We watched as one of the crew members donned flippers, took off his shirt, and dived into the water. He emerged next to the woman and asked where she thought she’d lost it. She pointed to the area where they’d been snorkelling, which was close to the atoll wall and probably not very deep. Then he took a big breath and went under the water. Josh and I shared a look, then put our masks on so we could watch the rescue mission unfold.

The crew member swam around close to the ocean floor, and it looked like he was being careful not to upset the sand as he searched. He didn’t have any breathing gear—he was free-diving—so he had to come up for breath a few times. The woman and her new husband, meanwhile, had re-boarded the boat. She looked like she’d gone into shock, and another crew member wrapped a towel around her as she sat sobbing inconsolably on the deck.

It was all very dramatic, and that’s coming from me.

The diver came up for air a fourth time and he must have spotted the ring, because then he swam directly to something, picked it up, then swam to the surface and held up the ring. By this time, most people from the boat were watching—some from the deck and some bobbing in the water like us—and there was a round of cheers and applause.

The bride got to her feet, tears hastily wiped away, and jumped up and down squealing with delight. She grinned at her obviously relieved husband. The crew member climbed on board, slipped off his flippers, and presented her with the ring. She put it on her finger before throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she said. When she released him, still grinning, he seemed a little embarrassed by all the attention.

That was when the skipper called out over the loudspeaker, “Now the entertainment is over, folks, lunch is served. We have a wonderful buffet for you on the deck. Soft drinks are included, and alcohol is available for purchase at the bar.”

“Should we go up?” asked Josh.

“Yep. I’ll follow.” I swam behind him to the boat where we queued to climb aboard. Crew members were collecting and rinsing our snorkels, masks, and fins, ready for us to use again when we got to the turtle-watching spot later in the day.

We made our way over to where we’d left our stuff and I retrieved our beach towels from my bag. I wanted to dry off and put something on over my bikini, because the sun was high in the sky and I didn’t want to get burnt. “Seen Siobhan?” I asked Josh.

He shook his head and ran a towel over his hair. “I saw her in the water earlier, but I didn’t see her when the ring was being rescued.”

“Fancy wearing an expensive diamond ring into the ocean,” I scoffed.