, your whole world revolves around another individual. I absorb all her gestures, little smiles and touches. I still can't read her body language well, but with her I'm the closest I've ever been to succeeding.

I could tell she was surprised by my Instagram idea. I only hope I'm not throwing her to the wolves. I'm going to protect her as much as I can.

Now we walk hand in hand on the black sand beach, waves thundering in the distance, and no lifeguard in sight. Many people avoid West coast beaches because they're notoriously wild. Adrenaline junkies like me love them because of it.

I brought Ellie here because it's a part of me, one that she doesn't get to see, reckless, wild and carefree. I set down my backpack, take out a towel, take off my shoes and shirt, and leave my cap and sunglasses behind. Ellie takes off her clothes, leaving only her two piece swimsuit on. She's small but curvy in all the right places. I smack her ass playfully.

“Last one in the water is a loser”. I start sprinting, and she's trailing behind me, laughing. I win of course, and crash into a wave, letting out a cheer. I surface, and I'm instantly alarmed. Ellie is in what looks like a calm spot, moving constantly further away from me. She's in danger.

“Ellie, darling, don't panic, ok. You're in a rip now. Just relax and try to float. Once you're out of the rip, you can swim sideways, towards me”. I hope my voice is soothing enough, because inside I'm screaming.

I can see the fear gathering in her eyes as she can't put her feet down on the seafloor, and she starts to panic.

“I'm scared, Sam. Help me”. Her plea rips me to shreds. I know if we go together in the rip, there's no guarantee we'll make it. I look around frantically for a lifeguard but see no one.

A wave washes over her, and she's under.

“Ellie” I scream and dive in, through the rip, to where she was just a second earlier. I lift her up, and work hard to keep us both afloat, as the rip carries us out towards the deep. I know it's only a couple of minutes but it feels like hours. I draw upon my training in yachting, capsizing, mindfulness, and everything else I can think of to stay strong, and get her to shore. The rip eases, and with great effort I swim sideways towards the shore.

We both collapse on the sand, and spend several moments trying to get our breath back, chests heaving. As soon as I'm able, I get up and look at Ellie. Will I have to call an ambulance? She looks at me with her soft brown eyes and grabs my hand.

“You've saved my life, Sam. Oh my. Out there, I thought it was the end”.

This is all too much. I stand up and walk away, as the unfamiliar feeling of tears burns my eyes. This time, I saved her. What if I lost Ellie, like I lost Thea? Ellie wraps her arms around me. I hug her tightly, like I don't want to ever let go.

“I love you”. The words left my lips before my brain could process anything, but it feels right. I look deep into her eyes.

“I love you too”. Just four words from her, and I'm ready to move mountains.

“Shall we go back? I'm cold”. Her teeth are chattering. I kiss her again, we towel down, get dressed and start walking back, slower this time, past the massive Kauri trees, past the waterfall where we made love, and past the places where we took photos.

It's close to lunchtime, and I'm starting to think about the rest of the day. Driving back towards the Shore, I get an idea.

“Sweets, why don't I drive you home, you pick up some clothes and Daisy, and come to mine for the rest of today and tomorrow? I can drop you off home Sunday night.” I need more of her, and we're both shaken after she nearly drowned.

“I thought you'd never ask. Your house doesn't smell enough of dog yet”, she quips. We both laugh, and all the tension and fear we'd accumulated pops like a balloon. Realising we'd been driving in silence, I put some music on the radio, and she checks her phone.