Chapter Five

With a surprised cry, Kate felt the ground disappear beneath her feet and she went soaring forward into the inky night sky. Without warning, they were airborne, and she had no idea how high up they were or how far it was to the ground below. First a plane crash and now she was flying like a bird. A bird with no wings.

The moment the ominous thought flitted through her head, gravity took over. Still clutching hands, she and Donovan fell through endless branches. Kate covered her face with her free hand, trying to protect it as much as possible without relinquishing the death grip she had on Donovan, but there was no way to avoid the inevitable scratches and bruises.

They dropped through another lush canopy and then plummeted twenty or so feet, landing in the water with a loud splash. Reluctantly releasing his hand, Kate propelled herself to the surface, breaking through with a gasp.

Trying to get her bearings, Kate treaded water and glanced around. She wanted to get out of the water ASAP as all sorts of scary images filled her head from eels to anacondas.

Donovan swam over and shoved a hand through his wet hair, pushing the long strands back and off his chiseled face. "Are you okay?" he asked, voice laced in concern.

"I think so. But I'll be better once we're on shore."

"Yeah, c'mon." Turning, they started swimming and Kate did her best not to squeal when something large brushed against her leg. Relief filled her as they climbed onto the shore. As her eyes adjusted to the gloom, a shiver ran through her.

"Are you cold?" Donovan asked.

Kate turned and crossed her arms over her chest, hugging herself. "I'm just happy to be alive. Although we are lost in the biggest rainforest in the world with some of the most dangerous species ever known to exist."

"Way to look on the bright side."

She watched him reach into his messenger bag, still slung tightly across his body. "It's true. I've done a lot of research on the rainforest and there are any number of animals in here that could kill you in under a minute." Oh, geez. Relax, Cautious Kate. She sounded like a total geek and needed to rein it in before she annoyed him enough to ditch her. Honestly, would she even be surprised at this point? No, not really.

"So let's make sure we don't run into any of them."

Her brows drew together as he checked out his laptop then closed and secured the bag's flap. "I'm assuming your laptop is destroyed?"

"A little banged up, but my bag is waterproof, so it's fine. Well, fine for just being hacked," he grumbled.

"How do you know you were hacked?"

"It happened on the plane. Right before…" His words trailed off and he cleared his throat. "Right before we went down."

"Is that why you swore so loudly?"

His face flushed. "Yeah."

"I saw you talking to the pilot. Did he tell you what happened?"

Donovan's brown eyes met hers and even though he didn't comment, she saw well-concealed answers swirling in those dark depths.

"What do you know?" she pressed, stepping closer.

"Nothing you need to worry about," he said and she frowned, not liking that answer at all.

Kate didn't appreciate being kept in the dark. She liked prompt answers whereupon she could make informed decisions when the time came. Tilting her head, she studied him closely. There was no doubt he was attractive and even stronger than she'd originally thought. Her eyes roamed over his muscled biceps, firm pecs and flat, ridged abs. The way his wet t-shirt clung to his body revealed more than she'd anticipated on seeing. But she wasn't complaining.

Of course, that meant she was probably giving him a similar peep show. A quick glance down and, yeah, her white button-down was practically sheer, clearly displaying the light pink lace of her bra. Re-crossing her arms a little higher, she took a step back and swallowed hard.

The ironic part of the whole situation was she'd asked for this—a little bit of adventure over the long weekend.

Well, she'd gotten a bit more than she wanted. And, somehow, she'd even gotten a hot, mysterious stranger to share the action with. One who made her pulse flutter a little too wildly.

"So, ah, now what?" she asked, voice husky. His gaze dropped when she inadvertently licked her lips, and he stared at her mouth a moment too long.

"I think we should hunker down somewhere until it gets light. Like you said, the jungle is especially dangerous at night. Traipsing through it blindly isn't smart."

"Yeah, we don't want to go hurtling off another cliff," she teased and he smiled.

"Oops." He gave her an adorable, lopsided grin that made her insides do a funny, little dance.

"At least it's not cold." She twisted the end of her shirt, wringing water out, trying to ignore the little flutters in her belly. The jungle normally stayed in the seventies at night, so they weren't in any danger of freezing. But, being stuck in wet clothes, especially jeans, was never comfortable.

As though he heard her thoughts, Donovan slid his messenger bag off his body then reached around and pulled his shirt off before replacing the bag exactly where it'd been since he left the plane. He reminded her of a half-naked, extremely buff Indiana Jones. As they slowly walked forward, searching for a place to spend the night, he squeezed the water out of the cotton and gave it a good shake.

"Men have it so easy," she mumbled.

He slid her a sideways glance and cocked a dark brow. "If you want to take your clothes off and let them dry—"

"I'm fine."

Donovan lifted his hands in a placating gesture. "All I was going to suggest is you sleep on one side of the tree and I sleep on the other. Spread your clothes out to dry."

Actually, that didn't sound so bad. As long as he stayed on his side, of course. But the idea of getting undressed in the middle of the dense jungle didn't sit well with her. Especially if they had to start running again. Plus, there were the mosquitoes and she didn't want to get eaten alive.

"How about here?" he suggested, laying his wet shirt on some branches and dropping the messenger bag at his feet. They paused beside a massive tree covered in dense vines and Kate glanced around, suddenly uneasy.

"Did you get a look at those guys earlier? The ones shooting?" she asked.

Donovan shook his head. "Not really."

Don't look at his chest, she told herself. Keep your eyes above those sculpted pecs. "Do you think they were rebels? Cartel members maybe?"

Stepping closer, his mouth curved up in a smirk that sent her heart thumping hard against her ribs. "You ask a lot of questions."

"I like having answers."

"Do you always need answers to everything?"

"Yes. No." She threw her arms up. "Does it matter?"

He chuckled. "No need to get flustered, Ms. Inquisitive." After a brief hesitation, his dark eyes narrowed. "It is Ms., right? Or, am I wrong?"

"Now who's being inquisitive?" she teased.

"Touché."

"And it's Ms. Halloran, Mr.—?"

"Donovan Briggs. My friends just call me D, though."

"D? That's creative." Kate playfully scrunched her nose up at him, then at herself when she realized she was flirting. Flirting with the hot, wet, shirtless stranger in the middle of the jungle.

"Yeah, well, what do you expect from a bunch of former frogs?"

"Frogs?" she echoed, peeling her crossbody off and setting it down. She was soaked from head to toe and smelled like river water. Ugh. Any more flirting that happened tonight would most assuredly be one-sided. Donovan probably thought she looked like a drowned rat.

"Navy SEALs," he clarified, dropping down on the ground.

"Are you a SEAL, too?"

"I was, yeah, until they recruited me over to the intelligence side of things. Now I work as a security analyst."

Oh, wow. Kate sat down on the soft, leaf-strewn ground and looked over at the no doubt incredibly smart man beside her. Suddenly, she felt extremely small and ordinary.

"What about you?" he asked.

"Me?"

"What do you do?"

"Nothing as glamorous as you." He waited for her to answer and she shifted, stretching her legs out in front of her. "I'm just a ranger at a national park."

"Really?" He leaned closer. "What park?"

His curious tone and body language held more interest than she expected. "Great Smoky Mountains."

"I love the Smoky Mountains. We drove through there a few times when I was younger. Your office view sure beats mine."

His devastating smile sent her stomach somersaulting. "It is pretty stunning."

"If I ever switch careers, I'll be hitting you up for a job referral."

She chuckled, more at ease than before. Actually, more at ease than…ever. Donovan had this strange way of making her comfortable. Maybe it was because he seemed to accept her just as she was. Or, maybe she'd bumped her head too hard when they crashed.

When her stomach threatened to growl, Kate opened her purse and checked through the soggy contents. She plucked out the complimentary packet of cookies from the airline and lifted them. "Hungry?"

"Famished," he replied.

After opening the package, she offered him one, her attention dipping to admire the way his muscles flexed when he turned. No man should be allowed to look that good without a shirt on. Clearly, he worked out. Often.

"So, why were you going to Rio?" she asked, munching on her cookie.

"Work," he replied vaguely. "What about you?"

"Vacation. It was going to be a bucket list trip."

"Really?" He popped the entire cookie in his mouth, dusted the crumbs off his hands and leaned back against the thick tree trunk. "Never been to Rio?"

"No, but I've wanted to go for a long time."

"You might be a little late, but we'll get you there. I figure we're a little over one-hundred miles away. Once it gets light out, we can start walking and hopefully find a town or something. Then maybe borrow a car or catch a bus."

"This is crazy," she murmured, looking up at the dark canopy of leaves above them. "And you want to know the most ironic thing about this whole situation?"

He leaned closer, eyeing her closely. "What?"

"Right before I left, I hoped for an adventure." And maybe to meet a handsome, interesting stranger, but she sure wasn't going to admit that.

Donovan's mouth edged up. "Well, I'd say your wish came true."

"Maybe I should've been more specific," she added with a chuckle.

"What? You mean you wouldn't have wished to be lost in the Amazon rainforest with a tech geek after living through a plane crash and bad guys shooting at you?"

Tech geek? He had to be kidding. Nothing about Donovan Briggs said geek to her. Not his firm muscles or his chiseled jaw or those deep brown eyes of his that made her think of melted chocolate with swirls of caramel.

"I could've done without the crash. And the bad guys."

His bare shoulder brushed hers and a sliver of heat warmed her insides. "What about the rainforest?"

"To be determined."

They stared at each other and she waited for him to continue. Found herself leaning in and hoping for his next question.

And he didn't disappoint.

"And the tech geek?"

Kate felt his low voice rumble through her entire body where their shoulders touched. Suddenly, the air felt heavier, more humid, and she found it slightly harder to breathe.

"TBD," she answered, mouth edging up.

He gave her a crooked smile then leaned back against the tree again. "Fair enough. Although I did rescue you," he added teasingly.

"Maybe I rescued you."

He chuckled then sent her an interesting look. "Maybe."

As she pondered over that one cryptic word, he closed his eyes.

"We should get some rest, but take turns sleeping," he said. "Then we'll start hiking at first light."

"Okay," she murmured, settling back against the tree, trying to get comfortable. "Since your eyes are already closed, guess I'm going first?"

He chuckled and looked over at her. "Do you want me to go first?"

"No, it's okay. Get some rest and I'll wake you up in a little bit."

Donovan gave her another grin and his lids lowered again. Settling into her watch, Kate listened to the sounds of the jungle and stayed vigilant. Even though they'd briefly mentioned sleeping on opposite sides of the tree, she was glad they were side by side. She wanted to be close to Donovan. He made her feel safe, protected like no one else ever had before.

And she could really, really get used to that.