Wash (16 page)

“
Bring your sleeping bag
over by me. I won’t bite.”

“
Not a chance.”

Something crashed in the trees,
pulling down branches.

My imagination went wild with the
possibilities. “What’s that?” I asked.

“
Elephants.”

Another lion roared, and loud trumpets
filled the air, followed by more crashing feet.

I grabbed Jake’s arm in a
panic.

“
That’s just the lions
scaring off the elephants,” Jake said.

I clutched my heart, trying to stay
brave.

He peeked out the tent window again.
“The lions are bored with us. They’re leaving.”

I let out a long sigh of relief.
“Good. Maybe I can get some sleep now,” I said.

“
Don’t worry. You’ll get
more sleep on our next destination.”

“
Which is?” I asked, since
our near-death experience had my mind going in circles, causing me
to completely forget our agenda.

“
The sand dunes, then
Paris.”

“
Paris,” I said slowly.
That was supposed to be our dream spot, the perfect place for
lovers. I wondered why my mom had been so cruel as to order me to
go to the City of Love with a man I despised.

I remembered all the
passionate ways he’d planned to kiss me in front of the Eiffel
Tower, the moonlight strolls we talked about, and those romantic
boat rides that would lazily drift down the Seine River. We were
going to eat a huge plate of oysters at the tiny Regis and splurge
on a huge seafood platter at Le Dome. We planned to drink Chablis,
Sancerre, Muscadet, and lots of champagne from fancy glasses. I’d
also planned a self-guided kissing tour, with the help of a book
I’d bought, aptly titled
The Best Places
to Kiss in Paris
. I’d mapped out a
fantastic day based on the most romantic locations, fifteen perfect
spots, including a just-the-two-of-us picnic in our hotel room.
Jake had loved the idea. and had teased me about being so
sentimental. Jake and I had spent hours talking about Paris and
planning the perfect vacation, but that was just one of those
things I had to leave in the past. This time, we’d be going there
as just friends, if even that, and I found that very
sad.

Frowning, I told Jake goodnight again
and crawled back into my sleeping bag. I refused to get any closer
to him, lions or not. Trying to tune all thoughts of Jake out of my
head, I listened to the beautiful sounds of nature. The symphony of
hoots, shrieks, buzzes, and whistles eventually lulled me to
sleep.

I jolted awake again when
the
crunch
of
leaves and the
snap
of twigs hit my ears, followed by loud wheezing ripping
through the air. I strained my neck to listen as my heart skipped a
beat. I lay as still as I could, and I heard something walking on
dry, crackling grass. The noise sounded much closer than last time,
and I worried that razor-sharp claws would tear through the flimsy
tent material and rip us to shreds.

Chapter 11

“
Jake!” my voice became a
whisper, and my stomach fluttered. When he didn’t answer, I crept
across the tent and turned on the lantern. “Jake!” I said again,
shaking him. “They’re back!”

His eyes fluttered open.
“Ashly?”

“
Jake!”

“
What’s wrong?”

“
I heard something.
Something’s out there.”

He listened, but everything had gone
completely still. “The tent’s probably flapping again. It’s been
doing it all night.”

“
I swore I heard something,
and it wasn’t the tent. Maybe it’s an elephant or a lion. What if
it’s a rhino? All that separates us from those dangerous predators
is a flimsy wall of brown fabric.”

A smile grew across his face. “If
you’re that worried, lie next to me. I’ll keep you
safe.”

I slugged him. “Get that silly grin
off your face. I swear I heard something. I assure you I’m not just
trying to get in your…uh, sleeping bag.”

He stared at me. “You’re shaking.
You’re really scared to death?”

I let out a long breath.
“Yeah.”

“
Bring your sleeping bag
over here. I promise to be a perfect gentleman.”

“
I’d rather be eaten by
whatever is out there than come anywhere near you!”

“
Ouch,” he said, sitting
up.

When I realized he wasn’t wearing a
shirt, I was taken aback. In fact, I was relatively certain he was
completely naked inside his sleeping bag. Jake always slept naked,
and being in a jungle hadn’t changed him.

“
Put on some clothes,
Jake,” I said, turning around to give him some privacy.

“
Why?” he asked. “Whatever
it was, our voices must’ve scared it off.”

I listened intently. “You’re right. I
think it’s gone.”

“
I’ll go take a quick look
so you have peace of mind.”

“
That would make me feel a
whole lot safer,” I said, daring a peek over my shoulder when I
heard him rustling around in the tent. “Are you dressed
yet?”

“
Yes, but what if I wasn’t?
You would’ve gotten a sneak peek, looking at me like that—a real,
uh…sensual peek.”

“
Please don’t sleep naked
on this trip,” I said.

“
You used to love
it.”

“
If you could abide by my
wishes, that’d be fantastic.”

“
Who do you think you are,
the African queen or something? I hate wearing clothes at
night.”

I rolled my eyes. “Why are you making
everything so hard? You said yourself that we’re just friends, so
trying acting like one. None of my other friends sleep in the nude
around me.”

“
Not even Nadia? That might
be kinda hot,” he joked.

“
Shut up, Jake,” I said,
not finding the humor in it.

“
I apologize, Highness, but
I can’t sleep in clothes.”

“
Listen, I’m a little
freaked right now, okay?” I said, turning toward the tent exit.
“Your striptease isn’t exactly helping me right now.”

He suddenly touched my shoulder. His
soft touch electrified me, and a jolt raced straight for my heart.
“It’s okay,” he breathed into my ear, his voice as soft and husky
as his alluring, manly aroma.

“
I’m fine,” I said, turning
from him.

He began to rub the hard
knots in my shoulders, something he used to do to calm me
down.
I found it almost impossibly
difficult to concentrate with his big arms wrapped around
me.
Damn, he smells good.
His hands caressed the hollow of my back as he
whispered my name in my ear. I yearned to feel my body pressed
closer to his rock-hard, muscular frame. I closed my eyes. His
touch was like magic. Then, suddenly, I was snapped back into
reality. I didn’t want him touching me. We were barely friends and
nothing more. Biting my lip, I tore away from him.

“
Ashly…” he
said.

Suddenly, another twig
snapped.

“
Shh. It’s back.” I held my
breath, my mind racing. Whatever it was, it was moving through the
thick vegetation, its snorts and grunts coming closer. Something
big was coming our way, powerful steps crashed through, each one
louder than the last.
Waiting to pounce?
Coming to get us? What kind of animal could make that much
noise?
I didn’t want to stick around to
find out, but I was terrified to leave our flimsy excuse for
shelter. I heard a loud blast of air being blown, followed by a
louder grunt, and I tried to ignore the knots in my stomach. “What
kind of animal is that?”

He shined a flashlight beam toward the
ground, his mouth set in a hard line. “Wait here. I’ll go check it
out.”

“
Armed with nothing but a
flashlight?” I reached toward him, my fingers brushing his arm.
“No! Please don’t go out there, Jake.”

“
Aw. Jane scared for
Tarzan?”

I rolled my eyes. “I don’t hate you
enough to want to see you get ripped apart by a wild animal,” I
said, trying to keep my voice from shaking.

“
Listen, I’ll be fine. I’m
positive it’s not lions, if that’s any relief.”

I took a deep breath as I peered into
his eyes. “I’m coming with you,” I said, grabbing a
flashlight.

Knowing there was no use in arguing
with me, he nodded and opened the tent slowly.

I pointed my flashlight beam down and
gasped at all the footprints everywhere. Animals were getting a
little too close for comfort. The place smelled damp and earthy,
and could hear the creature smacking its thick, moose-like lips as
it moved closer. I opened my mouth, but my voice remained trapped
somewhere in my throat. I couldn’t breathe and couldn’t move; every
muscle in my body tensed—all except for my heart, which thrummed
like the beating wings of a hummingbird. When Jake pulled me close,
as if to protect me, I rested my cheek against his strong chest,
listening to his racing heart. I was just about to bolt over to
Anto’s tent, certain that he’d be armed and would know what to do,
but when I turned to run, Jake’s hand tightened around my arm,
pulling me closer. I raised my eyebrows, and Jake loosened his
death grip. I took a few brave steps, scanning straight
ahead.

“
It’s just a giraffe,” he
explained, pointing off to the right.

My golden beam slid upward,
illuminating the tall tree, and then landed on a towering creature.
The long-necked animal was happily munching on acacia leaves,
sending a few monkeys scurrying away in frustration.

Jake burst out in a wave of laughter.
“Guess we found our killer.”

“
A giraffe?” I let out a
sigh of relief. “You must think I’m crazy.”

“
I have to admit, my heart
was pounding, too.”

A muscular black tongue licked the top
of the leaves, leaving a layer of sticky slime, and the animal
stared at us with its dark-brown eyes as it pulled down a branch
and made a quick snack of it, like some kind of modern-day
brontosaurus. It plucked the leaves with its wide lips, stripping
the tree with its teeth. Then loud, thudding footsteps echoed as
the giant, long-legged creature lumbered away.

I clutched my chest. “I can’t believe
I almost had a heart attack over a giraffe.”

We both burst out in laughter, and I
loved the way he laughed and the way the lines around his face
crinkled up around his eyes.

“
I’m going back to sleep,”
I said, heading back inside the tent.

“
If you need me to fend off
any other ferocious beasts, just let me know. I’m your
man.”

“
You’re not gonna let me
live this one down, are you?”

He laughed once again. “Not a
chance.”

We snuggled once again back into our
warm sleeping bags. I dozed back to sleep and was having a
wonderful dream when something suddenly woke me up. I glanced down
at my watch. It was way too early for this. I heard a distinctively
loud, penetrating and recognizable haa-haa-haa-de-dah
call.

“
What’s that?” I said,
sitting straight up at four a.m.

“
It’s a bird. Yeah, it woke
me up too.”

“
Why isn’t it
sleeping?”

“
The Hadeda Ibis get up
early,” he chuckled.

I chuckled back. “Tell me about it.” I
put the pillow over my head and drifted back to sleep.

Chapter 12

Morning came faster than I
anticipated. After getting dressed and brushing my hair, I opened
the tent and was blown away by the sight before me. Swirls of mist
danced across the grasslands in the most mysterious way.
Silhouetted against the
pink sunrise
was an
outline of grazing antelopes and
wildebeests, munching on dew-laden grass. I
scoured the land for lions and was thankful I didn’t see
any.

“
Now that’s the way to start the morning,” Jake said,
smiling.

“
It’s really something,” I said.

Our faithful
tour guide handed me a cup of instant coffee.

“
Thank you,” I said with a smile.

“
Zylando and his team are coming with elephants in an hour,”
Anto said.

“
Great! I’ve wanted to ride an elephant forever.”

Jake and I rode together on one
elephant. The animal started to move and quickly gained speed,
lumbering along with its big legs, staggering from side to side
with each giant step. I was glad Jake was sitting in front of me so
I had something to wrap my arms around and hold on to.

The sun peeked out while clouds wisped
across a blue sky. A cool breeze, carrying the chirps and calls of
birds, stirred the leaves. I could not even think of words to
describe how awesome the adventure was as we swayed along at what
felt like a leisurely pace.

The smell of damp wood, earth, and
fish wafted past. Somewhere to my right, the sound of trickling
water echoed in my ears. I craned my neck around and caught a
glimpse of the river sparkling in the bright light. Along the
water’s edge were giant nests of dead grass, hanging from gnarled
tree limbs. The shrill sound of squawking birds filled the air all
around us, and the elephant started to stomp into the muddy
water.