Just Trust Me…

11

THE SUN’S waning rays were casting long shadows over the landscape when Paolo finally called a halt in a large clearing surrounded by dense trees and announced they’d arrived in Huayllabamba, the village where they’d set up camp. A collective sigh of relief arose from the group, one that Brett shared in. Shrugging off his backpack, he asked Kayla, “How do you feel?”

Her backpack and bedroll hit the ground, raising a puff of dry dirt around her ankles. “Well, let’s see,” she said, rolling her neck. “After hiking nearly seven miles in the high altitude-which is seven miles longer than I’ve ever hiked in my life-every muscle is screaming with fatigue and my back aches from lugging all that crap.” She pointed at her backpack. “I’m hungry, thirsty, dusty, dirty and, in spite of reapplying bug spray every half hour, I still have half a dozen bug bites-I am sooo wearing pants tomorrow-and I can tell that my hair has frizzed into a knotty mess.”

She paused for breath then shot him a smile so dazzling his breath hitched. “Yet, in spite of all that, I’ve never felt so…alive. So invigorated. My body is tired, but I’m completely exhilarated. With a deep sense of accomplishment. The thrill of having stepped outside my box to do something I’ve never done before-and living to tell the tale. Definitely a change, and I feel the gain.”

Her green eyes seemed to glow. “Then there’s the mixture of feelings this place infuses…the sense of history, of stepping back in time. It’s part excitement, part wonder and part quiet serenity. And I also really like our hiking group. Very nice people.”

She reached out and touched his hand. “One person in particular. I…I really enjoyed sharing this day with you, Brett. Experiencing the beauty of the trail, discovering the different species of plants, walking and talking with you. It was all…lovely.”

Unable to stop himself from touching her, Brett drew her into his arms. She nestled against him and felt…perfect. In a way that made it very difficult to remember that he was supposed to be focusing on what to do about his formula and his future. That the timing was inopportune at best for all these unexpected and unsettling things she made him feel. That with her uptown princessy-ness, she represented the exact sort of woman he was desperate to avoid. But instead of listening to the reminders, he flicked them away as he would a pesky insect and urged her closer.

“Lovely,” he repeated softly. “Yes, that describes it perfectly.” Lowering his head, he lightly brushed his lips over hers. A jolt of raw heat raced through him at the brief contact, igniting him as if he’d been doused in gasoline then tossed on a bonfire.

He’d been fighting his runaway attraction to her for seven long miles, forcing himself to concentrate on the scenery, on the history that Paolo imparted, but Kayla had remained in the forefront of his mind. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d been so painfully aware of another person. He’d found every excuse possible to touch her. Had known every time she’d spoken to someone else. Every time she drank from her water bottle. Used her camera. Tucked a stray piece of hair beneath her hat.

Her curiosity about everything she saw, the intelligent questions she asked Paolo, her humorous comments that made the group laugh, all attracted him like steel to a magnet. She hadn’t hesitated to get down in the dirt and examine the tiny species of plants Paolo pointed out, nor had she complained once about the rigorous conditions. Instead she’d forged ahead, her face set with determination. She’d pushed aside her princess tendencies, swallowed her unease and fully embraced the adventure, showing courage and humor and a natural fascination with learning new things that both attracted and impressed him.

He also saw her kindness toward the other hikers, especially Dan Smith, noting how she made a point of chatting with the man during one of their short breaks. “He reminds me of my dad,” she’d said in an undertone to Brett when she rejoined him after her conversation with Dan. “I sense he’s very lonely.”

“I detect something of a caregiver personality in you,” he’d said, taking her hand as they resumed walking. “You would have made a heck of a nurse.”

“Doubtful. The sight of blood makes me queasy.”

They’d walked along, admiring the awe-inspiring scenery, sharing the stillness and serenity of their surroundings. The simple act of holding her hand had filled him with a sense of quiet contentment. The words this feels good, this feels right whispered through his mind. He loved the warmth of her smooth palm pressed against his, her slim fingers entwined around his. And, now, with the sensation of her in his arms, the place where he’d wanted her all day long, all the feelings he’d held at bay flooded him, and he bit back a groan of pure want.

“How are you feeling after a grueling day on the trail?” Kayla asked.

“You explained it perfectly. It was an incredible day, made even more so because I shared it with you.” He lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “In case you can’t tell, I kinda like you.” He tossed out the words lightly, not sure if he really wanted to consider how huge an understatement they were.

Her eyes went soft and a gentle smile touched her lips. “I kinda like you, too.”

Brett couldn’t help but wonder what she’d say if he told her that there was no “kinda” about it-that he liked her so much it scared him. That she hadn’t been out of his thoughts for so much as a single minute since he’d met her. That no woman, ever, had affected him so strongly, so quickly, both physically and emotionally. Not willing to risk it, he merely said, “Glad the feeling is mutual.”

“It is. But I would have known you kinda liked me even if you hadn’t told me.” A devilish gleam glittered in her eyes, and she gently bumped her pelvis against his erection. “It’s sort of hard to miss. With, um, hard being the operative word.”

“That’s not the only thing I like about you, but I obviously can’t deny that on top of everything else, I’m feeling a little…horny.”

She laughed and looped her arms around his neck. “That’s only because you haven’t seen my ratty hair under my hat.”

He immediately plucked the straw hat from her head and dropped it on her backpack. Dark-red curls sprang free, sticking up in every direction.

“Were you struck by lightning on the trail?” he teased.

“Ha ha. You’re hysterical.”

He plunged his fingers through the soft, silky mess. “Very sexy…in an I’ve-been-electrocuted sort of way. Yesterday your hair was straight.”

“That’s because I worked very hard to make it that way. When I don’t, it looks like I’ve been electrocuted.”

Paolo cleared his throat to gain everyone’s attention. “You all can take a few minutes to stretch and relax while we begin preparing the campsite. Since there are no restroom facilities here, I’ll set up the bathroom tent first, which will take about ten minutes.”

Kayla stepped out of his arms, and Brett had to press his lips together to keep from laughing out loud at her horrified expression.

“Did he say ‘no restroom facilities’?”

“He did, but don’t worry,” Eileen Carlson said with a comforting smile from a dozen feet away where she and Bill sat next to their gear. “It’s just like when you went to camp as a kid.”

“But I never camped as a kid,” Kayla said, with a hint of something that sounded like panic in her voice. “Closest frame of reference I have is when I went on one of those summer teen tours before my junior year of high school. We traveled by coach bus. We had bathrooms.” She turned toward him, and there was no missing the dread in her eyes. “Did you go to camp?”

Brett nodded. “A different one every summer. Science camp. Space camp. Chemistry camp. My favorites were the ones where we got to blow stuff up. We had bathrooms, but we were guys so we used to go outside and pee in the woods anyway.” He chucked her under the chin. “It’s not that bad, princess.”

“Uh-huh. Says someone who can pee standing up.”

He shrugged and grinned. “One of the advantages of being a man.”

She gave a derisive snort. “As if there aren’t already enough.”

“Oh? Like what?”

She crossed her arms over her chest and tapped the toe of her boot on the dirt, raising tiny poofs of dust. “You mean besides the fact that you don’t have to deal with makeup, hair, high heels and cellulite? That gray hair and wrinkles make you look sexy and mature instead of matronly and wizened? That you don’t have to worry about your boobs and butt drooping as you age? That the glass ceiling doesn’t apply to you? You mean besides those things?”

He winced. “Okay. Filing my question under S.I.A.”

“What’s that?”

“Sorry I Asked. But, hey, men pay more for car insurance.”

“Uh-huh. That’s because men tend to drive like Mario Andretti-without benefit of an actual racetrack.”

“You two sound just like Bill and I when we first fell in love,” Eileen said with a laugh. “But be warned-we just celebrated our twenty-seventh anniversary, and we still have the men-versus-women discussion.” She shook her head sadly. “Take my advice and save your breath, Kayla. Men just don’t get it.” She patted Bill’s knee. “No offense, honey.”

“None taken.” He grinned at Brett. “I’m perfectly happy not understanding the intricacies of makeup and high heels. I prefer to just reap the benefits when Eileen uses them.” He plucked her hand off his knee and planted a kiss against her palm. There was no missing the warm affection in his gaze as he looked at his wife.

It took Brett a few seconds to recover as Eileen’s unsettling words were still echoing through his mind. Did she believe he and Kayla were in love? In love…the words gripped him by the throat and wouldn’t let go. Is that how they appeared to other people? Would their fellow hikers be surprised to know that he and Kayla had only met…

Yesterday?

The reality hit him like an open-handed slap. How was it possible that she’d struck him so fiercely, so completely and quickly? That he felt so in tune with her, liked her so much, after such a short acquaintance? Was already thinking about continuing their relationship once they returned to New York?

He was normally much more cautious with women, especially lately, when he didn’t know who he could trust, wasn’t sure who wanted him for him, and who wanted him for his formula. But there was no worry of that with Kayla-she knew nothing about his breakthrough discovery. He’d experienced mutual attraction before, but nothing like this. So for him, there was only one logical explanation to explain the profound way she affected him, one fully supported by his research: their scent-communicating chemical compounds were fiercely attracted to each other.

Ashley joined them, her arrival interrupting his thoughts. She laid a comforting hand on Kayla’s arm. “Feeling your pain about the restroom situation, Kayla. I was kinda grossed out by the whole thing on my first camping trip, but Shawn’s such an outdoors nut, it was either get with the program or find a new boyfriend.” Her gaze flicked toward Shawn who stood a short distance away, engrossed in a conversation with Dan Smith, then she smiled. “Turns out I made the right choice. Just make sure you stay away from poison ivy and vegetation with thorns. And snakes.”

Brett swore Kayla’s skin paled. “Ah, yeah. You can bet I will. Yup. Absolutely.” She cleared her throat. “I’m guessing that since the bathroom facilities are…primitive, a shower isn’t available, either.”

“Have buckets,” Alberto called from where he was unrolling tents about fifteen feet away. “Fill from river. Dump over head.” He flashed his brilliant white smile and pantomimed doing just that. “Good shower.”

“Very cold,” Miguel added, his smile just as wide as his brother’s. “Very nice.”

“Very cold, very nice?” Kayla repeated. “Clearly we have a translation problem here.”

“Use bucket for shower,” Alberto repeated with an encouraging nod. “I give you towel.” He nodded toward Brett. “Man make you warm.”

“Works for me,” Brett said, struggling to keep a straight face.

“Me, too,” chimed in Bill. “Hear that, Eileen?”

Ashley and Eileen chuckled, then headed toward the path where Paolo indicated the bathroom tent was now assembled.

“So you’re up for one of these cold showers?” Kayla asked him.

Before answering, he stepped forward and drew her into his arms. “Sweetheart, I’ve been up all day long and could have used a cold shower long ago, what with staring at your gorgeous ass for hours. I took a few pictures of it, by the way.”

“Of my ass?” She leaned back in the circle of his arms, her hands resting against his chest. “You were supposed to be taking pictures of the scenery.”

“I did. I snapped a few pics of the flora and fauna, the ruins at Llaqtapata and your ass. What did you take pictures of?”

She laughed. “You’re impossible.”

“Better be nice to me, or man won’t keep you warm after cold shower.”

“Man better keep me warm or man won’t get erotic massage.”

He chuckled. “C’mon. Let’s grab that bucket, a change of clothes and our towels. We’ll get cleaned up before the sun goes down and it turns chilly.”

While Kayla pulled clothes from her backpack, he walked over to Alberto who handed him two thick, white towels then said in an undertone, “After bathroom tent, big rock. Follow path this way.” He curved his hand toward the right. “Private place.”

Brett’s brows shot up. “How private?”

“You be alone,” Alberto said, nodding. “Always send hikers different paths to wash for privacy. No one bother you-unless you late for dinner. Then send search. Dinner in one hour. No be late.”

He smiled at the young man, then said, “Gracias,” one of the few Spanish words he knew.

Alberto grinned back, then returned to his tent-pitching duties. Brett made a quick stop at his backpack, then, with the shower items in hand, headed with Kayla down the curving path leading toward the river.

And privacy.