Free Trial Run: Addicted To Love Romance Collection by Ella Medler

useful.
    Soon, her toes dragged through sand, and she used the rope to pull herself closer to Rob, closer to the shore. When he stood up on wobbly legs, she let out a squeal of joy and grabbed him around the waist with both hands.
    She was so happy, she could have kissed him. Instead, she contained her enthusiasm for a dryer day. His arms locked around her and he pulled her up and forward, to solid land and safety.

Chapter 11

Clash of Wills
     
    Rob stood still in the middle of the beach, rain belting down on him. He’d won the fight with the storm, but only just. He was pretty close to exhaustion. And exhaustion would come pretty quick in this weather. They needed shelter, fast.
    One hand patting the hunting knife still attached to the side of his thigh, he began undoing the knot of the rope around his waist. He could just see Amelie doing the same, and smacking the empty bottle out of the way every few seconds, cursing it as she went about her job.
    She was so funny, he couldn’t help the chuckle escaping his lips. Even with the noise of the storm, she heard him. Her scowl was so intense, a lesser human would have withered and died. As it was, it only made him laugh harder.
    He began helping her with the knots, but she swatted his hands away and took a step back. That’s right – Amelie-the-independent-woman had survived her ordeal so far.
    Smile still in place, Rob turned around in a circle, squinting through the sheeting rain, weighing out their shelter possibilities.
    The beach was wide, in a half-moon shape, and surrounded by what looked to be thick vegetation. He could distinctly see palm trees, right along the line where the sand met the brush – good news for durable shelter building, though he couldn’t do a decent job of it in the dark, in this downpour.
    He began walking up the beach, to investigate what lay at one end. More rocks and brush, the kind that would transition to a mangrove patch. A bank with a narrow overhang was going to be their best bet until daylight.
    Amelie was pulling the last knot loose when he got back to her.
    “This way. We can shelter under those rocks until morning.” He grabbed her hand to guide her steps.
    She pulled her hand out of his. “I’m not spending the night in there! There are all sorts of creepy crawlies under rocks. I’d rather just stand naked in the rain until morning!”
    “Amelie, listen to me! You won’t make it till morning in this,” he gestured at the raging storm. “Not without shelter. Now be a good girl and do what I say. I promised your brother I’d take care of you.”
    Fire flashed out of her eyes, and she backed away from him.
    “I don’t need you or anyone else to take care of me, thank you for the offer. Just so you know, I learned all about surviving storms, hurricanes, tornadoes – everything. I took courses online.”
    Rob let out a hysterical guffaw. “You learned all about survival… online?”
    Amelie nodded forcefully, which only made Rob laugh louder. Suddenly unsmiling, he turned on her. He was cold, hungry and tired, and he was so done being the nice guy. Done being friendly and polite. Amelie was no more than a spoilt brat who believed the world at large owed her something, but he was not her lackey, and most definitely not her prince charming. And this tropical storm was just about the right time for her to start acting like a mature person with her head well screwed on her shoulders.
    “Wake up, little princess. I’ve got news for you. You see this big wide world?” He swept his arms in a wide arc. “It doesn’t owe you safety. It doesn’t owe you a living. And it doesn’t even owe you the truth. Just because you read it online ,” he twisted the word, “it doesn’t mean it’s right. I, however, am speaking from experience. So be a good little girl now and do as I say. I know what I’m talking about.”
    He grabbed her hand and began towing her toward the rocks that would be their temporary shelter, ignoring her