Wash (14 page)

I took a tentative drink and gagged.
“It’s very strong.”

“
You’re more of a wine
girl,” he teased.

I chuckled. “I think so, but I’m
always up to trying a new experience.”

“
Dinner is ready,” a man
announced.

Jake grinned. “Shall we?”

I smiled. “Yes, I’m
famished.”

Delicious aromas filled the air all
around us. “Everything smells so divine.”

“
Our chef is truly
amazing,” a woman said as she motioned us to the buffet.

Our meal included salad, some local
dishes and I wasn’t sure what they were, breads, goat stew, ugali,
steak, ostrich, chicken, lamb, corn on the cob, tilapia, and
boerewors, which was a South African sausage that I’d been dying to
try.

I filled my plate with all kinds of
goodies. Jake pulled out my chair for me to sit down and I thanked
him with a smile.

“
What’s for dessert?” Jake
asked our hostess as she walked by.

“
Pineapple surprise.
Afolabi just has to decide how much rum to flambé it
with.”

“
Tell him lots,” the blonde
woman in a glitzy silver dress said.

We all laughed.

Every time I looked up, I caught Jake
staring into my eyes. He was basking in the silver-white glow, his
eyes sparking in the flickering candlelight. His jet-black hair
hung in waves to his shoulders. Old memories flooded my mind as I
stared at his beautiful face and soft lips. I imagined my lips
pressed against his. Oh, how I wanted to taste those lips, that
mouth, his kiss. I remembered his hair sweeping across my skin as
he left trails of kisses down my body. I could still remember the
feel of his lips. I could remember every single detail, how good it
felt to have him hold me. I wanted nothing more than to embrace him
in my arms.

“
This is amazing,” he said,
taking my hand.

I felt the electricity from his touch,
and I was stumbling for words. I pulled away and sipped my wine.
“This dinner is so elegant,” I said.

“
I can’t believe I’m
getting the chance to dine under the African sky with lions,
zebras, and giraffes, drinking wine with a gorgeous woman, and
listening to a beautiful symphony of insects. I’ve died and gone to
heaven.”

“
You’re being so sweet, but
yes, this is a little slice of heaven.”

“
How about another toast?”
he asked. “To making it to Africa.”

“
Cheers!” I said, clinking
his glass.

I ate my dinner rather quickly and
excused myself as politely as I could. Having dinner with Jake in
such a romantic setting was too painful, like being back on the
beach, watching the sunset. My heart just ached, badly, and smiling
through his small talk wasn’t exactly working for me.

“
Ashly, please stay,” he
said. “How often does one get a romantic dinner out in the middle
of the bush?”

“
Not often, Jake, but I’m
afraid that moment, for us, is gone forever.”

“
I don’t believe that. We
might’ve lost it five years ago, but I’m here to fix
it.”

By no means did I want to have the
same old talk about us again. “I’m tired, and we have a big day
tomorrow,” I said. “But it sure was beautiful.”

He stood. “I’ll go back with you.
Tarzan no want Jane to get eaten by lion,” he said, beating his
chest.

As I laughed, he grinned. I always
loved the way he made me smile.

“
That was a good Tarzan
impression,” I said.

He chuckled, then put his hand on my
back and led me back to our suite.

* * *

The next day, we had breakfast on the
patio overlooking the watering hole and saw a family of
warthogs.

After breakfast, Anto,
our
guide and
tracker, met up with us. We were going on an overnight camping trip
so we could get up close and personal with the bush. He’d warned
us
not to wear bright colors because it
would make us conspicuous to the wildlife. He had told us not to
wear dark colors either, because they would absorb too much heat.
Plus, tsetse flies love blue or black, so it was best to dress in
neutral colors such as khaki, beige, olive, and green, with a
safari hat to avoid sunburn.

I followed his
guidelines and got dressed, then strapped my camera around my
neck.

Our Land Rover had no roof
or doors, just three staggered bench seats behind the driver. That
allowed for a spectacular 360-degree view of the wilderness all
around us.
As I
climbed into the vehicle, Anto turned on some soothing safari
music. It was so serene to listen to the music while staring at the
beautiful scenery of Africa. I clung to my seat as we raced over a
million bumps. It was hot and dusty, but it was nothing less than
one of the adventures I’d always dreamt about, and I enjoyed every
minute of it.

Our funny and friendly guide harbored
a wealth of knowledge and told us facts about every animal and
plant we saw. He even explained how to make toothpaste from local
plants. As if that wasn’t amazing enough, he could even identify
animal tracks in the dirt and could tell how long ago an animal had
been in the vicinity.

We drove
through miles of golden, baking-hot grasslands when I saw a flash
of yellow against the green reeds.

“
Look!” I shouted.

“
Leopard,” Anto said calmly. He stopped the Land Rover so we
could observe the world’s fastest runner up close.

She was
gorgeous and slowly crept up to us.

“
Uh, guys, she’s getting closer,” I said.

“
Isn’t she magnificent?” Jake said in amazement.

Suddenly, the
young leopard leapt on our vehicle, and my heart pounded in my
throat. I met Anto’s gaze and smiled. “Um…in case you didn’t
notice, there’s a wildcat on the hood.”

He just
laughed nonchalantly as the leopard made herself comfortable on our
hood, staring at me with her amber eyes, so close that I could make
out each of her white whiskers.

As frightened
as I was, I couldn’t resist the urge to snap several photos. “We’re
safe, right?” I asked.

“
Wild animals are unpredictable,” the tour guide said, “but
she’s just a baby.”

“
But babies have mamas,” Jake chimed in.

We enjoyed the
moment for as long as it lasted. After a few minutes of lazily
resting on the hood, the leopard jumped down and gracefully walked
off.

“
Wow,” I said. “My heart was beating a million miles a minute,
but I got it on film!”

Jake put the
lens cover back on his camera. “I bet we both got some fantastic
shots.”

We drove in and out of the bush and
stopped to watch a herd of zebras, springboks, and impalas, who
were sitting in the shade, trying to cool off. After a few more
amazing pictures, we ventured on.

A few minutes later, Anto slammed on
his brakes at the sight of a large, muscular lion standing right in
the middle of the road, only about five feet in front of us. The
sun beaming down on us from above gave the lion a golden aura.
Never before had I been so close to the king of the jungle without
the safety of a thick glass or moat to protect me. The majestic,
powerful beast had distinctive gold fur and a long, thick, bushy
impressive mane. He cast us an amber stare, as if he was
curious.

“
He’s…huge,” I said, my
mouth agape.

“
I can see why he’s king,”
Jake said. “Surely no animal in their right mind would mess with
him!”

“
The lion is a symbol of
power and dominance,” Anto said, gripping the steering wheel. “He
can eat up to forty pounds of meat in one sitting.”

“
Whoa! That’s, like, over a
hundred Big Macs!” Jake exclaimed.

I shot Jake a big smile. “I dare you
to go pet the kitty.”

He playfully slugged me. “Not a
chance.”

“
Why doesn’t he attack?” I
asked.

“
He’s not interested in
eating a vehicle, but it might be a different story if we get
out.”

I chuckled. “I think I’ll stay
put.”

“
We’re not moving until the
lion gets out of the way,” Anto said, shaking his head and clicking
his teeth. “Today it was a lion, yesterday twenty-foot-tall
giraffes.”

“
That’s a whole other kind
of traffic jam than what I’m used to!” I said.

The lion let out an intimidating roar,
stretching his powerful jaws wide. Staring in amazement, I aimed my
camera and started snapping, just in time to capture the big cat
with his mouth open. After making his presence known with that
roar, the lion shook his head and strolled away as if he didn’t
have a care in the world, which he probably didn’t.

Once the lion had trotted off across
the veldt, Anto pressed the gas on the Land Rover and took us to
the place where water buffalo were known to gather. Our assignment
was to have our picture taken next to a wild herd.

“
Ah, the perfect spot!”
Anto said as he parked the vehicle.

I grabbed my camera and stepped out.
Beneath my feet, the grass was a deep gold, the same color as the
lion we’d seen, and above me, the skies were blue and filled with
raptors, like something out of prehistoric times. Acacia trees
stretched out for endless miles.

We waded through a river,
which wasn’t nearly as easy as they made it look in the movies, and
before long, I was panting from the effort. Pebbles shifted under
my shoes as I walked to the other side, and under the stifling
weight of my wet clothes, I stumbled over a rock or two. I just
hoped no crocs lurked nearby. In spite of the difficult river
crossing and my trepidation about being eaten alive, the
spectacular wilderness, undisturbed wildlife,
and 
breathtaking
 scenery was a dream come true. As I stared around me, I
couldn’t stop smiling. Everything in every direction was absolutely
stunning.

My gaze drifted to Jake. My cheeks
grew hot as I stared at the safari shirt stretching across his
broad shoulders and strong chest, with the sleeves rolled up at the
elbow. Khaki pants were the perfect finish for his swashbuckler
ensemble. His black hair hung in shaggy waves under his hat. He
looked really hot, but there was no way I’d ever admit that to
anyone. The guy still made me furious. If he’d had a bullwhip, I
would have wanted to strangle him with it.

Anto advised that we should hike
downwind so the herd wouldn’t smell us. I stared ahead through the
tall elephant grass. As the buffalos grazed, their tails and ears
wagged and twitched. Their reek drifted through the air, and I
covered my nose with my hand. Nonetheless, I peered straight ahead.
The animals resembled overgrown oxen, with short faces, wide
muzzles, and a flat forehead with prominent eyes. A thick layer of
mud covered their dull, gray skin. I stared at their giant heads
and enormous, white, curvy horns that stretched out to a five-foot
span. Even the smallest of the beasts had to weigh close to a ton,
and most stood six feet at the shoulder.

I heard the
snap
of a
twig
, followed by a loud
crunch as we moved along, and I was terrified the noise would alert
the animals that there were intruders at their buffet. “Is this
really such a good idea?” I asked, fearing I’d be trampled any
minute.

“
We need that picture, and
we’re gonna get it,” Jake said, taking another daring step closer
like it didn’t even faze him. “That’s no bull!” he said with a
grin.

“
Stop,” I said, rolling my
eyes at him.

“
What?” he said, feigning
innocence.

When we were within twenty-five feet
of the buffalo, I could hear them chomping away on grass. I tugged
Anto’s arm. “This is close enough, right?”

He nodded.

I let out a sigh of relief. “What if
they charge us?” I whispered.

“
They’ll run first. But if
they do charge, don’t run. Just lie flat on the ground behind me
and my gun.”

“
What!? I don’t wanna be a
doormat for those things!” I said. “We’ll be trampled!”

“
Maybe…or maybe not,” Anto
said, shrugging. “It’s still our best chance.”

I let out a long breath. It was
official: Our guide didn’t care if he lived or died. He was
carrying a rifle, but I was sure those measly bullets wouldn’t do
anything to stop the whole herd, if even one of the massive
creatures.

Jake handed Anto the camera, then the
guide slinked into the grass cautiously, looked around for a
moment, and climbed on top of a large rock. He motioned for us to
stand closer together, and Jake took full opportunity of the
necessary closeness, slipping his arm around me. “Smile,” Anto
whispered.

I rolled my eyes when Jake pulled me
even closer.

“
Smile!” the man whispered
more insistently.

Realizing he wasn’t going to give up,
I finally smiled. All things considered, having to stand next to
Jake for a photo was slightly less hazardous than being killed in a
stampede because I didn’t want to say “Cheese.”