Can't Run (Danger and Desire Book 1)

by Townes, Caroline M.

  “Fuck him!” Carrie was obviously amused, while Amanda and Sara both flushed, “Because you’re not into him anymore right?” Carrie finished.

  Amanda smiled, “What my translator said.”

  Sara felt her gut tighten and her ears begin to burn.

  “Um, no, it’s totally cool if you want to… um,” Sara couldn’t finish the sentence. Thankfully she didn’t have to.

  “Great, thanks!” Amanda said with a smile, “I mean one of us should get some use out of him.”

  Sara didn’t answer, as she leaned back and pretended to be fully focused on relaxing. She, however, didn’t want Amanda to be hooking up with Eric. The idea sparked jealousy through her in a manner that she found to be incredibly disturbing. She tried her best to put it out of her mind until that evening at dinner when Amanda sat next to Eric and spoke with him in low whispers.

  Watching Amanda flirt with Eric seriously ruined Sara’s appetite. She couldn’t help but watch as this mating ritual took place before her eyes, and he didn’t even brush Amanda off which fed into Sara’s irritation.

  What made things worse was that he actually seemed to be enjoying Amanda’s attention, and even leaned in and laughed at Amanda’s jokes.

  Sara tried to turn her attention to something else, and looked over at Carrie who was in a quiet but obviously serious discussion or disagreement with Gabriel. Sara was sure that Carrie already regretted taking Gabriel on the boat trip, too much too soon, Sara thought to herself. She also felt a little sad for Carrie who had dozens of flings in the time that they had been friends, but had never had an actual relationship. Carrie seemed to have wanted that with Gabriel, but Sara couldn’t see how it could have ever worked.

  Sara’s concentration was disrupted by Amanda’s flirtatious giggle. The sound ate through her, and she couldn’t take it anymore. She was sure that she was turning a shade of green when she stood up and excused herself.

  She walked quickly to her bedroom where she stripped into a t-shirt and climbed to bed without even brushing her teeth. She was too frustrated to think about doing anything. This isn’t supposed to happen, Sara thought to herself, as she tried unsuccessfully to fall asleep. She felt defeated, betrayed, and angry.

  Sara laid awake until Eric entered the room, her eyes had adjusted to the darkness and she quietly watched him remove his holster before taking off his shirt and laying down on the floor.

  “Well, that was pretty unprofessional, wasn’t it?” Sara blurted out, silently swearing at herself when she heard the envy in her voice.

  Sara’s voice was first answered with silence in the darkness, but she heard Eric shifting uncomfortably before he let out a sigh.

  “I was just being friendly, Sara.”

  “Oh and who could deny that you were being very friendly,” Sara’s voice was harsh, harsher than she meant for it to sound.

  He didn’t respond, there was nothing to say. It didn’t change the fact that Sara was stricken with jealousy that she didn’t want to feel. It didn’t change the fact that he lied to her about who he was, or that he was her father’s employee. It didn’t change the fact that she still wanted him, and she hated it.

  ~

  The next morning Sara awoke with a feeling of utter embarrassment. She lashed out at Eric, and she realized she really had no right. Still, the idea of him with her friend made her feel sick. She couldn’t allow it, but she wasn’t sure how.

  Breakfast that morning was quiet, there was tension throughout the entire group, but Sara didn’t know why. No one but Eric knew about her outburst the previous night, Amanda sat quietly sipping on coffee while Carrie silently picked at her food and Gabriel kept to himself while he ate. Eric, of course, was quiet; Sarah realized he had probably taken her outburst to heart.

  After breakfast the group got ready for their day trip. On deck Sara was applying sunscreen and bug repellent with Amanda. She fought with herself to ask about what happened between them.

  “So,” Sara finally said, trying to keep her voice even “Did you guys have a fun night?”

  “Who… oh, you mean Eric?” Amanda’s voice wasn’t about to give anything away.

  “Yeah, I mean, you looked like you hit it off…”

  Amanda shook her head and gave a weak smile, “No, I got shot down. I have zero game.”

  Although Amanda sounded completely embarrassed, Sara realized that she felt completely relieved. Happy even. Nothing happened between Eric and Amanda. Not only had nothing happened, but Eric actually turned down Amanda’s advancements. Untamed excitement crept into her stomach.

  For the excursion, the group took the little dingy from the boat to the damp land where they wandered around looking at plant life.

  “I hope I see a Jaguar!” Carrie chirped as she stepped over a large root tying a tall tree into the ground.

  “Don’t ever wish for that!” Gabriel snapped, drawing the attention of the group, “They’re not some house cat that just looks cute! … Americans!”

  Sara and Amanda immediately walked over to Carrie, concerned about Gabriel’s outbreak and his distant behavior leading up to.

  “You okay?” Amanda asked, reaching out to Carrie’s arm.

  Sara frowned and looked off in the direction Gabriel stormed off, “What the heck was that about?”

  Carrie shook her head, “I don’t know, he’s been distant since … well, I guess since Eric showed up.”

  Sara frowned, “I wonder why, it’s not like they’ve been interacting with each other at all. It really shouldn’t make any difference to him”

  Amanda shrugged, her attention was drawn back to the natural surroundings. Carrie too seemed less shaken then only a moment before.

  “Boys will be boys, can’t ever understand them.” Carrie said calmly before going after Gabriel. Amanda slowly followed, keeping her distance to give them some privacy.

  Eric, who had been standing in the background, moved silently towards Sara. She didn’t know where he was until he put his hand on her shoulder. Startled, she turned to face him.

  “I don’t trust him.” Eric whispered into Sara’s.

  “It’s your job to not trust him, Eric!” Sara pointed out, trying to ignore the feeling lingering in her gut that she too did not trust him either. Trying to forget about the deepened concern she was feeling, she began to explore again. Eric trailed closely behind her keeping an eye on her and the surroundings.

  “Have you been to Brazil before?” Sara asked as she moved through the trees, keeping a paranoid eye out for snakes and scorpions.

  “No, this is a first.” Eric answered.

  “So why don’t you enjoy this experience a little more?” Sara asked, “I mean, if you’ve never been to the Amazon before you may as well enjoy it.”

  “I never said that I haven’t seen the Amazon before, I haven’t been to Brazil but I have been to other parts of the Amazon.” Eric countered.

  “Well, if that’s the case…” Sara began but was distracted by something meandering on the ground. “SNAKE!” she screamed, miss-stepping and falling forward towards the long creature.

  A strong arm grabbed her and pulled her up. She found herself cradled like a baby in Eric’s arms. She was surprised that she didn’t even care as long as she didn’t have to be on the ground near the snake. That was, until Eric began to jiggle about suppressing giggles, which soon turned into a roar of laughter.

  “What’s so funny?” Sara asked, perplexed at what could possibly be funny about a snake.

  Eric set Sara back down on the ground, “It’s not a snake…” he was still laughing and hardly able to speak, “...it’s… it’s …it’s a vine!”

  Sara looked back where she saw the snake and felt her face begin to burn with red hot embarrassment, but she too could not hold back the giggles that were erupting from her throat. The two boomed with laughter, loud enough to frighten any nearby animals.

  “Guys,” Gabriel’s voice interrupted, Carrie and Amanda stood behind him looking
anxious, “We got to go back now.”

  Eric’s expression sobered as he looked around, “Damn,” he said under his breath.

  Sara slowly realized that it seemed as though a shadow had covered the forest, as she had come to this realization a rumble shook the skies followed by a loud crack.

  The group quickly moved towards the water where the crewman was waiting the dingy anxiously. When he saw them he began beckoning for them to move faster. The sky was layers of grey, dark blue, and black- it was ominous. As soon as they reached the small rubber boat the rain began to downpour upon them. Within seconds everyone was completely drenched.

  Sara who was wearing a white tank top wrapped her arms around her chest, unsuccessfully shielding her breasts from the view of the rest of the passengers. Eric looked over at Sara, wordlessly removed his worn leather jacket and laid it over her shoulders. Although she was already soaking wet it did wonders for covering her from the view of the others, more essentially from Gabriel and the crewman.

  As soon as Sara got on board the awaiting boat she ran to her cabin, the others ran to the warmth of their cabins in similar fashion. Sara had ripped off her wet clothes and threw them on the floor in a sopping pile and wrapped herself with the quilt from the bed, she was too wet to put on a fresh pair of clothes and decided she would take some time to dry in her room. There was a light tapping on the door, Sara realized Eric wasn’t in the room. She picked his jacket up from the wet pile, wrapping the quilt firmly around her body she opened the door.

  Eric quietly walked inside looking like a drowned rat, he looked at Sara huddled in her quilt holding out his jacket.

  “Thanks,” she said slowly.

  He shrugged, taking his jacket and walked over to his bag where he began to dig around.

  “My towel is still damp from showering this morning or I would offer you mine.” Sara said sitting back down on the bed.

  ‘”I must have left mine in town, I didn’t realize how long it was since I last showered.” He said, straightening himself.

  Sara pulled the top sheet from the bed and threw it at him, “Strip down and warm up before you catch your death.”

  He chuckled, “You sound like my grandmother.”

  “That’s me,” Sara said, readjusting a piece of the quilt that had begun to slip, “an old soul. Though… I really hope that your grandmother didn’t tell you to strip down.”

  She could see the contour of his incredibly chiseled abs through his wet shirt, but when he pulled it over his head Sara felt her body tighten. He really was beautiful. He covered himself with the sheet before removing his jeans and boxers, then just stood awkwardly not knowing what to do next.

  “You can sit, you know.” Sara welcomed, shuffling over to make a spot for him to sit on the bed.

  He nodded and sat next to her. Her body had electricity charging throughout, and although she was so excited she had a sudden wave of exhaustion.

  She yawned uncontrollably, “Do you ever get that?’ she asked.

  He looked at her like she was crazy, obviously having no clue what she was talking about.

  “You know, where you get cold, then you can’t really warm up you get really tired.” She finished, yawning again.

  He shook his head, “It doesn’t make me tired, just cold.” He grinned at Sara who was wearing a devious grin herself.

  “Well,” she said, “There is one thing that my grandma taught me to fight the feeling of cold, it doesn’t help with staying awake though.”

  She hopped up, gripping the quilt with one hand and walked to her bag. She dug around a little bit and pulled out a bottle of liquor.

  “Cachaça” she said holding the bottle up in the air walking back to the bed, “although my grandma used hot whisky… this should do the trick.”

  She smiled at Eric as she popped the bottle open and took a sip. She held it out to Eric who reluctantly took it from her. She sat back down beside him and watched as he took as sip.

  “I’m going to try my best not to be angry with you,” Sara said, “I will even try to make your job a bit easier for you, as long as you don’t lie to me again.”

  “It was my job.” He said uneasily, not turning to look at her.

  “It’s not like it’s some fucking classified stuff that I need a clearance for, I don’t care if it’s your job, if it involves me be honest.” Sara said firmly, still staring at him.

  “Okay, I’ll try not to lie to you again.” He agreed turning to face her.

  “Good, let’s drink on it.” Sara grinned.

  Eric smiled and took another drink.

  As the night went on they continued to talk with the goal of creating a better working relationship through gaining understanding of each other. This would have been a good idea if it hadn’t turned into a game of ‘I drink, you drink’. Sara, who was much smaller than Eric began to feel as if she were spinning laid down on the bed.

  “Light weight” Eric teased, he rose to move to his spot on the floor but sat down instantly, the color from his face drained.

  “Lightweight” Sara tried to tease, but it came out as a slur.

  “I’m just going to lay back for a second…” Eric said.

  Sara meant to respond, but before she could everything went dark.

  ~

  Sara woke up the next morning with a cruel headache, her legs were still hanging off the bed. Not wanting to open her eyes, she blocked the brightness of the daylight with her arm, and was surprised when she felt the movement of a body next to her. Not just a body, a naked body next to her. Eric’s sheet had fallen off as he laid passed out beside her. She sat up, worried that she had done something she shouldn’t have. The quilt which she had forgotten fell down to her waist.

  Eric’s eyes opened, awoken by Sara’s panicked movement. He looked at her and remembered the state that they were both in. Jumping up he grabbed the sheet and tied it around his waist. She pulled up her quilt and scurried to her bag where she pulled out panties and a large t-shirt, even though it was now pointless to hide herself from him she used the quilt as a shield she slipped on the items.

  Eric had also slipped on a pair of jeans and a dry t-shirt. Without saying anything, he grabbed the wet pile of clothes that Sara had tossed and walked outside. She could hear the others ask what happened to them last night, and was relieved when she heard him explain that Sara was exhausted and fell asleep almost immediately.

  She realized the awkward situation that was going to be their working relationship from that point on. Why didn’t I just put clothes on? She thought to herself; I was wet, we were both wet… you can’t put clothes on a wet body or your dry clothes will get wet, she reasoned.

  She was absolutely mortified and was tempted not to look up when he returned to the bedroom. She was somewhat eased that he returned with sandwiches made from leftover dinner which they had missed during their drunken heart to heart. .

  “That was stupid of me,” he said passing her a sandwich, “I hope I didn’t make you feel unsafe, I promise, that will never happen again.”

  “I started it,” She said apologetically.

  “I should have ended it before it started.” He said shaking his head.

  He passed her a sandwich and a small bottle of ibuprofen that he kept in his pocket before he self-consciously adjusted his holster and moved to sit on the floor cross legged facing her. She was grateful for both the sandwich and the headache relief from the ibuprofen. They ate their breakfasts in an almost comfortable silence, avoiding the topic of their drunken but completely innocent slumber party. No matter how ill-advised their drunken bonding session was, Sara was almost thankful it happened.

  Eric stepped out of the cabin while Sara got dressed and ready for the day. It was fairly cloudy outside, she opted for short ripped blue jean shorts, a gray over the shoulder t-shirt, and a navy blue zip up hoodie. She brushed her hair out so that it fell in to long straight strands. She appraised herself in the mirror, and was especially satisfied with how s
he looked. She had been feeling extremely self-aware since the previous night, but felt unquestionably more confident after looking in the mirror.

  Sara walked out onto the deck where Eric was sitting with Carrie, Amanda and Gabriel. It was overcast outside and there was a strong wind blowing, but the air was still warm and humid. Sara sat between Eric and Carrie, and graciously took a beer passed by Gabriel who was looking rather restless. He had beads of sweat on his forehead, and one of his legs bounced up and own uncontrollably.

  Eric was eyeing Gabriel suspiciously when the sound of a motor was heard in the distance.

  “What’s that?” Amanda wondered out loud walking to the back corner of the deck to look for the source of the noise.

  It was rather strange considering that they hadn’t seen many boats in the past 24 hours. In the distance they could see a speed boat racing up the river in their direction.

  “Oooo look at that boat,” Amanda pointed, “Probably some rich tourists showing off.” The group followed to look at the impressively fast boat quickly approaching.

  “Sara,” Eric warned, is voice uneasy, as he placed his hand on her shoulder ready to pull her back.

  “It’s just some joyriders.” Carrie told Eric, obviously annoyed with his incessant worrying.

  He didn’t budge and watched quietly, waiting with his other hand over his holster. The group could make out three men on the boat, and they definitely didn’t look like rich men enjoying a leisurely ride.

  “Are those guns?” Carrie gasped as she stepped back in alarm. Eric grabbed Sara and pulled her behind him when there was a loud thud and Eric slumped to the ground. The girls were stunned as they saw Gabriel standing over him holding a pistol. Eric had been knocked out, and was laying completely unconscious.

  Amanda screamed as the girls turned to run toward the cabins.

  “Stop”, Gabriel commanded, completely ignored.

  In the scramble to the safety of the cabin the girls paid no attention to the man behind them who they had trusted enough to let him accompany them on their trip. He had betrayed them. They had one goal, and that was to barricade themselves behind a door, but before they could reach the cabin a shot rang out and Amanda crashed to the ground.