Exposed (Tropical Nights) (12 page)

“Let’s hike,” Leo said. “There’s a lot more to see.”
He slung the backpack over his shoulders and they set off upstream.

They hiked for several hours, following the trail along the river and then turning into the forest. Rachel noticed everything, from the smallest beetle crawling over the pebbles near the water, to the hummingbirds zipping wildly through the air, to the faintest sound of a bird calling in the distance.
She was immensely curious about it all. Leo identified what he could for her, thankful that he had spent the time on previous visits to learn some of the local flora and fauna. It made him feel ridiculously good to play hiking guide for Rachel, like he was some grizzled mountain man hacking his way through the wilderness for her. It was foolish, especially since Rachel could clearly hold her own in the great outdoors, but then he frequently found himself being foolish when it came to her. He couldn’t help it; he wanted to show off for her, impress her. He wanted to make her smile and laugh and know that he had the power to amuse her. He wanted to swoop her up and carry her across every puddle in their path like he was some goddamn knight rescuing his beatific lady.

Rachel was no distressed damsel, though, which impressed him as much as it occasionally disappointed him. He loved watching her dancer’s body hop along the bou
lders as they crossed the river, admired how easily she scrambled over a fallen log that blocked their path. She slogged right through mud until her hiking boots were caked in it and she got her hands dirty brushing through the dense vegetation. She flicked bugs—giant, hairy, many-legged bugs—off her without so much as a whimper. He found her confidence incredibly sexy and it turned him on to watch her move through the forest like an amazon goddess. So he felt like laughing when he kept catching himself wishing that just once, dammit, just
one
time, couldn’t she actually be afraid of something and jump into his arms so he could hold her tightly and tell her in a deep and manly voice that he would take care of her? How else was she going to realize what a stud he was?

He did laugh then, out loud,
at how embarrassingly taken he was with Rachel. He hadn’t felt like this in…to be honest, he couldn’t remember the last time he had enjoyed himself this much. Had he ever felt this carefree? Had he ever let his guard down this much and just had fun? Had he ever been this consumed with someone, wanting so much to make the right impression, to show off like a little boy for his first crush? He knew the answer was no. He had never acted like this, not even when he
was
a young boy.

Rachel was doing crazy things to him, making him behave in ways he never had before.

“What’s so funny?” Rachel asked, automatically laughing with him. Leo liked that his amusement was infectious enough to provoke a reaction from her.

“I just like being out here with you.”

Rachel bit her lip self-consciously in that gesture that drove him wild, and Leo made a mental note to embarrass her more often. He moved to her, meaning to take her in his arms and kiss her senseless, but he stopped. He scanned the trail to get his bearings and then smiled when he realized where they were along the hike.

“Come on.” Leo grabbed her hand and led her down the trail
.

“What?”
Rachel trotted to keep up with him.

They
were at the edge of the forest; in a few more steps the trail would lead them back to the river. They stepped out into the clearing and Leo moved out of Rachel’s way so he wouldn’t block her view.

“Oh
…wow…” Rachel’s mouth hung open as she looked up.

She was looking at
a waterfall, watching as the river plunged from one hundred feet above them, slid along moss covered rocks, and fell into a natural pool at their feet, the water clear and blue and sparkling in the sun. It was beautiful, and watching Rachel stand with that scene framing her—the droplets of water that sprayed from the falls clinging to her like a thousand little diamonds and the sun bathing her in its golden light—it made Leo’s pulse quicken and his chest tighten.

“So beautiful,” Leo said, his eyes on her.

“It is,” Rachel agreed, thinking he meant the waterfall.

“Want to go for a swim?”

“Is it cold, do you think?”

“Yes, but I’ll keep you warm.”

Rachel looked at him and Leo could tell by her expression that she heard the deeper promise in his words. “I’m not wearing my swimsuit,” she said. Every part of Leo’s body tightened at the implication.

“It’s private land,” he reminded her. “No one around for miles. No one will see you.”

“Except you,” Rachel said coyly.

“Except me.
” Leo swallowed hard. “Definitely me.”

He pulled his T-shirt over his head and threw it carelessly to the ground, liking that Rachel couldn’t seem to take her eyes off him. He gestured to her, indicating it was her turn. Smiling primly, she bent down to untie her hiking boots and kicked them from her feet, then peeled off her socks. He laughed and then removed his own boots and socks.

“Your turn again,” he said, his pulse quickening in anticipation.

Her eyes sparkled as she slowly raised the hem of her shirt
, drew it over her head, and dropped it next to the pile of footwear on the ground.

“And?” Leo said, jerking his chin at the bra she still wore.

“Fine,” Rachel said in mock exasperation. The corners of her mouth curled up in a shy yet seductive smile as she reached behind her to undo the clasp. She shrugged out of the bra and stood straight, her expression a stark challenge.

“So perfect,” Leo said gruffly, drinking his fill of the soft swells of her exquisite breasts. He stepped toward her but she put a hand out, stopping him.

“Your turn,” she said.

“As you wish.” He unbuttoned his fly and shimmied out of his shorts and boxers.
He gave an involuntary shiver—the cool, damp air and his desire for Rachel were dueling for control of his manly parts.

Thank
God
his desire was winning.

Rachel’s
hungry gaze traveled along his body, and though Leo loved watching her face register her lust for him, he needed her to hurry up and get totally naked so he could touch her before he exploded. He licked his lips, his mouth suddenly dry. “Now you.”

Her long, slender fingers went to the button of her shorts.
Her arms bumped against her naked breasts as she moved, making them bounce and sway. Leo’s heart thudded and pumped heat through every part of his body. She pulled her shorts and underwear down—Leo vaguely noticed they were black and lacy—but just as they slid past her hips, Rachel lost her balance and wobbled. Leo lunged for her and caught her before she could fall. He practically ripped her shorts from her legs as he swung her into his arms.

“I guess you do need rescuing sometimes,” he murmured into her hair as he cradled her to his chest. He walked into the water with her, grateful for the cool water that enveloped them. He needed a chance to slow down.

Rachel sucked in her breath as the water reached her bare bottom and the shock of cold hit her. Leo watched appreciatively as her breasts tightened and her nipples hardened.

“Sometimes it helps to get used to the water all at once,” he said.

“Yeah. Put me down and I’ll dunk under.”

Leo forced himself to put her on her feet and let her go. She took a deep breath and disappeared under the surface of the water.
The sun was glinting off the surface, turning it opaque, and as soon as she was out of sight, Leo was hit with sudden and overwhelming panic. He knew it was irrational, that she would resurface in a second, but he wanted to pull her up out of the water where he could see her and know that nothing bad was happening to her. He stared at the ripple of water where she had gone under and frowned when she didn’t reappear.

Leo
was about to give in to his worry and dive in after her when he felt water hit his back and heard Rachel’s laugh behind him. Relief washed over him as he turned to face her. “Sneaky woman,” he said with a laugh. He stalked toward her slowly, his look promising just what he would do to her when he caught her.

“Stay away,”
Rachel warned as she backed away, splashing water at him as she went.

Leo
let her get a few steps away from him, her smug smile proving she thought she’d won, and then he rushed through the water and caught her around the waist, taking her by surprise. He lifted her out of the water, one arm around her shoulders and the other under her knees, and faked like he was going to throw her. Rachel shrieked and clutched at his shoulders, holding onto him tightly. He let her cling to him for a moment, enjoying the feel of her wet, naked body against his, of her breasts pushed against his chest, of her face nestled in the hollow of his neck, her breath hot against his skin.

“The things you do to me,” Leo said
he removed his arm from her legs go so she could stand up. He still had one hand around her waist. He didn’t think he would ever let her go.

“The things you make me want to do,” she answered.

She was so achingly lovely, standing in front of him with water dripping down her body and her damp hair curling around her face. He gently brushed a wet lock away from her eyes. “I thought I could do this,” he said softly. “I thought I could sleep with you and walk away. I though I could hold myself back, like I always do, and not get…I don’t know…tangled up with you.” He placed a tender kiss on her forehead. “But I can’t. When I’m with you, when I touch you, when I move inside you—I get lost in you completely. I can’t maintain distance…and more importantly, I don’t want to.”

Rachel searched his face. “It scares you, doesn’t it?”

“It did at first,” he admitted.

“Me, too,” Rachel said, her voice little more than a whisper. “
I never gave myself room to fall for anyone, never let anyone close to me. I’ve always told myself it was the way it had to be, that I wanted it that way. But then I met you and…”

“Everything’s different. None of the old excuses make sense anymore.”

“Exactly.” She stared at his chest and Leo could tell she was lost in thought. “What do we do now?”

Leo cupped her face and locked eyes with her. “I don’t know,” he said evenly. “But
I think we’ll figure it out together.”

Rachel took a gulp from the water bottle and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
She leaned against the stump of driftwood resting on the riverbank and took another bite of sandwich.

They’d made love in the cool water, their bodies
heating each other. Temporarily sated, they’d swum around the river, exploring every depth and crag. Leo had climbed up the waterfall until he was so high Rachel could barely watch from nervousness, and then he’d jumped, whooping, into the pool below. Rachel had gathered her courage and done the same, though from a much lower height. Leo had gone ashen when she’d gotten caught up in the turbulent water and taken a few extra seconds to surface. He’d told her in a shaky voice not to do it again, and Rachel decided to comply before he had a heart attack. Finally, exhausted but happy, they had dragged themselves from the water and dressed, no longer able to ignore their need for food.

“This is so good,” Rachel said, gesturing with her sandwich.

“Yeah, the kitchen staff—Ow!” Leo slapped at his shoulder. “Damn bugs.”

“Don’t scratch at it, you’ll make it worse,” Rachel told him.

“I can’t help it, it itches like a mother—”

Rachel cut him off with a playful shove.
“Did you pack any insect repellant or anti-itch ointment?” she asked as she dug through the backpack.

“No, I forgot.” Leo scratched savagely at his shoulder.

“Hold on.” Rachel put the backpack down and stood up, brushing off her shorts.

She walked into the forest a few feet and hunted through the vegetation until she found what she wanted. She pulled several seed pods from a shrubby tree and pulled another
fern-like plant up from the roots. She returned to the riverbank to see Leo watching her, his hand under the collar of his shirt, still scratching.

She knelt down beside Leo. “Take off your shirt,” she instructed.
He looked at her questioningly but complied.

Rachel stared at his naked chest, momentarily stripped of thought, unable to remember what she was
supposed to be doing. Leo’s soft laugh snapped her back to attention, and she felt her face heat with a blush. She’d be even more embarrassed at being caught gaping at him like a drooling imbecile, except she knew he did it, too. All throughout their hike, she’d feel his eyes on her and she’d look up to find him staring at her like a man raised in complete isolation finally catching sight of a woman.

It made her heart skip beats every
time.

“What are those?” Leo
pointed to the plants on her lap.

“This,” Rachel said as she snapped the roots of the fern-like plant, “is
Ambrosia hispida
, the Bay Geranium.” She put her fingertip to the broken edge of the root and collected the drops of oil that oozed from it. “It relieves itching.” She rubbed the oil on the bite that was swelling to epic proportions on Leo’s shoulder.