The trip there and back would make it late afternoon before he got around to replacing it, however long that would take. He’d want to be on his way home by then.
But there was no hurry. Living without electricity in her room wasn’t so bad. She recalled a small hotel, early in her career, in the Scottish Highlands. After a record-breaking gale, the entire region had lost electricity for three days straight. Unfortunately, the water heater had needed electricity in order to function, and cold showers in the midst of winter had emptied the hotel in a hurry. At least here, she still had hot water.
“No problem,” she said, smiling at Bear. “Whenever you can get to it is going to be fine.”
Bear nodded with finality. “Tomorrow.” He pocketed the screwdriver and went to his tool bag. With a gentleness that belied his powerful grip, he slipped his thick fingers underneath Mojo, and picked him up, his huge hands like a hammock for the little cat.
Maris held out her arms for the fluffy creature, which Bear slowly transferred to her. Mojo’s eyes never even opened.
Quietly, Bear put the screwdriver away and closed the top of the bag. “Tomorrow,” he whispered, before tiptoeing to the door.
Though Maris would never had guessed that work boots could be so quiet, he somehow managed to be almost silent. “See you tomorrow,” she whispered back.
20
As Bear exited through the front door, Lydia and Ralph passed him coming in. Despite the fact that he was still tip-toeing, or maybe because of it, they gave him a wide berth and looked after him as he left.
When Lydia turned back, she saw Maris. “Oh good, we were hoping to catch you.”
Both wore shorts and tank tops, carried backpacks, and looked tanned and relaxed. Suddenly, Maris thought of the fuse. “Why, did the electricity go off in your rooms?”
“No,” Lydia said, and glanced at Ralph.
“Everything’s fine in my room,” he said.
“Oh,” Maris said, relieved. At that moment, Mojo decided to wake up, stretch, and squirm to be put down—and Maris obliged him. “Then what is it that I can do for you?”
“Actually,” Lydia said. “It’s a perfect afternoon for paddleboarding. The wind’s just died down. So we were wondering if you’d like to come along?”
“It really is fun,” Ralph added. “You’re going to like it.”
Although Maris could think of a hundred things that needed to be done for the B&B, it wasn’t the to-do list that gave her pause. It was the fact that she probably didn’t own a bathing suit that fit any more. Even if she did, it was the last thing she’d want to be seen in.
Lydia saw her hesitation. “No gear necessary.” She looked down at herself. “We’re wearing what we’ve got on.” She looked down at Ralph’s hiking boots. “But I’m going to change into flip flops.”
“Me too,” Ralph said, nodding.
After the big lunch, it might be good to get some exercise. She knew she had shorts that fit. Hopefully they wouldn’t be too unflattering. “All right,” she said. “Should I meet you down at the pier behind the lighthouse?”
“Perfect,” Lydia said, as she and Ralph headed to the stairs. “See you in a few.”
“SAFETY FIRST,” Lydia said. “This is your life vest.”
Maris took what looked like a fanny pack from her. “This?” She held it up by one end. “A life vest?”
As Ralph strapped his on around his waist, the thick part in front, Lydia said, “It’s a personal flotation device. You wear it like a belt, and pull the orange tab to inflate it.”
Maris looped the belt around the outside of her tank top. As Lydia had suggested, she also wore flip flops, as well as a pair of—thankfully—baggy shorts. She clicked the buckle of the life vest together.
“If you land in the drink,” Lydia explained, “and you pull the tab, an actual life vest pops out and is automatically inflated. You can put it on or cling to it.” She patted her own belt. “These are great for kayaking and paddleboarding since they’re not in the way.”
Ralph crouched down at the edge of the pier, next to one of the paddleboards that were already in the water. They looked like really thick surfboards, though wider, and were grey with a fluorescent yellow trim.
As Maris watched, Ralph slowly moved sideways, almost on hands and knees, from the low dock onto the floating platform. Once aboard, he knelt and waited. He’d made it look so easy.
“Right,” Lydia said. She gave him a wink. “I’m going to hire you as an assistant.” She turned back to Maris. “Now we’ll do the same.” She pointed to a spot on the wood platform, next to another paddleboard. “Crouch down here. I’m going to hold the board.”
“Okay,” Maris said.
“There’s no hurry,” Lydia told her. “So take your time. These are all purpose paddleboards, extremely stable and quite unsinkable. It’s like climbing onto a small boat.”
Maris thought of the times she’d been aboard Slick’s boat. She could expect it to move. But as she’d seen Ralph demonstrate, she crouched down, put one hand on the dock, and one on the board, along with one foot. With a wobble and moving a bit too fast, she moved sideways onto the board and knelt. Luckily, Lydia grabbed her arm to keep her from toppling over with the momentum.
“Good,” Lydia said, “you’re aboard. That’s the hardest part right there.”
Maris exhaled as Lydia let her go. “Good to know.”
Though her board drifted a little, the movement was so smooth that she had that strange moment of dislocation when she couldn’t tell if it was her moving, or the dock.
Lydia easily got onto her board. “Second safety measure,” she said, twisting to reach behind her. She took a velcro strap attached to a coiled rubber rope. “This is called a leash. Put the velcro around your ankle. It’ll keep the board with you, in case you fall in.”
Maris noted that Ralph already had his
