Page 43 of Return to the Island

We weathered the night in the stairwell. The lights went out and the temperature increased, but it didn’t seem to matter to us. I’d gotten the door open, finding it was only stuck from the shift in humidity. I pulled the blanket and pillows into the stairwell, and then risked returning to my rooms for some snacks and water bottles.

“Garvey would be so proud of you,” she said as we sat on the blanket on the landing, pillows propped at our back.

“Why?” I laughed, picking up a pile of crackers, cheese, and salami, and sticking the whole mini-sandwich in my mouth.

“You’ve made this collection of food into a feast.” She smiled up at me, and my heart expanded in my chest. She was so beautiful, and I relished the future of proving to her each day she belonged with me.

“And what are we celebrating?”

“Another hurricane, perhaps.” Her lips curved, and a gleam came to her eyes.

“That means I have to make love to you at least three more times in this little cave.” The comment stopped us both. Her hand stilled in mid-air from collecting cheese on crackers.

“It is like the cave,” she said, her voice lower. “Maybe we are being given a second chance at that.”

I softly chuckled. “I don’t suppose the island could do that.”

Tender eyes looked up at me. “But don’t you agree the island was…different?”

“If you’re suggesting that we were different on the island, then yes, I agree. I’m more carefree without other things to interfere, but I’m not going to change how I feel about you no matter where we are. I want you with me.” I reached for her hand. “Did you ever think about what would have happened had we been there the full year?”

“You’d be sick of me,” she laughed, but I tugged at her hand, and she dropped her cheese and crackers. I didn’t stop tugging, but pulled her so she eventually straddled my lap.

“I want you to listen to me and listen good.” I brushed a few strands of hair behind her ear and then cupped her jaw so she’d look up at me. “I love you. That’s not easy for me to say, and it’s not something I ever thought I’d hear, but I find it’s easy for me to say to you, and I love hearing it said from you. This…” I wove a hand between us. “…is not going to be different. I will still want you wildly every day. You tame me. You claim me. And I want to be yours.”

A tear streaked down her cheek. “I said those words to you in the cave.”

“You did and I’m saying them back to you. What’s going to be different is our surroundings, but not us. Island or not, we will be together. This is real.”

She nodded slowly, and I reached for her lips. There was only one place kissing would lead, and I needed to be close to her again. If I had to make love to her every day to prove we were real, that our love was real, I would.