Shanti was Eve. She was a goddess. She was life itself.
She ought to have been carved in stone and put on a temple—those lush breasts, her slender waist, the flare of her hips. He would have worshipped at that altar.
She stepped into the water, gasping as it spilled over her, her nipples instantly drawing tight. “Oh!”
Connor couldn’t take his gaze off her any more than he could quit grinning, the sight both arousing and funny. He’d never seen anyone take such a fast or fumbling shower. It lasted a minute tops, Shanti rubbing the soap over her skin and even in her hair and then letting the waterfall rinse her clean.
She stepped out of the water, arms crossed over her chest to warm her. “I can’t believe how cold that was, but, oh, it felt good. You should try it. I dare you.”
“Youdareme?” Okay, he was dumb and male enough to take her up on that. “You take over filtering water when you’re dressed again.”
He showed her what to do. Then he stripped, grabbed the soap, and walked to the waterfall to show her how he handled a cold shower.
The moment the water hit his skin, he sucked in a breath, stunned, his balls retreating into his abdominal cavity. “Son of a …!”
Shanti laughed. “Told you so.”
Connor led Shanti through a ravine,climbing over fallen bamboo canes and half-rotted teak logs, careful with every step. He’d already seen a few snakes.
The ground began to rise again, the forest canopy thinning. From somewhere ahead, he heard it—men’s voices.
He motioned for Shanti to get down. “Stay here.”
She nodded, eyes wide.
He moved silently uphill, dropping to his belly and inching forward as he neared the edge of the forest.
Fuck.
He counted thirty soldiers, some milling around, others manning a roadblock on what must have been a highway. All were heavily armed, mostly with Chinese weapons—Norinco QBZ-95s with bayonets attached.
These bastards weren’t fucking around.
A farmer rode up to the roadblock with a hay wagon only to be stopped while soldiers stabbed at the hay with bayonets.
Then, out of the corner of his eye, Connor saw something moving in the grass toward him. A cobra. It was probably attracted to his scent.
Ah, shit.
It was time to get out of here.
He began to scoot backward, froze. One of the soldiers was headed his way.
Connor hoped Shanti was paying attention and had the sense to get down and hide. He drew out his pistol, knowing that if he fired, he would give himself and Shanti away and bring the rest of those soldiers rushing into the ravine.
The soldier stopped at the edge of the forest about twenty feet to his left, unzipped his fly, and pissed in the grass.
Great.
Connor didn’t feel like dying because some fucker needed to take a leak. He looked from the soldier to the snake and back again.
The soldier froze, slowly drew his sidearm.
Connor tensed, sure the bastard had seen him.
No, the muzzle wasn’t pointed at him. It was aimed at the snake.
If the soldier missed and came closer, he would see Connor. He might even be able to make out Shanti.