Page 24 of Lost Paradise

“We need to find a way to open them,” I suggest, and Jack produces a pocket knife and his zippo lighter.

I have no idea how he got through security with those.

“Can you produce a magic wand from your pocket and get us out of here?” Eve asks him, and he grins at her but remains silent.

“Nah,” Byron says to the knife, “That won’t crack it open.” He begins to peel the husk, looking around.

“Over there,” I point at the hard rocks by the shore. “It should give you a hard surface to crack it but pierce the eye, which is the weakest spot on the shell.”

“Good idea,” Byron says, running over and smashing it hard against them.

I stroll over to check it out. Byron manages to crack it open, but the water spills out. He takes Jack's knife and carves out the soft sponge part from inside.

“Doesn’t look like a normal coconut. Is that mold?” Zane looks with disgust at the yellow and white textured fluff.”

“No. This stuff is the best part.” Byron replies, bringing it over to Eve and offering it to her. “Some people call it angel cake. I’ve tried it before, and it’s delicious. Here, luv, it’ll dehydrate you.”

We all gather around Eden and watch her break off a piece and stuff it into her mouth.

“Mmmm,” she moans, closing her pretty eyes. “This stuff is truly different. Nothing I can compare it to.”

“Swipe a piece against the coconut oil in the shell. It gets even better,” Byron promises, and we all watch her eat it with enthusiasm and eagerness. “Here,” she breaks off four pieces and gives us each one.

I pop it into my mouth and have to agree with her. It tastes sweeter and crumbles softly in my mouth than regular coconut.

“Does your lighter still work?” I ask Jack.

He flips it, and a small flame emerges.

“Good, we need to find a spot and collect dry items for a fire that should continue to burn, and one of us needs to keep it going as we can’t live on sprouted coconut until we’re rescued,” I command outthe tasks. “Zane,” I say, addressing him for the first time with his first name. “Help them out, and after, you’ll come with me. We need to look for fresh water and explore the island; hopefully, this island will be inhabited.”

“How long do you think we’ll be rescued?” Eve asks the million-dollar question.

I brush my hand through my partially dried hair, which feels gritty with sand and sea salt, as I contemplate her question.

Seating myself beside her on the soft sand, I fix my gaze upon the vast expanse of the ocean, observing the boys as they gather materials—husks, dried tree branches, and hefty rocks.

Sighing deeply, I know I have no answer for her.

“I honestly don’t know, Miss. Winters,” I finally admit, a sense of defeat weighing heavily upon me.

Suddenly, a gentle hand rests upon my upper arm, and I turn to find Eve regarding me with concern, her blue eyes shining brighter than before.

“You want to say what’s on your mind?” she asks, her tone gentle yet insistent.

“Nothing you need to worry yourself about.”

Her brow furrows in frustration. “Look, I understand the need to maintain some semblance of authority. But we're all in this together, facing the same circumstances. If we're to survive the next forty-eight hours, we need transparency with your thoughts and not hide shit.”

Her blunt honesty catches me off guard. Despite the gravity of our situation, I can't help but admire her resolve.

“Miss Win—”

“Don’t Miss me anything. I include you in the survival group. Just because you know how to karate chop your way around doesn’t mean you have the survival skills of some well-trained marine corp whose whole life training was for a mission like this. You’re just as badly equipped as we are. Except you’re a natural alpha, and they aren't. Not yet, anyway. You’re prepared to challenge anyone who wants to be the leader, and I know you can lead us out of it if we all work together. So drop the bullshit of keeping us in the dark. You can keep this British formal, stiff upper lip your country has going on as their cultural tradition, but I see you.”

Fuck me.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more beautiful woman with a tongue like this. If she weren’t one of my students….

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