Sully sighed again. “She doesn’t like people. She prefers the wild.”

Stepping carefully toward him, I asked, “Then why did she land in my kayak and travel with me?” I reached up, testing the incredible new connection with a feathered flyer and waited until she hopped onto my finger. She did so without hesitation. Her talons wrapping tight, her eyes inquisitive and smart.

Sully scowled as I brought my hand closer to him. I offered Skittles as a peace offering, a reminder I hadn’t stolen her, she’d stolen me. He looked as if he’d back away, but at the last second, he raised his own hand, our fingertips touching.

A zing of power shot from his blood into mine, making our breath catch. Skittles permitted him to stroke her head, but she refused to transfer to his offered perch. Skipping up my arm, she snuggled back into the dip of my shoulder and neck.

Sully dropped his hand with a guarded, black look. “It appears she has chosen you.”

“Does that bother you?”

“She’s free to make up her own mind. For some idiotic reason, she’s picked you.”

“Why?”

His eyebrows tugged together. “Why? Who knows.” His gaze skimmed over my nakedness. “Perhaps she feels sorry for you. Maybe she thought you would die and decided to chase suicide beside you.”

I ignored his deliberate barbs. Too much had passed between us not to see through his rage. He felt something. Something he couldn’t control.

And he didn’t want it. He didn’t trust it. He was determined to kill it before it could grow any deeper. Which was fine by me because I also didn’t want it, trust it, or was strong enough to endure it. By allowing him to find me, I’d sentenced myself to four years.

Four years of sleeping with a stranger once a week.

That would be all I could handle.

I couldn’t cope falling in love with the monster who served me to those strangers too.

“Maybe…or maybe she found her person, just like Pika found you.”

He froze. “You’re claiming my parrot now?”

“She claimed me first.”

“She’ll soon realise it was a mistake.”

I stiffened. “Are we still talking about a bird, Sully? Or—”

A crash sounded behind me. Sully’s head snapped up. His eyes shuttered, hiding any hint of connection we’d shared.

“Stay where you are!” His hand swooped up as I turned to look over my shoulder. A man appeared. Local to Indonesia, lean and lanky, running toward us. The guy heard Sully’s shout, skidding to a stop, his face animated and impatient.

Where the hell did he come from?

I blushed as the guy’s eyes zeroed in on my nakedness, blatantly drinking me in as his mouth fell open in shock.

The rustle of clothing ripped my head back to face Sully. With a furious look, he shrugged his charcoal blazer off his shoulders, followed by his silver-grey shirt beneath.

My stomach clenched as his arms bunched, undoing the buttons, then pulled it away and revealed the perfection of his chiselled chest. I gawked just like the man behind me gawked at my nudity.

I’d seen Sully half-naked a few times. For a man who wore suits like armour, he swam a lot, seeming much more comfortable in board-shorts and saltwater. But the impact of his perfection still stole the final strength in my legs.

My thirst returned with a vengeance. Only this time, it wasn’t just water I wanted to drink.

Before I could tear my gaze away from his impeccable physique, he wrapped his shirt around me. Skittles took off with an angry chirp, circling me while Sully roughly did up the buttons, hiding my naked form.

His rough hands brushed against my skin, his knuckles nudging my breasts, his teeth clamped on his bottom lip.

I grew lightheaded as he buttoned me up, going lower and lower until his touch skimmed my pussy and upper thighs. His scent enveloped me. Coconut and salt, jasmine and sandalwood. Intoxicating. Arousing. Heady.

I gulped as he finished and looked up. Our gazes snagged, and once again, all our lies burned at the stake of our truth. We wanted each other. His erection in his trousers and the wetness on my thighs proved that. But we wanted more than just sex. We wanted something neither of us could understand. Something fierce but tame. Catastrophic but endless.

Clearing his throat, he ducked to collect his forgotten blazer. Shrugging into it, he looked even more divine. Glowing sun-etched skin, shadows of hard-earned muscle, and a flat-ridged belly all adorned with a masculine suit.

It’s not fair.

Not fair that I was falling for someone who would ultimately break me in all the ways I never wanted to break. Not fair that I finally had to admit that I was falling, and the slippery slope had no safety rail.

I couldn’t stop it.

My loyalty to Scott couldn’t prevent it.

My desire not to feel it was useless.

It didn’t matter he wasn’t a good person or that I should be smarter than this.

Slip, slip, slip.

How long before I fall completely?

“Come.” His voice sounded thick and gravelly, his eyes dancing over me now that I wore his shirt. Did it cause a visceral reaction for him too? To see something of his on me—his shirt swamping me, protecting me, touching me in places he wanted?

Snatching my palm, he paused and narrowed his eyes at my blisters and wounds from the oar. His teeth ground together, but he didn’t speak. He merely let me go and grabbed my wrist instead, as if aware touching my hand would hurt.

The moment his fingers wrapped tight, he pulled me into motion, dragging me toward the guy who waited patiently on the other side of the helipad.

The grass cushioned my bare feet with carpet-like spring. Skittles floated down to resume her position on my shoulder, and Sully refused to look at me.

We slowed as the man came to greet us. “Mr. Sinclair. I saw your helicopter. I thought you were here to visit, but when you didn’t arrive, I came to see if everything is okay.” The man bowed, his black gaze skipping to me, then back to Sully.

Sully stayed tall and regal, despite not having a shirt under his blazer anymore. “That’s fine, Andika. My arrival wasn’t because of the sanctuary but because of other business.” His fingers tightened around my wrist. “However, now that I’m here, I could return with you to check on your charges.”

The guy beamed, shoving shaggy black hair from his eyes. “Oh, yes. That would be much appreciated, sir. We are proud to show off our latest arrivals.”

“Good.” Sully nodded, opening his arm wide. “Lead the way.”

We fell into step behind him, Sully cold and silent, me with a tiny parrot keeping me calm.

My mind raced with questions. Did Sully know all his staff by name? If so, that was impressive. If not, why would he know this man’s name on some remote island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean?

“We’ve been successful in rehoming the last shipment, sir,” the guy said over his shoulder. “We aim to be equally as successful with the upcoming arrivals.”

“I’m glad.” Sully sounded distracted, but his hold on my wrist never loosened. He kept me leashed as surely as he had when he’d knotted his tie around my neck. “Let me know if you need more supplies.”

The man ducked his head in embarrassment, as if asking for things went against his culture even if Sully was his boss. “We could do with another vet, sir. And another import of your animal-approved pharmaceuticals.”