Fuck.
Luckily, she had the map tucked away in a special case where it wouldn’t be damaged by the water, but everything else on the boat was fair game. Tabitha rushed to the boat and yanked, pulling out a tarp. Then she sta
rted to cover the boat.
“We need to seek shelter,” Felix said.
“I thought you said I was on my own.”
“This isn’t the kind of storm we should mess with,” he pointed out.
When Tabitha looked at him, he looked worried. Something in his eyes told her not to argue, so she found herself nodding. She grabbed the map and her bag that held her most important possessions, but everything else she left safely tucked beneath the tarp. Felix grabbed her hand and pulled, hauling her off of the beach and toward a large group of trees.
“Trees aren’t going to keep us dry,” she pointed out as they ran.
“We need to get to higher ground,” he told her.
“Okay,” she yelled. Tabitha ran, hurrying along after him, but she had forgotten to grab her shoes, and she found herself aching and jumping as she moved. The Earth was covered with plenty of things that weren’t exactly foot-friendly.
Felix stopped running and turned back to look at her.
“What’s wrong with you?”
“What are you talking about?”
Tabitha had to yell because the wind was picking up, and her voice didn’t carry very well. It was hard to get her words out and across. Could he hear her?
“You’re walking strangely.”
Felix looked down at her feet.
“You aren’t wearing anything on your feet,” he pointed out.
“I know.”
“Why not?”
“Because my people are opposed to shoes,” she said drily.
“Really?”
“No!” Tabitha slapped him lightly on the shoulder. Although she was just being sarcastic with him, the touch was electric. Shit. She shouldn’t have touched him.
She was soaked to the bone now, and she knew he was, too. They were both going to catch colds if they didn’t find a way to get out of the wind and water.
“I left them in the boat,” she yelled.
It had been a long ride, and she’d gotten tired of wearing them. Tabitha had spent most of her childhood growing up completely barefoot, and even now as an adult, she found the idea of wearing shoes to be difficult, to say the least.
“I’ll carry you.”
Felix seemed to think this was the easiest answer to their problem, and before Tabitha could properly protest, he picked her up, lifting her, and carried her deeper into the trees.
“What about the cat?” Tabitha called out.
“She wanders around. She’ll be fine. We’ll probably see her again later.”
“Are you sure?”