Free Island Promises by Joy Connell

subtleties), “there was no one. Hell, there were some parties, but mostly natives or old people.” He threw the empty beer can over his shoulder.
    “Hey,” she said. “Don’t do that.”
    “You one of them environmental freaks? Lots of ‘em where I go to school. Don’t have much in common with ‘em, though, seeing as how once I get that diploma my mama’s got her heart set on, I’ll be going into the oil business with my daddy. All those tree huggers will be scraping along and I’ll be living it up in the hills in a big old house.” Darren popped the top off another beer.
    “How about we party some?” His hand, large and meaty—a football player’s hand—covered one of her thighs.
    Shocked and somewhat amused, Riley decided to use humor. “I’m not in the cradle-robbing business.” She moved into the corner of the settee and his hand fell heavily onto the cushions.
    “I like my women older.” He got onto his knees and crawled forward, trapping her against the cabin. He was a big boy with a muscular frame, an intimidating square face, and a buzz cut. His white skin radiated heat where it had been torched by the unrelenting tropical sun.
    “Shame I don’t like my men in diapers.”
    “You just need to give me a try.” When he leaned into her she could smell the beer on his breath and the dried sweat on his body. Too late, she realized he meant to kiss her. Scrambling, she tried to get out of the way, but there was nowhere to go in the small area.
    Just as he was about to make contact, Darren rocked backward and let out a howl of pain.
    Joe stood behind him, gripping the neck of his T-shirt. With one cool toss, he hefted him to the settee on the other side of the cockpit. Darren landed heavily and the yeasty scent of spilled beer rose up from the cushions.
    “Sorry, man,” Darren said. “I didn’t realize you two had a thing. Should have known. All the good ones are always taken.”
    “Get back to your cabin,” Joe said. He wore his usual cut-offs and was barefoot. His hair was tousled from sleep but his eyes were burning. “Tomorrow you’ll call Daddy and tell him it’s time to move on to somebody else’s boat.”
    “Like, no hard feelings.” Darren held up both hands in a gesture of surrender and flashed the college-boy smile that probably got him out of a lot of scrapes at home. He looked to Riley before he noisily stumbled down the ladder.
    A cabin door slammed, then Joe turned to check the decks, the rigging, and the anchor chain. He moved silently to go below when she couldn’t stand it anymore. “I could have handled myself,” she said. “He was just a kid.”
    “For a big time city girl you don’t seem to be doing too well with the natives out here.”
    “You’re so cocky,” she said. “If you hadn’t come along, I would have done just fine with that college boy. As for those pirates, they won’t know what hit them when I do an exposé on them.”
    He wheeled around and, even in the low light, she could see the anger sparking from his eyes. “Don’t even think about it.”
    “Why not? It’s what I do. I take on criminals and corrupt officials everyday back home. I get paid for it.”
    “This isn’t home. The rules are different here. For something like this, there are no rules. You have no idea what you’re taking on.”
    “I know that I’m not going to let a little run-in on the beach scare me off. I’ve never been scared off of a story and I’m not going to start now.”
    “I thought you were here hiding out from a story gone wrong.”
    “That’s different.” How could he have known that since the most information they’d exchanged had to do with what sheets to put on the bunks or which sail to pack? “Coming here was a tactical move.” She enjoyed flaunting the nautical term he always used.
    Joe stood over her, hanging on to the rigging. His body moved naturally with the boat. His whole presence was secure, more mature than Darren’s. Even his