Page 43 of My Grumpy Billionaire Soccer Star

Our gaze meets in an instant, and it appears we are thinking the same thing.

“What do we do now, Vaughn?” I ask.

A thoughtful expression appears on his face, his eyes narrowing. He looks back at me and hunches his shoulders. “Well, it seems like we won’t be going to Australia or New York anytime soon, so we do what we can to survive in the meantime.”

My eyes wander around, and just then, a light ocean wave comes crashing on the shore. We are cooked—no, we are toast. If we manage to escape the ocean, the low temperatures here at night will do the same thing, only it will take longer.

I hope it doesn’t come to that.

Chapter eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

Vaughn

It’s been close to two hours now since Rachel and I washed ashore. The situation keeps getting more desperate and scarier—no ship or boat, in sight as I look expectantly at the endless stretch of water before me.

Hope.

All I can do is hope that someone shows up in a water vessel or even an airplane soon. That’s all we can do, or else I’d go crazy.

But as I have learned time and again throughout my life, hope needs something to stay alive, or else the flame dies out. I am not about to sit here waiting for someone to finally spot us without making an effort of my own.

I turn my gaze from the water to the dense clusters of trees and shrubs behind me. Who knows? There may be an exit route through the bushes from this godforsaken island.

I hop on my feet and stare down at Rachel. She looks pale and tired. The hem of the black dress that she is wearing rides up her knees a couple of inches, revealing part of her thigh. She doesn’t seem to notice as she lies on the sand, staring up at the sky, seemingly lost in the ocean of her thoughts.

I feel sorry for her. She wouldn’t have been part of this if it wasn’t for me, but of course, I am not about to tell her that. I wonder what would have happened if she’d drowned. I doubt I would have ever been able to forgive myself.

For as long as we stay on this island, she’s more of a responsibility to me than I am to her—Vaughn Graham won’t be kicking any black-and-white ball anytime soon.

“I am going to check out this island,” I say, more to myself than to her, but the sound of my voice causes her to stir.

She sits upright and looks at me. “You are leaving?”

“I need to see what’s out there. Before we lie here hoping someone comes to rescue us, we might as well see how we can help ourselves.”

She bobs her head in understanding. “Even if we had to wait, we would still need to survive.”

“Good point,” I reply simply, turn my back to her, and start heading to the dense bushes.

“Wait, Vaughn! Are you really going in there?” Her voice is anxious, causing me to turn back to her.

Perplexed, I say, “Sure. Where else do you think we might find an exit?”

“B-but it’s too dangerous. You don’t know what is in there. There could be wild animals, like a grizzly bear or something. And the last time I checked, you don’t have a weapon with you.”

I pause to consider what she just said.

As if trying to convince me further, she adds, “And the sun will set in about an hour. I would guess it’s around 5 p.m. now.”

There might be some truth to her opinions, but the sooner we get to know our new surroundings, the better our chances. If there’s an exit, we’ll find it. If there isn’t, we’ll figure out how to live here.

“You might be right, but it has to be done,” I say with finality, not wanting to hear more. I resume walking toward the bushes and take five steps before she calls out again.

“Wait!” Then I hear soft footsteps on the sand approaching me.

I suppress my exasperation, but I can’t help turning sharply. “What?”

---