8. Travis
I’m not looking forward to the darkness. I’m not afraid, but I know Paige is not going to manage it well. I doubt the princess has ever had to rough it a day in her life. She’s not going to make it easy. I collect the bag and walk down to grab my shirt. It’s wet, but I’m hoping it will dry by the fire. I happen to see another shirt has washed up on the shore. I look around, hoping her suitcase will wash ashore. I know it would make her feel better.
I look but find nothing. I make my way back to the makeshift camp and find her staring into the flames, completely lost in thought.
“Do you think there might be other people on this island?” she asks.
“I doubt it,” I say.
“What if there is a resort or a house on the island?” she asks again.
“We can look in the morning, but I don’t think it’s wise to go traipsing around in the dark.”
I see the fear cross her features. “Why? Do you think there are bears or, or, I don’t know, some other dangerous animal?”
”The island is safe,” I reassure Paige, my voice calm and steady despite the lingering uncertainty. ”We”ll be fine here. I doubt there are any animals. This place is tiny. I barely saw it when…when we were going down. There are a few places like this in the ocean. Usually, it’s just a rock. We’re lucky, we have a sandy shore.”
She eyes the sparse landscape skeptically, her expression doubtful. ”Are you sure?” she asks, her voice tinged with apprehension.
I nod, trying to project an air of confidence I”m not entirely sure I possess. ”Positive,” I reply, hoping she can”t see through the fa?ade.
“So, what do we do?” she asks. “Do we just sit here all night watching the fire?”
“I don’t think either of us are going to be able to stay up all night. We’ve been through hell. The adrenaline rush is gone. We’re going to crash.”
“Sleep. On the ground.”
“I didn’t pack my mattress,” I joke.
“There are bugs,” she groans.
I take a deep breath, reminding myself she is way out of her element. I need to have patience. “We can collect some foliage and spread it on the ground. It’s getting dark, though, we need to hurry.”
“Actually, I think I would prefer the sand,” she says.
“If this goes on too much longer, we’ll figure something out,” I tell her.
“Listen, I know you’re trying to be helpful, but I can’t think about another night here. I just need to focus on getting through tonight.”
“I understand,” I nod.
I pull on my shirt and sit down beside her, adding a few more sticks to the fire. In the back of my mind, I hope I’m right. I hope there’s nothing on this rock that could put our lives in danger. I pray I can keep her alive long enough to be rescued.
”It”s going to be okay,” I tell her, my voice soft but firm. ”I”m pretty sure we were within sixty miles of the islands. Someone will be here to rescue us soon.”
Paige nods, her expression still tinged with worry. ”I hope you”re right,” she murmurs, her tone subdued.
As the night wears on, the temperature drops, and the darkness deepens around us. Paige shivers beside me, her discomfort palpable in the chill night air.
”You should try to get some sleep,” I suggest, my voice low and gentle. ”We”ll need our strength for tomorrow.”
She grumbles something unintelligible under her breath, but eventually, exhaustion wins out over stubbornness, and she settles down beside me, her breathing slow and steady as sleep claims her. I stay sitting, trying to stay awake, but I can feel the toll of the crash and the swim. I can hardly keep my eyes open. I lie down beside her, promising myself I’ll just close my eyes for a few minutes. Just a little power nap.
In the middle of the night, I”m jolted awake by the sound of Paige”s cries, her voice raw with fear. I reach out instinctively, pulling her close and murmuring soothing words in her ear.
”It”s okay,” I whisper, my voice a comforting murmur in the darkness. ”You”re safe. I”ve got you.”
She clings to me desperately, her body trembling against mine. ”I had a nightmare,” she whispers, her voice choked with tears. “I woke up and I thought it was just a nightmare and then I realized it was real and this is the nightmare.”
I hold her tighter, wishing there was more I could do to ease her pain. ”It”s over now,” I assure her, my voice firm and steady. ”You”re okay. I won”t let anything happen to you.”
She sniffles, her tears soaking into my shirt. ”I”m scared,” she admits, her voice barely above a whisper.
I stroke her hair gently, trying to offer whatever comfort I can. ”I know,” I reply softly. ”But we”re in this together. We”ll make it through this, I promise. I’m not about to die after surviving that crash.”
She looks up at me, her eyes searching mine for reassurance. And then, without warning, she leans in and kisses me, her lips soft and trembling against mine.
”If I”m going to die,” she whispers, her voice barely audible over the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. ”I want to feel alive.”
“You are alive.”
She touches my face, her eyes shimmering in the faint glow of the firelight. “No, I want to feel alive. I want to have sex. It’s been so long. I thought I had time. Maybe I don’t. Don’t tell me you aren’t thinking it.”
Without another word, I capture her lips with mine, the intensity of the moment drowning out the sound of the ocean. Our kiss is desperate, a mixture of fear, desire, and a primal need for connection in the face of uncertainty. Paige”s hands roam over my body, pulling me closer as if trying to erase any distance between us.
She pushes my shirt up. I quickly pull it away and toss it on the ground. Her hands roam over my chest. Desire courses through me as Paige”s fingertips brush over my skin. I want her, need her in a way I never thought possible in our dire situation.
Our clothes are shed and the cool night air caresses our heated skin, I can”t help but marvel at the intensity of our connection. I kiss over her jaw, tasting the salt on her skin.
“Hold on,” I say.
I quickly spread our clothes out, giving her something to lay down on. I lower her to the ground, kissing her collar bone and then lower.
She arches against me, her hands running through my hair as she pulls me closer. The urgency of the moment fuels our passion. The crash, the isolation, the looming uncertainty about our fate all fade into the background as we lose ourselves in each other.
My lips brush across her pebbled nipple. A small groan escapes her. My hands trail down her sides, feeling the heat of her skin beneath my fingertips. Paige”s breath hitches as I explore every inch of her body with my tongue and teeth.
“Don’t stop,” she demands.
I press a kiss to her abdomen, my hands ghosting over the curve of her hips. She shudders beneath me. I continue my journey downwards, leaving a trail of heated kisses in my wake. Her thighs tremble as I part them, a soft gasp escaping her lips as I delve into the sacred territory between. If these are my last days on earth, I’m going to make sure I die a happy man.
Her fingers tangle in my hair, guiding me closer, urging me on. The taste of her on my tongue is intoxicating, the low moans spilling from her lips only adding to the frenzy.
“Yes,” she cries out in the darkness.
I use my fingers to open her, pushing my tongue inside and lapping over her clit. Her body arches off the makeshift bed of clothing, a strangled gasp escaping her lips. The world narrows down to this moment, to the taste of her, the feel of her beneath my hands and mouth. Her fingers twist harder in my hair as she nears the edge, my name turning into a chant.
”God...yes!” she cries out, her body shaking as she tumbles over the edge. Her fingers unfurl from my hair as a shudder ripples through her. Her chest rises and falls rapidly even as she grabs at me, pulling me up her body. I cover her naked body with my own and kiss her deeply, letting her taste herself on my tongue. She moans into the kiss, her hands exploring my back before they slide lower to cup my butt. She pulls me closer, a clear indication that she wants more.
I briefly consider a condom, but it’s not like I have one. And if we’re not making it out of this thing alive, there’s not much to worry about anyway.
“You’re sure?” I ask, praying she doesn’t reconsider now that she got off once.
“Yes. Don’t you dare stop.”
I smile and kiss over her jaw. “I wonder if you ever stop giving orders.”
She merely flashes me a quick smile in response before pressing her lips to mine in another burning kiss. Her legs spread wider, inviting me in. Guided by instinct and driven by the raw connection between us, I slid myself into her. Her body is hot and tight, stretching and pulling me in deeper. “Shit,” I groan, trying to keep control of myself.
The cry she lets out is swallowed by my mouth as I sink into her wet heat. “Yes,” she moans. “Yes, more.”
I begin to move slowly, giving her time to adjust. She’s so tight. I’m barely able to keep myself from exploding. If this was my last sexual encounter. I needed it to last longer than a minute. Our bodies merge and separate with each thrust, creating a rhythm that vibrates through us. The sound of our breathing becomes one with the night, echoing the powerful crashing of the waves around us.
As I pull out only to drive back in, her soft cries echo around me. The taste of her lips lingers on mine as we move together, lost in this moment of desperate passion.
“My God,” she breathes, her legs tightening around my waist. The sensation is too much. I can hear my own ragged breathing filling the air as sweat trickles down my forehead.
”Paige,” I whisper, my voice ragged and filled with raw emotion. I brace myself on shaky arms above her, trying not to crush her with my weight.
Her nails rake down my back as she arches beneath me, her fingers leaving trails of tantalizing pain that only serves to fuel my desire more.
”Yes, don”t stop,” she whispers urgently, her voice a bare rasp in the stillness.
The sight of her beneath me, eyes dark with passion, lips swollen from my kisses, leaves me spiraling out of control. I”ve never wanted anyone as much as I want her in this moment.
With each thrust, I”m taken deeper into her. The sensation of her tight heat enclosing around me is enough to make me lose all control. But she deserves more; she deserves everything I can give.
I drive into her, harder and faster, losing myself in the moment. The orgasm hits hard, making me see stars in front of my eyes that had nothing to do with the night sky.
Her tight sheath clenches around me, milking every last drop from me as her body squeezed and spasmed around my cock. I collapse, barely missing her body. My body spasms and twitches in the aftermath. I wrap an arm around her and hold her close just before I pass out.