Zane reared his head back and held up his hands in surrender. “You don’t have to get so angry, Allison. I’m sorry. If it really was work, I’m sorry I said anything, okay?”
She knew then that she’d overreacted, but it was only because she was so deeply frustrated. “Do you want to know why I’m so mad?” She felt her entire body vibrate from head to toe. Could she really come out with it? Tell him about the feelings that were tucked deep down inside her? These were things she’d never told anyone. Not her mom or Kianna. The pages of the diary she’d kept in high school were the only place where she’d ever come clean about Zane. And maybe that was part of her problem. She felt as though Zane needed to let go of his feelings about his past. Maybe she needed to set loose the things that kept haunting her, too. “I’m angry because over on Mako Island, and back there in my bedroom, I was so close to what I’ve wanted for fifteen years, and you decided to yank it all away.”
Zane stood there, frozen, blinking like he had far more than a speck of dust in his eye. “Hold on a minute. What did you say?”
She couldn’t suffer any more humiliation today. She’d had more than her fill. “You heard me. And you can feel free to go now. I just want to be left alone for the rest of my trip.” She stormed off into the kitchen. That was when she saw a note on the counter. Even from across the room, she could tell it was Angelique’s handwriting. She beelined for it.
Dear Allison,
I’m not sure where on the island you are, and I couldn’t get a text to go through, so I’m leaving a note. Hubert was having chest pains, so I’ve taken him to the doctor in Nassau. Don’t worry. This has happened before. I think it’s stress. I considered staying on Rose Cove, but I wanted to be with him, and our remaining guests have opted to leave because of the weather. I don’t think the storm will hit the island, but we will feel some of its effects. I would not leave if I didn’t think it was safe for you and Zane to be here. You have lived through many storms at Rose Cove and know what to do. Stay safe and hunker down if necessary. I’m sure Hubert and I will be back on the island tomorrow.
Love, Angelique
Zane hadn’t left her cottage as Allison had asked. In fact, he was standing right behind her. “Have you looked outside? The sky is getting menacing. I guess we didn’t notice it since we walked back inland in the shade.”
“The weather can turn on a dime here.” Allison handed him the note from her aunt. “And we were busy for a little while after that, too.” She watched as Zane scanned the note.
“Whoa. I hope your uncle is okay.”
“Yeah. Me, too.” Everything about this day had gone so wrong. Right now, she just wanted to go to bed and try to sleep it off. “Not much we can do right now but wait.”
“But the storm. Don’t you think we should figure out what’s going on?”
She’d been through dozens of false alarms with storms on this island. The weather was the least of her worries. “You do whatever you want, Zane. For me, I’m going to get some sleep and try to forget that you don’t want to have sex with me.”
Six
By late the next morning, the rain was coming down in torrential sheets, and Zane was deeply concerned about what might be in store for Allison and him on Rose Cove. He couldn’t get a signal on his phone. The other resort guests were all gone. Zane had been to the dock several times, hoping there would be a boat there, but he’d had no luck. Either they’d missed them all or no one was coming to get them. Angelique had told Allison to hunker down, but Zane wanted to make one more attempt to look for a way off this island. And he wasn’t going without Allison. He had to keep her safe. Even if she hated him, he was going to drag her along.
He trudged down the beach to her cottage, rain pelting his entire body while the wind pushed against him, forcing Zane to dig his feet deeper into the sand with each step. His thighs burned from the effort; his skin stung from the sheets of rain. He squinted through the drops but could see up on Allison’s patio. Her doors and windows were closed. Once he arrived at her back door, Allison was nowhere in sight, so he had to knock. As he waited for an answer, he turned back to the ocean. The waves that had been so lovely and calm a day or two ago were now starting to rage. The water was at a full-on churn like a washing machine. Best-case scenario as far as Zane could guess would be that the storm would only skirt the Bahamas and they wouldn’t sustain a direct hit. But with no access to a forecast, it was impossible to know what they were waiting for, whether this was as bad as things would get or if this was only the beginning.
He turned back to the door and pounded again. “Come on, Allison. Answer the damn door.” Impatient, he turned the knob and stepped inside just as she stumbled out of her bedroom.
“Zane. What the hell? You just walk in here? I was taking a nap. There’s nothing else to do with this weather.”
Zane hated how beautiful she looked. He especially hated the way his entire body had gone warm and his face had flushed. He might have been struck by a sudden
