Chapter 96

As the island came into sight and the boat moved off to one edge to drop me away from the jetty, I helped a couple of the crew get a small dinghy ready to take me the last of the way. It was something to focus on, but as soon as I was sitting inside it and the two burly sailors were picking up an oar each, I felt myself tense up.

This was the moment everything could begin to go wrong. If I wasn't dropped quickly enough and the boat was spotted, or if someone else on the island saw me, such as Jack's housekeeper, I would blow my chance. I needed to hide until Alma could get to the island. And then, we needed to scheme and plan.

We'd made a rough plan. I had a vague idea of where I could go, so I was out of the wind and sun and not visible easily, but it still had potential problems, and there was nothing to be done for the exact timing. Jack and all the other guests needed to be distracted, and Alma would need to let me know the coast was clear.

I could probably get into the house, but since I wasn't arriving at the island long before Jack and I wanted to minimize the chance that anyone discovered me, we'd agreed to keep me away until Jack had made it into the house and dumped his bag, and the housekeeper was off duty again.

As my little boat reached the shore, the two men expertly maneuvered it so I only had to wade through some shallows as I thanked them and carried my bag to the tree line.

I hurried away, making sure I was hidden behind the trees and unlikely to be seen before I dared to turn and look behind.

By then, the dinghy was already almost back to the main boat. I watched them for a few minutes, knowing my only means of leaving the island without Jack being aware was leaving with them.

As soon as the boat was out of sight, I started making my way deeper onto the island to find somewhere I could hide for a bit. Hopefully, I wouldn't have to wait long, but I had no way of being sure.

I hadn't been walking long when my phone buzzed.

Now leaving. Jack's not in a great mood. We got stuck in traffic.

At first, I almost swore, thinking I would have to wait a few hours for them to arrive, but then I noticed the time the message had been sent. It was over an hour earlier. I must have only just gotten enough signal for the message to come through.

It was an instant relief. I wouldn't have to wait too long before they arrived. I quickly tapped out a reply, letting her know I was on the island. Of course she wouldn't get it either until she was here, but it would ensure she was thinking of how to smuggle me into the house as soon as possible.

Wanting to make sure I could see their boat arrive, I made my way along the island's main path, going slowly enough to look out for the other staff. I felt increasingly nervous as I moved, terrified that Jack or someone else might find me before I could do as I intended.

Trying to ignore my fears and very aware I couldn't go back, I tucked myself behind one of the larger trees near the house, noticing that all the windows had new panes of glass and that everything else had been tidied or fixed.

I could just see the new pontoon and the patch of ash where we'd made a bonfire from where I was, and it made me instantly regret ever leaving him at that point. Now that I was calm and not scared of storms, I could look at it in a new light. Jack had protected me and kept me safe during the entire storm to the best of his ability.

After throwing it all away, I only hoped I could persuade him not to reject me a second time.

Seeing the house quiet and calm before me, I considered going to it now and sneaking into the room I needed, but I stayed where I was. If I went in now, there was a good chance I'd be found when all the luggage was taken up. And it was very important that only Jack found me.

Instead, I waited, my body shaking with fear and my stomach so tied in knots that I was sure I was going to throw up at any moment.

It wasn't long before I could hear the sound of the boat as it came up to the island and moored. I shrank back, making sure I was as hidden as possible and wasn't likely to be seen, and then I kept as still as I could.

As I'd expected, the staff went back and forth for some time, taking luggage up to the house and making me feel better about having stayed outside. With that many people bustling back and forth with luggage and food, I'd definitely have gotten caught.

A moment later, I spotted Jack and the others heading up to the house. My breath caught in my throat as I fixed my gaze on Jack. He looked as handsome as always, even though he clearly wasn't at his happiest.

The others around him were chatting merrily, and I soon spotted Kai and Alma, too. Liam had a woman I didn't recognize on his arm, and there were a few other folks I couldn't remember the names of but who had been at Alma and Kai's party. Thankfully, Logan wasn't among them.

They'd only been out of sight for a minute or two when my phone buzzed again. I quickly flicked open my messages.

Here now as well. Kai is persuading the others to go on a quick tour of the island. Going to go east first.

I swore. I was east, and that meant I needed to get around to the west before they came back out again, but I wasn't very close to a path, and I had no idea how long they'd be.

Moving as fast as I could on the difficult terrain, I scrambled back to the path, still clutching my carry-all and trying to be quiet. I made a lot of noise until I reached the path, and then I hurried down the other side, trying to move more quietly and loop around the north of the house while the staff were still going back and forth.

I had to move quietly again as I continued trying to work my way around to the house and then past it, the staff coming back out to get more luggage or food. A few times, I stopped entirely and hunkered down again, terrified of being seen before I could get out of the way.

Eventually, I managed it, keeping under the trees until I was on the northwest side and able to see the house but mostly out of the line of sight of anyone coming out.

I waited, the sun sinking lower in the sky as I tried not to panic. Having to move had increased my heart rate again, and now I was terrified this would go wrong. Although I was less exposed from the house direction, I could be more easily seen from the staff building farther away, and there were plenty of staff on the island with so many people here.

Time ticked by as I grew colder, exposed to a northern breeze and shaking with a combination of fear and cold. I could only hope it wasn't long before Jack appeared and took his friends on a tour.