She turned, pulling a face at him. And then the unthinkable happened, and a wave crashed into her back, knocking her off balance. Sudden panic gripped Drew’s heart and he waded into the water.
‘All right...’ She was thrashing around, trying to regain her footing. ‘I can manage.’
She couldn’t. She splashed around a bit more, buffeted by the tide and weighed down by the heavy suit, and finally she stopped fighting him and accepted his help. Drew marched her out of the water, trying to quell his anger.
‘I was just getting what I wanted, Drew.’ She brandished the underwater camera that Jake had lent her from the diving centre, and for a moment Drew cursed Jake for being so accommodating.
‘What was so important that you had to go into the water anyway?’
‘Those little crabs that we saw the other day. I was thinking about the way they scatter and react, and I wanted to see if I could work out a pattern.’
‘And you couldn’t wait one second longer and ask me to go with you? You know how strong the tide is on this beach, and there’s a riptide further along here...’ The mere thought made him feel sick.
‘Yes, you told me about that last week. It’s fine here, the tide was a little stronger than I’d thought, but I was managing.’
‘Managing isn’t good enough. You know that.’
He needed to calm down. If he could just get off the beach, then maybe the feeling of nauseous panic at the risk that Caro had taken might subside a bit, and he could reason with her. Drew turned, walking back up the steps to the house, and he heard the swish of the drysuit as she followed him.
Caro marched into the bathroom, leaving a trail of water behind her and slamming the door. Drew’s overnight bag was in the bedroom and he grabbed a set of dry clothes from it, bundling the wet ones into a ball and shoving them back into the bag.
Yes, he was overreacting. And, no, he wasn’t going to apologise for it. He of all people should know the dangers. And Caro knew why he couldn’t compromise on safety and had always accepted that.
She was in the bathroom for a long time. Drew suspected that she was spending most of it cursing him. It would probably be best to wait and talk about this when they were both a bit calmer.
A bit calmer wasn’t going to happen any time soon. Drew told himself that this was just a matter of her safety. That was of primary importance, but he knew that it was more than that. Their increasing intimacy was as challenging to Caro as it was to him. And they were both reacting in the only ways they knew how.
She made coffee in silence. They sat in silence to drink it and finally she got to her feet, making for the door that led to her workshop.
‘Don’t, Caro...’ If she disappeared in there, she’d be lost to him until this evening at least. He’d be cooling his heels, rehearsing all of the things he needed to say to her, and that wasn’t going to make things any better.
‘What, then? Drew, you’re not in charge of what I do.’
‘No, but I’m asking you to come back here and sit down.’
She did it, but not without a sulky quirk of her lips. Drew ignored it and tried to organise his thoughts a little. Maybe see things her way.
‘Caro, I know that your work is important to you. It’s been your home and your companion when you didn’t have anyone. But I can’t watch you put yourself at risk like this.’
She thought for a moment. ‘Going out on my own was a stupid thing to do, I’ll admit that. But I didn’t mean to take risks. I just...got an idea and...you know how it is, Drew. I don’t think about anything else.’
‘What I see is that you don’t trust me. I get too close, and suddenly you’re hiding behind your work. It’s all-consuming, Caro, and I can’t just stand aside and watch you working every hour of the day and night just to protect yourself from me.’
Drew shook his head. He’d thought that if they talked about this rationally, they’d find some solution. But all he’d done was convince himself that it would never work between them.
‘I’m not sure I know how to do things differently.’ Her eyes softened suddenly. ‘I’m not very good at trusting people.’
‘I know that, and I understand. But you have to understand how I feel.’
‘Yes. I do.’
And that wasn’t going to make any difference. He could never change Caro, and he didn’t want to. He didn’t know how to change himself either.
They stared at each other for a long time. When a tear ran down her cheek it almost broke him.
‘I’m going to go.’ Perhaps she’d say something that would allow him to stay. Give in just a little. But he knew she couldn’t.
‘You must do whatever you need to do, Drew. I won’t ask you to stay.’