Free Seduced - Book Three - Surrender Series by Melody Anne Page B

spine, then slid over the curve of her soft derrière.
    A chill rushed through her as she moved away, unzipping the tent with one hand and grabbing her pants with the other. She darted out, no thought crossing her mind that someone might be out there. They were on a deserted island, after all.
    Luck was with her when no one spotted her streaking outside. That was a good thing, since she was half naked. Struggling into her still damp pants, she moved into the trees a short way and made sure not to be gone too long.
    The area creeped her out . She’d never been anywhere where she was this alone. As much as she was afraid of her reaction to Shane, she was glad he was there. She wouldn’t do well by herself — she was terrified of the slightest sound.
    When she heard the bushes move near her, she let out a loud gasp, and went running back toward the tent.
    “It’s only me, Lia. Don’t worry,” Shane called.
    It still took several moments before her heart slowed its frantic beating.
    Shane returned and climbed back into the tent. Lia decided it wouldn’t be wise to go back inside with him. The space was just too small. Besides, they should be looking for a way out of this mess. Maybe they’d build one of those rafts like the one Tom Hanks had made in the film Cast Away , and someone would rescue them in the middle of the ocean.
    OK, that wasn’t the brightest idea, but she was desperate here.
    “Are you hungry?” Shane asked as he stepped back outside, the sight of him in his low-slung pants and nothing else causing near cardiac arrest. He was muscled and dark and beyond scrumptious looking. She could seriously dine off his abs alone. Chomp .
    “Yes,” she replied, hoping he had something and wasn’t just taunting her.
    “We have a few supplies, but they will only last a couple of days. We need to conserve what we can. There should be fruit and possibly nuts on this island, so we’ll have to go on a hunt,” he said as he cut open a bag and passed it to her.
    Lia was elated when she looked inside and found a large amount of trail mix. This would be plenty for the both of them for a good breakfast. Next he pulled out a water bottle. Water had never looked more beautiful.
    “We only have three bottles, but I have water purification tablets, so this isn’t our limit. Still, we need to take it easy. Hopefully, we can find a fresh-water supply deeper inside the island. I don’t want to go too far and risk getting lost, though. We also need to keep our belongings with us. This tent is the only thing that will keep us protected from the weather at night.”
    “It sounds like you’ve been stranded before,” she murmured after she chewed and swallowed, being careful to take only small sips of water.
    “I haven’t ever been shipwrecked, but I’ve…” he trailed off.
    “You’ve what?”
    “It doesn’t matter,” he said, clearly wanting to change the subject.
    Now Lia had to know. She couldn’t stand mysteries; she refused to read anything that had suspense in it. If she did accidentally pick up a book like that, then she’d flip to the last chapter to find how it ended before going back and reading it from the beginning.
    The stress of suspense was just too much for her. It wasn’t pleasant in the least.
    “Please tell me.” See, she could ask nicely.
    “Maybe sometime,” he said.
    She knew that was all she was going to get out of him for now. Dang it!
    “Let me pack this up and then we’ll be on our way,” he said and began taking down the tent.
    “Why are you taking it down?”
    “We don’t want a creature taking off with it, or a freak wave dragging it into the ocean. This is our bedroom for the next day or so. Hopefully only that long,” he said, looking out across the water. Not a boat in sight.
    “I’m glad I’m with you, Shane. I would never think of any of this,” she said. Their eyes connected as he stuffed the tent into the pack and hefted it onto his shoulders.
    “I’m glad to be