Page 121 of Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds

“I am honored to be your Prince Charming.” He bowed deeply, then took my hand and led me toward the cliff.

It looked like there was nowhere to go, then Jason led us around a huge boulder, revealing the opening to a cave.

I froze. It was dark and scary and not like a place I wanted to explore.

Jason faced me, took both my hands.

“Trust me,” he said.

“Where does it go?”

He didn’t answer me, simply stared at me with an expression that saidthis is your choice.

His expression also said that my decision now was about more than whether to go into the cave. It was about trusting him—and trusting myself. About whether I was going to always play it safe, or take a risk... even if it was a small risk.

Jason was with me. The risk didn’t seem so great with him by my side.

I leaned up and kissed him. He looked surprised, and that’s when I realized he’d been the one who had initiated each of ourmake-out sessions. I was a very willing participant, but I hadn’t spontaneously kissed him until now.

I was glad I did. Something shifted between us. I felt closer to him, as if we shared something unspoken.

Holding hands, we entered the cave.

The sand was rockier, large shells littering the mouth of the cave. A stream of water flowed into the ocean behind us. The cavern was completely dark for a minute, but I swallowed the fear, my hand tightening in Jason’s.

Then suddenly, we stood in the open.

It wasn’t a nearly enclosed cavern like in the lagoon on the north side of the island; instead, it was a park, open to the sky, a thin waterfall streaming down the rock face. Bushes grew out of the cliffs, and trees towered all around us. In the middle where the water fell was what looked like a small lake. I watched as it streamed out the way we’d come in. The setting sun reflected off the cliffs, casting a surreal glow and multitude of gold-tinged colors all around.

“It’s—” I had no words. For a bookworm like me, how could I not think of a word other thanbeautiful? We stood in a snow globe without snow. Or the Garden of Eden.

“I know,” he whispered.

I leaned against Jason, my back to his chest, his arms wrapped around me, his chin resting on the top of my head. We stood together in the middle of this amazing spot, watching as the light changed with the falling sun. Just when I thought it couldn’t get more beautiful, another ridge or tree was highlighted as the angle of the sun changed. The chirping birds faded as they nested for the night.

I didn’t want to leave. There was something spiritual here, as if this spot made me part of the island itself.

Jason slowly turned me to face him and kissed me. It was a light kiss, a long kiss. A kiss that had no urgency, but was full of desire. My lips parted. His hands went to my back and pulled me tighter against him, but still his lips were light, teasing and loving at the same time.

“We need to go,” he said, sounding sad.

“Mmm-hmm.”

“I have a whole evening planned for us.”

“Mmm.” I held him tight, put my hand on his chest. “If we must.” Then I thought about the cave. “Do we have to worry about the tide?” I said, suddenly thinking we were going to be trapped in here with rising water.

“It comes in, but it doesn’t flood the cave unless there’s a storm. We’re safe.”

With a final look at the beauty of the area, we turned and walked back through the cave, emerging on the beach as the sun finished its descent. We took a minute to watch it melt out into the sea. The sky exploded with color. I’ve watched many beautiful sunsets, but this I would never forget.

Jason pulled the Jet Ski back into the water and climbed on. I heard a motorboat but didn’t see anyone.

“What the hell?” Jason said as a small boat sped away from his larger one. It had been behind the yacht.

“Who is that?” I asked. A figure was behind the wheel, but he or she was in all black and wore a helmet.

“I don’t know, but I don’t like this,” he said. He turned the ignition. The Jet Ski sputtered, stalled. He tried again, then frowned, breathed deeply. “Do you smell gasoline?”