Chapter 35 : Wilderness Adventure

Cat POV When I woke up, I found that Luke and I were tightly curled together in a ball on the pantry floor. It was cold, but his warm skin was keeping the worst of it away. Outside the pantry, I could hear the pitter-patter of light rain outside but the roar of the wind was gone, and I couldn't hear any thunder anymore. "Luke," I whispered, shaking him gently. He grunted and opened his eyes. "Ugh, it is still so dark," he groaned. "We're still closed up in a closet," I reminded him, laughing lightly. "Oh, right. I was dreaming about something else," Luke said with an amused tone in his voice. He placed his hand on my bare back, and I started, still unable to see what he was doing. "I thought you said storms were quick and violent around here. This wasn't a quick storm at all," I said. "It sounds like things have calmed down. Let's go take a look." I heard Luke stand up and jiggle the doorknob. When he opened the door, a stream of dim sunlight came in. I blinked and shielded my eyes as I peeked out the door. "It is morning. There's still some pretty thick clouds in the sky, but the worst of it has passed. The power is still out," Luke explained. "Is it at least safe enough to drive out of here and get some warm clothes?" I asked. "Yeah, we should be able to drive, now," he said. He held a hand out to me and I took it, letting him help me to my feet. My dress was dry, at least. I slipped it back on. It still wasn't good enough to cover me in the chilly air but it was better than nothing. Luke put his pants and shirt back on. He offered me his blazer. I smiled and accepted. Like a gentleman, Luke helped me put the jacket on. It wasn't super warm, but it helped stave off the worst of the cold. We walked into the destroyed house. It was a total mess. The building was still intact, but the decor was a wreck. Curtains had been ripped from their rods. All the windows were open, and there was still water all over the floor. When we got back to the dinner table, my stomach growled when I saw how all the food had been tossed around and saturated with water. I covered my stomach with my hand. When the storm hit, we'd barely started eating. "Are you hungry?" Luke asked, touching my arm. "Yes, I am," I said, nodding. "When we get back to the resort, there will be plenty to eat. The car should get us there fast enough," he said. "The wedding is today and fully catered." "Oh, that's right," I muttered, looking down. "If nothing else, we can at least get changed and eat," Luke offered, smirking. I shrugged and headed to the front door. Luke close on my heels. The idea of going to the resort for the wedding after spending the night in a closet wasn't high on my list. Still, I wanted to eat, take a warm shower, and change into something warm. "Looks like you'll have a lot of work to do on this place," I said, changing the subject. Luke sighed and glanced around. I pulled the front door open and froze. There were trees down across the one, dirt road that led to the house. What was worse, Luke's sports car was crushed under a tree. Groaning, I pressed my forehead against one of the porch columns. Food and warm clothes were going to have to wait. "Well… that is a problem. Hang on, I'll just call the resort and have them send up another car," Luke offered. He pulled his phone out and squinted his eyes at the screen. He frowned and shook the phone, then tapped on it again. "Let me guess, no service?" I asked, thinking of how my phone hadn't worked when Jason and I went on a tour of the island. "No service," Luke confirmed. Sighing, I sat down on the porch steps. I hugged my knees and rested my forehead on them. "You know, I'd almost prefer staying here with you than going to the wedding," he said, trying to lighten the mood. I shook my head and looked up at him. "Storm-destroyed house or crashing my ex's wedding to steal food. Hmm…" I bit my lower lip and smiled. Luke plopped down on the stairs next to me and nudged my leg with his. "If we make it to the main road, we could hitchhike back to the resort. If nothing else, we'd at least get reception to call for help," he suggested. "Alright," I agreed. We walked around the smashed car, and we headed down the little road. There were areas where Luke had to help me over some of the fallen trees. "Luke, I have to ask, what was all that about? You know, the dinner, the night together, everything else?" I asked. My cheeks reddened as Luke scanned me with his eyes. "You said we could talk about it today," I reminded him. "Yes, I did," Luke nodded in agreement. He sighed and held a hand out to me, helping me over a fallen tree. My foot slipped and I pitched forward. Luka caught me in his arms, sliding back on the wet ground. "Are you okay?" he asked as I clung to him. "Y-yeah. Thank you," I said. My cheeks got even hotter as I pulled away from him. Luke grabbed my wrist, though, and pulled me back to him. "I can't stay away from you, Cat. No matter how hard I try, I can't. "Oh?" I asked, creasing my brow. He slipped his fingers through my hair and then grabbed my hand, holding it as we walked down the narrow road together. "Even before we met, I was already inspired by you and in love with the work you did in college. I knew I needed you to work for me, and I needed to meet you," he said, squeezing my hand. "That's very sweet," I said, raking my teeth over my bottom lip. "I know this wasn't what you expected. If you don't think you can work for me, I'll understand. Just tell me where you want to work, where you want to go, and I'll make a few calls," he offered. "What do you mean?" I asked, creasing my brow. "If you don't think we can work together and remain professional, I'll get you situated at whatever property development firm you want. I'll pay all your relocation expenses until you can get settled. It is the least I can do after… everything," he continued. We had made it to the main road. Luke started walking toward the resort. I knew we were still miles away, but it was better to walk toward where we were going and hope for a car to drive by. Thankfully, the rain had mostly died down, and it was just lightly sprinkling now. I thought about what Luke said. For weeks, I'd been struggling with whether or not I wanted to stay and work with Luke. I'd thought of all the reasons I should leave, and threatened to leave. Now, Luke was giving me an out. He was giving me an easy way to leave without having to worry about money or my career. "I admit, it would be a huge blow to my firm to lose you. It would break my professional heart to have you work for someone else, with your talent," Luke said, pulling me from my thoughts. I caught Luke's eyes, and he grinned at me. I think he was trying to tell me he was joking, but he sounded so serious. "Luke, it has taken me a while to figure out what I wanted. I know now, I want to stay," I assured, nodding. Luke's grin widened, and he pulled me in for a quick hug. "How about that call?" I asked, pulling away. "Check your phone for service, too, just in case," Luke suggested. I pulled my phone out. The screen lit up, and I saw two bars of service. "Oh, I've got service," I said, bouncing on the balls of my feet. I unlocked my screen, and the phone turned off. "What? What!?" I cried. I hit the power button, and the screen flashed with a dead battery sign. Groaning, I shoved it back in my purse. "What happened?" Luke asked. "My phone battery is dead. How about yours?" I asked. I stood on tiptoes so I could see his screen around his shoulder. "I've got a couple bars, but my battery is pretty low, too," he said. "Try to make a call. Hopefully, you have just enough juice to make a call," I said, nodding. Luke dialed the number for the resort. It rang once, and then his phone died. "Ugh!" I groaned, kicking the air. "Come on, Cat, this is an adventure," Luke said. He looped his arm through mine and started leading me down the main road again. "Besides, there is still a chance that a car will come by." "I haven't seen one car since we got on the road. It is probably washed out from the storm," I said, pessimism sinking in. "We can make it entertaining if you want. What about a game, like twenty questions?" he asked. I arched an eyebrow. "You think that will be entertaining?" "Let's find out. I'm thinking of an item. Can you figure out what it is in twenty questions?" he asked playfully. Luke and I continued walking while I tried to guess what he was thinking. He was right, playing a game was entertaining. He had me laughing and took my mind off the situation we were in completely. After almost an hour of walking, I pulled Luke to a stop. "I need to take a break. I'm in heels, and this is not the kind of road I want to hobble down in bare feet. We still haven't seen any cars," I grumbled. I sat down on a nearby fallen tree and pulled my shoes off. I started massaging my aching feet and working out the tension. Luke sat down next to me. "You still have a couple questions left," he reminded me. I rolled my eyes and dug my knuckles into the balls of my feet. It hurt but felt oh so good! "It's a fish, isn't it?" I asked, shooting him a look. Luke nodded. "Yes. I thought that was appropriate, considering your last encounter with a fish." I giggled and punched him playfully in the arm. "Hey! That's not fair." "I told you, I wanted it to be entertaining. I think I succeeded in cheering you up," Luke said, rubbing his arm as if I'd actually hurt him. I knew I hadn't. "How much further to the resort?" I asked. "Shh," Luke muttered, he held a hand up to me and glanced up at the sky. "You hear that?" "Yeah," I said. There was a loud chopping sound getting louder and louder. "A helicopter. I see it. It has my father's emblem on it. Let's get out in the open," Luke said. He grabbed my hand, and we ran into the middle of the street, jumping up and down and waving at the helicopter.