Uprising (Alternate Earth Series, Book 2) (21 page)

“First?” Rafe asks in confusion.

“Before I tell you that I…” before I can declare my love to Rafe, I hear what sounds like an animal’s growl. I soon realize it was just Rafe’s stomach rumbling from what must be extreme hunger.

“Sorry,” he says, looking sheepish. “I didn’t know if our date included supper, so I didn’t eat before we left.”

I drop my forehead against Rafe’s chest, declaring, “I’m such an idiot. I didn’t even think to bring along something to eat.”

“We could go back to the castle and grab some leftovers,” Rafe suggests.

I quickly raise my head and say, “Absolutely not. I invited you out, and I will feed you.”

Rafe bites his bottom lip, and looks up the beach to the line of palm trees present.

“We might be able to find some coconuts in those trees,” he suggests.

I take a step back from Rafe and slip off my high-heel shoes, tossing them to the sand.

“Come on,” I say, taking his hand and walking over to the trees. Once we reach them, I plant Rafe right where I want him to stand before walking up to a palm that looks loaded with coconuts.

“Stay right where you are,” I tell Rafe. “Don’t move an inch.”

“I’m like Stonehenge,” he promises.

I walk behind the tree and push against it with one hand, felling it directly in front of Rafe, who remains stock-still, just as ordered.

Rafe’s eyebrows lift in surprise as he looks at the tree.

“For some reason,” he says, “I just thought you were going to climb it to get the coconuts.”

“Well, we needed something to sit on, too,” I say, thinking this a completely justifiable reason to tip a tree over.

I walk over to search beneath the palm fronds to find a good-size green coconut, knowing the younger ones will contain the most water.

“Sit down,” I tell him as I rip the green outer shell off to pull the coconut out from its center. Once I have the coconut out, I ram my index finger through the top of it to make a hole and crook it on the inside to yank off a quarter-sized section for Rafe to drink from.

I hand Rafe the coconut, saying, “There’s only about a cup worth of water in there. When you run out, let me know and I’ll get you another one.”

“Thank you,” Rafe says with an amused smile as he cups the coconut in his hands.

I reach up to the back of my dress and begin to pull the zipper down. I happen to glance in Rafe’s direction and see him hesitate as he’s bringing the coconut up to his lips to drink from it. For a second time that night, I see a look of surprise on his face.

“I don’t want to get my dress wet,” I explain, answering his unasked question.

“Are you going swimming?”

As I step out of the dress, now only wearing a lacey black bra and matching panties, I say, “How else am I going to catch a fish?”

“You’re going to catch one…” Rafe says, “with your bare hands?”

I shrug. “Not a big deal. I used to do it all the time. I might be a little rusty but there should be plenty of bonefish in these waters, with the tide coming in. I’ll be back in just a bit.”

I toss my dress onto the tree trunk beside Rafe and make my way to the water’s edge. After I do a quick scan of the clear, blue-green water, I dive in and swim out to find my man something to eat. It only takes me a few minutes to find what I’m looking for. With one quick jerk, I grab the tail of a bonefish and phase back onto the beach, with it still struggling to be set free. I lift it up to eye-level and grab a hold of the area right above its gills. With one squeeze and yank, I effectively debone it while its innards spill out onto the sand. I walk back to the water and wash it out underneath the waves before making my way back up to where Rafe is sitting.

“What?” I ask him, noticing that his mouth is slightly open in shock. “Haven’t you ever gutted a fish before?”

“I can’t say I’ve ever done it like that,” Rafe answers, a corner of his mouth lifting in an amused smile. “You’re a very resourceful woman.”

“You learn how to do certain things when you’re on your own,” I explain, scanning the area around us. I walk up to Rafe and hold the fish out to him. “Can you hold this for a minute? I need to build a fire so we can cook it.”

Rafe takes hold of the fish by the tail and watches me as I gather some fallen limbs and smaller twigs. I stand the wood up, making a teepee formation. In no time at all, I have a fire burning after quickly rubbing a stick into a larger piece of wood and making an ember to burn in the dried out husk from the coconut.

I make a rudimentary spit with some sturdy twigs and begin to cook the bonefish over the open flames.

“There,” I say with hands on hips, satisfied with my efforts, “it shouldn’t take long for the fish to cook. It might be a little crispy, since we’re doing it over an open flame, but, from the way your stomach was growling, I don’t think we have time to wait for it to die down to coals.”

I walk over to retrieve my dress. When I reach for it, I hear Rafe say, “Don’t feel as though you need to put that back on because of me.”

I meet his gaze and see the teasing smile on his face as he looks at me.

“And ruin JoJo’s plans for it?” I ask, grabbing my dress and stepping back into it. “I couldn’t do that to her.”

“Her plans?” Rafe asks in confusion. “What does she have planned for it?”

“Apparently, she thinks you’ll rip it off me by the end of this date.”

Rafe’s eyes grow so wide I can’t help but laugh at him.

“Her words,” I tell him with a giggle, “not mine.”

After I have my dress zipped, I sit down beside Rafe on the tree trunk.

“Well,” Rafe says, “I would certainly hate to disappoint JoJo.”

I look over at him and see a mischievous look on his face.

I smile back at him. “I wouldn’t complain.”

Rafe’s smile grows wider. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

As we watch the fish cook, I ask Rafe, “Can you tell me the story of how you and the other vessels found each other? How were you able to close the Tear in the Origin?”

Rafe begins to tell me about his first meeting with Jess and the other vessels. I can tell just by the tone of his voice that he loves them all, and would follow Jess into the bowels of Hell itself if that’s where she needed him to go.

“None of you questioned coming here with her?” I ask, finding such unselfishness remarkable.

“We knew she was having the dreams because God wanted her to come back here. There was never a question about
if
we would come here with her, just a matter of when. I think God was waiting for Lucifer to decide to come here with us. It’s the only explanation that makes sense to me.”

“Why do you think it was so important for him to come to this reality?”

Rafe shrugs. “I have no idea. I think only God knows the answer to that question. The only reasonable explanation I can think of is that He wants Lucifer to see what would happen if he ever tries to open the seals in the Origin.”

“But my father would only do that if He thought it would stop Lucifer from opening them in your reality.”

“I know. That’s what I can’t quite figure out. It’s almost as if He thinks Lucifer won’t do it if he sees firsthand what the consequences would be. If that’s the case, then He has more faith in Lucifer than I do. I’m not sure how seeing the destruction it would cause is supposed to stop him from doing it, unless God still thinks Lucifer has a sense of morality.”

“Jess seems to think he might,” I say. “Why is that? What’s up with that relationship anyway?”

“She cares for him like she does all her friends,” Rafe says. “He seems to care about her, too, even if he won’t openly admit it to anyone. I’m not even sure he’s admitted it to himself yet.”

We fall into a comfortable silence and I close my eyes, listening to the wind as it pushes the waves against the shore. The crackle of the fire brings its own sense of calm, making me relax even more.

“Nina…” Rafe says.

“Hmm?” I say, keeping my eyes closed and simply enjoying the tranquility of the moment.

“Earlier, you were about to tell me something. What was it?”

I open my eyes and turn my head to look at Rafe. The hope I see in his eyes makes my heart ache to confess my love to him, but I decide to wait. I look over at the fish and see that it’s done.

“Why don’t we eat first?” I suggest. “Let’s make sure that belly of yours is full before I tell you.”

Rafe looks disappointed, but nods his head. “All right.”

I stand up and pull a couple of palm fronds from the tree to act as our plates. While Rafe and I eat, Rafe tells me some more about his work with Doctors Without Borders. I’ve never seen anyone more in love with his work. I can tell just from the way he talks about it that he desperately wants to go back home to his patients.

“And you live in that small village?” I ask, having heard the other vessels talk about their home, or multiple homes, in Jess and Mason’s case.

“I don’t need much,” Rafe says. “I live a modest life for now.”

“For now?” I ask. “Are you planning to change the way you live soon?”

Rafe smiles shyly. “Once I’m married and start a family of my own, I plan to return to the States to live. I wouldn’t want to raise a family where my clinic is located. It wouldn’t be safe for them.”

“And it’s safe for you?”

“I have angels watching my back,” Rafe reminds me. “I feel safe enough there, but I wouldn’t want to raise a child in that part of the world. I wouldn’t be able to concentrate on my work, because I would be worrying about my children all the time.”

“So you want to have more than one child?”

“I love kids,” Rafe confides.

“How many do you want?”

“At least two, so they’ll always have someone they can count on in their lives.”

“What kind of woman do you see yourself marrying?”

Rafe stares into my eyes and says, “I imagine she’ll be headstrong and independent. She’ll know her own mind, and won’t be afraid to tell me if I ever make a boneheaded decision. She’ll love our children with all her heart and protect them from harm. She’ll be the kind of woman who lights up a room when she walks into it and makes me proud to be her husband.”

“Do you really think such a woman exists?” I joke. “She sounds a little too perfect.”

“I know she exists,” Rafe says, continuing to stare at me, as if he’s making a point.

I have to lower my gaze, because the way Rafe is looking at me is making my heart do flip-flops inside my chest.

“And what if this perfect woman of yours can’t have children?” I whisper. “Would she be less of a woman in your eyes?”

“Never,” Rafe assures me. “As long as she wanted kids, we could always adopt. There are a lot of children in the world who need loving parents.”

“You know, you’re a little too good to be true,” I say, impulsively giving voice to the words in my head.

“I’m just like anyone else,” Rafe says, showing his modesty.

I look back at him and shake my head. “See? You don’t even realize how perfect you are.”

“No one’s perfect,” Rafe says sincerely, “least of all me.”

“No,
you
most of all.”

“Nina…” Rafe says in the voice he uses when he wants to ask me a question. “What were you going to tell me earlier?”

I take a deep breath and stand, holding a hand out to Rafe to help him stand as well.

“Take a walk with me,” I say.

Rafe doesn’t question my motivations. He simply takes hold of my hand and stands up, never letting it go.

As we walk along the hard-packed sand near the shoreline, I attempt to work up the nerve to say those three little words I’ve wanted to say all night. Finally, I decide I should just do it and see what happens.

“I love you,” I say, finding the words easier to say than I thought, even though my heart is pounding so hard I feel like I might pass out at any moment from the rush of blood.

Rafe stops walking, but keeps a tight hold on my hand with a strength I didn’t think he possessed. I’m forced to stop walking, and turn to face him.

He stares at me for a moment before saying, “What did you just say?”

“I love you,” I say a second time. “I’ve loved you for a while now, but I just didn’t want to admit it.”

“But when I told you how I felt about you…”

“Yeah,” I interrupt him, “about that. Jess said you took what I said as a brush-off.”

“How else was I supposed to take it?”

“Well, I thought you would take it just the way I meant it. I do respect you, Rafe. I also happen to love you. I just couldn’t admit it at the time.”

“Why?”

It was such a simple question with such a complicated answer.

“Because I wasn’t sure if I wanted you to have that much power over me. I was afraid that, if I said it, I would lose a part of myself.”

“I would never use your love for me to make you do anything that you didn’t want to do, Nina. Love doesn’t work like that. I told you I loved you because I wanted to be completely honest about my feelings for you. There’s nothing in the world I wouldn’t do for you. Nothing at all.”