Page 22 of Nothing to Do

“Three years. It’s a beautiful place. You’re lucky to have a position here… I guess this is a dream job for you too. How do you keep in touch with your family? That sat phone?”

“If there’s an emergency, yeah,” he said. “I email and there’s a plane in and out a couple of times a week.”

“There is?”

“Where do you think we get supplies?”

“I hadn’t thought about logistics… That’s good to know… a plane, hmm.”

“Why is that interesting? Thinking about leaving?”

“I might stow away… depends how the next couple of weeks go.”

“I’ll tell the guys to check out the cargo holds before departure,” he said, slowing down to pull off the road.

“Is this it?”

“This is it.”

He brought the cart to a stop and both of them got out at the same time. Though she tried to peek into the shadows of flora up ahead, there was no hint of what awaited them.

“Where is it?”

“This way,” Zane said, linking their hands to lead her onto a dark path.

It wasn’t too long. After a few steps, the path swept around in a curve. That was when she noticed the light. Moonlight. No, not the moon, there was a golden glow. The moon wasn’t gold. What could that be?

They kept going toward the light until a wooden structure came into view. Round with a dried grass roof, it was circled by a deck. The path blended into that deck. Tiki torches! That was the light. And, oh, the beach! A small, secret cove protected by rocks and plants with the structure at the back. Wow, it was perfect!

“Oh my God,” she whispered as they got around to the large patio daybed in the cabana.

That he’d brought her to a bed with little else provided plenty of teasing material, but it would wait. The waves were too captivating.

Stopping by the stairs at the edge of the deck, she squeezed the wooden railing, transfixed by the view.

Zane came up behind her to bow and hold the barrier, his hands next to hers, trapping her in his embrace. “Am I winning points?”

She smiled. “Too many to count.”

“Come sit down.”

Thea didn’t object when he took her hand to lead her over to the daybed.

“Your seduction technique isn’t subtle,” she said. “Did you forget you’re not getting laid?”

“I didn’t forget,” he said, smirking. “Get on up there.”

The round bed was in the middle of the space with a table around it. At one side was an ice-bucket and various bottles.

As she kicked off her shoes to crawl up onto the bed, Zane fixed their drinks.

“That ice will run out quickly.”

He stepped aside to pull the handle just beneath the tabletop. The bottom was hinged so only the top section opened to reveal a unit full of ice.

“You want it? I got it.”

“Is that right?” she asked, smiling as he came onto the bed with two glasses.

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