Page 54 of Wild for You
She stills at my words. “Next week?”
Since we’ve been in the honeymoon phase for the last couple of weeks, it’s sometimes hard to remember that we still need to escape. I know I’m guilty of letting reality fall to the back of my mind, and I guess Gwen is, too. “Yeah, babe. I think we need to make a move soon.” I lean on my elbow, so I’m facing her. “The season’s changing, and I don’t want to be stuck here when the storm season hits.” I point to the gray sky above us. I can see the tides changing, the waves getting bigger, and the temps turning cooler at night.
She nods her head silently before curling into me closer. “So, you’re leaving next week? That’s what all this food prep is for?”
“Yes.”
“I’m scared, Jack. I don’t know if I can do this alone, and every time I think about you setting out on that flimsy raft in the middle of the ocean, it makes me sick.”
A lump forms in my throat, but I do my best to talk around it, to be strong. “Don’t worry about me. I just need you to remember all the things I’ve taught you, and before you know it, we’ll be on a plane back to Chicago. You’ll get that promotion, and we’ll take the internet by storm with this story.” I kiss her soft lips. “Do you trust me?”
“Of course, I do.” She rolls her eyes.
“Then let me worry about the plan.” I pin her hands above her head, and she lets out a little squeal. “I know just how to melt all this stress away. Now, if you’ll excuse me …” I kiss my way down her body, leaving a trail of goosebumps coating every gorgeous inch of her.
Gwen’s body has quickly become my favorite source of distraction, and I have to say, I don’t think she minds it too much either. We make love, leaving all our worries behind.
Little does she know I’ve spent the last couple of weeks in nothing short of a panic about it, but I’ll be damned if I let her know. I feel like it’s my duty as her protector to keep as much of the scary stuff away from her as I can.
* * *
Smokingthe mackerel was tedious as fuck, but as I begin to pack the dried meat into my bag, I know it was the right move. I divide the meat into two portions. One for me while I’m traveling and one for Gwen while I’m gone. I can’t stand the thought of her being without food, and even though she’ll have the whole island to forage for her meals and I won’t, I can’t let myself leave her with nothing.
“Ohhh, is it done?” Gwen reaches over my shoulder and takes a small piece of dried meat. She shoves it into her mouth, and I watch her reaction go from unsure to pleasantly surprised.
“Well?”
“It’s not bad, actually.” She laughs and takes another.
“Whoa, now. Slow down. These are our rations for when I’m gone, remember?” That comment earns me a pout.
Every time I’ve mentioned leaving, Gwen gets all tense. I can tell she’s worried, but she doesn’t want me to see it even though I can read her like an open book. The thought of leaving her here alone kills me, but we both know that right now, it’s our best chance of survival.
I just wish there was some other way, but we’ve got to work with the cards we’ve been dealt, no matter how scary it may seem.
A crash of thunder breaks my trance, and I look up to see dark clouds on the horizon. There’s a cool wisp to the air today, leaving a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. We’ve been lucky so far with only minor rain storms. Apart from the big one that rolled in after we first landed, the weather’s been pretty mild, actually. But I’m not naïve. I know what the storm season out here looks like, the complete and utter destruction that can happen without a moment's notice, and that realization is what’s got me on edge.
“A storm’s moving in,” I tell Gwen as I snap my backpack shut and place her portions in the only waterproof ziplock bag I have left. Even though I was fortunate to be prepared for an excursion of this extent, I know we won’t be able to survive like this for much longer on what we have.
“Yeah, it looks pretty nasty out there. Do you think it’s going to be a bad one?”
“I don’t know. There’s definitely potential. We’ll just have to be prepared. We probably won’t get much sleep tonight.”
“Ok, well, I found some berries this morning. I thought we could make a salad for dinner with some of the oysters we have left over from lunch. That way, we won’t have to worry about fighting to keep a fire alive.”
“That sounds perfect, actually.”
“I know.” She kisses me on the cheek as another crack of lightning lights up the sky. Gwen jumps in surprise. “Come on, let’s go inside and eat.”
“Sure thing. Let me just move the raft under some trees just in case. I’ll be right there.”
“Want me to help?”
I smile at her offer. “Yeah, actually, that would be great. I’ll grab the front.”
She walks behind me and lifts the raft, and together, we slide it, pinning it between two palm trees. They may not offer the best protection from the rain, but they’ll at least keep the raft from blowing away in the wind.
“Thanks for the help. Why don’t you go inside and get the food ready while I try to tie this off as best I can.”
