AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She saw no need to add that she took the Pill more for cramp relief than an active social life.
She felt his shoulders relax just a fraction and sensed his relief that the repercussions of their lovemaking would only be emotional ones. “I'm not apologizing…”
“Good. I don't want you to,” she said rather fiercely.
?
?…but,” he continued, ignoring her interjection, “I hope you won't have any regrets later.”
“I knew what I was doing. I won't regret it,” she managed to say evenly, hoping she was telling the truth. Knowing it was true now, at least.
He muttered something that sounded like, “I hope I won't,” but before she could ask him to repeat it—or explain—he was moving. Shifting his weight from beneath her, he rolled to his feet, reaching for scattered articles of clothing.
“I'll be right back,” he said without looking at her and disappeared into the men's room.
A bit disoriented by how abruptly he had abandoned her, B.J. sat up and ran a shaking hand through her wildly tumbled hair. She hadn't expected a declaration of undying devotion, or even flowery, romantic sweet nothings, but a “Wow, that was great,” would have been nice. A couple more kisses, maybe.
Closing herself into the ladies' room with her wrinkled clothes and her tattered pride, she reminded herself that she had promised there would be no regrets. She hadn't been lying—she couldn't regret something that had been so exciting and spectacular, so close to the fantasies she had never expected to experience.
Which wasn't to say there wouldn't be moments of wistfulness that the inevitable conclusion couldn't have been different for them.
A boat arrived for them just after daybreak. It wasn't Bernard at the helm this time, but a young man who seemed braced for unpleasantness when they approached him.
“My name is Greg. Mr. Drake asked me to convey his most sincere apologies for your inconvenience,” he recited quickly, before Daniel or B.J. had a chance to speak. “There was a mix-up in communications, and it was believed that a boat had been sent for you last night. It was only this morning that anyone realized you were still on the island. We sincerely hope there was no harm done during the hours you spent here.”
Glaring at the young man, Daniel considered knocking him on his butt—just for the satisfaction of punching someone. It would make a nice demonstration for B.J. that he didn't take Drake's threatening gestures lightly, especially when they involved her. But taking his anger out on someone who'd had nothing to do with stranding them here would accomplish nothing.
He would vent his temper toward those who deserved it, he decided, turning away. But not before he saw the quick relief cross Greg's face; he must have read the violent impulse in Daniel's eyes.
Making sure B.J. was settled comfortably on the launch, he took a seat across from her rather than beside her. He didn't quite trust himself to sit close to her yet.
This trip would pass all too quickly, and then it would be time again for them to resume their roles as devoted spouses. It would take him that long to get his impassive mask firmly back into place, his long-buried emotions safely hidden away again.
No harm done? Greg had no idea just how much damage those hours on the island had caused. Emotional barriers that had taken years to build and fortify were now deeply cracked, and there was no telling how long it would take him to repair them.
Daniel was afraid they would never be quite as safe and impenetrable as they had been before.
Chapter Ten
The Daniel Andreas who stepped off the boat at the resort marina was not the same man who had made passionate love to B.J. such a short time before. This man was hard, tensed, jaw set and eyes snapping with temper.
Dangerous.
He had said very little to her since they'd emerged from the pavilion restrooms. He had given her a few terse instructions about how to behave when they returned to the resort—basically, she was to appear bewildered and confused. But there had been no personal conversation at all. No discussion about what had passed between them.
From the way Daniel was acting now, they might as well have spent the entire night on separate islands.
Bernard stepped forward to greet them at the marina. He wore his usual summer-weight boxy jacket with a T-shirt and pressed jeans, and even though it was very early, his bald head was already shiny with perspiration.
He greeted them with an expression of patently false sincerity. “I'm so sorry you were accidentally stranded. There was a mix-up about who was supposed to—”
Daniel's fist connected with Bernard's jaw, rocking the bigger man's head back and cutting off the sentence midword. Even as B.J. gasped in shock at the speed of the strike, another jacketed man appeared seemingly out of nowhere, moving toward Daniel with deadly purpose.
She threw herself at Daniel, catching his arm and tugging him away from Bernard. “Daniel Andreas! Have you lost your mind?”
“That,” Daniel said without looking away from Bernard, “was for the discomfort my wife suffered during the night.”
“For heaven's sake, Daniel, that wasn't necessary.” B.J. was playing her role with a note of desperation now. “You heard Bernard say it was all a misunderstanding.”
