Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Jade
This might be the longest day of my entire existence.
My god. Axel. The way his mouth felt on me. The way his hands felt on me. And then when he told me he wanted me wet and naked in his bed? I had to go inside and get myself off right after he left. I hope he didn’t hear me moaning. Or maybe I don’t.
I certainly hope he gets to hear me moan tonight.
I know this is madness. We just met. But there’s something between us, something deep and fierce, unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.
I can no longer resist. He is not my rebound.
Even if it goes no further than the time I spend here, it’s more than that.
We’re connected on some profound level. I know I won’t forget how he looked at me last night, how he felt, for the rest of my life.
But I respect his choice to do this properly, even if I’ve been squirming in my seat all day. Let him charm the pants off me. Though he won’t have to. I’m going commando tonight, just like he asked. I don’t know whether or not he was joking but I’m not going to let a challenge like that pass.
Finally, finally, the afternoon comes to an end.
I shower in the outside shower, trying not to think too much of what it would be like if he happened to show up while I’m doing so, then get dressed.
It only takes a moment. I wear the dress I bought the other day, the deep green silk, just above knee-length, skimming my body and leaving my arms bare to the ocean breeze.
I put on flat gold sandals, tying them around my ankles.
The doctor replaced my bandages with some smooth dressings closer to the colour of my skin, which helps with the look.
Just a touch of make-up – lashes, brows and a bit of sparkle.
Lipgloss. No point putting anything else on, not if it’s going to get kissed off later.
I’m excited, I realise, as I look at myself in the mirror.
Genuine flickers of anticipation, pure and bright.
I haven’t felt like this in a long time.
It’s as though the longer I stay here, the more I’m able to get in touch with who I really am. And what I truly feel.
There’s a knock. Green silk slides against my bare skin, like a whisper of what I hope is to come, like the butterflies in my stomach. I open the door.
A short while later we’re sitting at a table at the nightclub. Hibiscus Alley is busy, as it usually seems to be. Music plays over the sound system, a mix of Top 40 and heavier rock. A couple of waiters work the tables, a delicious smell of food in the air.
“I thought we were going to the restaurant.”
Axel, looking like a dream in a fitted black T-shirt and low-slung khaki cargo trousers, blinks. “Oh. Did you want to? I just thought this was easier. And the food here is really good.”
“No, this is great. As long as Mish doesn’t show up.”
“I’ll keep her away.” He grins. “Not that it looked like you needed my help. You do martial arts?”
“Yeah. I’ve been training for a couple of years now. Got my brown belt a few months ago. Zach—” I stop talking. I do not want to bring up my ex while I’m on a date.
“Zach?” Axel’s head tilts slightly.
I shrug. “He does martial arts too. Karate. Thought I might enjoy it. And he was right.” I take a sip of my drink. It’s another of those coconut daiquiris. I have no plans to throw it on anyone. “Anyway, I don’t want to talk about him.”
“I do.” Axel folds his arms, the muscles flexing. “Look, I don’t know what your arrangement is, but I don’t do the sharing thing. I want you, Jade. But I want to be the only one.” His storm-grey gaze is clear and direct.
I frown, wondering what he means. “You are.”
“So you’re not with him?” Still so direct. “Because cheating is a deal-breaker for me.”
Realisation washes over me. “I broke up with him. On the way here. It’s why I’m here. And … uh, I don’t like cheating either.”
He visibly relaxes, his broad shoulders dropping. But there’s a line between his brows. “Fuck. Really? On the way here? And now I’m dropping in and—”
“You’re not doing anything. Except— What was that thing you said? Wooing me.” I grin. “And I hope you don’t stop.”
“I have no plans to.” He leans forward, reaching for my hand. “Not unless you ask me to.”
“I have no plans to do that, either.”
Axel
When Jade opened the door of her cabin and I saw her standing there, clad in green silk, I knew I was done for. That I had to have her.
It was obvious she wasn’t wearing a bra. I was half-joking last night, when I said no underwear. But now I can’t stop wondering what she’s wearing under her skirt. If anything.
Now she sits opposite me like some sort of dream, candlelight gleaming on her smooth shoulders, the low neckline on her dress revealing the valley between her breasts.
I want to run my tongue up it, want to peel back the silk and suck her nipples until she cries my name. It’s as though I’ve been unleashed.
I’ve kept myself apart, controlled, for almost two years. There’s been no one, and I’ve been happy that way. Until Jade blew into my life. And all I want now is to fuck her until we both pass out.
I could have done so, last night. Why the hell did I make a big deal about wooing her, like we were back in the nineteenth century or something?
Because she’s worth it, my mind whispers. She’s more than just a fuck.
And that’s crazy in itself. But I suppose it would take something this big to shake me out of my self-imposed exile.
And Jade is some sort of stormy fucking temptress.
I watch her mouth as she talks, try not to sigh with relief when she confirms that she and Zach are over.
Unleashed as I am, I still don’t think I would have crossed that line.
Now nothing stands between us.
Except dinner, I guess. The waiter arrives with steaming bowls of noodles, crisp spring rolls piled high, dipping sauces and more. A feast. But all I want to eat is Jade. Still, I dig in and so does she, asking the waiter for another of the frosty cocktails. I add a beer to the order.
“I’ve been thinking about the cave,” she says, after a few minutes.
So have I. About the kiss we shared there. But I don’t say that. “You have?”
“Yeah. I might have a couple of ideas.”
“Really?” I try to control my reaction, but she sees it, her green gaze narrowing slightly. But she doesn’t know what it would mean to me, to have the land saved.
“You have all those boards in your workshop. Black Axes. Beautiful. In perfect condition. You could sell them all and, while I know it won’t cover the full cost, it’ll put you in a better position with the bank. I might know someone who can help with the financing, but we’ll need a deposit.”
I like how she says “we.” “I get why you think that. But those boards aren’t for sale. Well, they are. But not all at once. If a bunch of brand-new Axes came on the market, people would start asking questions about where they came from. One or two a year is fine. But not twenty in one go.”
“You do that?”
“I do what?”
“Release them onto the market every once in a while.”
“Sometimes. Like, if there’s something we need on the island and I want to contribute. But, like I say, I can’t do it with a lot at once. I gave up full-time shaping for a reason.”
She stares at me, and I know she wants to ask. But she doesn’t. She chews her lip for a moment before she speaks again. “I can’t afford to buy the land. But maybe we could do a Kickstarter or something, raise the funds? I have a pretty massive social media reach, I’m sure I could get us there.”
Fuck. This is not what I’d hoped for.
“No. Absolutely not.” I try to keep the sharpness from my tone. But this is a bad idea, for a lot of reasons.
She blinks, sitting back a little. “No? Look, I know it’s not the best plan. But if people can see how special it is—”
“They’ll come here in droves, destroying the place in an effort to get the best selfie. And the damn hotel will probably need to be built to accommodate them all.” I pause, taking a breath. That came out more sharply than I meant it to.
Her throat moves, a sheen of tears in her green gaze. “Yeah. Sorry. You’re right, of course. I just… I can’t bear the thought of it being used like that.”
“You can’t buy it?” Perhaps a bit too direct, but I’m almost at the end of my rope.
She shakes her head. “I make a lot of money,” she says, in answer to my questioning look. “More than enough. If I wasn’t paying for something else.”
“Something else?”
She looks down. “I told you I didn’t have the best upbringing, right? But I did have someone, other than Dora. My twin brother, Jasper. He’s awesome, super smart. I’ve been paying for him to go to university for the past few years. He’s doing his Master’s now. At Harvard.”
Fuck. That explains a lot. And I feel guilty again.
I’m supposed to be wooing her, not making her upset.
I take her hand again, playing with her slender fingers.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I’m doing a pretty shitty job of wooing you, aren’t I?
And your idea was great, apart from the fact it will expose everyone here to the rest of the world, including me. ”
“No, it was shit.” She still looks upset, her smooth brow crinkled. “A stupid idea. I don’t know what I was thinking. Maybe, could we speak to the developer? Ask them to leave the cave as it is?”
“I doubt they’d listen.”
“But it’s a historic place. Surely there’s some protection available for it.”
“Nothing they would care about.” Bitterness floods me, poison-sharp.
She pauses, her eyes narrowing. “What aren’t you telling me?”
A lot. But I’m not unpicking old wounds tonight.
“Nothing.” I bring her hand to my mouth, kissing it. “And I really am sorry.” The band has started up, a Dua Lipa cover. “We can worry about this tomorrow.”
“Axel, you’d tell me, wouldn’t you? If there was something else I could do?”
“I would. And there isn’t.” This is the truth.
“I don’t want to give up.”
A catch in my chest, at how much she obviously cares about this place.
She understands; I know she does. I saw it in her face, when I took her to the temple and then the cave.
“Nor do I. And we won’t. But tonight”—I kiss her fingers again, flicking my tongue against them—“I believe there is wooing to be done.”
Her lips part. “Yes. I believe there is.”
The music slows, a breathy cover of Rihanna’s “Diamonds.” I get to my feet, still holding Jade’s hand. “Dance with me?”
She stands, graceful as flowing water, beautiful as the sky. “All right.”