been dumbfounded but when he had managed to drum up financial support from his partners, they had gladly let him have it. The area was wild and untamed but with funding and help from his partners, he had made the resort into a luxurious paradise. It had become a veritable Mecca for the more adventurous tourists because Derek was famed for taking tourists to places where angels feared to tread and bringing them back safe and sound. No wild animal had ever harmed anyone he was leading around. In a matter of three years, Derek and Dexen Resort had quickly become sought-after throughout Kenya. He had been travelling all over Africa for the past decade, picking up experiences and adventure; the last three years, he had settled in Kenya.
He loved Kenya. It offered one of the most exotic wildlife tourisms of any place on earth and something about the African country and its virgin, raw, naked appeal drew him and enthralled every last one of his senses.
Ever since he had come here as a wildlife tour guide, he hadn’t looked back. He had adapted so fast and become so knowledgeable about the area, and even the language, that all the locals loved him. Everywhere he went, local women pressed food on him, and young local girls tried to rub their breasts against his arm, their dark eyes filled with silent, wicked promises smiling into his.
He made it a point to avoid them all. He alone knew his powerful secret; he alone knew he could lose all control in the throes of passion. It had happened once with Marjorie; she had discovered his secret and ultimately he had lost her forever.
He smiled a warm welcome now at the assembled tourists in front of him, unleashing his fatal attraction on the gathered crowd with his potent dimpled smile that eased his chiseled features.
Derek was very tall, at six-three, with a mass of long black hair that hung to his shoulders and was tied up at his nape with a band. His eyes were an unsettling shade of grey that tended to turn pure silver when he was in a mood — and he was in a mood more than half the time. Marjorie had described him in that lilting Spanish-accented voice of hers as the “tall, dark, brooding sort with animal magnetism.”
The thought of Marjorie made his heart squeeze in his chest and he shut his eyes for a minute, allowing himself to picture her with her short, wispy blond hair, exotic green eyes, and throaty laugh. He wanted desperately to have her in his arms again, just like in the old days; to sniff her unique shampoo and kiss her chubby cheeks until she chortled. With a tired sigh, he forced his eyes open— hell had a better chance of freezing over before any of that would happen. Besides, at this point, he wasn’t necessarily fantasizing about Marjorie; just any beautiful woman! He had been celibate for more than a decade, thanks to Marjorie!
“Welcome!” he got out, focusing his attention on the men and women assembled in front of him.
Choruses of “Hi,” and “Hello” rent the air.
“You guys ready for our tour? It’s gonna be amazing,” Derek said, smiling at the small group. They were two American couples, an African couple and a Chinese couple and they all seemed very eager to get started. Two little kids, a boy and a girl, were also hanging onto their mothers’ hands, dressed from head to toe in protective clothing.
He hid a grin. He had taken special care of the area and it was as safe as could be. But then, they were tourists; he supposed the slight niggling fear at the back of their minds was part of the excitement. Adventure was supposed to come with some small dread in the pit of your stomach, wasn’t it? Fear was good in this context; otherwise, their outing would just be a snooze-fest.
Something shifted in the wind; he tensed, inhaling deeply as a wild, indefinable scent quivered on the edge of his senses. It was sweet and tangy and strangely intense, and it seemed to go straight to his brain! What was that? Before he could fathom what it was, a fresh gust of wind blew right into his face and he lost the scent.
“I’m Derek Cavanaugh,” he told the tourists, forcing his attention back to them. “I’ll be your tour guide today. The area is pretty much safe but because I’ll be showing you