a beach.
Another side of paradise.
“Bloody hell,” Tai says in awe.
I have to agree.
The lagoon on this side is much bigger and is peppered with islands. Some of them look like tiny little outcrops of sand and a few palm trees, the water shallow enough to walk to, others are larger and further away. It’s like a whole new world over here, with a million shades of blue.
“This is incredible,” I say, looking down the beach. There are plumeria flowers everywhere here, pinks and whites and yellows, their beauty and fragrant smell peppering the beach. I stop by one of the trees and take a deep whiff of a blossom. Heaven.
“Daisy,” Tai says with urgency. “Daisy, come here.”
I turn to where Tai disappeared in the opposite direction, behind a grove of palm trees.
I duck around them and see what he’s staring at in disbelief.
My god.
It’s a building.
Fourteen
Tai
The building that Daisy and I are gawking at looks like it was erected in the 1970s and never used again. It’s a bungalow, raised a few feet off the ground with a short flight of stairs heading up to a deck, the wood gray and faded from the elements.
“It’s a leftover from the Dharma Initiative,” Daisy whispers from beside me.
She might not be far off there.
“We should look around for a hatch,” I tell her, “see if there’s a Scottish guy down there pushing a button.”
She gives me an impressed look.
“You’re not the only one who watched Lost, Gingersnap,” I inform her, walking toward the building.
“I’m surprised you’re not calling me Freckles,” she notes. “Considering.”
“Have to be original with my nicknames, don’t I, Gilligan?”
I can practically feel her roll her eyes from behind me.
I’m glad we’re back in this space again, where we can talk and poke fun at each other. I hated being mad at her, and I really had no reason to. I knew she had made a mistake, I knew that the boat running aground was an accident. At the very least, she didn’t do it on purpose.
I’ve spent the last couple of days trying to grapple with my anger, most of it directed at myself, some at Daisy, and some at the ocean itself, for trying to take more lives that matter to me.
I’ve been in rough shape, to say the least, even though I’ve done my best to hide it. I have to. I feel responsible for my crew, for my friends…for Daisy. Now that we’re on land, I feel it’s my purpose to keep everyone safe until we get rescued. My job as captain isn’t over yet.
“Who wants to go inside first?” Daisy asks, before she quickly adds, “Not it.”
I stare at her for a moment, at the cheeky smile on her peach-colored lips.
Lips that I tasted, lips that left me hungry, starving for more.
Kissing her was probably the highlight of my year, if I’m being honest. I can’t remember the last time I felt so ravenous for someone, not just physically, but emotionally. On another level. Like I’ve had this cage built inside my chest for far too long, rusted shut from the sea, and someone has finally found it. She hasn’t made her way in yet, but I think she’s trying, and I desperately want to let her.
But I can’t. Because I’m not built that way. Because Holly did such a number on me, I know if I give into Daisy, there would be no turning back. She would own me, all of me, and I would be at her feet—hook, line, and sinker.
I can’t let that happen.
For one, I need to keep my head on straight until we’re rescued. There is no way around that.
For two…I’m afraid.
I’ve had my future dashed before. I’ve had my hopes and my heart ground up into dust. Call me a coward, but I’ll do anything not to go through that again.
Even if that means saying no to Daisy.
Even if all I want to do is say yes.
“What?” she asks me. “You’re looking at me weird.”
I clear my throat, giving her a quick smile. “Just trying to figure out when you became such a chicken.”
Good job, Tai. Deflection.
“Chicken?” she repeats. She laughs. “That’s rich.”
She puts her hand at my shoulder and pushes me forward.
“You’re the brave spear fisherman Maori warrior. You go check it out.”
I shrug and walk through the overgrown grass to the bungalow, carefully going up the stairs alongside vines that have wrapped themselves around the railing. So far they seem to hold.
The deck seems to hold too,