He knelt beside her, looking big and powerful. Hopefully binding her wrist would help, because at the moment it hurt like hell. “All right,” he instructed. “Just rest your arm on my thigh.”
She did as he asked, glancing up at him. Even in the middle of the night, in the damn rainforest, he seemed calm and in control. She basically felt out of her element with no supplies, nothing but the clothes she was wearing.
Blake was clearly prepared for anything. He rolled up her long-sleeved shirt so that he could wrap her wrist, his gloved hands working efficiently.
“I’m going to take these off,” he said, setting the black gloves aside for a moment. He lightly brushed against her forearm with his hand as he unrolled the bandage, and she jumped. The feel of his hand against her skin was electric.
“I won’t hurt you,” he assured her.
“I know.”
Working quietly, he began wrapping her wrist, carefully binding it and part of her hand. Blake was efficient yet gentle with her. He held her more carefully than she expected, no doubt because of the bruising on her skin. “Is that too tight?”
“No, it feels good,” she said, slightly rotating her arm. “It doesn’t hurt as much.”
He nodded. “I’ve got some painkillers. That should help.”
He grabbed a small bottle out of his rucksack, along with his canteen, handing both over to her. Gratefully, she swallowed two aspirin. “Were you camping somewhere around here?” he asked.
“I’m not sure actually. My guide and I hiked two hours up to the river so I could collect water samples. It felt like we were walking for hours and hours though after I was kidnapped.”
“Water samples. Are you a scientist?”
She nodded. “Biologist. We were just finishing up for the afternoon, and I’d put everything in my backpack, when my guide thought he heard voices. We didn’t move away quick enough.”
Blake stood, reaching out a hand to help her up. Once again, he pulled her to her feet, and she looked up at him. He was big. Strong. And looking at her so intently at the moment, she didn’t know what to think. “Was your guide in on it?” he asked, frowning.
“No, I don’t think so,” she said, shaking her head. “They shot him right in front of me.”
He clenched his jaw, nodding. “I’m sorry you had to witness that. Shit,” he muttered, fumbling with his headset.
“What’s wrong?”
“Some sort of interference. All I hear is static instead of an update from my team. Maybe it’s too dense where we’re standing to get a strong signal. We might have to move closer to the edge of the rainforest.”
“Okay.”
He bent over to grab his rucksack, and Clarissa suddenly jumped as she heard a twig snap. Blake quickly switched off the flashlight, no doubt able to see everything with his night vision goggles.
The both stood there a moment, barely daring to breathe. There was the sound of movement further away in the forest. Blake leaned down, his lips near her ear. “We need to go. I think someone’s out there looking for us.”
She moved slightly closer to him, grabbing his forearm in the dark. She felt silly clinging to him like this, but she wasn’t going to let them take her again. She would die fighting before she let them. And she couldn’t see a thing out here now that Blake had turned off the flashlight. He bent down and grabbed his gun, not commenting on the way she still clung to him. “Let’s move further in,” he said quietly. “I don’t see anyone at the moment, but that didn’t sound good. Some of the men could’ve followed us.”
“But your team,” she whispered. “We won’t be able to communicate with them.”
“We don’t have a choice.”
Chapter 10
Blake stood there in the rainforest, feeling Clarissa clinging to his arm. Her hair smelled faintly of flowers, which was surprising since she’d been sleeping on the ground in captivity. Also surprising was the fact that he’d found a kidnapped woman in the middle of running an op.
She was small, her head only coming up to his shoulder, and the way she was clinging to him at the moment practically slayed him. He hadn’t seen much of her in the moonlight in camp, but her long blonde hair and delicate features had awoken his masculine, protective side.
She’d been captured by those assholes. Nearly raped. Seeing her tied up and helpless in the tent had made his blood boil. He wanted to kill Abboud with his bare hands, but the mission had been to bring him in alive.
If they could find the bastard.
And as for Clarissa?
She was handling herself far better than he’d expected. She wasn’t panicked or screaming. She’d kept up with him as they’d hustled the hell out of the camp. She’d been injured and wasn’t complaining or crying. But she was clearly frightened. Her touch was gentle as she clung to his arm, but he could feel her trembling beside him.
Fucking hell.
“Let’s move to the south,” he said gruffly, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her close to his side as they moved forward. His gaze swept the area, but he didn’t see any movement.
“Maybe it was just an animal,” she whispered.
He nodded, realizing she couldn’t see him. “It could’ve been. I don’t hear anything at the moment, but I’d rather ensure your safety. We’ll move further in, away from the camp in case we’ve been followed. We can lay low for a while after that while I attempt to establish communication with my team.”
They walked for a few minutes in the dark, Clarissa sticking close to his side. Her floral scent again filled his nostrils. He hadn’t noticed it in the tent since he’d been wearing his gas mask. And now? He had to admit it was enticing as hell. His libido instantly sprung to life, as inappropriate as it was in the middle of an op.
What could he say?
She was an attractive woman. Her clothing hid her womanly curves, but when she’d pressed against him, he’d felt her plush breasts. He’d been fully decked out in his gear, of course, so he’d only gotten the barest hint of her softness.
But damn. If they’d been back home in San Diego, he sure the hell would’ve noticed a woman like her.
They continued on in the darkness, Clarissa hanging onto him since he kept the flashlight off. Blake periodically adjusted his headset, testing the comms. “Damn it,” he muttered.
“Still nothing?”
“Nope. I’ve got a sat phone in my rucksack, but again, it won’t be much use either this deep in the forest. Normally it’s not an issue on most ops.”
“The canopy is too thick here. The river eventually widens though if we can find it. You should be able to get a clear signal there, unless we turn around and go back of course.”
Blake grunted, admiring her thought process. She was smart, that much was for damn certain. Lots of kidnap victims were hysterical, out of their mind with fear. He’d rescued women and children before in awful situations. He and his teammates had sometimes needed to physically carry them to safety. Clarissa may have been injured but she was thinking clearly, analyzing different ways they could escape.
And hell if he didn’t appreciate a woman who could handle herself. Not that he minded the way she stuck to his side. He felt about ten feet tall having a beautiful woman like that need him. Hold on to him for comfort and safety. Not that anything would come of this little rendezvous. They’d make their escape from the depths of the rainforest, fly back to the States, and then go their separate ways.
After ten minutes moving slowly through the dark, they heard the trickle of water. “That doesn’t sound like the river,” she said.
“No. We didn’t see a river when we moved through here earlier. It must be farther in. You said you were walking for several hours when they took you. We can probably stop and rest though if you want.”
“Okay. I do feel a little dizzy.”
“Shit. When was the last time you had anything to eat?” Blake asked, setting his rucksack down on some rocks. He flipped the flashlight back on, giv
ing them a small amount of light in the middle of the dark forest.
“I’m not sure—this morning, I guess. Well, yesterday morning. They brought me some rice and that was it for the day. I don’t think they gave me any water either.”
“Hell,” Blake said, frowning as he looked at her. “I’ve got some protein bars and MREs stashed in here. I should’ve offered you something before.”
“There’s food in the rainforest, too,” she assured him. “Fruits and edible plants. Insects, although I don’t think I’ll be trying those unless we’re desperate.”
He chuckled. “What did you say you did? Biologist?”
“Yes, at the University of Texas.”
“Hook ‘em Horns,” Blake joked, digging through his gear.
“You’re a fan?” she asked with a short laugh, sinking down beside him.
His lips quirked. It felt good to talk about something normal in the middle of the chaos. For a brief moment, he’d put aside her kidnapping and the fact that he was incommunicado with his team. Not to mention that he was dragging a woman through the Colombian rainforest.
Jesus.
Missions often didn’t go as planned, but this had to be a first for him—separated from his men with a beautiful woman at his side.
“I’m originally from Oklahoma,” he said with a low chuckle. He moved aside a thermal blanket, digging lower to where his food was stashed. He’d stuck two MREs in there in case things went south, but damn. This was supposed to be easy in and easy out. They’d call for extraction when they were done, not hunker down for hours or spend the night out here.
“Somehow I can’t see you in a cowboy hat,” she mused.
“Protein bar or MRE?” he asked, holding both up.
“Protein bar, thanks.”
Unthinkingly he tossed it toward her, then cursed. Surprisingly, she grabbed it with her good hand. “Sorry,” he said, somewhat sheepishly. “I forgot about the hand for a minute.”
She fumbled, trying to open the wrapper with her one good hand, and he reached over to her. “I got it,” he said easily. Their fingers brushed as he handed it back to her, although he still had on his gloves. Fascinated, he looked at her slender fingers. She didn’t seem like the biologist sort—she looked fragile and beautiful. She wasn’t caked in makeup, obviously. What woman would be in the middle of the woods?
She was blonde, but not the stereotypical type he met in Southern California. She wore hiking boots and had a button-down shirt over a camisole. It was feminine yet outdoorsy. And she’d apparently willingly come here to study and collect samples.
He’d wanted to laugh the last time he took a woman outside for a date, and she’d freaked out any time a tiny gust of wind blew her way.
“I definitely wore cowboy hats when I was younger,” he said, realizing he’d been lost in thought. “It doesn’t really go with the SEAL attire though.”
“God no,” she agreed. “If you wore that thing, the bad guys would spot you a mile away and shoot your head right off.”
He smirked, shaking his head. It was cute as hell the way she said “bad guys.” Terrorists, drug lords, suicide bombers—that was more his line of work. Bad guys sounded like a child playing cops and robbers. “I’ve got an extra water pouch,” he said. “We can fill it in the stream and then drop a purification tablet in. Hopefully we’ll be the hell out of here soon. You can take my canteen though.”
She accepted it gratefully as he stood and walked over to the trickle of water. It wasn’t much, but it would do the trick.
Blowing out a sigh, he sank to the ground beside her. “I don’t hear the helos. That was our original plan for extraction. My guys are either still chasing after Abboud or trying to find us.”
“There were a lot of trucks parked at the camp. Maybe he got away.”
Blake nodded. “It’s a possibility. The Colombian military was supposed to be on the highway, stopping exactly that, but half of the camp seemed to know we were coming. All those empty tents on one side? It doesn’t add up.”
“What’s going to happen to the weapons?”
“They’ll deal with them. We were only there for the leader.”
“So what happens if you can’t get in contact with your team?”
“We can head back toward the airstrip. It’s not safe for us to walk along the highway, and it’ll take a hell of a long time moving through this terrain. I’ve got a compass and maps though, so we can work our way back if it comes to that.”
“But they’ll look for you, right?” she asked, looking concerned.
“Absolutely. No one’s leaving us behind, Clarissa. I’m taking you home with me to the States. If my team has Abboud, they’ll need to bring him in to base though. They know I can handle myself. A night roughing it in the rainforest isn’t a big deal.”
She nodded, and Blake hated the look of fear in her eyes. She’d already been through a lot and deserved a night in a warm, soft bed, surrounded by four walls and a ceiling. She needed a long bath and hot meal, not a night camping in the wilderness.
He’d offer what he could though, trying to make it as easy as possible on her.
“Hey,” he said in a low voice, waiting until she met his gaze. “I know you’ve been through a lot, but I promise you’re safe with me. We’ll keep moving toward the river, and hopefully we can get a signal and set a rendezvous point. If not, we’ll hunker down for the night and meet up with everyone tomorrow. It wasn’t the original plan, but I’ve got supplies. And moving back to the terrorists’ camp with you just isn’t safe.”
She nodded again, still looking wary. There were dark circles under her eyes, and Blake knew she probably hadn’t slept much while in captivity. He hated that he needed to keep them moving deeper into the jungle, but he needed to get in contact with his men. The area where the river widened was his best bet, unless he wanted to head back toward the camp or highway. Considering they’d already been shot at and possibly followed, he wanted to keep Clarissa safe.
Choices he’d make if he were on his own just weren’t an option with a rescued civilian.
She finished her protein bar, and he took the wrapper from her, shoving it into his rucksack.
“Are you going to eat anything?” she asked.
“Not yet,” he said, shaking his head. “You forget that I haven’t been out here that long. We ate before we moved in.”
“Does your communication usually go out like this?”
He shook his head as he got to his feet, offering her a hand. Without hesitation, she took it, and he pulled her to her feet. Reluctantly, he let go and bent down to grab his gear. “Not usually,” he admitted. “But we’re often in the desert and other terrain, not a tropical rainforest with lots of trees. It’s not too surprising I can’t get a signal where the forest is thickest—and we weren’t planning to separate either.”
“I’m sorry you had to leave them for me,” she said quietly.
“Hey,” he said gruffly, reaching out and tilting her chin up toward him. She seemed surprised at his boldness, but Jesus. Did she really think she was some sort of burden? He forced himself to remove his hand, but the way she looked up at him absolutely slayed him. “Of course, I’d take you with me. Do you think I’d leave an innocent woman tied up to a goddamn pole? Let them do whatever they wanted with you? Maybe you weren’t part of our mission, but that’s only because we didn’t know you were there.”
She nodded, tears filling her eyes.
“Don’t cry,” he said, and she took an abrupt step back from him. Maybe he’d sounded too harsh. Taking a deep breath, he tried again. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you. I just hate to see a woman’s tears.”
“I’m fine,” she said, hastily wiping them away. “It’s just been a long few days.”
“I know,” he said, nodding. “You’re holding up much better than I thought you would.”
A few tears continued to fall down her cheeks, and he had the strangest urge to wipe them away. To step cl
oser and offer her some sort of comfort. Usually he was more about kissing and pleasuring a woman than holding her in his arms, but something about her made his protective instincts soar.
Clarissa pulled herself together though, and his heartstrings tugged at the way she looked at him. With the way she drew strength despite everything she’d been through.
“Let’s try to get to the river, then,” she said, looking determined. “We’ll contact the others and get ourselves out of here.”
Chapter 11
Blake left the flashlight on as they continued moving deeper into the jungle. Clarissa felt practically dead on her feet—the adrenaline rush from being rescued had worn off. She and Blake weren’t running away, so she felt somewhat safe at the moment. She finally had food in her stomach. Although she was still hungry, she didn’t want to push her luck. Eating too much too soon might end badly.
Taking a sip of water from Blake’s canteen, she clung tightly to it as they moved forward. She didn’t want to hang onto him again. He was a macho, tough Navy SEAL. Even though she was an outdoorsy type of woman, at the moment, she was exhausted. She wanted to sleep for twelve hours and then take the longest shower of her life.
That wasn’t exactly an option though.
They moved quietly along, the only noise the sounds from the forest. Her wrist was beginning to throb some more, but the bandage he’d wrapped around it helped somewhat. At least she wouldn’t accidentally twist it in the wrong direction again. Still, her legs felt like lead, she kept blinking to keep her eyes open, and she was starting to feel a little dizzy.
“Are you doing okay?” he asked after a few minutes.
“I’m fine, just a little tired,” she admitted. “Do you think anyone else is out here?”
Blake shook his head. “Not the guys from the camp. They’re more concerned about the weapons and the rest of my SEAL team than us. We should be cautious moving through here though. Drug runners still cross through this area, although I expect most are asleep in the middle of the night.”
She yawned at just the mention of the time. It was indeed the middle of the night. She should’ve been asleep in her sleeping bag back in her tent. Shoot. What had even happened to her things? Had someone stolen her sleeping bag, clothes, and other belongings when she didn’t return? And then there was the matter of her missing backpack. “I don’t have my passport,” she said suddenly.
SEAL's Desire (Alpha SEALs Coronado Book 1) Page 6
