“I am,” he insisted as he leaned back in his chair and glared at her.
“Fine. Then it looks like you don’t need my assistance,” she said, then turned and began walking from the office.
“Nina, I’m sorry,” he called, not exactly admitting that he needed her help again, but hoping she wouldn’t leave him in the lurch.
She turned, but she didn’t look to be in the most helpful of moods. She crossed her arms against her chest and waited with one eyebrow slightly raised.
“How should I reply?” he asked.
Her irritated expression evaporated. “Rafe Palazzo, I will not help you snowball this woman. I actually like Ari. If you can figure it out and win her back, you will be a better man for it.”
With those words, she walked from the room. Rafe listened to the quiet click of the door shutting, then stared down at his phone.
Flirting. OK. He could do this. She wanted romance; she wanted words. Well, he was a master at that.
All I could picture was stripping that bit of lace off of you when I bought them. And, yes, I personally picked them out, ran my fingers across the fabric, and closed my eyes, imagining how you would look wearing them…and nothing else. Come see me tonight and I’ll undress you slowly as I run my fingers over every delectable inch of your skin.
There. That was good. Surely she didn’t want any mushy stuff. Of course not. So he leaned back as he waited, all thoughts of work forgotten. His phone rang, and he quickly clicked the button, rerouting the call, and then shut it down. His sole focus right now was this new game that Ari wanted to play.
I thought you agreed to no touching.
Rafe grinned.
That was only for one night, Ari. I plan on touching every inch of your body — again and again and again…
Rafe’s body hardened as he closed his eyes, recalling the smooth curve of her br**sts, the sweet angle of her backside, her defined legs. She was a vision, and he had to have her soon. Several heartbeats passed before his phone beeped again.
Thanks for the gifts, but I have a date tonight. Maybe some other time…
Immense jealousy wrenched Rafe’s gut. His first instinct was to demand she break the date right now. She belonged to him, and no other man was allowed to touch her. He would pound anyone who tried to a bloody pulp.
He began typing exactly that, but he came to his senses before he hit send. If he said those words, he would surely lose her all over again.
No. If Ari wanted to play games, he’d just have to prove that he was always the winner. Instead of sending a response, he picked up his other phone and made a call.
His plans for the evening had just changed.
Chapter Sixteen
Lia
The rain wasn’t just coming down; it felt as if the heavens had opened up and God was unleashing his fury on the small island. Lia could see only a couple of feet in front of her as she staggered through the bushes and trees, fear starting to escalate.
What if she was completely lost? What if she broke through the bushes just as a tidal wave was surging from the ocean and it carried her back out to sea, where she’d never be found again?
Her temper was going to end up causing her untimely death. There was a point when stubbornness was just plain stupid, and she’d crossed that line, and then redrawn all new boundaries.
Staggering along, hoping she was headed in the right direction, Lia prayed to make it through this somehow. As another horrendously loud clap of thunder sounded right above her head, she felt as if she’d gotten a big fat no in answer to her prayers.
* * * * *
Shane had sulked long enough. Emerging from the surprisingly deep cave, he came up out of the water and immediately searched for Lia. Looking up at the sky, he grew worried. It was going to pour at any moment. He’d stayed inside the small cavern for far too long, a couple of hours, perhaps. Maybe more.
“Lia!”
He couldn’t see her anywhere. There was no way she’d be so irresponsible as to wander off alone — not with a storm brewing. But what if she’d gone off far earlier, after their tiff, perhaps to get food? After all, that had been a major point of this expedition, and he’d blown off thinking about what had to be done because he was pissed off. All in all, this was a disaster ultimately of his own making.
Shane quickly climbed from the water and grabbed the bag, rushing it over to the cave behind the waterfall so it would be safe.
Then he hurried back and dressed, his temper flaring when he realized that she had indeed wandered off. Part of it was her fault, her stubbornness, but he couldn’t absolve himself of all blame. She could be anywhere and the sky was about to unleash its wrath. He hoped Lia hadn’t gone back to the beach. He had no idea what the swells would be doing right now.
As the wind picked up, he made his way through the brush, shouting her name every minute or so. Suddenly, the rain came down, and it wasn’t showing the least bit of mercy as thunder boomed and lightning slashed across the sky. He had to find her and get back to the safety of the cave.
Passing a fruit tree, he almost didn’t stop, but knew they could be stuck for a while. He took less than thirty seconds and filled his pockets, then continued his search.
As the torrential rain poured down, Shane pushed ahead, feeling the sting on his face as the brush and low tree branches whipped past him in his fervent pursuit. Not giving the sting a second thought, he continued on. Unsure how he was going to find her, but knowing there was no way he’d give up, he continued calling for her as the light faded.
Just when he thought he would be wandering the woods in the thick of night, he spotted a flash of pink ahead. It had to be her shirt. His heart stalled as he made his way in that direction. Please, he prayed.
It had to be her. When he got closer, he found Lia hunched down on the ground. Terror gripped him at her stillness, but then he saw her move and his temper flared. How dare she frighten him so badly!
“What in the hell were you thinking?” he shouted.
Lia’s body jerked as she turned to look at him. Defiance shone in her eyes — she wasn’t going to back down an inch.
“I was thinking about getting away from you, you overgrown pig,” she replied, her words slightly garbled as the pouring rain dripped into her mouth.
“We need to go now. This storm is only getting worse,” he said as he gripped her arm and lifted her to her feet. They could fight once they were in the safety of the cave.
Shane was astonished when she dug in her heels. “I would rather stay out here in the rain than have you dictate to me, Shane Grayson!”