“I just don’t want to get my dress dirty, in case…” Her voice trails off.
“In case they waited for you.” My heart aches for her, for the trouble she’s had and for what she’s missed out on.
“Stupid,
right?”
“No. It’s always good to hold onto hope. Let’s see if we can keep that dress clean.” I let go of her hand and step toward her, then pick her up under her knees and carry her to the helicopter. Paige gasps a little, then she wraps her arms around my neck and sinks into my chest. The feeling of holding her like this is like nothing I’ve felt before. It just feels…right.
When we get back inside, it takes me a minute to collect my thoughts. My cock is aching to be inside her and I have to tell myself to calm down because that is never going to happen. She’s my client. Nothing more. Plus, she’s way too young for me.
I dig around in my bag and pull out a clean t-shirt. “Here, in case you want to change for bed.”
Paige takes it from me, her fingertips brushing against my hand. “Thank you, Mr. Gamble. I think I will.”
“Call me Mac, okay?” I turn around to face the outside window.
“Okay. No peeking, Mac.”
“It’s so dark, I doubt I’d see anything anyway.”
“As if. I’m pretty sure you have some type of super x-ray man vision to see naked breasts even in the pitch dark.”
“I wish.” I plant my hands on my hips, trying not to think about her naked breasts because just the mention of it makes me hard as a rock.
I listen to the rustling sound her dress makes and then after a couple of minutes, she says, “Okay. It’s safe to turn around.”
When I do, I see she’s tucked in her bed with her blanket up to her neck. Damn. For a brief moment, I hoped she’d be on top of the covers in nothing but my t-shirt. Or better yet, nothing at all.
I climb into my bed and turn to face her.
“Good night, Paige.”
“Good night, Mac.”
She closes her eyes and I lay wide awake for a few minutes, just watching her. Then, suddenly, she says, “Mac?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you think they went ahead with the wedding without me?”
“No. I’m sure they got straight to work trying to find you.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” There is nothing convincing about the way she says that and it makes my heart hurt for her.
Soon, she drops off to sleep and I close my eyes. I can still smell her from when I was carrying her, and there’s never been a scent that pleased me as much as hers. I’m in deep trouble here, because after only a day, I’m feeling all kinds of things that I shouldn’t be, and who the hell knows how many days we’ll be alone together…
Chapter 5
Paige
When I wake, the sun is high in the sky and the air is stifling hot. I yawn and stretch before I realize I must have kicked my covers off sometime in the night. I yank them up around me, feeling totally exposed. I turn toward Mac, but he’s gone. Standing up, I look out the window, expecting to see him nearby, but he’s not there. I dress quickly, throwing on my bra, my flip flops and yesterday’s pants, then climb down to find Mac. I walk up and down the beach, calling his name, but there’s no sign of him anywhere.
After a few minutes, I start to worry. Where would he have gone? What if he walked to the other side of the island and found a resort or something and decided to leave me behind? I call out his name a few more times, feeling panic rising in my throat. Without him, I have nothing to eat. It suddenly occurs to me that I’m depending on him for everything, which is not something I ever do.
I don’t rely on anyone, let alone some stranger, no matter how hot he is. I jog back to the helicopter and grab my phone, realizing that I didn’t even try to get reception yesterday. It’s almost dead, and there’s no signal, but I hold it up and walk along the beach, searching for higher ground. If I can get a signal, I’ll call 911 and they can trace my location.
“Come on, come on…”