Escape (Billionaire Island)

“True enough.”

“So let’s go.” I grab his hand.

It’s warm in mine.

And it feels nice. Really nice.

6

Scotty

I’m not the kind of guy who wears his heart on his sleeve, or even believes in any of that mushy stuff, but damn… Em’s hand in mine shoots a spark through me that I feel all the way to my toes. And specifically in one other place that’s become pretty darned attentive at the moment.

“If you love the sunset from your lanai,” I say, “you won’t believe how gorgeous it is out here when we’re walking on the beach.”

Em looks to the west, where the sun is just getting ready to meet the horizon. “Tangerine. Sort of. With an element of fuchsia. How can the sun be a different color here?”

“Because there isn’t any smog to take away from its beauty.”

“I suppose, but I’ve been to Hawaii before. Sorry, but this is different.”

“Parts of Hawaii are pretty industrialized,” I tell her. “Honolulu, for example, and Hilo on the Big Island. Sure, you can probably see things a lot better than you can in LA, but this island is in a category of its own.”

She sighs. “It sure is. When I see beauty like this…”

“What?”

“Oh, nothing.”

“Come on. Tell me. This is a walk on the gorgeous beach at sunset. Almost a prerequisite to share your feelings.”

She looks toward the west once more. “I almost feel like this place can absorb all the negativity in the world, you know? Like nothing bad can ever happen here.”

I squeeze her hand. Clearly she doesn’t know the history of this island. The Wolfe family covered it up as best they could, but some of us still got wind of it when we got here to begin work. I’m not going to be the one to shatter Em’s illusions. No reason at all to tell her this island used to be a private resort where men could pay to hunt women as if they were prey. Where women were abducted and held captive and subjected to the sadistic fantasies of sociopathic multi-millionaires.

I say only, “It’s a gorgeous place, for sure.”

“It almost makes me feel…”

“…safe?” I finish for her.

She turns to me, her eyes troubled. “Yes, safe. But I mean that in a purely hypothetical way.”

Sure, she does. I don’t want to push, but I desperately want to know what Em’s hiding. I want to help her, which is odd, as I barely know her. What is she running from? And why? Who would want to hurt this angel?

“Tell me something about yourself,” I say. “Something no one else knows.”

She wrinkles her brow. “Like what?”

“I don’t know. I’m not asking for any deep, dark secret. Just something no one else knows about you. It can be a freckle on your ass, for all I care.”

She rolls her eyes. “My ass is free from freckles, thanks.”

“Something else, then.”

She nods. “How about this? You go first, since this is your idea.”

I inhale. “All right. I once had a threesome.”

She laughs. “Only once?”

I stop walking. “Yeah, only once. Not exactly the reaction I expected.”

“Most lotharios like you have had a few threesomes. It’s the island mentality, right? Island time and all that?”

“First…lothario?”

“It means womanizer.”

“I know what it means. Not a dumbass beach bum, remember? I just didn’t realize we were in the nineteenth century. Also, it implies that I’m selfish in my seduction of women. I can assure you that isn’t the case.”

“Oh. I didn’t mean to imply—”

“Actually, you did. You absolutely meant to imply that I’m some kind of ruthless seducer of women who cares only for his own pleasure. I guarantee you both the women in my threesome were well taken care of.”

She’s quiet for a moment, and she releases my hand. “I’m screwing this up, aren’t I?”

I grab her hand again. “I think you deserve another chance.”

“You’re serious, then?”

“About only having one threesome? Of course.”

“No, I mean you’re serious that no one else knows you had the threesome? Because there are at least two others who know.”

I can’t help a laugh. “You’re right. I did bend the rules. The two women know, but no one else does, at least not from me. I don’t kiss and tell, despite what you may think about lotharios like me.”

She looks down at the sand. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

“No, you shouldn’t have. Look. I like women. I like sex. I’m not ashamed of that.”

“I never said you should be.”

“I suppose you didn’t. Now, you owe me a response. Tell me something no one knows about you. Or no more than two people, I guess.” I smiled.

She pauses a moment. Then, “No one knows I’m here.”

“Here on the beach?”

“Here. On the island.”

“Not true,” I say. “I know you’re here. Everyone else on the island knows you’re here.”

“I mean—”

I touch my finger to her lips. “Shh. I know what you mean. I know you’re running, Em.”