The hardest part was to get off the dinghy and on to the boat. Once she had managed Erin
uncovered the mainsail, fastened the sheet and went to the mast to hoist the sail.
Gibbs had backed the zodiac up a little and watched her work. She was fast and efficient,
determined to do what ever necessary to complete her task. She reminded him of him at work.
He was just that way when working on a case.
Erin had set the mainsail. The big sail area seemed to push the boat towards the cliffs even
faster. But then the boat picked up speed and started to respond to the rudder.
When Erin realized she would make it past the rocks, she looked where Gibbs was for the first
time since she'd got on board the 'Spirit'.
He was heading back to the 'Morning Glory'.
"Fine. He can't help me here anyway," she thought.
She knew there was no way she could sail the vessel back into the harbour. And she couldn't
start the engines either, because she had no key for the hatch and no ignition key.
So she would just sail way out into the bay, steer free of all land and wait until the wind eased
off enough to go back to the marina.
She settled for a long, cold night. She was soaking wet, and now that the adrenalin rush was
over started to freeze. But so what. She felt great. It was her, the boat, the wind and the sea.
When she heard a sound that didn't come from the wind or the sails she turned around and
saw a motor yacht approaching. It turned about in a save distance and she saw two men enter
a dinghy and steer in her direction. They had a pretty bumpy ride.
"Those guys must be insane," she thought.
When they came closer, she could see Gibbs sitting in the bow of the small vessel, holding on
for dear life. The guy who was handling the dinghy was a master of his craft. He managed to
get close enough for Gibbs to grab the railing and pull himself on board.
When he came aft to the cockpit, Erin shook her head.
"And you tell me, I'm crazy!"
"Well, seems like we make a perfect team! I got the keys."
He unlocked the hatch and went inside. After a few seconds he came back out.
"Think we can motor her in?"
"Yeah, should work."
Gibbs started the engine. Erin pointed the boat's nose in the wind and he took down the sail
and tied it to the boom. Then he came back into the cockpit, stood beside Erin, put one arm
around her and pulled her close.
"I'm glad I don't have to kill you!" He spoke over her head.
She laughed.
"So am I!"
"You are really having a good time, are you?"
"Yeah, sure. Aren't you too?"
Gibbs released her and took one step away to look at her.
"I might not have the chance to tell you once we're back, 'cause the folks there are going to
celebrate their new hero, so I'm telling you now: You are the bravest, nuttiest and most
amazing woman I've ever known."
Erin gave him a short glance.
"I take that as a compliment."
Gibbs stepped out of the cockpit to check the dock line. He stopped and turned to Erin.
"It is!"
With that he went to the bow to get everything ready for when they reached the harbour.
"Yeah," Erin thought, "I definitely feel good!"
When they had entered the port many people were there to help them secure the 'Spirit' in her
berth.
As soon as Gibbs and Erin had stepped off the boat they were surrounded by a cheering
crowd.
Erin didn't like being in the centre of attention and was glad it still rained pretty hard and
everybody wanted to find a dry place soon.
The last two people who stayed were the couple who owned the 'Spirit'.
They waited for Erin and Gibbs in front of the 'Morning Glory'.
"Hi, I'm Tom Jones and this is my wife Harriet. There's no way we can ever thank you
enough for what you did!"
Harriet gave Erin a big hug.
"Tom's grandfather had the boat built, and it's always been in his family. He would have been
heartbroken if we'd lost her."
Erin felt a little uncomfortable.
"I'm glad, we could help. Just were at the right place at the right time."
"I guess it's been a little more than that," Tom threw in. "There were quite a few people here
and you were the only ones brave or crazy enough to try that!"
He turned to Gibbs.
"You must be awfully proud of your wife, Sir."
Much to Erin's surprise, Gibbs didn't correct him but answered:
"You bet I am. She's one in a million."
She felt his gaze on her and blushed. Tom saved her.
"You're not by chance looking for a job?"
"What kind of job?" Gibbs inquired.
"We have to move to Denver for three years. I got an assignment there. We'd need someone
to look after the 'Spirit'."
Erin looked at Gibbs. That sounded too good.
Gibbs thought about it for a while and then arranged for the Jones' to visit them on the
'Morning Glory' the next afternoon to discuss details.
"We really have to go shower and change into dry clothes now," he said apologetically.
"Yes of course. We should have thought about that!"
They said good-bye and Erin and Gibbs collected what they needed and went to the club-
house. Erin still thought about what Gibbs had said when Mr Jones had talked about her as his, Gibbs,
wife. It made her proud, it felt good. And it unsettled and scared her at the same time.
When they arrived back on the boat, it had stopped to rain and the first indication of dawn was
showing. The wind was still blowing hard, even though the worst seemed to be over.
Erin sat on the berth beside the navigation table and watched as Gibbs cooked up some fresh
coffee. Now that she was warm and dry again, she realized how tired she was. It just didn't
seem right to retire to her cabin after their shared adventure.
Gibbs sat down shoulder to shoulder with her and handed her a mug.
"Are you still cold?"
"No, I'm fine, thanks."
They sat in comfortable silence for a while.
"What do you think about that job Mr Jones offered?" Gibbs voiced his thoughts.
"Sounds good to me." Erin stared at her mug.
"Yeah. You could take my truck to get here."
She didn't answer and Gibbs felt that she was back to being the way he'd known her before
the rescue-mission. He placed his mug on the table.
Moving slowly he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close.
"Hey, where is the self-confident dare-devil woman I was with tonight?"
He gently rubbed her arm.
"I don't know. Out on the bay, maybe."
Gibbs placed a kiss on her hair. Even her whisper had sounded sad. He took her mug and set it
on the table as well.
"Maybe we should go out tomorrow and see if we can find her for you?"
Tbc
( You review - I write!)