Eventually, though, life intrudes. It always does. “I have to go to Virginia,” Rafe tells me in a low voice. “To deliver the information and get my man back.”
I knew this was coming, but I still cling to Rafe, unhappy at the thought of him leaving me. “When?”
He hesitates. “Soon. I wanted to make sure you were okay first.”
Which means he’s probably overdue and everyone’s antsy. My stomach knots with worry. “What happens now?”
Rafe’s silent. He’s silent for so long that tears prick my eyes again. I’m just a weepy, blubbery mess lately. I know he’s trying to think of the best way to get rid of me, though. I think of his words before I went into the bungalow. Let’s just get through today.
Well, that day’s over and we’re out the other side. Not a lot of use for a hand model with ugly hands. I bury my face against his neck and start crying again.
“I know,” he says, and his hands stroke down my arm again. “Bennito . . . he’ll take you home. You just let him know when you’re ready and he’ll charter the plane for you, okay?”
“Sure,” I say in a wobbly voice.
“There’s no place for you here, Ava.” He sounds desperate for me to understand. “The island’s not like life in the city. You’d be bored in a month.”
“No, it’s fine,” I tell him, trying to blink away my tears. I know what he’s saying. There’s no place for you at my side. I’ve been broken up with lots of times, but it’s never hurt like Rafe’s pushing me away does. I thought he was different. I thought we had a real connection.
I thought he loved me like I loved him.
I guess that’s just me being gullible all over again. I thought I could save my best friend. I thought I could get the guy.
Turns out I don’t get anything.
? ? ?
Rafe leaves that night, and our kiss good-bye seems to last for an hour. His mouth is possessive over mine, devouring, and fills me with aching sadness knowing that this is going to be our last one. When he finally gives my nose a gentle kiss and then leaves, this time for good, I hold it together until he leaves the room. Then, I curl up in my sorry bed and cry my eyes out.
They’re puffy and itchy the next morning, but I’ve never been prized for my eyes anyhow. I force myself to get out of bed and shower. There are a few stitches in my shoulder and some on my back. The wound doesn’t look nearly as awful as it feels. It’s all bruised to hell, though. I wash carefully, which reminds me of Rafe and the sponge bath I gave him, and I start crying all over again.
I dress in an old shirt and cargo shorts that are too big for me and peer out the window of my room. I haven’t been anywhere since I got to the island. The room I’m in looks kind of like a hotel room, and I have a view of the beach not too far away. It’s gorgeous, and I want to see it before I leave. I figure I might as well.
Bennito flags me down and offers me a few slices of what looks and smells like banana bread. “Cuca de banana,” he tells me with a grin. “We’re not in Brazil anymore, but we still eat like we are.” He gives me a cup of something called pingado that tastes like extra-milky latte. I wolf the food down and sit with him in the little kitchenette.
“What is this place?” I ask him.
“It’s an old hotel. Was a cover for a gunrunner paradise back in the day, but now we just use it as base and let people set up shop here for a few until they can make a home on the island for themselves.”
I nod, not really caring. I won’t be here to see Rafe again, so it doesn’t matter. “I want to go to the beach.”
“You sure?” His brows draw together and he crosses his arms. “Rafe says you’re still weak.”
I dust off my sleeve with my good hand, freeing crumbs. “Rafe’s not here and I want to see the ocean before I leave.”
“Fair enough, you just lemme know.”
I nod and leave the kitchenette, heading for the ocean in the distance. I know he’s watching me still—and will probably report back to Rafe, but I don’t care.
I remember the ocean from my dream with Rose, and I need to go sit in the sand and think.
It takes forever for me to make it the couple of hundred yards to the shore, and by the time I do, I’m exhausted. I stagger weakly to the sand and sit at the edge of the waves. I tuck my cast against my chest to keep it from getting wet, and I stare out at the ocean as the water moves over my feet.
Rose is gone.