Page 79 of Duke's Daring Bookworm
That surprised me. Islands weren’t exactly plentiful off the Georgia coast.
“How can an island close enough to take a helicopter to be empty? Surely someone owns it.”
“Probably, but it’s empty and not on any maps.” He shrugged like this was an everyday occurrence and not at all alarming.
“Right. So, let me get this straight. We are going to a secret, private island that no one knows about. Are you planning on seducing me or murdering me?”
Duke laughed.
“No. I don’t plan on murdering you.”
“That’s what a murderer would say.” I turned back to the window. The ocean filled my view, blue water sparkling before us.
“Good point, but then Frankie would probably hunt me down.”
I scoffed. “You could take her.”
“Just so I’m following you. Are you hoping I take down your friend after I murder you?” Once we were over the ocean, he brought us down enough to see the details of the boats and oil rigs off the coast.
“Good point. She’d slaughter you. Guess you aren’t murdering me today. Seduction it is.”
He didn’t reply to that and instead pointed out dolphins that had crested the surface, putting on a show for a nearby tour boat. I gasped. I’d never seen dolphins in real life. Weweren’t close to them, but there they were, right in front of my eyes, being magical. I followed them, turning in my seat to keep them in view for as long as I could.
“Do you think we could see whales like that?”
“Probably not. I think it’s the wrong time of year, but we can keep a lookout. We’re almost there.”
We hadn’t been in the air nearly as long as I thought we should have been, and I wondered again how an entire island went unnoticed this close to shore.
Then I saw it and understood.
When he said we were going to an island, I pictured something… bigger. A small strip of green and tan stretched in front of us, slashing through the blue of the ocean as if it demanded space in this world, no matter how small.
“This is it? No wonder no one has built anything out here. There’s no room.”
“It’s a little bigger than it looks from up here. Someone could definitely put a little vacation home on here.”
I eyed it skeptically.
“If you insist. Is there even anywhere to land?”
“Of course.” He looked offended that I would even ask. “Have a little more faith in me.”
As we approached, I realized he was right. How high up had we been? It was still just a small strip of land, but one side had a field behind the tree line. Duke flew the helicopter to the field and landed us smoothly on the grass.
I took off my headset and seatbelt, excited to explore, but Duke put his hand on my arm and pointed to the blades spinning above us.
“Just wait a minute for me to shut it down and then for the blades to stop,” he said when I put my headset back on.
He deftly flipped various switches and slowly the bladescame to a stop, plunging us into an eerie stillness that buzzed along my skin as I adjusted.
Duke came around to my door and helped me out.
“I’ve got some supplies for us. Just hold on while I get them.”
He passed my bag to me and then grabbed two more packs from the storage behind the back seats.
I wore sandals, completely inappropriate footwear for a hike through a tropical island, but Duke helped me over the roots and rocks, never letting me fall. My walls and insecurities melted away under his attention. He had my heart, even if this ended today, and he never wanted more.
