Live To Tell

by Valerie Parv

  “Look, there’s a cooler in the Jeep,” she said, going to the vehicle and yanking open the passenger door. Was it wishful thinking or did she sound as shaky as he felt?

  “I promised you room service.”

  She lifted the lid and gave a slight moan. “Cold drinks. Real food.”

  Above them loomed the escarpment where the Uru cave they’d set out to visit was located. He looked over her shoulder. “How much do you want to see the rock art?”

  She replaced the cooler lid and turned to him. “The truth? I’ve had about all the caverns I can handle for the time being.”

  “You won’t have a problem with your editor if we save the visit for another time?”

  Jo shook her head. “By the time I write about how we discovered the hidden valley, Karen will have more than enough headlines to keep her happy.”

  “Then how about a swim instead? If your photos do provide evidence against Eddy Gilgai, they’ll keep for a while longer.”

  This time, her moan was less restrained. “I’m starting to like this hotel.”

  He hoped she’d have a little time for the management, as well.

  She surveyed the sparkling expanse of water he drove them to. Water poured in from upstream, forming a series of pools down the hillside, linked by miniature waterfalls and rapids, that eventually spilled into the main part of the Bowen River below. “Are you sure there aren’t any crocodiles in this pool?” she asked.

  “Only a few of the freshwater variety. As I told you before, if you don’t corner them they won’t bother you.”

  She gave him a trusting look. “You’re the crocodile man. I don’t know whether I want to swim or eat first. After the night we spent, both seem sinfully tempting.”

  “I can think of other activities with the same potential,” he said.

  Not so long ago, his comment would have made her apprehensive, knowing how attracted she was to him. Now she was amazed to feel an answering torrent of desire race through her. At the same time, she recognized there was more going on here than simple sexual need. She wanted him, yes, but there was more. She felt open to whatever developed between them in a way she’d never done before.

  For the first time in her life, she wasn’t afraid of the closeness. Or where it might take them.

  The exhilaration of it made her want to sing and shout. Or make love.

  Her stomach betrayed her by rumbling loudly.

  “Sounds like we’d better eat first,” she said ruefully.

  “I like the part about first,” he agreed. He didn’t ask what might come second.

  Judy had thoughtfully included half a bottle of Pinot Noir with the feast of smoked salmon, potato salad, green grapes and crusty bread.

  Blake spread a blanket in the shade and sprayed the perimeter with something mint-smelling he carried in the car to deter marauding insects. The clear blue sky, red-and-ocher rock cliffs, vine thickets and glinting water made a backdrop so picturesque it seemed unreal.

  Lolling on the blanket, her taste buds singing with the richness of the picnic, Jo felt as if she’d died and gone to heaven. “Oh, my, this beats energy bars by a long shot.”

  Picking grapes off a stem, he said, “Probably not as nutritious.”

  “But more sensual,” she said, wondering why her thoughts kept returning to that.

  He topped off his glass of water and her tumbler of wine. “You’re really happy, aren’t you? Even after being attacked, hiking for miles and sleeping rough.”

  She sipped wine. “I could have done without the first part. For the rest, the company makes a difference.” Knowing how at home he was in the outback, she had felt safe with him. Unsettled definitely, especially after delving into her subconscious. But she had never doubted they would survive.

  He lifted his glass in a toast. “I’m glad you think so.”

  “I know so.” She gathered in a breath and made herself say the words she’d been avoiding for hours. “Not many men would have held my hand the way you did last night, without a word of recrimination.”

  “You couldn’t help what happened to you.”

  “It helps to have that understood.”

  “My own experience puts me in a unique position.”

  She braced herself on one elbow. “You put yourself in a unique position. You don’t only know how it feels to have your life controlled by others. You’ve found a way to rise above your history and make your life your own.”

  “You’ve done the same,” he pointed out. “I had the advantage of knowing what was driving me. You’ve only just found out.”

  She toyed with her glass. “Yeah, I’m still trying to take that in.”

  “It won’t happen in an instant. You need to give yourself time.”

  “I’m trying to do that, too.”

  He started to stow the remains of their lunch in the cooler. “Ready for that swim now?”

  She finished the wine and handed him the glass. “Don’t we have to wait for an hour or something before going in the water?”

  “Old wives’ tale,” he said. “As kids, we never waited five minutes.”

  “Me, neither. We lived within walking distance of the beach and spent hours in the surf. I don’t remember ever letting food settle before plunging in. And we didn’t die of cramps, or whatever’s supposed to happen to you.”

  He slanted a grin at her. “It’s a plot by grown-ups to give them a break. If you’re dutifully resting on a blanket, they get to rest, too.”

  She scrambled up. “What is it about the outback that makes me want to defy every social convention?”

  “It’s the air of freedom. Want to defy another one?”

  Wondering what he had in mind, she cocked her head. “What?”

  “Ever been skinny-dipping?”

  She felt herself turn hot. “You mean as in nude? Without any clothes?”

  He seemed to enjoy her confusion. “That’s generally what’s meant by skinny-dipping.”

  “I don’t…I mean I’ve never…”

  “Then it’s time you tried. Isn’t this supposed to be a voyage of discovery for you?”

  “I’m also supposed to write up everything I do.”

  “Everything?”

  “Well, it doesn’t have to be blow-by-blow.”

  Just as well, he thought. The way this day was shaping up, he wouldn’t want to read the details later, and he was fairly sure she wouldn’t, either. Some things were not meant for public consumption.

  He returned the cooler to the Jeep and came back. “I’ll avert my eyes while you get into the water, then I’ll join you.”

  She was glad to get out of the clothes she’d worn since yesterday. The balmy air felt wonderful on her bare skin. “You’re sure about the crocodiles?” she asked as she approached the pool.

  As promised, he had his back to her. “Want me to come and double-check?”

  Conscious of the bruises blossoming on her skin from the fall, she wanted to be up to her neck in water before he turned around. “I’ll take your word for it.”

  Pushing undergrowth aside, she stepped across the green silk of the river flat and into water which felt refreshing as it lapped around her legs. It was also crystal clear, reassuring her that nothing lurked in the vicinity. Emboldened, she sank up to her neck and struck out across the pool. Rushing water was the only sound.

  By the time she turned to swim back, Blake had discarded his clothes and was wading in. She almost forgot to tread water in the shock of seeing him naked, a god of the outback in his tanned magnificence.

  The lack of tan lines around his hips suggested he made a habit of swimming nude. Her mouth went dry. Did he bring other women here? Was she mistaking a practiced ploy for something more personal?

  He swam out to her. “You’re frowning. Don’t I live up to your expectations?”

  He far exceeded them. “I was wondering if you do this with all your dates?”

  “And if I say yes?”

  She splashed wa
ter at him. “Don’t make jokes, I’m serious.”

  He turned over on his back, letting the water support him. “You are, aren’t you? That means you care.”

  “You already know I do.”

  “I know, and it matters to me. For the record, you’re the first woman besides my foster sister I’ve swum with in this pool.”

  Her eyebrows lifted. “You swam naked with your sister?”

  “It’s normal in the outback. When you live this close to nature, modesty seems like a waste of time.”

  “And a waste of a sensational feeling,” she said, relieved that she was not one of a long line of women he’d brought to this magical place. She didn’t want to think of this as a setup for seduction. She didn’t have a problem with the seduction part, only the setup.

  “Look,” he said, pointing behind her. “There’s a crocodile.”

  Heart leaping into her mouth, she flailed around in the water. “Where?” All she could see were dark specks at the water line a dozen feet away. They must be small, she guessed from the distance between eyes and nostrils, but her heart rate continued to escalate. Where there were small crocs, could man-eaters be far behind?

  She began to swim toward Blake. “Shouldn’t we get out of here?”

  “No need, they’re the freshwater variety, Crocodylus john-stonii.”

  “I’m swimming with a crocodile and you’re spouting Latin at me?”

  “They’re the freshwater Johnstone River crocodiles I told you about, harmless to humans unless you bother them. They only grow to about eight feet long. Watch.”

  Linking his hands, he sent a wave shivering in the direction of the dark spots showing above the water. In a blur of speed, a five-foot crocodile swirled its tail around and vanished into the depths. Moments later ripples in the water showed where its companions had similarly made themselves scarce.

  Then he pointed out what she had taken to be a piece of driftwood farther up the opposite sand bank. It, too, hurtled into the water with astonishing speed and sank without a trace.

  Treading water, she leveled a suspicious look at him. “Did you know they were here when I got in?”

  His expression was all innocence. “I offered to check for you.”

  “Next time, you come first.”

  He grinned. “Best offer I’ve had in a long time.”

  “Oh, really?” As her racing heart gradually slowed, she pondered whether to kill him or kiss him. Since she might need him again later to defend her against crocodiles, there was only one option. She swam up and kissed him.

  Startled, he began to sink, swallowed water and came up spluttering. “You might warn me before you do that.”

  “Like you warned me about the crocodiles?” Pleased with her revenge on him, she let her hands play over his muscular flanks. “What about when I do this?”

  “Lady, you’re playing with fire.”

  Legs pumping in the water, he pulled her into his arms and towed them both into the shallows where he trailed kisses over her upturned face.

  She closed her eyes and then opened them, wanting to see him. She was lying in his arms, the water taking her weight. She stroked his chest, feeling the powerful beat of his heart under her fingers. Exertion or desire? A test was in order. She kissed him again.

  This time he didn’t go under, except perhaps figuratively. Instead, he kissed her back, his mouth moving over hers as he took all she was offering.

  When her lips parted, he deepened the kiss. For the first time in her adult life, no ghosts lay in wait to sabotage her pleasure. There was only a wanting so acute she ached with it.

  For the first time, she was ready to give herself without reservation, she knew. Without having to guard herself against her partner’s expectations. She could be open, taking and giving without fighting herself.

  She had never felt so exhilarated. Or so needy.

  “Please, Blake,” she pleaded.

  Chest heaving, he pretended ignorance. “Please what?”

  “Do I have to beg?”

  “It could get interesting.”

  She pummeled his chest. “If you keep pushing my buttons, I may have to harm you later. But not now. Now you have to follow through or I’m going to explode.”

  A grin of pure pleasure split his features. “When you put it like that—” Leaving the sentence unfinished, he swept her into his arms and stood up. Water streamed off him in ribbons, outlining the sleek contours of his body.

  She had never been carried in a man’s arms before and the sensation was unexpectedly pleasurable. Being crushed against him, his hardness to her softness, heightened her anticipation in ways she could hardly believe.

  When he settled her on the blanket in the shade and leaned across her, she saw his gaze darken with pure, potent desire. For her. No clothes came between them. No barriers of any kind. In his gaze, she saw them all stripped away, down to the basic need of a man for his woman.

  He fussed for a moment over her bruises, kissing them better one by one until she writhed beneath him. After covering her face with kisses, he moved down her body, spending agonizing minutes on each breast until she arched her back and cried out from the heat searing to the center of her being.

  “Blake, this is too much.”

  “It’s no more than you threatened to do to me,” he said between caresses.

  She arched again. “I didn’t mean…not literally. Not like this.”

  “Then how about like this?”

  At the intimacy of his touch, a volcano of needs erupted inside her. She was all heat, all wanting. She couldn’t think straight. Her breath came in strangled gasps and her heart felt as if it would beat right out of her chest.

  Desperately she clung to him, wanting to give as much as take. But he would have none of it yet. He was in command and this was his show. And she was in no position to protest, even had she possessed the strength. Or the will.

  He stroked her and feasted on her alternatively. “Your turn will come,” he promised. “For now, this is my gift to you.”

  And what a gift. How could a rugged man of the outback have the hands of a surgeon or a violinist, playing on her nerves with the skill of a virtuoso, until she vibrated in time to his pleasure?

  He got to his feet. Guessing what he needed, she caught his hand and pulled him back down. “It’s all right, we don’t have to worry.” She pressed his fingertips to the bump in her forearm. “A contraceptive implant, see?”

  “And you accused me of making a habit of this.”

  “I had the implant put in because I travel and work odd hours,” she said hotly, then caught his slanting grin. “You bastard.”

  Her fists drummed against his chest, but he spun her onto her back, claiming her mouth and making her pay with her sanity for taking him seriously.

  Somewhere between his exploration of her breasts and the core of her womanhood, she lost control. Lost it as completely as if she’d never owned such a thing in her life.

  She screamed, startling the native birds from the trees. Their cries mingled with her own as every muscle in her body trembled with the waves of sensation rolling through her.

  Hearing her cry of release, Blake felt his own pleasure start to peak but fought it. Not yet. Not until he was buried in her would he allow himself to crest that wave. This was for her, his demonstration that everything he’d learned about her last night had only increased his love for her.

  He sensed that she was ashamed of the outburst. Ashamed of revealing so much of herself to him. He wanted to show her that it had been as much a gift to him as he wanted to give her in return. True love had no shame. No barriers. He would allow none between them.

  Seeing her tumble over the edge, he knew it was time. Levering himself up, he gave in to the needs battering at him and buried himself in her.

  Her throaty cry of pleasure was all he needed to drive deeper, faster, harder, finally giving full rein to his own needs. With each thrust, he heard her drag in breath after breat
h and felt her fingers clawing at his back.

  He had meant to go slower, to take her to the climax together. Her frantic movements beneath him destroyed not only his lofty intentions but any ability to think at all. He could only plunge and take, aware at some level that she had matched his rhythm and was with him every inch of the way. Her eyes were open and she met his gaze boldly, as if daring him to leave her behind.

  This he had no intention of doing. He held on, held on, almost destroyed himself with waiting until he sensed she was ready, before he abandoned himself to a last frenetic thrust of utter release, his hoarse cry twinning with hers.

  Gulping in air, he rolled her onto her side with him while the tremors slowed and finally ebbed. “Skinny-dipping with the other kids was never like this.”

  She frowned. “I hope not.”

  “Nothing was ever like this,” he added. He lacked the energy to move for the time being, although conscience drove him to ask, “I hope I didn’t aggravate your bruises?”

  Her eyes sparkled. “What bruises?”

  He kissed the one he could reach on her shoulder. “My mistake, beauty spots.”

  “The others will get jealous,” she murmured.

  “They’ll have to wait while I recover my strength.” She seemed content to wait. Since he was still inside her, he didn’t mind, either.

  “I never guessed that guilt could feel this delicious,” she said.

  He appraised her curiously. “Guilt about what?”

  “I should get back to camp and check the photos in my camera. If Eddy Gilgai shows up in any of them…”

  Blake touched a finger to her lips. “If he does, we’ll know soon enough. It’s not exactly flattering to hear you’re thinking about another man while making love with me.”

  “Hardly comparable,” she insisted. “He’s the bad guy.”

  “Women sometimes prefer the bad guy.”

  “Fishing?” she asked. Before he could answer, she said, “No need. Right now, you’re the only man on my mind, I promise.”

  “Then I’d better make sure it stays that way.”

  As he leaned over and kissed her, she shifted beside him. He felt himself start to harden again, her movement enough to send him spinning toward the edge again. Then she sat up and the only diamonds were the ones in her eyes as he lifted himself to meet her.