“Hot and tropical,” Aiden said. “If we want to get to the top of the volcano before it gets too hot, we have to leave soon.”
“Okay, okay! Clear out of the bathroom so I can get ready.”
****
“Move along, come on,” Aiden barked sharply every time Jade dawdled behind to take pictures. If she wanted to know what life in the military was like, she needed to be more disciplined—not act like the fluffy, feminine flower-puff she portrayed so well.
She, of course, was wearing a most impractical outfit for hiking. Aiden catalogued her offenses safely behind a pair of mirrored sunglasses.
A pair of super short, faded, denim cut-off shorts crept up with every step, giving him a tantalizing hint of her butt cheeks. And a stretchy tank top with spaghetti straps hugged her sleek, graceful body.
There was no way Aiden could calm the surge in his blood as she walked in that lithe and fluid way, moving the way a large cat prowled, her movements smooth and inadvertently seductive.
At least she wore hiking boots and long socks. A wide-brimmed straw hat shielded her face from the sun, and like him, she wore sunglasses.
“Try to keep up,” Aiden nagged, waving his hand. “We have a long way to go, and the heat can be brutal.”
“Who’s overly obsessing and analyzing everything now?” Jade tipped the rim of her hat and laughed. “I’m enjoying the moment, like you recommended.”
More like enjoying his discomfort and perpetual state of arousal. The vixen had to know her effect on him. Subjecting a red-blooded man to her teasing kisses and touches while he had to control his response was excruciating torture.
“You’re going to get bitten by a horde of mosquitoes if you don’t put on a long-sleeved shirt,” he grumbled under his breath.
Jade only laughed and fanned herself. “You’re more worried than my mother.”
Aiden clenched his teeth and strode ahead, taking long steps. He’d been relegated to pack mule status, hefting a backpack filled with water, food, sunscreen, bug spray, a first aid kit, and a survival kit, in addition to his hunting knife and binoculars.
The first part of the hike was relatively cool, under canopies of swaying palm trees into a lush tropical forest. They walked by giant spreads of breadfruit trees, wild bananas shoots, green leafy vines, and trellises of red, orange, pink, and purple bougainvillea.
Colorful birds flitted and chittered in the dense vegetation, and farms growing coconut, nutmeg, banana, and cocoa stretched out on the hillsides overlooking the beach.
“They say the volcano is active,” Jade commented as she picked a red and yellow flower and tucked it in her hatband. “What if we get caught in an eruption?”
“They have advanced warning systems,” he said. “This particular one, Mt. Passion, last erupted thirty years ago.”
“Not very passionate, if you ask me.” Jade choked on a chuckle. “That’s a long time to go between eruptions.”
“You know how it is. The longer the buildup, the more spectacular the explosion.”
“Sounds dangerously like extended foreplay.” Jade took a picture of a fern frond that looked like a fuzzy chameleon tail curled up.
Aiden swallowed hard and forged ahead into the lush rainforest. “We better get a move on if we want to get to the caldera before noon. It’s a two-hour hike, all up hill.”
“We have all day,” Jade said, snapping a selfie in front of a screen of green bamboo stalks.
A tiny stream trickled across the rocky trail, and Aiden instinctively grabbed Jade’s arm when she slipped on one of the stepping stones. The humidity increased as they hiked inland. Dragonflies flitted near the riverbank, along with the ominous buzzing of mosquitoes.
“Ow!” Jade slapped her exposed forearm. “I think I got bitten.”
“Now you see why I wanted to spray you with bug repellant?” Aiden took on the attitude of an aggrieved parent.
“But it’s got chemicals. Not natural,” Jade protested.
“It’s natural to be eaten alive by mosquitoes. Natural to get dengue fever and malaria.” Aiden dropped the backpack to the ground and dug through it for the bug spray.
Jade slapped herself again as a black swarm of mosquitoes attacked.
“Ow, ow!” she screamed, running around and jumping. “I didn’t bring a jacket. My legs. Ow, ow.”
Aiden uncapped the bug spray and danced around Jade, aiming for her exposed skin.
“Close your eyes,” Aiden warned before unleashing the sticky, oily spray all over Jade’s bare skin. There went her natural, chemical free, vegan, no animal tested skin lotion.
“I stink now.” Jade fanned herself. “And I’m going to be covered with bumps.”
“Don’t scratch them.” He capped the spray. “Maybe we should have taken before pictures.”
“Not too late for that,” Jade said, surprisingly good spirited about it. “I haven’t started swelling yet.”
That was all the invitation he needed. His buddies were waiting for pictures of his date, and he wasn’t above a little bragging.
They took selfies in front of a tangle of vines and moss-covered tree trunks. Afterwards, Aiden held Jade’s hand and helped her traverse the rocky trail that began the uphill climb.
****
Jade didn’t want to stop and rest, didn’t want to wimp out, but her muscles screamed bloody murder, and she was drenched with sweat. She’d long ago let go of Aiden’s hand and told him to go ahead of her.
She didn’t want him to know how hard it was to breathe, or that she saw stars, and how raw her skin felt burning underneath the hot sun.
They’d left the trees behind and embarked up a trail of black gravel. The ground was harsh and rocky, filled with the crumbled lava rocks of the last eruption. Tiny shrubs with petite purple flowers dotted the barren terrain. The edges of prickly grasses scratched her legs, and her mosquito bites itched.
“You okay back there?” Aiden turned and marched back down, sliding on the black, ashy sand.
“I’m. Fine.” Jade bent double, her hands on her knees. “Just keep going.”
“You’re limping.” His smirk turned into a frown as he came to her side. “Shall we turn around?”
“No.” Jade tried to catch her breath.
“Here, have a drink of water.” Aiden gave her the straw that came out of the hydration pack he carried.
She sucked greedily on the tepid water, but she still felt light-headed.
“I’m going to make it to the top. I have to.” She took another step and winced at the hotspots where her heels rubbed against her brand-new hiking boots.
“Do you have blisters?” Aiden’s brow furrowed. “Let’s not ruin your vacation first day out.”
“How much farther do we have?” She wiped the sweat from her brow and gasped.
He put his hand over his brow and peered at the ridgeline above. “We’re almost to the top of the crater. I don’t think we should go down into the crater at this point.”
Jade could only nod. Her head throbbed and swirled, but she caught her breath. “Let’s keep going.”
She hobbled a few steps and pressed her hand into her side where she got a side stitch.
“Okay, we’ll get to the top my way.” Aiden grabbed her and hoisted her over his shoulders sideways, the way a firefighter carried a victim.
She was draped across his broad shoulders with one of his arms between her legs, and his other arm hooked around her arm. Her belly was planted over his neck and backpack.
“Let me down.” Jade kicked her legs. “Put me down.”
“You want to make it to the top or not?”
“Yes, but not this way,” she said. “I want to push my limits.”
“You’re at your limit already. Trust me.” He took big, lumbering steps up the gravelly sand.
Jade felt herself relax as Aiden’s muscles moved below her. She could finally enjoy the scenic view. The ocean was visible behind them, and up above, the sharp edge of the cr
ater became visible, shrouded by a mist.
Aiden jostled her like a rag doll, up and back the switchbacks, climbing higher and higher.
She wished she could reach for her phone and take pictures, but etching the view in her mind would have to do for now. She’d write it all down or dictate it into her phone when she had a chance.
The ocean was a deep blue over the horizon, and once they cleared the ridge to the crater, they had a three-hundred-sixty-degree view with the boulders in the caldera to one side and the ocean stretching out as far as she could see on the other.
Way down below were the colorful roofs of the town they’d started at.
Jade stumbled, slightly dizzy, when Aiden put her down. She swiveled her head back and forth and all around at the breathtaking view.
“It was worth the hike, wasn’t it?” he asked, taking a swig from his hydration pack.
“I feel at the top of the world.” Jade spread her hands up and out and twirled around. Her face broke into a huge grin, and her spirits flew high with the breeze swirling the clouds above.
Dappled sunlight illuminated the cliffs painted green and gray, a contrast between the wild grasses and the sulfurous ash heaps blackened by the last eruption—a no man’s land void of all vegetation.
A sulfurous scent misted from naked heaps of volcanic rock which formed a mound in the center of the crater. Up above, the clouds parted and a ray of golden sunlight turned the smoke into an iridescent sparkle.
“It’s so beautiful.” Jade popped pictures left and right, then without warning, she leaped at Aiden and surprised herself by kissing him, mouth wide open, erupting with a passion she’d never felt before.
This! She’d better remember to write this down. Right before she lost all coherent thought.
Chapter Seven
Jade was driving Aiden crazy—in a mostly good way. The woman was a mess, hair matted with sweat, mosquito bumps swelling, skin oily with bug spray, but the one thing she could do was kiss.
Either she had a lot of practice, or she’d truly studied the art as a romance writer.
She sucked and tugged his lower lip with relish, and right when he thought to return the favor, she’d opened her mouth and let her tongue wander alongside his.
This kiss was different from the confrontational one of the night before. It was smooth and lithe, like her graceful body, and equal mixtures of sweet and sexy—powerful enough to make Aiden ravenous, but tender and satiating—a slow, steady build.
Toward what?
In less than a week, both of them would leave this island of love and go back to their separate lives. He was the son of an immigrant, while her father owned Reed Resorts International, including the tallest luxury hotel in San Francisco.
There was no way in the world the daughter of a real estate mogul would make a match with a military guy liable to return home disfigured or in a body bag.
She was, as she’d stated, here on the island for the experience—one she thought she’d share with her best girlfriend. And now, she was making lemonade.
If only the lemonade weren’t so sweet.
Sighing, Aiden completed the kiss with a few well-placed pecks and put a sliver of distance between their bodies.
“We still have a long way to go down,” he said. “How’s the foot? I have a first aid kit and I can wrap it for you. Maybe ease some of the pressure.”
“You’re the guy to be with on a desert island.” She flicked her hair back over her shoulder and looked around for a rock to sit on.
“We don’t leave anyone behind.” Aiden knelt and extracted the first aid kit. “Let’s get your blisters taped up and eat. I had the resort staff pack us a bag lunch.”
“You really do think of everything,” Jade said, her tone appreciative, as she untied her stiff boots and rolled down her socks.
****
Jade couldn’t remember a more beautiful and carefree day. The descent was much easier than the ascent—no surprise there, and Aiden was no longer the drill sergeant but more of a tour guide.
She would never have guessed that he knew so much about geology, plants and animals, climate and weather, and the history and local culture of the islanders.
Even though the island was named by the French, it was the British who’d made their mark. Cars drove on the left side of the road. The majority of inhabitants were Anglicans. The architecture in the town square was Georgian, and the natives spoke a sing-song version of English mixed with French, Spanish, and native Caribbean words combined with words borrowed from various African tongues.
As for the food.
Yum.
Aiden extracted aluminum foil cylinders and unwrapped them. “These are not as crunchy after spending all this time in my backpack, but the filling is to die for.”
It was a fritter made of ground plantains and taro root wrapped around a savory ground beef hash and deep fried to a crisp.
Sitting up on top of a volcano, eating spicy fritters with a man whose job description was “professional killer,” was not something Jade ever envisioned in her insular and protected life.
If she wasn’t careful, she could lose her heart to him, and that, she reminded herself, could never happen, mainly because she wasn’t sure if she’d ever found her heart after losing her first novel to plagiarizing Keith.
“You must have traveled to many places,” she said in between bites.
“Every war-torn continent except Antarctica,” Aiden said, licking the crumbs off his piece of foil. “Not for pleasure, that’s for sure. How about you? Your family owns all those resorts. Which one’s your favorite?”
“This one,” she said, enjoying the shocked expression on his face. “But don’t worry. I’m here incognito, and the staff has no clue who I am. I’m sort of doing a little mystery shopping for my dad.”
Aiden’s jaw dropped and when he recovered, he sputtered, “Does that mean I’m supposed to let you have the king-sized bed?”
“No, it’s fine. If I’d wanted, I could have ordered another room. You’re good. Just remember to think about me stuck in the closet while you’re enjoying sleeping on your comfortable mattress.”
“Can I tempt you to sleep on it with me?” Aiden’s eyes glinted, and he was back to his lover boy lilt.
“No. Not even if you let me have the jetted tub first when we get back.” Jade dusted the crumbs off her thighs and noticed they were burned to a light pink. “You have sunscreen in that pack?”
“I have everything you need,” he said stiffly.
Too bad. While Aiden was useful to have around on a hike, and he was a darn good kisser, hot as could be, Jade had to remind herself she didn’t do romance.
Not for real.
Only pretend.
And that meant putting his little tail back in his place.
Even if he was a big bear of a man.
“Your back is roasted bright pink,” Aiden observed. The muscles in his jaw twitched, as he dug out the tube of sunscreen.
“Oh, could you get that for me?” She lifted her long hair from her neck and turned her back to him. “Don’t get any ideas about romance. All of this is for the feels, so I can make my books more realistic.”
“That’s fine with me,” Aiden said. “I’m a killer, not a lover.”
A cloud drifted, blocking the sun. Aiden’s touch turned cold, sliding ice down the back of her neck, as if to say, Do not mistake a grizzly for a teddy bear.
****
Aiden ceded the heart-shaped tub to Jade back at the villa. He would have given her the bed too, but the entitled heiress was putting on airs again.
For a moment, up at the summit of Mt. Passion, she’d been carefree and normal—a regular girl out having a good time. She’d let him carry her to the top, then jumped and kissed him before he’d had a chance to catch his breath. She’d felt so real—or maybe he was deluding himself and the real Jade Reed was the rich girl treating him like a servant.
Carrying all the supplies.
/> Taping her precious feet.
Carting her to the summit.
And letting her have the tub first.
How had he not known or suspected that she was the princess of family who owned this island?
Oh, right, he didn’t know who his mystery date was until they were introduced by the concierge.
Aiden rested on the pillowy king-sized bed directly under the blowing ceiling fan and closed his eyes.
The kiss had felt so right. The right mix of tenderness and heat. And despite the size difference, their bodies had melded together perfectly.
She, willowy and thin, in between his beefcake arms, held close to his beating heart. Did a woman kiss like that without a connection? Without real feelings?
Or was she truly in it to improve her writing?
And if she were, what did it say about him that she would so freely admit it to him?
As if his feelings meant nothing.
Aiden startled when droplets of water flicked across his face. “Your turn, Navy guy.”
Jade stood in front of him, her hair wrapped in a towel and her face pink and radiant. She wore a dress embellished with colorful tropical flowers, and she was the vision of a tropical princess.
Spoiled rotten to the core.
“About time.” He shot her a scowl. “I hope you left me hot water.”
“We never run out of hot water here,” Jade replied evenly. “Make sure you shave, because we’re going dancing after dinner.”
“Says who? My commanding officer?”
He rolled his eyes, and she rolled hers right back at him.
“What part of sticking together for a week did you not understand?” She wet her lips and let the pink tip of her delectable tongue flicker over her pearly white teeth.
“Are all romance writers bipolar?” He slammed the bathroom door in her face.
Chapter Eight
Dancing with Aiden was actually fun—when he wasn’t acting like a giant grouch.
But then again, how could anyone be grumpy when the island’s music was so happy? Calypso, steel drums, soca, and reggae.
Jade swung around with Aiden, feeling more carefree than she had in forever. Hopefully, he wasn’t as upset as he was earlier when he’d slammed the door and called her bipolar.
Jade (Perfect Match Book 4) Page 4
