Page 57 of Cajuns. Love. Curves.

There’s no way I’m going to eat dinner surrounded by the smug, vacationing bliss that is coupledom in the main palapa. Thankfully, Clara sends a staff member to my cabin with a boxed dinner so that I don’t have to brave the dining room.

I’m done with everything but the brownies (because she sent three—smart woman), when I notice the note tucked under the dessert plate.

“I don’t want you to leave my little island without getting to have something wonderful to remember it by. I have a special treat planned for you. Come back to the palapa around dusk. Come around back, to avoid the couples. Please don’t say no. - Clara”

I’m tempted to ignore the note. After all, she has no way of knowing I saw it.

But then I think of how nice she was this afternoon. And what else am I going to do? Sit here and eat all the brownies?

That seems silly.

Yummy, but silly.

I’m already packed to leave first thing in the morning, so sitting here waiting for morning just seems petty.

So, just as dusk falls, I head out for the palapa. The chatter and laughter from the others spills out as I near. I hear Delaney laugh loudly and for the first time I don’t find her laugh annoying.

There’s a path that leads around the back of the palapa toward the cabins where the staff lives. Sitting on the path is another note with my name on it and a flashlight.

“Follow the path down to the lagoon. Take the flashlight because it will be dark once you leave the beach. But it’s safe, I promise! And it will be worth it!”

I grab the flashlight, gulp, and swallow my trepidation.

The path ahead is scary, but… well, haven’t I wimped out enough today?

So I head down the path, the light shining just bright enough for me to stay on the path, but not really enough for me to see where I’ll end up. Just when I think I might be lost, the path opens up.

I’m on the far side of the island, on a narrow beach that encircles a lagoon.

I automatically flick off the light. The moon is low on the horizon; the stars overhead are bright.

It’s insanely quiet, with only the subtle lapping of the water on the shore and the chirping of frogs somewhere. Clara was right. This is a pretty special place.

And then someone clears their throat from behind me.

I whirl around to see Nick stepping out of the shadows.

“You came.”

Pressing a hand to still my suddenly thundering heart, I nod. “That note from Clara. That was you?”

“Yeah. I talked her into helping me out.”

“I thought you’d left me.”

“I never left you.” He walks up to me, not stopping until he’s close enough to cup my face in his hands. “I left the island, but not you.”

His thumbs brush against my cheeks and that’s the moment I realize I’m crying.

“I thought I’d driven you away.” The flashlight tumbles from my grasp as I bring my hands up to his chest. “That I lost my chance with you because I was a coward.”

“No. I never left you. It was just a strategic retreat.” He tips my face up, kissing the tears from my cheeks. “And you’re not a coward. You’re so brave. You came all this way down this path. In the dark, with only the flashlight.”

“Yeah,” I say, not a hundred percent sure where he’s going with this.

He pulls away to study my face. “I just need to be clear on this. This was my mistake, not yours.”

“But—”

---