“You jumped in after me?” she asked quietly. “Why?”
I turned my head and glanced at her. “Well, I couldn’t just let you drown and disappear forever, sunshine.”
She shook her head. “Thank you.”
Cerise continued to use her magic to heal my wound. Heat bloomed over my back and the pain increased momentarily, then transitioned to itching before dissipating.
“I’m done.”
I sat up and turned to her, kneeling on the ground.
“What do we do?” she asked. “How far away are we from everyone? Do you even know where we are? How are we going to get back?”
I put my hands on her shoulders. “Slow down. I don’t know where we are, but I don’t think we’re anywhere close to the rest of our team. The water was moving very fast.”
“So we’re lost?” The way she looked at me, terrified and vulnerable, cracked my heart in two. I didn’t want her to be scared. I didn’t want her to be hurt or worried or lost in her head. I wanted her to smile. To be happy.
“Lost?” I paused, taking a deep breath. “Yes, sunshine. I do believe we’re lost.”
Chapter 15
We’re Alive
Cerise
Ishivered by the fire Liam had started with his magic, trying to dry my still wet clothing. Tangled vines hung above me, the star-flecked night sky peeking through.
There was no way to discern where we were. Everything looked the same, emerald greens blending with the brown of fallen leaves and the pinks and purples of flowers. Just jungle. And further away…more jungle.
We were indeed lost, separated from our team with no way to determine the path back. And it was my fault because I couldn’t climb fast enough.
It was all my fault.
“Your clothes will dry much faster if you remove them, you know,” Liam said, stirring the fire with a stick from his spot across from me.
“Unlike you, I’m not eager to strip down to my underthings in the middle of a rainforest,” I quipped, trying to avoid looking at his almost completely nude body. His beautifully sculpted, smooth-skinned body.
“Oh come on, sunshine. I promise not to look. You’re freezing.”
I met his gaze and sighed.
“I’m serious, Cerise. You’ll catch a chill if you don’t let those clothes dry.”
I stood and began to unbutton the front of my shirt. “Fine. And look all you want, I’m not ashamed of my body. I’m just trying to be professional.”
Liam let out a laugh. “I think the time for being professional is over. We’re stranded in the jungle for fuck’s sake.”
“Cursing is unbecoming,” I chided, though there was no venom in my voice.
Undoing the last button, I laid my shirt over a nearby branch next to Liam’s clothing and removed my pants. Now down to my undergarments, an ivory bra and matching underwear, I reclaimed my seat and scooted closer to the fire, wrapping my arms around myself.
“Better?” Liam asked, watching me intensely.
“Not much,” I said with a shiver, goosebumps rising on my flesh.
Liam rose and ducked inside the tent, emerging with a blanket in hand. Kneeling, he laid it across my shoulders, pulling it tight beneath my chin, then sat beside me.
“Thank you,” I said.