Page 45 of Escape to the Sun

Too quickly.

Heather looked around in vain. There was nothing she could use. Worse than that, there was no one to come and help her. Just because there was nothing else she could do, she scooped her hands and tried to push some water out of the boat. But it was no use. The waves came faster than she could deal with them.

At least it was tied to the raft. In a last-ditch effort to save the boat from total loss, Heather loosened the rope as much as she could so it wouldn’t bash against the platform before she sat in the middle, wrapped her arms around her knees and tried her best not to cry.

* * *

At that very moment, Ash should have been sitting at the bar at the Bitter End with a beer in his hand, or tucked into a warm bed with an even warmer body tucked up next to him.

He wasn’t. Not only was he not at the bar or in bed with one of his lady friends, the surprising part was that he didn’t want either of those things. Sure, the idea of a beer wasn’t bad. But the idea of being in bed with anyone except Heather was even less appealing than sitting in the driving rain that assaulted him from all sides as he powered through the waves in his little boat.

He wiped the spray from his face, but it was in vain since the rain was coming down in stinging blasts, soaking through his clothes.

He should have stayed in Bocas Town. At that very moment, he could be warm and dry and safe and alone. Because he would most definitely not be in the arms of anyone who wasn’t Heather.

Not that he felt that it was cheating. It couldn’t be cheating if they hadn’t defined their relationship.

It wasn’t a relationship.

He didn’t use that word.

But it was something.

Something he was enjoying. And despite how much he’d been dreading it, telling her about Carlie the night before had been a relief. And whatever it was between them, he wasn’t going to screw it up with someone in Bocas Town.

The wind howled, and he aimed the boat directly into it, taking the waves head on, letting them smash against the hull of the little boat. It was foolhardy to be out on the water. He should have stayed.

But he hadn’t. Because the only thing he could think of was Heather.

Heather alone at Casa del Sol. Heather trying to batten down the shutters as best as she could with the wind snapping them out of her hands. He’d done it before. It wasn’t easy to secure the bed-and-breakfast with two people; it would be incredibly difficult to do it all by herself. And what if she forgot something? She was still so new to Bocas and Casa del Sol. She’d beat herself up if she missed something.

No.

Maybe the smart thing to do would have been to stay put until the storm cleared. But when it came to women—some women—Ash had never made the smart choice.

He twisted his hand on the accelerator and urged his boat to move even faster through the wind and the waves. The sooner he got there, the better.

As soon as he got the boat behind a stand of mangroves that broke the wind a little bit, it was easier going and he was able to give himself a moment to think. Chances were good that by the time he got there, everything would have been done and she would be inside grande casa, wrapped in a blanket and with a cup of tea in her hand. He was being ridiculous. He almost laughed at himself, but then he navigated around a corner. The very corner that would put him within sight of…

Heather?

“What the—”

It had to be her.

He didn’t have time to think. He pushed his little boat even faster toward Casa del Sol, and more specifically, the swim platform tied up outside of their bungalow.

It was difficult to make it out in the rain, but it looked as if there was a very distinct human form huddled on top of the dock. A human form that looked a whole lot like Heather.

What the hell was she doing out there? Had she swum? What was she thinking?

She must have heard the roar of the boat’s engine, because her head lifted from her knees. A little bit at first, and then more.

He called out, yelling her name.

She jumped to her feet and was almost immediately knocked down by a wave.

“Stay still,” he yelled. “I’m coming.”

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