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"I pissed off some very important and dangerous people on the island," she said. "I had to disappear."
"Did you blow up that boat?" As he asked the question, he realized he already knew the answer. "You did. That's the only way you could get off without being injured. Was it some sort of remote-controlled explosion? Did you have a life raft?"
"Does it matter how? I had to make it look like I was dead. So that's what I did." She licked her lips. "I honestly didn't know you would search for me. I thought you'd be long gone and that you'd never know anything."
"Would you have changed your plans if I wasn't leaving the island that day?"
She shook her head. "No. My plans were set. I had no other option."
"So when you came to my room that night, you knew you were going to disappear the next day."
"I told you that, Drew. I said it was only for that night. You didn’t care."
He vaguely remembered her saying something about a night, but he'd been so caught up in her, he wouldn't have cared if she'd told him they had five minutes; he would have taken what he could get.
"I was honest with you," she said. "I never led you on."
"I think honesty might be a word you want to stay away from," he said dryly.
"Honest with you," she said pointedly. "I wasn't talking about anyone else."
"Then be honest with me now. Tell me why you had to fake your death, which is a pretty extreme measure."
"If I hadn't faked my death, I'd be dead for real, and if anyone were to connect me to you and to the island, it could be very bad, not just for me, but also for you. They might think you helped me get off the island." She took a breath, her gaze very serious. "This is even worse than I thought."
"Who are 'they'?"
"I can't tell you." She blew out a breath. "I wish you hadn't made those calls when you saw me a few months ago. You could have triggered something."
"Like what? The people I spoke to still thought you were dead."
"Yes, but you might have planted a seed of doubt."
"Were you running away from Juan or Martin?"
She immediately shook her head. "No. I actually liked both of them."
"Then I doubt you have anything to worry about."
"Believe me, there's always something to worry about. Juan is very closely connected with some of the people on the island that I want to avoid. And I'm not sure who Martin is connected to these days. He was only supposed to be on the island a few months. He was taking a break from school. He's been there over a year."
"I guess he likes the island lifestyle."
"Yeah," she muttered, obviously distracted.
"Ria—"
"Tory," she corrected, refocusing her attention on him. "That's my name now. Tory Harper. You have to remember to use it."
"Tory doesn't really fit you."
"Well, it is me," she snapped.
"Why don't you go to the police?"
"They can't help me. The threat is—international."
"Then what about the FBI?"
She shook her head. "Don’t you think I've already considered every option? I'm not stupid, Drew."
"Believe me, I never thought you were. Maybe I can help you," he suggested. "I am with the Coast Guard, and I have friends in other areas of law enforcement."
Her frown only deepened at his words. "No," she said flatly. "If you want to help, stay away from me. Forget you ever met me. You do not want to be in the middle of this situation."
"Is there anyone who's helping you?" he asked. "Because I find it difficult to believe you could blow up a boat, escape from the middle of the ocean, start over with a new name without having anyone to help."
"I'm good at multi-tasking," she said lightly.
"I don't believe you."
"I had help with the I.D.," she said.
"What about your family? Where are they?"
"Let's talk about something else."
"Ria—"
"I've already said too much," she said, putting up a hand. "I'm handling things, and at the moment everything is fine. My only problem is you."
