Page 46 of Kyle

“Tell what?” Kyle asked and smoothed my hair.

“The man. He wanted to know who you were. He kept asking over and over who took the girls. He said it would be easier for me if I told. But I would’ve rather died than give you two up.”

“He hit you because you wouldn’t tell him our names?” Declan growled.

“He said…he said he knew but he wanted to hear me say it. I swear, I didn’t tell.”

Kyle was vibrating with so much anger it shocked me into silence.

Declan let out a long string of curse words, and if I hadn’t been floating in the middle of the ocean after almost dying, I would’ve been impressed by his creativity.

“You should’ve told him,” Kyle spat.

“What?”

Was he mad at me?

“He hit you. You should’ve told him our names.”

“I would never do that. I would’ve rather him kill me than put you two in danger.”

Kyle’s gaze left mine and I followed his eyes to Declan. He, too, looked furious. Something important passed between them in a silent conversation. I didn’t ask what it was, instead I asked, “What now?”

“Now we wait,” Kyle answered.

“Wait?”

“The rescue boat has been deployed.”

“How long until they get here?”

“Probably another thirty minutes.”

“Thirty minutes?”

Panic started to set in. What if the boat couldn’t find us? Were we going die out here bobbing in the ocean?

“We were hoping to wait on the boat until the rescue team got to us. But the asshole who detonated the bomb shot that plan to shit,” Declan told me.

“Everything’s gonna be fine. Easy day, sweetheart.” I was sure Kyle was trying to be reassuring but now I couldn’t stop thinking about a frenzy of sharks circling below us. I didn’t want to survive a kidnapping, a beating, and a boat explosion only to become lunch for hungry fish.

“All we need to do is float. Just like in your book.” Kyle smiled at me.

“My book?”

“Yeah. You know in the beginning after the woman is rescued, they end up in the water. Just like them, all we have to do is wait.”

I knew the part he was talking about. And when I’d read it, I thought it was romantic how the couple was drifting in the water together. The fantasy of being rescued by a man as strong and protective as the hero had sent chills down my arms. Now that I was living it, I wasn’t—

“Sweetheart.” Kyle cut into my thoughts. “I promise everything’s gonna be fine.”

“Okay.”

Kyle had promised he’d find me and he had. If he said we were going to be fine, we would be. I knew it with everything inside of me.

I tried to adjust the life preserver to alleviate some of the pressure it was putting on my neck, and when Kyle noticed he said, “Sucks to say, but we’re gonna be out here awhile. You might as well get comfortable with being uncomfortable.”

“Not a SEAL, huh?” I smirked when he used a Navy SEAL motivational saying.