The Courage to Love Her Army Doc Read online

  ‘Not too far. There’s a small uninhabited island just across the bay.’

  ‘A real desert island?’ That was something she’d only seen in the movies, usually involving starving castaways driven mad by heatstroke and loneliness. It wasn’t a thought she relished on her own but with food and company, and the means to leave again, she knew it could turn out to be one of the highlights of her trip. Once she stopped imagining falling overboard and being stranded with nothing to eat but coconuts, she was able to focus on the merits of such a setting. Sand, sea and a sexy sidekick were the makings of a very different kind of film.

  They all piled into the two boats, with the majority of the islanders in one dinghy, and Emily, Joe, the chief and the food in the other. This was obviously a treat for everyone and not something they did on a whim, given the level of excitement as the engine spluttered into life. It seemed this was the Yasi equivalent of first class and she should feel honoured, not clutching the side of the boat and praying.

  ‘Stop worrying.’ Joe prised her fingers loose and set her hand back in her lap, with his resting on top.

  She closed her eyes and did her best not to imagine a watery grave as he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, and she knew he’d keep her safe no matter what. The wind whipped through her hair, blowing away her residual fears as they skimmed the waves towards sanctuary. It was easy to imagine this was all an illusion created by her lack of sleep but the sea spray splashed her face, reminding her this was real even when it seemed too fantastic to be true. Nonetheless, when they cut the engine and came ashore, she had to restrain herself from jumping overboard and kissing the sandy ground. She took off her sandals as Joe helped her off the boat so her footprints were the first to mark the untouched beach.

  Not for the first time she wished she’d brought a camera to document her travels. At the time of leaving England she’d been so eager to distance herself from reality she’d left all traces of the modern world behind her, including her phone. There was something so symbolic about that single track of footprints in the sand, marking her bold journey into the unknown, she’d never forget it.

  When she reached a line of trees and looked back to see Joe making his way across the beach, leaving a second set of prints alongside hers, it didn’t lessen the powerful image. He’d been very much a part of this adventure with her, coaxing this slightly braver Emily to explore beautiful new vistas. She didn’t want to leave any of it behind in case she forgot it, or vice versa. Everything here had made such an impact on her for the better and she hoped she’d made some sort of lasting impression on Yasi, on Joe. It didn’t seem fair to be falling so heavily for someone if she turned out to be nothing more than a side note in his travel journal.

  She knew that’s what was happening when she was so conflicted about what she wanted from this trip and from him. If he hadn’t already claimed a piece of her heart she wouldn’t be overanalysing every move about how it would affect her and simply go with her natural urges. It almost didn’t matter if they took that next step together when the damage had already been done. He’d breached her defences and left her vulnerable.

  ‘It’s beautiful here.’ She tried to keep upbeat even though the shock of her discovery was enough to bring her to tears. The sky might be bluer than she thought naturally possible, the white sand warm under her feet, but she was still a fool when it came to men.

  Joe had warned her off against getting into anything she couldn’t handle but she’d convinced herself she was tough enough to deal with whatever happened. Now, after little more than a few snatched kisses, she knew her heart had lied to her. It hadn’t been broken beyond all repair after Greg, or why else would it ache so much for another man?

  ‘I’ve been here a few times. It’s a good spot to unwind. Mind you, there’s work to be done if we’re going to eat any time soon.’ He pointed down at the rest of the islanders coming ashore in single file, carrying the food supplies, like an army of ants.

  ‘I’m so sorry. I was so pleased to get here I didn’t even think about helping to unload the boats.’ She must seem so shallow and privileged to everyone else, used to mucking in and doing their bit as part of the community. She’d been living alone too long, concerned with nothing but her own survival until now.

  ‘It’s okay. Everyone is assigned jobs to do. Ours is to collect palm leaves.’

  ‘Palm leaves? That’s not lunch, is it?’

  His laughter calmed her new food fears before they fully formed. ‘No. They’re used for weaving into plates for the food and as a makeshift picnic table. It means there’s no litter left behind when we’re finished here.’

  They carried out their new duties in silence, with Joe cutting the leaves while she gathered them. She should have known this would be more than the tartan rug and plastic accessories she was used to in a basket. Then again, lunch here was bound to be more than a soggy sandwich and a packet of crisps. Even a simple picnic turned into something exotic and exciting when it was on one of these islands.

  Never more so than when she saw how they were preparing the food. The lovo, as Joe explained to her, was an oven built in the sand. Emily watched with fascination as the men set a fire in the small pit and stacked rocks on top until they were hot enough to cook the food on. Banana leaves were then placed on top as insulation to keep the stones hot and moisture in the food while it cooked.

  Emily sat with several of the women and children plaiting the palm fronds into primitive mats for the food and Joe waded out into the water with the others for a spot of net fishing. Part of her wished he was still wearing the translucent white shirt from yesterday as his wet clothes clung to him so she could have her very own Mr Darcy moment. At least she had first-hand experience of every solid inch of that torso to enable her imagination to bypass that dark perv-proof fabric. She fanned herself with one of the long palm fronds as he strode from the sea, water sluicing from his body as if he’d just walked out of a dream. An erotic fantasy she’d take back to keep her warm at night in her luxurious, but empty, bed.

  ‘You’ll be feasting today,’ he promised her as they brought their catch in. Soldier, medic, lumberjack, fisherman—there seemed no end to his talents, or else he never grew tired of acquiring them.

  She supposed she’d managed to add mat weaver and painter to her CV over the course of a couple of days too. That was the thing about the island, a person never seemed to be pigeonholed into one area of their life. It was all about working together and sharing jobs and skills to make sure the traditions never died out. One more thing she would miss when she returned home. Little wonder Joe couldn’t see himself tied to a desk somewhere, shuffling paperwork, after trying his hand at so many new experiences. She wasn’t looking forward to it herself after roaming free in the big wide world beyond her office walls.

  It took a couple of hours for the food to cook, during which time she managed to cobble together a couple of flat mats to keep their lunch sand-proof. She was starting to see why the time frame for this meal had been such an issue for Joe. It wasn’t the forty-five-minute lunch break she’d been expecting either, but it was worth it when the banana leaves were lifted off to reveal the feast Joe had promised her.

  As well as the dalo and cassava root vegetables she’d become accustomed to, today saw the addition of fresh fish and crab. It tasted all the better knowing Joe had provided it for her.

  ‘At least I know I won’t starve if we get shipwrecked here,’ she said, scooping up another piece of crab meat with her fingers.

  ‘I might not be perfect but I’ll always make sure you’re looked after.’ He grinned and helped himself to another chunk of fish, oblivious to the thrill he’d given her with a few simple words.

  A whoosh of something powerful shot through her veins, immediately revitalising her previously weary body. It was only a figure of speech but deep down she knew that promise was true. Joe was the o
nly man other than her stepbrother she could trust not to hurt her. Her soft heart was trying to convince her she should be with him even if a few days together was all that was on offer. There was a chance she’d regret missing out on that time more than walking away from him at the end of this trip.

  It didn’t take long to clear away the evidence of their beach invasion and, lovely though it was, she was getting kind of antsy to return to Yasi. Once they’d checked in on their patient and made sure there was no medical emergency, she and Joe might actually get some privacy. If it took barricading the clinic door with the furniture she was willing to do it if it meant getting to explore the next level with him. Although she wasn’t sure if that would make it better or worse when the time came to leave.

  She and Joe made their way to the boat they’d arrived in, only to find the chief barring their way. ‘I want to thank you for helping my son.’

  ‘You already did that. This was lovely.’ Every future picnic was going to be held up to this standard. A blanket on wet grass with a basket full of cold cuts simply wasn’t going to cut it any more when it would be up against an afternoon on a desert island with present company.

  They tried again to step on board but the chief sidestepped in front of them again. ‘We want to give you a gift. Some time alone. You can keep the boat until you’re ready to return to Yasi. There is enough room in this one for all of us.’

  ‘That’s really not necessary—’

  ‘We couldn’t ask you to do that—’

  They stumbled over each other’s words in their hurry to get back on the boat. It was a lovely gesture that would’ve been very welcome in other circumstances but this gift of time didn’t stop the clock elsewhere.

  ‘It’s very, very kind of you but we must see to your son.’ Her heart was in her throat as she dared to refuse his generosity but she knew how anxious Joe had been about coming out here in the first place. She didn’t want to prolong his agony, or have him more ticked off at her if she could help it. Their fragile relationship would splinter completely if it became the reason a patient had suffered.

  The chief held his hand up. ‘I insist.’

  His authority dictated they comply or run the risk of upsetting the entire tribe by declining this huge privilege bestowed on them. She was going to leave the next move up to Joe since he knew them better than she did and she didn’t want to be the one to make the final call.

  * * *

  The rest of the group were watching them anxiously and he could see Emily’s silent plea for help in her wide eyes. As doctors they both wanted to do what was best for their patient but as a seasoned traveller he understood the importance of maintaining good relations with his hosts. To his knowledge, he, Peter and Emily had been the first Westerners to ever set foot on this island owned by the Yasi-based tribe. It was a greater honour still for them to be offered use of their only transport for his and Emily’s enjoyment. They were a conservative race when it came to personal relationships, especially outside marriage, but they were clearly giving them some space to be together without any interference, something he would’ve grabbed with both hands last night.

  Now, going against everything he’d worked so hard to avoid, he was making decisions that could affect so many people. It was going to be up to him to get Emily back to Yasi in one piece, without upsetting anyone and making sure it was done in a timely fashion to prevent any further medical emergencies. He took a deep breath and girded himself for the challenge.

  ‘We’ll make sure we’re back before sunset.’

  He could already feel Emily’s gaze burning into the back of his head so he did what any man would do and pretended not to notice. She was polite enough to wait until company was out of earshot before saying anything.

  ‘I hope you know how to get us home. I’m putting all my faith in you,’ she said, without taking her eyes off the dinghy sailing away, now full to capacity.

  Dread settled in the pit of his stomach. That’s what he was afraid of. It was one thing puttering out here on his own but quite another when he was responsible for Emily too. One could never plan for any unexpected catastrophes but that didn’t mean you weren’t left carrying the resulting guilt for the rest of your life. He was becoming too emotionally attached to these people being continually left in his charge and soon he was going to have to think about moving on.

  If things weren’t so complicated he would’ve used this time to his advantage to seduce Emily. The setting, if not the current mood, was the ideal place for them to finally consummate this attraction. Unfortunately, sex wasn’t the only thing on his mind. It was having to wrestle with the dangers of the open water and the potential consequences of their absence on Yasi for prominence. For now they’d simply have to wait this out until an acceptable amount of time had passed to pacify their friends.

  ‘Don’t worry, I’ve done this before.’ Although it was usually out of a necessity to have some space to himself rather than with enforced company.

  ‘Oh. You mean you and the chief have some sort of understanding where he’ll help you kidnap unsuspecting female tourists so you can hold them hostage here until you get your wicked way with them?’ Emily folded her arms across her chest as she mocked him, stretching the light fabric of her dress taut across her bust and really not helping to take Joe’s mind off the idea of seduction.

  ‘Yeah. You got a problem with that?’ They exchanged cheesy grins as their sense of humour thankfully took over from that initial urge to panic.

  Emily laughed and shook her head. ‘Nope. Except maybe next time you could give me some warning.’

  ‘You’re right. The timing was a little off on this one. In future I’ll make sure we’re better organised.’ His mind flitted towards a day here together with no worries dragging them back to civilisation. They certainly wouldn’t be standing here, fully dressed, counting the minutes until they could leave.

  The sound of the waves lapping at their feet punctuated the sudden silence between them as what-might-have-beens stole away any further chat. It would be selfish of them to act on impulse now and get lost in each other. One taste of paradise and he knew he’d never want to leave.

  With one quick movement he stripped off his shirt and his shorts to wade out into the water in nothing but his boxers. He needed to cool off.

  ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘Going for a swim. Come on in. The water’s lovely.’ He lay on his back, making small circles with his hands in the sea to keep him afloat, tempted to let the gentle current carry him away.

  Emily dipped a toe in the water and stepped back again. ‘Are there sharks in there?’

  ‘I haven’t seen any but they’re not likely to come this close to the shore anyway.’ He flicked his fingers, soaking her with spray.

  She walked forward until the sea was swirling around her feet and lifting the hem of her dress. Joe held his breath as she revealed every sensual curve of her figure. It barely mattered she was wearing a pretty pink bikini beneath, she may as well have been naked the way his body was responding. She tossed the dress onto the sand and slowly waded out towards him.

  Joe spluttered as water covered his face and filled his nostrils. He gulped a mouthful as he struggled to stand upright. He’d been so engrossed in the sight of her stripping off he’d forgotten he needed to work to stay afloat.

  ‘You okay?’

  He could hear the flicker of amusement in her voice even though he couldn’t see her clearly as he scrubbed the water from his eyes. ‘Sure. I think I just forgot to breathe there for a second.’

  ‘How come?’ Emily was a little breathy, treading water deeper out into the sea.

  Joe swam out to meet her, gravitating towards her like she was his life raft in raging stormy seas. They faced each other, only their heads bobbing on the surface of the water, and he knew he couldn’t lie. Either t
o her or himself.

  ‘Because you’re so beautiful.’

  Emily immediately cast her eyes down, reluctant to accept the truth of his compliment. If she wasn’t going to listen to him then he was simply going to have to show her. He waded closer and captured her mouth with his, the salty and sweet taste of her lips a feast for his senses.

  She wound her arms around his neck and he was happy to anchor her legs around his waist and take her weight. In fact, with her body pressed tightly to his, if they sank to the bottom of the sea and drowned he’d die happy. Denying themselves any longer when everyone already assumed they were together seemed futile, and by giving in to his urges he was finally able to breathe again. It seemed as though he’d been holding his breath since last night, waiting for permission to exhale, and Emily had granted him that the second she’d kissed him back.

  There was a flash of light and it took a while for him to figure out it was coming from above and wasn’t fireworks going off in his head. He opened his eyes to see clouds rolling in, the sky now a palette of murky greys and purples. A rumble sounded in the distance, just after a charge of electricity that seemed to reach up to the heavens.

  ‘We need to get back to the beach and find shelter.’

  ‘Hmm?’ Emily was still nuzzling into him, oblivious to the danger around them, which was either a sign of how far she’d come or how great a kisser he was to make her overcome her natural worry state.

  ‘There’s. A. Storm. Coming.’ It was difficult to get the sentence out when she insisted on kissing him between words and scrambling his brain. In the end he simply carried her ashore, still clinging to him like a limpet on the rocks. Not that he was complaining. It simply made it harder for him to care what was going on out there too.

  He laid her down on the sand but she refused to release her hold, bringing him down with her. Making love to Emily here, with the waves drifting in and out between their naked bodies, was the stuff of fantasies but tropical storms came in hard and fast. That wasn’t how he wanted their first sexual encounter to go just because they were in a race against the elements.