Page 46 of Escape to the Sun

There was no way to know whether his words reached her over the howling winds. But just calling to her made him feel better. As soon as he got close enough, he slowed the boat so as not to crash into the platform and he could see the rope stretched from the platform cleat.

He didn’t have to ask to know it was the canoe. He’d have to cut it free. It might wash up on shore; it might be lost. But at least it would have a chance.

“Get in,” he told her as soon as he was close enough. “I’ll get as close as I can, but you’ll have to jump.”

She nodded in understanding. Ash could see her teeth clattering, the white tips of her fingers and the fear in her eyes.

Heather did as she was told and all but fell into the boat the second she could. Ash pulled his knife out of his pocket and sliced through the rope, before quickly tucking it away.

“The canoe.”

He nodded. “It’ll be fine.” It was most likely a lie and they both knew it, but he had to say something. Everything else would have to wait. As quickly as he could, he pulled the boat up alongside the dock and quickly tied it. She was clearly frozen, and likely incapable of making any fast moves, so as soon as the boat was secured and the engine cut, Ash jumped up to the dock and reached down for her. He scooped her up into his arms and carried her into Casa del Sol.

The door was open. Likely from when she’d ventured out with the canoe. As soon as he got her settled onto the couch with the heaviest blanket he could find pulled over her knees, he went to work securing the door and mopping up the floor where the water had snuck in.

A quick look around showed that all the other shutters had been closed. Casa del Sol was secure. Heather had done good. And now she was safe.

He climbed up onto the couch behind her and pulled her back against his chest. He was cold to the bone himself, but compared to her, he was smoking hot. She couldn’t talk for a few minutes and he didn’t push it. She needed to warm up. That was the most important thing. There’d be plenty of time for her to explain what on earth she’d been thinking by being out on that platform in the middle of a tropical rainstorm. She could have been killed, for God’s sake.

Her body was so cold. Her clothes were soaked and not helping, so he eased her forward just enough to pull her clothes from her body, and then his own before settling back into the cushions with her between his legs. His body reacted at once to the closeness of her naked skin, but he ignored it.

Slowly, he could feel the warmth returning to Heather’s limbs. He slowly rubbed her arms, and then her thighs. Her murmur of pleasure let him know she was warming up. “Feeling a little better?”

Heather nodded and rested her head against his chest. “I was so cold.”

“You were.”

“I didn’t even think it was possible to get that cold in the tropics.” She twisted her head around a little to look at him. “I think the last time I was that cold was back home in Idaho when I was a kid and stayed out too long sledding.”

“What were you doing out there, Heather? You could have been killed.” Just speaking the words aloud made it even more real to him. The idea that he could have lost her slammed into him.

“You told me to secure the ladders.”

Did he?He probably had. But he certainly hadn’t meant for her to go out onto the water to secure anything. That was crazy. “I told you to secure the shutters and get inside.” He ignored the fact that he may have in fact told her something he hadn’t meant. “You’re just lucky I came back. What was your plan? Were you just going to stay out there and freeze to death?”

She shook her head, but didn’t speak for a moment. Her pretty eyes glistened with tears. “I was…well…I was going to…” A tear slipped down her cheek. “I was going to wait until the wind died down and then swim back.”

Ash shook his head. She was crazy. But at the same time, he could see that she didn’t have many choices. He reached out a finger and wiped her cheek.

“I didn’t think you were coming back.”

“I wasn’t going to.” He nuzzled into the crook of her neck. “But I couldn’t stay away.” It was true. He absolutely couldn’t have stayed away and even though he couldn’t explain that feeling, he didn’t care because thank God he’d come back. “I’m so glad I came back.”

“Me too.” Heather wiped at the tears that streamed down her face in earnest and turned away. “I don’t know what I was thinking. What would have happened if you hadn’t come back? I was all alone out there.” She sniffed and wiped at her face with the blanket. “I was totally alone and—”

“It’s okay.”

She shook her head. “No. It’s not. I was just trying to show you that I could do it.”

Ahh. There it was. He knew there had to be a reason she’d risked her life for a ladder.

“I wanted to show you that I was capable of running Casa del Sol and taking care of everything all by myself. And Sherri, too.” Heather whipped around, her eyes wide. “Oh my God. Sherri!”

* * *

Panic rushed through Heather. Any and all thoughts about how her own life had been in danger vanished at the thought of the older woman up in her treehouse all alone. “I can’t believe I didn’t even think to go check on her.”

She tried to wiggle free of Ash’s arms, but he held her tight.

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