When the fish was stripped bare, they walked down to the breakers to wash the fishy remnants from their fingers. Charlie also took the opportunity to wash the remaining toothpaste from her face. Tyler had been right. Her face and the itching had already gotten better.
Back at the camp, Tyler packed a small amount of coconut away in her pack, together with a couple of bottles of the boiled water. “I’m hoping we’re going to come across some different stuff to eat, but just in case we don’t, it’s good to have backup.”
She wasn’t sure she could stand the thought of eating any more coconut right now, especially as she was still full from the fish, but she guessed her opinion would change once she got hungry again. Tyler also packed the small first aid kit—just in case—and the knife.
Ready to go, they started up the now familiar trail back to the pool. Even though she was weak from lack of food and her ordeal, she couldn’t help but feel like her fitness had improved. She seemed to walk the trail with more ease than she had the first day they’d washed up on shore. Though she’d probably dropped a couple of pounds, was badly bitten, and exhausted and dehydrated, she’d gotten used to the cloying heat. Her feet had learned the track, so she knew how to walk without tripping over fallen branches, or staggering down unseen holes. She took swigs of water from the bottle Tyler had packed for her as she walked, and realized she’d even grown used to the taste.
By the time they reached the pool, Charlie and Tyler had already almost finished the bottles of water they’d brought with them, so they stopped at the pool to refill them from the small flow of water from the rock.
They sat together on the edge of the pool to rest, their feet dangling in the water. The coolness soothed her sun-tightened skin, and helped to ease the itchiness of the bites.
Charlie turned her face to Tyler, squinting in the dappled sunlight. She was filled with the sudden urge to kiss him, wanted to feel his mouth on hers, the heat from his skin reminding her they were both still alive, and, for the time being, safe. But she didn’t have the guts. He’d not mentioned their fight the previous night, or their shared kiss in the pool, and she didn’t want to be the first to bring it up. He was probably thinking it was a one-off, a spur of the moment thing. She didn’t want to go all girly on him by insisting on discussing what was between them and their future.
As though he’d sensed the tension inside her, Tyler got to his feet. “You okay to keep going?”
She nodded. “Sure.”
“We’d better make a move or we’re going to run out of light. We don’t want that to happen if we’re in the middle of the forest.”
She got to her feet. “No, of course not.”
They put their shoes back on, picked up their bags, and headed off again. They headed deeper into the island, Tyler leading the way. The farther they got, the thicker the foliage became. Tyler tore and shoved at the vines and bushes, using the knife to try to clear a path for them to walk through.
The ground rose on an incline, growing steeper the farther into the island they hiked. The sandy soil gradually gave way to rockier ground, the density of the bushes, vines, and trees thinning as the plants weren’t so well supported by the craggy rocks.
Charlie’s thighs ached, but Tyler showed no sign of tiring. Though she made sporadic trips to the gym—and in truth they were done more in concern for her figure than her level of fitness—they clearly weren’t enough to match his kind of fitness. The air seemed to grow thinner, though it was also less muggy up here, so she didn’t know if she was breathing easier or harder. At least there were fewer bugs. It seemed they preferred the damper forest, and she was relieved not to have mosquitoes constantly whining around her head.
“Make sure you keep drinking,” Tyler called to her over his shoulder. “It’s important to stay hydrated. You’ll be losing more fluid than you’re aware of.”
“Yes, sir,” she called back, only a hint of teasing in her voice.
They stopped for the occasional rest, but otherwise kept up a good pace. They were heading into the afternoon now, and the sun beat down on them, the sparser vegetation meaning there was less shade from the heat.
Tyler came to an abrupt halt. Charlie, who had been walking with her head down, concentrating only on the track right ahead of her, almost collided with his broad back. He turned to her with a grin. “Look what’s over there.”
She followed his line of sight to yet another palm tree, and was about to turn back to him to ask him what he was talking about when she caught sight of the clusters at the top of the tree, beneath the branches.
“Bananas!” she cried.
The fruits were still green, but she didn’t care. Hours had passed since their succulent meal of fish and she was so hungry, she’d have eaten them even if she had to crunch them between her teeth.
Tyler whipped off his t-shirt. Charlie did her best not to stare at his body as he headed toward the trunk of the banana palm. The last couple of days of minimal food had left his torso lean, so his skin seemed to cling to every muscle. The days in the sun had given him a deep tan, which only helped to highlight every line of his back, shoulders, and abs.
He wrapped the t-shirt around the tree trunk and, holding the ends of the material in each hand, braced himself. He started to climb, digging his heels into the trunk and leaning back, moving up in a series of jumps. Once at the top, he wrapped one arm around the trunk, and used the small knife to cut the bananas down. Charlie stood back, not wanting to be injured by falling fruit, but the moment they hit the ground, she ran forward, scooted down beside them, and started to pull them from the bunch.
Tyler jumped back down. “Don’t overdo it,” he warned. “Too much and you’ll give yourself hell of a stomach ache.”
The carbohydrate crunched beneath her teeth, leaving a weird coating on her teeth and gums, but she didn’t care. Her body responded to the hit of sugar, and she absurdly felt as though she was going to cry.
“We’ll take them back with us,” he said, stuffing a couple into her pack, and some into his own. “They’ll taste a lot better if we put them on the fire.”
“It’s worth coming just for these,” she said, between mouthfuls.
He grinned. “Yeah, this was exactly the sort of thing I was hoping for. I still want to see what’s over that crag though. I hate the idea something useful might be waiting for us and we don’t even know it’s there.”
“Okay, let’s keep going.”
They didn’t have far to go now. Breaking out of the thinning foliage, they discovered themselves at the top of the cliff. Over the top, Charlie could see the blue of the ocean stretched out in front of them. A hill of trees broke up their view, the ocean curving around it before the island appeared once again.
Tyler frowned and walked right up onto the edge. He pointed toward the new set of hills and greenery. “I can’t be certain, but I’m not sure that’s our island.”
“What?”
“See where the hill is and the sea cuts in?” Charlie nodded. “There’s a possibility the sea keeps going. What we’re seeing might be a whole different island.”
She frowned. “Really? You think there might be another island so close by?”
“I don’t see why not.”
“But what good does that do us?”
“This island isn’t inhabited, but that doesn’t mean other islands nearby aren’t. Or perhaps they might have been once, but have since been deserted. We might find an old cabin or even a boat.”
“But wouldn’t we need a boat to get there.”
He put a hand out to her. “Just wait here.”
Tyler walked farther along the precipice, and onto an overhanging rock. The cliff fell away beneath him, an expanse of green treetops far below.
The sight of him in such a precarious position made her head spin. “Jesus Christ, Tyler. Be careful!” Her heart pounded in her throat, and she felt dizzy with anxiety. What if he fell? He would be killed without a doubt, and she’d be left here
alone.
“It’s fine, Charlie. Stop worrying.”
He clung to the overhang and braced himself against the rock. He leaned out to try to see further, to get a glimpse around the hilltops and discover how far the next island was, or if it was, as he suspected, another island altogether.
His feet slipped a little, and he scrabbled for purchase.
Charlie cried out, her hand at her mouth. “Tyler!”
He regained his footing. “It’s okay. Not a problem.” He pulled himself back onto the main part of the cliff and shot her a grin. “I know what I’m doing.”
She stormed over to him and slapped his bare, brown shoulder. “Don’t you ever do that to me again,” she said, furious. “Do you hear me? I thought you were going to die!”
“I know what I’m doing, Charlie. Seriously, it was fine.”
“No, it was not. You could have fallen. From now on, be sensible.”
He looked at her, his lips pressed together, compressing his smile of amusement, nostrils flared, his eyebrows slightly lifted. “Yes, ma’am.”
Chapter Thirteen
Her pounding heart gradually slowed, her fear of Tyler falling replaced by her curiosity about what he’d seen.
“So was almost dying worth it?” she asked. “Did you see anything else?”
Tyler nodded, his hands on his hips. “Yeah. I’m about ninety percent sure that is another island.”
“Should we go to it? There might be other people!” She couldn’t help the excitement bubbling in her voice.
“I’d say that’s pretty unlikely.”
“But you said yourself we might find something there that we don’t have here—a boat or something.”
He frowned. “Getting over to the other island will be dangerous. We have to weigh up the risk against the advantage. Right now, we have fresh water and food, and we’ve created a shelter. I’m not saying the time won’t come when we have to move—perhaps we’ll scavenge all the food from the island and be forced to try to get to the next one—but I don’t think we’ve reached that point yet.”
Charlie pressed her lips together and nodded. She didn’t want to try anything dangerous, and the idea of attempting to swim to another island made her stomach churn in terror. Even now, moments came back to her of the time they’d spent bobbing in the ocean, and she was able to feel the ground undulate beneath her as though still feeling the motion of the sea. The idea of putting herself back in that situation made her sick to her stomach.
“Okay,” she said, eventually. “Shall we head back to the beach?”
Tyler nodded. “Yeah. Let’s just walk a bit farther along this ridge and then head down. It won’t take us too far out of our way, and means we’ll have covered most of this side of the island. I’d hate to think we’d come all this way, and missed something just because we didn’t go on a little more.”
“Sure.”
They walked down a few yards, so they wouldn’t risk either of them slipping over the edge, and then continued to traverse the ridge. Nothing else of interest caught their eye, and when a natural trail leading back down the rocky face appeared in the undergrowth, Tyler suggested they take it.
Charlie was happy to follow the new trail. She found herself longing for the improvised bed and the fire, a pang inside her that felt something close to homesickness. She almost laughed out loud at the thought, but then she wondered ... where was her home now? She didn’t own any property, her father was in jail. The apartment she lived in was rented, and could be bugged just like the apartment she’d lived in previously, for all she knew. The spot on the beach was the closest thing to home she had.
She followed Tyler’s back as he headed down through the island. In a few places, where the trees cleared, she spotted the ocean in the distance. It seemed such a long way away. Surely they hadn’t walked that far?
Without warning, a crack sounded and Tyler vanished from view.
Charlie drew up short. “Tyler!”
The faint track they’d been following had completely vanished. She edged forward, craning her neck, her heart pounding. “Tyler!” she called again, more like a shriek.
A groan drifted up from the hole. “It’s okay, Charlie. Don’t panic. I’m fine.”
“I can’t see you! It’s like the jungle just swallowed you.”
“It’s a drop hole. Natural, I think. There are rocks on the way down.”
“But are you all right?” she asked, frantic.
“I hurt my shoulder, but not badly.”
“How can I get you out?”
“Don’t worry, I’m coming.”
Charlie hesitated, and then got down to her hands and knees, and crept toward the drop. She tried to ignore the creepy-crawlies moving beneath her palms. Her legs began to itch and sting, and she knew her bare skin would be covered in the tiny fiery ants that seemed to be so prevalent here. Focusing on the fact Tyler might be hurt, she managed to ignore the bugs. She lowered herself to her stomach and wriggled the rest of the way so she could hang over the edge without falling in.
The drop was about ten feet deep, crushed vines and leaves at the bottom where Tyler had fallen through. Tyler himself stood at the bottom, looking up so his dark eyes locked on hers. Grayish granite poked out from where the ground had given way, creating handy foot and hand holds, though how solid they were was anyone’s bet.
Charlie reached down to him, offering him her hand. “Come on. I’ll help you.”
He put his hands on his hips. “Charlie, you’re a foot shorter than me and about half my body weight. I’ll pull you right in here with me.”
“Shut up and let me help.”
Tyler gave his head a slight shake and began his ascent. He climbed the first couple of rocks up the face, and then reached up and grabbed her hand. One of the rocks shifted beneath his weight, and suddenly her help was needed. She reached down with her other hand and grabbed his, digging her toes into the jungle floor as best she could to stop herself sliding forward into the hole with him. Her foot hooked around a thick, exposed tree root and she braced herself, unable to pull him up, but giving him something to use as leverage.
“Come on,” she encouraged. “I’m stronger than I look.”
He hesitated again, and then finally lifted a foot, placing it on a protruding rock a little higher up. Using the boost, he hauled himself up, Charlie acting as his support. He let go of one hand and grabbed a handful of roots and earth. She grappled his shirt, helping to haul him up, but as she did so, she noticed the blood.
Tyler rolled out of the hole. The back of his shirt was drenched in blood—a dark bib.
“Oh, my God,” she said in horror. “You’re hurt.”
He pushed himself to sitting and rolled his shoulder slightly, wincing. “Yeah, I think I caught it on one of those rocks on the way down.”
“Take your shirt off and turn around.”
“If you want to get me naked, you only have to ask.”
She resisted swiping him over the back of the head with her palm. “Stop being a wiseass, and do as I say.”
He sighed, but obeyed her for once, pulling the shirt up over that fine body of his. But the perfect tan skin wasn’t so perfect now. She couldn’t see much except for blood, and the amount of blood made her reason the cut was bad.
“Hang on a minute. I need to wash this off.”
She picked up a bottle of the water they’d brought and dribbled it over his skin. Tyler winced, though she didn’t know if it was due to the cold water or pain. The flood of water cleared his skin, and she saw a wide gash close to his left shoulder.
She grabbed her pack and pulled the small plastic first aid kit from inside. Thank God she’d thought to bring it. She pulled a couple of the disinfectant wipes out, tore them open with her teeth, and removed them from the packaging. Careful not to let the wipes touch anything else, she dabbed away at the cut. Tyler’s whole body went rigid, tension radiating from him. She knew this must be hurting him, though he wouldn’
t give voice to his pain.
“The cut is really deep,” she told him, wrinkling her nose at the wound.
“How deep?”
“At least half an inch. It’s bleeding really badly and doesn’t seem to be stopping. I think it might need stitches.”
“I don’t exactly see a hospital around here, Charlie.”
“I’m aware of that, Tyler.” She couldn’t help the sarcasm in her tone.
He reached out to the side. “Let me see what else is in the kit.”
She sighed and handed it to him. He started to rifle around and then pulled out a tiny slip of cellophane containing different colored thread, a couple of needles, and a button.
“I guess someone thought they might need to sew something,” he said, laughter behind his voice.
Charlie’s cheeks flushed. “What? It was free from the hotel. I thought it might come in useful.”
He turned to her, but he wasn’t laughing anymore. Instead, he seemed impressed. “That it will. You need to sew me up.”
She blanched, the blood that had been heating her face now draining. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
“Has the bleeding stopped yet?”
She glanced at the wound, praying it had, but still it trickled from the gash, running down his back. “No,” she admitted miserably.
“It needs to be stitched up, otherwise it’s going to be open to the elements and I’ll end up with an infection. You’ve sewn something before, haven’t you?”
“Umm ...” She didn’t want to admit the last time she’d handled a needle and thread had been in her home economics class in school. “Sure, I have. It’s just been a while.”
“Well, there’s not much to it. Thread the needle. Tie a knot in one end of the cotton. And then just stitch the skin together.”
“Oh, God,” she groaned, realizing she was going to have to do this.
Dangerous Encounters: A Romantic Suspense Boxed Set Page 33