Once Upon an Island

Declan isn’t amused. He lifts an eyebrow and then his eyes drift down to my breasts. He moves them quickly back up, almost like he’s appalled that he even looked and he’s hoping I didn’t notice.

But I did.

“Not those coconuts,” I say.

He looks away, but not before I catch him trying to restrain a smile.

Ha.

“Let’s have a quick peek around then head back,” I say.

“Fine with me,” Declan agrees.

I head toward the little path through the foliage that I spied from the water.

“I heard there’s a little stone gazebo at the middle of the island where you can have a picnic,” I say, leading the way. The path was cut back recently, and it seems well-maintained. It’s sandy, with short grass, and coral rocks lining the edges. The shade of the trees is welcome, and the farther we walk in, the more the air fills with a soft leafy smell.

The breeze has picked up and is shifting to a stiff wind. My hair blows across my face and I push it aside. The leaves rattle. I look up, but the little patch of sky that I can see through the trees is still blue. I rub my arms. The wind has a bit of a cold bite.

“Shouldn’t be much farther.”

“Right,” Declan says.

His voice is nearer than I expected.

I look back, I didn’t realize he was walking so close to me. He could easily reach out and touch my back.

When I turn back around, I see the stone gazebo. It’s in a little clearing, with pink flowering bushes and little white flowers on vines. It smells like honey.

I walk to it and step under the roof of the structure. It’s all stone. There’s a little stone table with two benches in the center. The whole thing is about ten feet in circumference.

“Well, that’s it, I guess,” I say, spinning in a slow circle to see everything. It’s charming.

Declan looks up at the roof and then around the clearing. Then he nods back at the path. “Have you done everything you need for your article?” he says in an impatient tone.

I wrinkle my brow. What’s he talking about? Then I remember. I told him I’m writing an article about this little island.

“Absolutely, I’m all set,” I say. “Have you seen everything you need to see?”

He looks around one more time. “I believe I have everything I need to come to a decision.”

“Really?” I say in surprise.

Maybe this little trip convinced him to buy the last property. Kate will be happy.

“So, what did you decide?” I ask. Then I realize that’s probably too personal of a question. I’m about to take it back but Declan answers before I can.

He shrugs. “It doesn’t offer anything I haven’t already seen. It may appeal to some, but to me, it doesn’t hold any enticement. It’s shallow…” He pauses and stares at me. “I prefer deeper water.”

Holy unbelievable. He’s talking about me.

He’s insulting me. Again.

I narrow my eyes, then I decide to relax. Because, honestly, it doesn’t matter. I’m not trying to impress him. He doesn’t know me, and I don’t need to prove my worth to him. If he is so quick to judge then that’s his problem.

“Your loss,” I say.

Then I step off the gazebo. Right when I do, a bolt of lightning flashes across the sky and hits a palm tree down the path. The thunder that follows is a deafening crack.

I let out a sharp shriek and jump back under the gazebo.

As soon as I do, a torrential downpour begins.

Crap. Crappity crap. This must be the “bit of weather” that Jimmy mentioned this morning. This was why the breeze turned to a stiff wind – a storm was blowing in.

The rain pelts against the roof of the gazebo and the leaves of the trees. It’s loud and coming at us at a slant. Even under the gazebo I’m getting wet.

I glance over at Declan. He’s looking at me like the storm is my fault, or even worse, a part of my nefarious “plan.”

“We’ll have to wait,” I yell over the deluge.

“How long?” he yells back.

I shake my head. “Fifteen minutes? Thirty?” It’s hard to know, but usually late afternoon showers like this come quickly and then disappear just as suddenly.

I sit down on the stone bench and Declan sits across from me. We both stare out at the rain, agreeing silently on a temporary truce.

“I can’t wait to get out of here,” I say.

“Likewise.”

I smile at him and he lifts an eyebrow in question. “What?” he asks.

“We finally agree on something.”

“We agree on other things,” he says.

“Like what?”

His eyes drift over my mouth. They’re so intent that I lick my lips in reflex.

He doesn’t answer my question. Instead he turns back to the rainstorm and waits for it to end.

Ugh.

I wrap my arms around myself, the rain is chilly and goosebumps form on my arms.

This storm better end soon. I can’t even imagine what would happen if it lasted all night.

Nope. Not going there.

There’s no way it’ll last all night.