Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 65939 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 330(@200wpm)___ 264(@250wpm)___ 220(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65939 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 330(@200wpm)___ 264(@250wpm)___ 220(@300wpm)
“What the fuck right back at you,” I say to Ashton—because that’s whom I see, wearing a pair of shorts and a sleeveless T-shirt that exposes way too many of his perfectly defined muscles.
Unlike me, he doesn’t seem to be covered with mosquito bites. Which tracks. They probably avoid evil.
“Seriously, what are you doing here?” Ashton demands. “And where did they just take that boat?”
“I’m on a tour, which I assume is what you’re doing. And Bubba said they’re going on a pleasure ride.” I surreptitiously rub my eyes, but Ashton is still there afterward.
“Pleasure ride? What a load of bullshit. He told me he was going to propose to his girlfriend today—but I didn’t realize he’d need to strand me here to do so.”
“Strand us.” I take the walkie-talkie and press the push-to-talk button. “Hey, Dottie, I need you to come back. There’s been a misunderstanding.”
No one replies.
I press the button again. “Dottie, this is not a joke. Come back immediately.”
“I think that thing is dead,” Ashton says.
Fuck. I’m afraid he’s right. There’s no sign of a charge left in the stupid device.
I pull out my phone.
Double fuck. Zero bars.
“Can you fix this?” I thrust the walkie-talkie into Ashton’s hands.
He turns it around and opens the battery compartment. “Do you have two AA batteries?”
“Only back in New York.” It’s what powers my vibrator—a device I’ve missed dearly on this trip, and it’s all his fault.
Ashton hands the walkie-talkie back. “Sounds like we have to wait for the lovebirds to get back.”
“No. Fuck that.” I run toward the boat they left behind.
“What’s the idea?” he asks from behind me. “You’re going to steal their boat?”
“Borrow,” I throw over my shoulder.
“And then what? Do you actually remember the way back?”
“Yes.” Not really, but I don’t remember much zigzagging, so I bet if I go straight in roughly the right direction, I’ll get back to some kind of land.
Reaching the boat, I jump inside and look for a way to start it.
“It needs a key,” Ashton says, joining me inside. “But even if you magically produced it, I’d still say this is a bad idea.”
“Get off my boat,” I snap.
“How is this suddenly your boat?”
“You’re happy to stay back and wait. That means I’m the one sailing away.”
“Except you’re not.”
Ignoring him, I scour the boat for a key, but to no avail.
“Maybe it can be jump-started with wires?” I examine the panel skeptically.
“Sure. Why don’t you pull up a YouTube tutorial?”
I pull my phone out and then realize why he sounded so smug: no reception means no YouTube. Fucking technology.
“Do you have service?” I demand.
He takes out his phone and shows me that he has no bars either.
My heart sinks. “Is there Wi-Fi in the cabins?”
He snorts. “A better question is: is there electricity?”
I gape at him. “You’re kidding, right?”
He shakes his head. “I didn’t see any light switches or bulbs, and I doubt they provided those matches and candles for ambience’s sake.”
“Fuck.”
“Relax, fashionista.” He sounds annoyingly calm. “He’ll propose, and they’ll come back. Meanwhile, you can stay in your cabin, and I in mine.”
“Great idea.” I kick the side of the cockpit. “I’ll do just that.”
Hopping out of the boat, I stomp toward my cabin, and as if to match my mood, dark clouds begin to gather overhead.
Chapter 20
Ashton
I’m so angry the room around me darkens.
As usual, Kendall is un-fucking believable. Of all the things she could’ve done, she had to crash my swamp getaway and then give me that attitude. Like this clusterfuck is my fault.
If anything, she was the one who let the lovebirds get away. If I thought even for a second that Bubba had planned to leave for his proposal, I would’ve stopped him, with fists if necessary.
A booming clap of thunder rattles the cabin.
Shit. I guess the room didn’t darken because of my anger.
Heavy raindrops start drumming on the wooden roof.
Just perfect. Now I can’t even take a stroll around this stupid island.
As I fume, the rain intensifies, and the visibility worsens so much I have to light the candles that are sitting in the candelabra on the table.
Shit. Kendall must be freaking out.
The urge to go check on her is strong, but I resist because if she wanted my company, she would be here. At least that’s what I tell myself for the next hour or so, but then a bolt of lightning illuminates my room, followed by an immediate thunderclap.
Fuck. I’m not an expert, but I seem to recall that if you see lightning and hear thunder soon after, the hit was nearby.
What if it hit Kendall’s cabin?
Leaping to my feet, I open the door.
Wow. I thought we were in the middle of a swamp, not the depths of Mordor.
I strain to make out if there’s smoke coming from Kendall’s cabin as wind and rain pelt my face, but I can’t see shit.