Chapter 6 #3
“You said yourself that you thought the rebels brought him with them. And they were mean to him. Why would he want to go back there? And he’s probably just as lost as us.
Not that we’re lost, but you know what I mean.
I think we should call him Rain. Because we found him, or he found us, in the rainforest.”
“Seems appropriate.”
Amanda was relieved Nash didn’t say anything else about the dog disappearing or about not giving him a name.
She was already enamored with the pathetic-looking creature.
She was well aware that no good could come from her getting emotionally attached to the dog, but everything right now was out of the norm for her. Might as well go with it.
“Hey, Rain. How’d you find us? You aren’t leading anyone else to our location, are you?” Amanda crooned.
Of course, the dog didn’t respond, simply tilted his head as he listened to Amanda speak.
“I’m going to see if the trap I set last night caught anything,” Nash told her. “Will you be all right here by yourself while I’m gone?”
“I won’t be by myself,” Amanda told him. “I have Rain.”
“Right. Well, if something happens, just scream. I’ll be back in a heartbeat. Okay?”
“Thanks. I will.”
After Nash left, Amanda didn’t feel as stressed as she might’ve otherwise because she truly didn’t feel as if she was alone.
It was silly, it wasn’t as if the dog could actually do anything if a rebel leaped out of the trees and ambushed her.
But simply having someone to talk to, to interact with, to concentrate on instead of thinking about her itchy skin, her empty belly, and the confusing thoughts running around her head about the man who’d risked his own life to stay behind with her, kept her calm.
The entire time Nash was gone, Amanda kept up a running commentary with Rain. Not about anything in particular, but the way the dog kept his gaze locked on her, his head tilting now and then as if he were truly listening, made it feel as if he could honestly understand.
When Nash returned, Rain let her know someone was near right before he reappeared. The dog turned his head and looked in the direction he was coming from, before Amanda even heard his footsteps.
Rain didn’t seem alarmed or concerned with his reappearance, and Amanda hoped that was a good omen.
That the dog was getting used to Nash. She hadn’t missed how wary he was around Nash the previous day.
She hated to think about why that was. Because he’d likely been abused by men in the not-so-distant past.
“Success!” Nash said with a smile as he held up a porcupine.
Amanda was torn. She hated to see any animal killed, but just thinking about the meat they’d soon be eating was enough to make her stomach growl. Loudly.
So loudly, Rain’s ears perked forward.
Nash chuckled. “It won’t take me too long to get it ready to cook. You want to see if you can find any sticks that aren’t soaking wet?”
It was Amanda’s turn to laugh. “Seriously? Everything’s wet. Including me.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she wanted to take them back. They sounded way too suggestive. But any hopes of Nash letting her unintended inuendo slide were dashed when his smile grew and one of his eyebrows went up.
“Sorry, that came out wrong,” she said, feeling her cheeks heat.
Thankfully, he didn’t prolong her embarrassment. “Look under leaves. And under other branches that might be on the ground. Anything buried under other stuff won’t be quite as damp.” Then he looked over at Rain and said, “Watch her, boy.”
As if the dog could understand exactly what Nash said, he got off his belly and stood, looking like he was patiently waiting for Amanda to go looking for wood so he could do just as Nash asked—keep watch over her.
“Don’t go far,” Nash warned.
He didn’t have to tell her that. Amanda wasn’t going to go out of sight of the man who’d become her lifeline.
She was well aware it probably wasn’t healthy for her to get so attached to someone who’d be leaving as soon as they arrived back in Guyana.
But she couldn’t help it. He was not only kind, and obviously competent in the jungle… he was easy on the eyes.
She felt like the worst kind of hypocrite for thinking that way, though it was difficult not to.
Seeing the man with his flight suit plastered to his body because of the constant rain wasn’t exactly a hardship.
But she would’ve been just as grateful and relieved she wasn’t alone in this…
adventure—could she call it an adventure, when it wasn’t something she’d chosen to do?
—if the man who’d stayed with her had been a hundred pounds overweight and as out of his element as she was.
Turning her attention to the task at hand, she set out to look for branches and sticks that would be dry enough to build a small fire.
She made several trips back and forth from the trees around them to where Nash was skinning and gutting the animal. By the time he was ready, she’d managed to find a decent amount of sticks for a fire.
The look of approval on his face warmed Amanda from the inside out. He quickly got a fire going with the matches he’d pilfered from the kitchen tent—which was impressive, since everything was so damp—and heated the small pan they’d also stolen from the rebels.
The smell of the meat cooking was almost torture. Amanda could literally feel herself salivating. The porcupine looked huge when she’d first seen it, but based on the amount of meat in the pan, she realized it was only going to provide a few decent mouthfuls for each of them.
Even Rain was completely focused on the fire, or more specifically, what was cooking over it. He kept licking his lips, and he drooled as he patiently waited for the meat to finish.
“Eat slowly,” Nash warned, as he moved the pan off the fire. “Not only is the meat hot, you don’t want to upset your stomach. It would not be good if you threw it up.”
Amanda nodded, but didn’t take her gaze from the meat.
Minutes later, it had stopped sizzling and cooled enough that Nash deemed it safe, and she was more than ready to try it.
They didn’t have any kind of spices or salt—but when the meat hit her taste buds, it was one of the best things she’d ever eaten in her life.
Being hungry changed everything. How she looked at food, portions, the world at large…and it made any pickiness she might’ve had disappear forever.
As she ate, she was aware of the dog’s attention. His gaze was locked on her fingers as she licked them after each bite, and on her mouth as she chewed. After a moment, guilt hit Amanda hard. Rain was probably just as hungry as she was, maybe even more so.
As much as she wanted to shove the rest of the meat into her mouth, she tore off a small piece and held it out toward the dog.
“Mandy,” Nash warned, but she ignored him. What she was doing wasn’t smart. But she could no more ignore the dog’s starving state than she could ignore one of the kids back at the school when they needed a hug after a bad day.
Rain trembled with the desire to take the meat, but fear held him back. He wouldn’t take the two steps necessary for him to get close enough to accept the food from her fingers.
Amanda could’ve tossed the meat to him, but she didn’t want it to land in the dirt. Which was silly, as Rain definitely wouldn’t have cared…but she simply couldn’t do it. So she grabbed a nearby rock and put the meat on that, then slid it as close to Rain as she could get.
The second she leaned back, the dog moved, snatching up the meat and swallowing it without chewing.
Amanda giggled. “Did you even taste that, boy? Come on, you have to eat slower, enjoy it.”
She appreciated that Nash didn’t say anything as she continued to share her meal with Rain. After each small bite, she tore off a smaller piece to give to the dog.
After a moment, Nash said, “You’ve got a tender heart.”
Amanda shrugged. “He needs it as much as I do.”
“He’s probably catching rodents or something. He’s most likely getting more calories than you are.”
But Amanda didn’t care. It felt good to be able to provide for another creature.
She certainly wasn’t very able to provide for herself, was relying on Nash for her basic needs.
She liked being able to do the same thing for the dog.
“One more piece, then it’s all gone,” she warned, as she held out the last small piece of meat.
She’d eaten her last bite, and as much as she wanted to eat the bite in her hand, she couldn’t deny the little dog the luxury.
As she leaned over to place the meat on the rock, Rain stepped forward. He took the food from her fingers so delicately, it was almost as if someone had trained him to do that exact thing.
Amanda turned toward Nash. “Did you see that? He took it straight from my hand!”
“I saw, Rebel.” Then he nodded toward the dog.
Turning her head, Amanda saw Rain was standing almost right next to her.
Moving slowly, she brought her hand up toward his chest. She knew better than to try to pat the top of his head. Her fingers stroked the matted fur of his front left leg. “Hey, boy. Was that good? You starting to trust me a little more?”
She could feel him trembling, but he was allowing her touch. Wasn’t trying to bite her and wasn’t running off. For a moment, she felt him lean into her hand, then, as if thinking better of what he was doing, he stepped backward once more, out of her reach.
“Here. I figured the three of us could share a can of olives,” Nash said, holding a can he’d already opened out toward her.
The three of us. Even though he disapproved of her sharing her meal with Rain, he wasn’t berating her, telling her how stupid she was to waste what little they had. Instead, he was making it clear that he was aware she would continue to share her food with the stray.
Strangely enough, Amanda was happier in that moment than she’d been in a very long time.
Which was crazy. She was lost in the middle of the jungle, with a group of pissed-off rebels who may or may not be hunting for them that very moment.
She was absolutely filthy, thirsty, in pain from walking so much and sleeping on the ground…
and yet the simple joys of having a full belly and of earning a little bit of the stray dog’s trust was enough to make her truly feel content.
Not to mention, the man she was stranded with. He made her feel as if she could let down her guard. Not worry so much about the next minute, hour, day. Whatever happened, they’d figure it out together.
He would get them back to Guyana, of that she had no doubt.
“Thank you,” she said softly. “For not yelling at me for feeding him. For being so patient with me and for knowing what to do when I have absolutely no idea.”
“You’re welcome. Go ahead and eat those while I douse the fire and see if I can remove any signs we were here. At least as much as possible.”
Amanda wanted to help, but she also didn’t want to be in the way. So she did as he asked and sat where she was, eating an olive and then throwing one toward Rain—laughing when he caught it in midair—before holding up one of the small treats for Nash.
He shocked the hell out of her when he leaned down and took the olive from her fingers with his mouth.
He smiled and held up his hands, which were covered in soot and dirt from trying to put out the embers of the fire.
The feel of his lips against her fingers was shockingly intimate. And Amanda felt it between her legs. It was surprising, and so inappropriate for the situation it almost felt wrong.
Almost.
It wasn’t as if she was seriously contemplating having sex with the man.
At least…not when they were on the run in the jungle.
Not before she’d been able to scrub the last couple of weeks’ worth of grime off her body.
She’d read books where the hero and heroine in the story had wild monkey sex in some jungle stream while on the run, but it always seemed a little gross to her.
She couldn’t understand how the characters could even think about sexy times when they were in that situation.
But all of a sudden, she got it. She still didn’t actually want to have sex right now, but the spark she felt as he ate olives from her fingers was certainly eye-opening.
By the time the can of olives was empty, Nash had gotten the fire out and they were ready to start walking again.
For some reason, Amanda was reluctant to leave this little oasis in the jungle.
It wasn’t anything special, just another few meters in the vast wilderness, but she felt as if her world had tilted on its axis in this place.
The progress with Rain, the sudden and unexpected sexual feelings she had toward Nash, and of course, another memory of sleeping in the cradle of his arms. Amanda was confused, and a little angry that all of this was happening now.
Thousands of miles from her home back in the States, with a man any kind of relationship with would likely be impossible, and while on the run from the people who’d kidnapped her. It wasn’t fair.
But then again, life wasn’t fair. You simply had to deal with whatever was thrown your way as best you could.
Taking a sigh, Amanda tried to shove her deepening feelings toward Nash out of her head. He was doing a job. She needed to concentrate on not falling on her face from exhaustion. On what was going to happen once she arrived back at the school. At how happy she’d be to see all the children again.
They started walking, and this time Amanda didn’t need to be so close to Nash, since she could see where she was putting her feet. There was no need to hang on to his pack in the daylight.
Ignoring the pang of disappointment, Amanda looked behind her as they headed out of the area where they’d slept.
The day before, Rain had run off after eating. But today? He was there, following along as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
She couldn’t help but smile as she walked. Life wasn’t perfect, it was damn hard at times. But the dog’s presence reminded her that there was beauty in the world. She simply had to be alert enough to see it.