"It was only logical," she responded weakly as his hands drew the shape of her face and lifted it for another long kiss.
"It's only logical, then, that we take the next step."
"Yes?" Desire rippled up and down her body as his words fell in hot spurts on her skin. She felt giddy and clung to his shoulders as she tried to follow his thinking.
"My theory is that they made love here. We should research the possibilities."
She threw her head back and laughed as his kisses explored her breasts through the tee shirt. "This is research?"
"Absolutely. In order to write convincingly about my findings, I must experience what the Anasazi experienced. Playing, wading . . . making love. That way my report will be scientifically accurate."
She kissed him again. "I wouldn't want to stand in the way of pure scientific research."
"Then let's not stand at all."
They dropped to their knees in the sand and helped each other remove their remaining clothes. Laughing as their fingers fumbled the familiar task, they discarded jeans and tee shirts and underwear.
In the silence of the setting, with only the hypnotic splash of the waterfall in the background, Jake's senses soared. His admiration of natural beauty had never been taken so far as when he knelt before Brit. She was golden in the sun, her sleek body shiny as it reflected glossy highlights.
Her shimmery blond hair was tousled and so touchable. He splayed his hands through it as he angled her head for a kiss. Her breasts brushed against his arms. The full globes were adorned with erect dusky tips. He bent to kiss them, letting his lips pay homage to their feminine splendor as his hands slid down her body to grip her ribs. He pulled her to him and kissed her stomach and navel, then moved lower to the enticing, inviting mound of femininity.
She made soft sounds when he touched her, showing him her impatient, unmistakable de-light. "Jake ... oh Jake . . . You're driving me crazy."
Jake felt as though he had been lifted to another level of pleasure, something beyond desire, beyond simple lust. He felt wild and free, as if he were breaking loose for the first time in his life. Free to enjoy; free to love her to the fullest.
"Brit, Brit, you are . . . so special," he murmured, trying to express his feelings and knowing as soon as the words were out, they were inadequate. He lowered her to the sand and kissed his way up her body.
She laughed playfully and swung her leg over his hips, shifting her weight until they were a perfect match, laughing, kissing, teasing.
"I feel sand on my back."
“Me, too. But not here." He kissed her lips, then her breasts. “I want you.”
“I know practically nothing about you, Jake. And yet I want you like I've never wanted any man."
"I want you all the time, Brit. Even when it's impractical."
"And when's that? Tell me," she begged.
"When the others are there. How can we get rid of them? Can we send them away tonight?"
She giggled. "You're terrible!" But she loved hearing that from him.
"Terrible to want you? I disagree." He kissed her again and settled over her, careful not to give her his full weight. She seemed so slight, so pale and fragile against his growing strength. "You're the best thing, the best woman, to ever happen to me."
Jake gave himself to destiny in her arms. Their divergent paths had turned inward, and merged, as if this were fate, planned and sanctioned by God. Their bodies came together with a never before richness of physical and spiritual beauty. He entered her swiftly, powerfully, unable to control his urge to make them complete.
With a delicate tenderness, she opened her soft body to him, reveling in their union as she clutched his sandy back with digging fingers. Jake rocked in her quiescence with a harmony he had never known. Here, in her, was his own inner truce. Time turned fluid as they flowed together, mutual currents of desire softening the hard gray edges of life and dissolving away reality. Jake felt a surge of power as their two bodies and two hearts swelled together.
Every part of him, every cell, cried out for satisfaction, but more. For love and caring, for the calm serenity of mutual desires fulfilled, for loving and being loved in return. These were feelings he had fought over and finally discarded long ago in exchange for purely physical satisfaction and devotion to his work. In the end, he cared only about himself, and that was not enough.
But this . . . this woman who made him laugh and who now rode with him in wild abandon, was such a refreshing, exquisite person, he released former thoughts and pledges. And he freed it all for this glorious moment in time with Brit.
Only the sun knew how long they remained locked in the essence of love. And only when the sun's intensity flicked at Jake's backside, did he move, ever so slightly. He felt completely relaxed, transposed to another plane of ecstasy.
"Are we still on earth? I dreamed we rode to heaven," Brit sang softly.
"We rode to Shangri-la in the sand," Jake murmured in her ear.
"My, my, you have a vivid imagination."
"You taught me everything I know."
"And all the time, I thought we were researching the Anasazi ways."
"Ummm-hummm.” He nuzzled her neck. "I think we've made some new discoveries."
"Oh? What are they?"
"That you are spectacular." He rolled beside her, propping his head up to gaze into her eyes.
"So are you." She baited him with a smile and ran a fingernail lightly down his belly. "What else?"
He shivered and smiled. She looked thoroughly ravaged, tousled, well-sanded. And undeniably happy. His next observation scared him because it matched his own feelings, and he hesitated before he said, "That together, we're perfect. Hey, let's go for a swim."
“Okay, but make it a quick one.”
Jake ran toward the pool, ran from Brit and from himself, from thoughts and feelings he hadn't let himself entertain in years. Like a sleek brown otter, he plunged into the chilly waters without a pause, diving deep into the blue velvet.
Brit got up slowly, feeling the gritty sand that was stuck to her legs, back, and shoulders. She watched Jake disappear beneath the surface and wondered what had happened between them so suddenly. Did she say the wrong thing? Or do something that he could construe? No, it had been so fleeting, so imperceptible that she doubted herself now.
Across the pool, he surfaced. He shouted and beckoned to her. You're just paranoid, she told herself. He seems perfectly happy. Everything is fine, she confirmed silently.
She stepped into the cool water and a chill raced up her back. Her heart didn't lie; she knew now that she was crazy about the ruggedly handsome Jake Landry. He was the boldest, most interesting man she'd ever met. Intelligent and introspective, yet she'd seen that he could loosen up and be fun. Today she'd seen both sides of him, the one who worked almost all the time, and the one who could tease and play. She found him a powerful lover, someone to dream about, a man to love completely.
Oh, yes, the man had taken her heart by storm, and she sailed into the hurricane willingly. Until a moment ago, she thought he had been telling her the same with his body, that he cared deeply for her, too. But all he'd said was that he couldn't resist her. Well, at this point, maybe that was all she could expect from him. She followed Jake into the icy brink.
They did not stay in the water long. It was too cold for playing, and the current was still strong. They washed quickly, then sat nude on a smooth rock until they dried in the sun. Leisurely, in no hurry to return to camp, they began picking up the clothes they'd scattered along the beach, dressing in one item at a time, as they found it.
Brit felt content and happy. Even with her doubts about their relationship, she couldn't contain her overall glow, for it came from inside. And she wished with all her heart that this moment, this day, this time with Jake could last forever.
Jake loaded his equipment and notes into his backpack and they started down the trail. "We aren't finished with this ruin. I have much more to do here. Are y
ou willing to help?"
"Sure. What else do I have to do?" She grinned. "This has been one of the best days I've ever spent, Jake. I mean it."
He nodded and met her gaze. "Yep. It's been outstanding."
"I'll help you finish. I feel a kinship with the Anasazi, even if I don't know much about them. We've both enjoyed this spectacular place."
"It is special," he admitted.
As Brit walked behind him, she couldn't help wondering what would happen to them when this odyssey was over and she was rescued. Would she ever see Jake Landry again? Or would she disappear in Hollywood and he retreat to Flagstaff?
They walked in silence. Suddenly Jake stopped. "I hear a plane."
Silence. Dead silence. Then, a distant buzz.
"I hear it, too!" Brit felt a stab of panic in the pit of her stomach that traveled like cold steel up to her throat. She thought, for a panicky moment, that she would burst into tears. She knew she should be happy and hopeful, wanting to be rescued from this prison. But things were different now. This location was no longer a prison; it was Shangri-la. And she was in heaven in Jake's arms. She wanted to stay here forever.
But even the Anasazi left Shangri-la.
The now-definite buzz of a plane's motor had interrupted their beautiful silence.
Rudi spotted Yolanda on one of the rocks beside the camp pool and yelled as he made his way toward her. "Hey, babe! I've been looking for you. What are you doing here?"
Her head was bent over a book. "Reading," she said, not looking up.
"Reading? You?" he said with a chuckle when he got closer.
Yolanda lifted her head and glared at him defensively. "So what's that supposed to mean?"
"Well, it's just that you never do."
"It's because I don't have time," she retorted as if he didn't know what filled every hour in her life. "Now I do. And I like it."
Rudi shifted and looked around uneasily. "Why don't you come closer to the camp to read?"
"It's nice here, Rudi. Nice and quiet."
"It's even quieter over there. No water rushing around."
She frowned. "What's wrong with you?"
"I just don't like this spot, that's all. Don’t trust it, especially after yesterday."
"Oh, how sweet, Rudi," she said with a smile. "It's perfectly safe today. The water's down. Anyway, I'm not going in, just sitting beside it. Come on, sit here with me. See how nice it is." She extended her hand to him, and he reluctantly took it.
"I’ll keep an eye on the water level. You never know when the damn stuff is going to rise."
"Now, Rudi, don't be paranoid. It's nearly back to normal and perfectly safe. Jake said it would go down almost as quickly as it came up. And it has. We just weren't careful. Next time-"
"There isn't going to be a next time!" Rudi almost shouted. "I will make sure of it."
"Okay, okay. Calm down. Listen. Let me read to you."
"What?"
"I want to read a passage to you."
"Isn't that Brit's book?"
"Yes, it's the one her great-grandmother Bonnie wrote. It's very good."
"What's it about?"
"Sort of a love story."
"Humph! No wonder you women—"
"Hey, there's also a murder mystery. And adventure. They're making a movie of it, so it has to have something for everyone, right? Hollywood's got to make its profit from violence and sex."
"You got that right." Rudi shifted so he could be comfortable and watch for any rise in the river at the same time. "So this book is about violence and sex?"
"No! Course not. Just listen," Yolanda said softly. "Bonnie's Indian lover is Knife Wing."
"An Indian?"
"Yep. He's from the Zuni Pueblo Indians."
"Brit doesn't look like she's got any Indian heritage."
"She doesn't. This is about her grandmother's lover, not Brit's grandfather. He left Bonnie a widow and she took over running the trading post. Brit's mother was Bonnie's grandchild, daughter of Baby Sara in this book."
"Okay. Got it." Rudi leaned back on the rock and folded his hands beneath his head. "Go ahead. Read."
"I'm not going to read you the whole book. You can do that for yourself." Yolanda turned back a page. "Just listen to this one beautiful part.”
“Knife Wing and I were alone for the first time last Sunday. Always before, the trading post customers, family, neighbors, or most certainly, Baby Sara had been with us."
She paused. "Does that sound familiar, Rudi? We've always got somebody with us. We're never alone."
"You've got that right," he mumbled. "Go on."
She continued softly.
"On Sunday, his sister, Tuni-wa, kept Sara, and he took me to a small lake hidden in the sacred mountains beyond the Zuni village that he called Place of Still Waters. It was completely tranquil and quiet, and the water was like brilliant turquoise. Knife Wing said his people had been coming to this place for hundreds of years for purity and renewal. I could see why, because it was quite spiritual, as if it had been made by the hand of God, just for us."
Yolanda stopped again. "That's kind of like this place, Rudi, don’t you think so?"
"Hummm, I guess."
Yolanda turned the page and continued reading.
"We tried not to agitate the silver-smooth lake when we swam. We whispered while we ate our picnic lunch, so we wouldn't disturb the beautiful silence. Later, as we sat beside the still waters, Knife Wing whispered I love you for the first time. And a special peace came over us, and I knew that God meant for us to be together.”
“Isn't that sweet, Rudi." Yolanda closed the book and gazed at her husband. "We used to feel that way. Remember when we went to Madina Lake?"
"Babe," he said, touching her cheek. "I still feel that way. I just don't tell you enough. I get this chill up my back when I think that I almost lost you yesterday to this damn river. We came so close, too close for me."
"But it makes everything more valuable now. The beauty around us. The quiet. Each other. Isn’t it nice?"
"Yeah. But I can't wait to leave here."
"Me, too. But that doesn't mean we can't enjoy it while we're here."
"Yolanda, I don’t think you realize how valuable you are to me. How very precious."
"Why, Rudi, you haven't said anything romantic like that to me in a long time." She smiled sweetly.
"I want you to know how much you mean to me." He kissed her hand. "You mean everything to me, babe. Everything in the world."
"Rudi . . . you're serious." She reached to stroke his face. The man she had married years ago had turned into a hard-nosed businessman who managed their affairs and manipulated others around her, even manipulated her at times. But this man, sitting on the rock next to her, was more like the old Rudi. The one she had first loved.
"I'm serious about loving you, needing you." He sat up and, scooting closer, bent his head for a kiss, taking her lips with such fervor that he almost knocked them both off balance.
"Ummm ... I think I'll read to you more often," she murmured as she settled into the security of his arms and smiled into another kiss. They were lost to time and motion, locked in each other's arms in a soundless, beautiful world where love, though timeworn and battered, still flickered.
The soft shushing sounds of the water provided a soothing backdrop for the kiss that continued, long and hard, jolting Yolanda clear through to her toes. She was a young girl again, heart fluttering because the dark-eyed, handsome Rudi Romero had given her the attention she sought. She was that young girl, giggling with her girlfriends as she told them how he'd claimed she was the prettiest girl at San Antonio High. She was, again, the girl who joked about him and with him until the night he asked her to marry him and she had cried with emotion, from utter happiness. This man, who kissed like a million bucks, still loved her and she had never felt so fulfilled.
Above the white sounds of the water, came a different sound, low and rumbling.
Yolanda t
ried not to notice, tried to remain lost in the beauty of the moment. But the noise continued and grew into the definite sound of a motor. She moved, and Rudi lifted his head slowly. He had heard it, too.
"What is that?" she whispered, as if saying it aloud would interrupt what was happening be-tween them. But they'd already been disturbed.
"A plane. Maybe our—"
"No!" She pressed her fingers against his lips, those precious, beautiful lips she loved to kiss. "Please, no!"
"Why? You wanna get rescued, don't you?" He sat up and strained to see something in the heavens.
"No, Rudi! I can't! You know I can't fly anymore! My dreams!"
"Babe, you wanna leave this place, don't you?"
"Yes, but—" Fearfully she gazed upward. The sky was a clear blue dome with no sight of a foreign object. Nothing, but the drone of a plane.
Chapter Eight
Jake strode into camp with more energy than he should have, considering the day's activities with Brit. But he felt revived and enthusiastic for whatever lay ahead. With Brit's help, he had been able to accomplish a lot today and make up for time lost dealing with the rescue and his new charges.
The campsite appeared deserted at first. The Romeros were nowhere in sight. He turned around and called to Brit, "Don't see them." She trudged along a hundred feet behind him and did not look nearly as lively as Jake felt.
"Where are they this time?" Brit knew she couldn't rest until the always-snipping couple was found. She was tired and simply wanted to put her feet up and relax until supper was ready. In fact, what she would really like to do was curl up in Jake's arms and forget about eating.
From beside the river, Yolanda yelled and waved. She scurried toward them, talking as fast as she could. "I thought I heard an engine! Did you hear it, Jake? It was a plane, wasn't it? Or maybe a helicopter coming after us?"
Jake heaved his backpack down on a stump and raised both palms toward Yolanda. "Don't get excited, now. As I explained to Brit, that was just a tourist plane. They fly over whenever weather's good, taking their chances with the air currents. So don't get your hopes up."
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