If itll get you inside, okay. He slipped into the nest beside her and turned his arm toward her.
Got a flashlight? Id like to see what Im working with.
He handed her a small flashlight with a red lens. Better than nothing and not as visible from a distance.
She nodded, wedged the flashlight into the netting and pointed it at Diesels arm. Then she tried to untie the knotted bloody fabric.
Every time her knuckles grazed the wound, Diesel flinched.
Its getting red and puffy around the wound. You need medical attention.
Why? I have you. He winked.
She frowned.
Why the frown? He touched her cheek.
Was she frowning? Reese schooled her face, ripped off another strip of fabric from her shirt, made a pad with part of it and pressed it to his wound, maybe a little harder than she should have.
He flinched. Mad about something?
This whole situation. Im supposed to be on a diplomatic mission with Ferrence Klein, protecting him from threats, not alone in the jungle with a stranger, far from my client.
Sometimes plans change. Missions change. You have to learn to roll with the punches.
She glanced at the nest of branches. Im rolling. She nodded toward the makeshift bed. You sleep. Im taking first watch.
I dont need much sleep. You can go first.
Her lips curled on the corners. Do you always argue this much? Youve lost blood. You need to rest. She switched off the flashlight and remained in an upright position, refusing to lie down beside him.
Diesel could tell by the stubborn tilt of her chin that he couldnt change her mind. Used to catching Zs wherever and whenever he had the opportunity, hed make use of this time to refill his internal store of energy. Have it your way. But wake me in a couple hours. You need to sleep, too. We might have a long trek ahead of us tomorrow. When he woke, hed figure a way out of the jungle and back to his normal routine.
He lay staring up into the darkness, wide awake, wondering about this woman hed rescued from the rebels. She wasnt like most women he knew. How did you end up hiring on to protect Klein?
I had some connections, she replied.
Whats your background? What makes you qualified to protect Klein?
She hesitated only for a moment before firing back, What makes you qualified to recover him? She was feisty and gave as good as she got.
Diesel chuckled. Im in the navy. My team was tasked with the mission to rescue you and Klein.
Silence stretched between them.
Four years active duty in the army and two years on the MMA circuit.
MMA? he asked.
Mixed Martial Arts.
Why the army? he asked.
Why the navy?
Family legacy. My father was a marine, my grandfather was in the navy. I guess you could say it was in my blood. I like a challenge, Diesel said. Your turn. Whats your story?
Why do you care? she said.
Diesel sighed. Look, Im just trying to get to know the woman Im sleeping with in the jungle.
Again, she was quiet for a few moments before speaking. My parents died in car wreck a few days after I graduated high school. I had nothing keeping me there, no home to go to. A recruiter said, Join the army, see the world. So, I did.
But you didnt stay in the army.
No. The one word was spoken in a tight, sharp tone.
Deploy?
Yes. And when I got off active duty, I became an MMA fighter.
Diesel stopped suddenly, his brows rising. Seriously? He touched her arm. An MMA fighter was the last thing he expected to come from her mouth. I mean, youre in great shape and all, but I didnt picture you as someone whod fight for sport. Why the MMA? he asked.
I had some anger management issues I needed to resolve. She shifted. Are you finished with the interrogation?
I am.
Good, because youre supposed to be sleeping.
Diesel suspected there was a lot more to Reeses story than she was sharing, but he wouldnt push her more. If she wanted him to know more, shed tell him. He had enough to go on, for now.
Hed hoped talking would make him less aware of her tight body. When shed been in his lap, hed been so turned on, hed thought for sure shed notice. Her body was honed, her attitude determined, but she was vulnerable enough to make him want to protect her. And if that meant holding her in his arms through the night, so be it. He swallowed a groan on that last thought. Maybe it was a good thing they split the watch and slept in shifts. Nowhere in his life did he have room to fall for the long-legged, curvaceous bodyguard, even if she was pretty hot in the red glow of the flashlight. And she had gumption. No. He needed to complete this mission and move on.
He lay on his back, unable to ignore the warmth of her thigh pressed against his. Swallowing a groan, he focused on sleep. Hed never had trouble falling asleep before hed met Reese. Why start now?