Page 23 of Uncharted

“He’s not going to come at me. What does that even mean?”

“He’s a man, Haley. We’re not great at not being possessive.” I take a step toward her. My heart thumps as I do. I’ve done hard things in my life, walking away from my brother and my ex. Then coming home for Christmas and not pounding him into the ground for my mother’s sake. Working for assholes who think they know what’s wrong with an engine when they have no clue. Heck, finishing my bachelor’s degree when all I wanted to do was explore the world. But this? This is fucking tough. The thought of losing her to Sam? Sam, who most definitely is a better man than me. How the hell do I fight that? Because I can absolutely guarantee there’s no way he’s going to get with the program and want to share Haley. He’s going to make her choose. And I’m going to have to not fucking punch him.

Her eyebrows shoot up. “Then how do you explain... us?” She waves her hand around the circle. “Because you all seem to be able to—” She can’t even say the word. Share.

“Having some of you was better than never having anything.” Easton folds his arms over his chest. And Rockwell has never said anything more true. Then again, he’s leaving at the beginning of things. I don’t know about everyone else, but I was convinced we were never getting off this rock. But I wouldn’t stop now. Even if I could. I’ll do anything for this woman. She doesn’t realize how in control she is, even with the amount of testosterone pulsing through the air. It doesn’t matter; she’s the boss.

Over the top of Haley, I see something on the horizon: it’s small to start with, but with each minute, it’s getting bigger. Sam. Pirates wouldn’t be in something so small. “There he is.” I point. And for the next ten minutes, we watch. The waves are big, crashing around the inflated hull of the tender. It’s the smaller of the tenders. The one we would use to take Penny to the beach to do her business or run into port quickly to grab a case of champagne. Fucking rich people. I glance at Easton. He’s not as bad as I thought. Still don’t want to hang around them.

“Is Penny with him?” Haley stands next to me. Her hand is on Zane’s back and her head on my arm. This is the last minute for us. The last minute before we’re broken apart. I glance down at her. She’s watching him come. And all I do is watch her watching him. My throat swells shut. I can’t breathe. It’s like the devil from all my dreams is driving toward me. Promising all the things we wanted. All the things we miss. And I’m going to have to pay for it by losing her. I can’t think. I can’t hear the waves. It’s like the one time in high school when I was knocked unconscious on the football field. When the fucking Waterfield defensive lineman put his elbow inside my helmet and clocked my chin and I was knocked out cold. When I came to, I decided I was done with football and I was going to get out of my hometown no matter what.

Fuck it.

I’ve got two choices: pretend I don’t give a fuck or tell her the truth. I whip her around, turning her to me. I hold on to her shoulders and dip my head. My voice, though, I don’t dip. “I fucking love you.” I want to kiss her shocked face, but that’s a bit too much like pissing on my territory—even for me. So I spin her back to the incoming inflatable.

Sam’s got a Rock Candy hat on. I fucking want a hat.

Chapter11

Changing the Helm

Haley

I want to scream. I glance up at Calvin and then back at the incoming tender. Then back at Calvin. Why the hell did he do it now? Why? He loves me. And he wasn’t just saying some shit. He means it. I can see it in his eyes. Why now? I can’t even focus on what I’m feeling. Not with Sam coming in. It’s like some weird version of when we all line up on the dock and greet the incoming guests on the first day of charter.

Only, now that I’m seeing Sam coming, I’ve got more butterflies than I ever had meeting any guests. Even more than the one time I had a prince on board. It’s more than Sam. Zane touches my back. I want to ease back into his touch, but I don’t. My face is neutral, like it would be to meet a guest. A pleasant smile, nothing else, but when he gets closer and I can see his blue eyes shining out at me, I can’t help but smile. I turn to Zane next to me. He’s smiling too. But the rest of the guys have their serious faces on. I’m not naïve—I know they’re worried. I’m worried. What is Sam going to think? And then I start thinking about home. Home.

We can get home. Calvin will be able to fix things. He’ll be able to get the engines going or at least a radio. I know he can. He’ll be able to get us out of here.

I want to be happy. Going home is what we all want, right? Granted, until we had our do-nothing day and found the Rock Candy, found Sam and Penny, I was kind of getting used to, well, being here. With the guys. But in the long run, we need things. We need medical supplies. We need clothes. Pizza and chocolate are also two things I don’t want to live without.

The tender bounces on the ocean, coming over the reef. It’s rough. Sam is gaining air with each wave. He’s got one hand on the outboard motor and the other on a stack of large plastic storage boxes. I’m standing on the sort of beach that guests always want to go to when they’re lounging on the yacht deck. It looks so inviting. But I have to remind them that the ride in will be super rough, that they won’t like it. They still go—the first time—but never a second.

A few more feet and Sam will be over the roughest part. He’s twenty feet out when Zane and Calvin high-step through the waves to grab his ropes and get him set.

“Hello,” he yells, but his eyes are on me. He hands Calvin a rope and then Zane one. “Thanks.” Sam tilts the outboard up, and the guys pull the tender bow up onto the sand.

Zane and Easton gather some large stones to anchor their side. Calvin has it tied up to a large boulder near the mouth of the fish weir.

“Impressive,” Sam says. He nods at the trap.

“It’s keeping us fed.” Calvin offers his hand to Sam, but Sam jumps out on his own.

We’re all just staring at each other.

“Where’s the dog?” Dante finally asks.

“I wasn’t sure how rough it would be next to the cliff, so I left her on the Rock Candy. It also let me bring more supplies.” He glances back over his shoulder.

“We should get those unloaded.” Zane charges for the tender.

“Wait!” Sam shakes his head. “First, let me give you a hug.”

We all kind of laugh.

Sam starts with Zane. “It’s good to see you.” He slaps his hand on Zane’s back twice.

“Fuck, it’s even better to see you, Cap. I didn’t think we...”

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