He’s sitting up when I reach him, looking better than he has all day. When he sees the bananas, his whole face lights up.
“Are those real?”
“Super real!” I drop down beside him. “I found a whole tree. More than one tree.”
“Jason, you’re amazing.”
I peel one carefully and take a tiny bite. It’s tart, not as sweet as store-bought, but definitely banana. “See? Still alive.”
Cal laughs, the first real laugh I’ve heard from him since he got sick. “My hero.”
I’m about to make some joke about being his jungle survival expert when I hear it.
A distant humming sound.
We both freeze.
“Do you hear that?” Cal whispers.
The sound is getting louder.
I scramble to my feet, squinting up at the sky through the palm fronds. “There—” I point as a dark shape appears over the treeline. “It’s a helicopter.”
I pull Cal up, both of us staring as the helicopter circles our island, then starts to descend toward the beach.
“The signs worked! They found us!”
We’re both shouting, waving our arms like maniacs, even though the helicopter is absolutely landing. I grab Cal’s hand without thinking, but he drops it.
The helicopter touches down in a whirlwind of sand and noise.
The door opens and people start climbing out—a pilot, then a man in an expensive suit who looks familiar.
He flashes an anchor worthy smile. Which makes sense, because he is a sports anchor. Though I have no idea what he’s doing here.
“That’s not...”
“That’s my boss.”
Rex Manley. I recognize him from television and the press room. Sports Sphere’s biggest name.
A younger guy with bleached hair jumps out after him. He’s another reporter. Jeremy something or other. Shit. Is this Cal’s roommate? It must be.
“Cal! Holy shit, we thought you were dead!” Jeremy pulls Cal into a fierce hug.
I stand there awkwardly, suddenly aware I’m shirtless, covered in dirt and scratches, and holding a bunch of bananas like a caveman.
Rex approaches me with that television smile. “Jason Larvik. Nice to find you alive.”
“Happy to be alive.” My gaze keeps drifting to Cal and his roommate, but I force myself to look at Rex. “I, uh, didn’t expect to see you here.”
Rex snorts. “Nope. Wasn’t planned. You two gave us a fright.”
And then something else occurs to me.
All this time I thought I wasn’t supposed to sleep with Cal, he was thinking the same thing.
Because he’s a journalist, and I’m his interview subject.
