Page 20 of Chasing Paradise

That certainly boded well for me when it came to seeing some fun lizards. And, I guess, spotting Wick even a mile off.

Even as I thought that, though, my head swiveled, making me see an entirely different landscape laid out before me.

Towering giant daisy trees shaded the area in mystery, creating a lush, dense forest.

“Wow.”

Tentatively, I climbed out of the boat, wondering as I stepped onto the sandy ground, if the boat was far enough in to prevent it from washing away.

Even if there were a dock, I honestly didn’t know how to tie down a boat.

And freaking Wick was nowhere to be found.

Well, at least I could comfort myself with the fact that he couldn’t get away from me on this island. Not without the speedboat.

So long as I stayed near it, I would be close to him.

Decision made, I reached back into the boat to grab one of the bottles of water stashed inside, then made my way to a spot a few yards away, sitting down on the ground and looking up at the warm sun.

Seabirds soared overhead and somewhere off in the distance, something was moving in and out of the water. Dolphins, maybe?

It wasn’t long before the steady ebb and flow of the water on the shore had my eyes feeling heavier than ever.

As I lay back, using my duffle as a pillow, I didn’t expect to fall asleep.

But that’s exactly what happened.

I woke up hours later, the sun already mostly set.

And the boat gone.

CHAPTER SIX

Violet

“Oh, no, no, no, no, no,” I cried.

Hopping up, I spun in a circle like I expected to see the damn thing further inland or something.

“What the hell?” How had I slept through that thing revving to life?

How the hell could Wick leave me?

Stranded.

On a remote island where, I was reasonably sure, no other tourists had decided to visit.

That was just… evil.

My eyes stung as I walked helplessly down the coast, praying to find that he’d just moved the boat. Or that there was some other sign of life around.

But as the sun set deeper, the darkness on the island was pitch, making it hard to see just a few feet in front of me.

“Okay. Alright. You’re alright.” I paused, taking slow, deep breaths, trying to remind myself that while South America as a whole was home to many predators, my guidebook hadn’t mentioned any on the actual islands. It wasn’t like some islandpuma was going to come down and maul me while I was out in the open all night.

My stomach grumbled, objecting to only having been fed a damn blueberry muffin almost a full day ago.

But I couldn’t worry about food. I mean, the human body could go weeks or months—depending on your fat stores—without food.

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