SEAL's Desire (Alpha SEALs Coronado #1) - Makenna Jameison Page 0,20

voices. We didn’t move away quick enough.”

Blake stood, reaching out a hand to help her up. Once again, he pulled her to her feet, and she looked up at him. He was big. Strong. And looking at her so intently at the moment, she didn’t know what to think. “Was your guide in on it?” he asked, frowning.

“No, I don’t think so,” she said, shaking her head. “They shot him right in front of me.”

He clenched his jaw, nodding. “I’m sorry you had to witness that. Shit,” he muttered, fumbling with his headset.

“What’s wrong?”

“Some sort of interference. All I hear is static instead of an update from my team. Maybe it’s too dense where we’re standing to get a strong signal. We might have to move closer to the edge of the rainforest.”

“Okay.”

He bent over to grab his rucksack, and Clarissa suddenly jumped as she heard a twig snap. Blake quickly switched off the flashlight, no doubt able to see everything with his night vision goggles.

The both stood there a moment, barely daring to breathe. There was the sound of movement further away in the forest. Blake leaned down, his lips near her ear. “We need to go. I think someone’s out there looking for us.”

She moved slightly closer to him, grabbing his forearm in the dark. She felt silly clinging to him like this, but she wasn’t going to let them take her again. She would die fighting before she let them. And she couldn’t see a thing out here now that Blake had turned off the flashlight. He bent down and grabbed his gun, not commenting on the way she still clung to him. “Let’s move further in,” he said quietly. “I don’t see anyone at the moment, but that didn’t sound good. Some of the men could’ve followed us.”

“But your team,” she whispered. “We won’t be able to communicate with them.”

“We don’t have a choice.”

Chapter 10

Blake stood there in the rainforest, feeling Clarissa clinging to his arm. Her hair smelled faintly of flowers, which was surprising since she’d been sleeping on the ground in captivity. Also surprising was the fact that he’d found a kidnapped woman in the middle of running an op.

She was small, her head only coming up to his shoulder, and the way she was clinging to him at the moment practically slayed him. He hadn’t seen much of her in the moonlight in camp, but her long blonde hair and delicate features had awoken his masculine, protective side.

She’d been captured by those assholes. Nearly raped. Seeing her tied up and helpless in the tent had made his blood boil. He wanted to kill Abboud with his bare hands, but the mission had been to bring him in alive.

If they could find the bastard.

And as for Clarissa?

She was handling herself far better than he’d expected. She wasn’t panicked or screaming. She’d kept up with him as they’d hustled the hell out of the camp. She’d been injured and wasn’t complaining or crying. But she was clearly frightened. Her touch was gentle as she clung to his arm, but he could feel her trembling beside him.

Fucking hell.

“Let’s move to the south,” he said gruffly, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her close to his side as they moved forward. His gaze swept the area, but he didn’t see any movement.

“Maybe it was just an animal,” she whispered.

He nodded, realizing she couldn’t see him. “It could’ve been. I don’t hear anything at the moment, but I’d rather ensure your safety. We’ll move further in, away from the camp in case we’ve been followed. We can lay low for a while after that while I attempt to establish communication with my team.”

They walked for a few minutes in the dark, Clarissa sticking close to his side. Her floral scent again filled his nostrils. He hadn’t noticed it in the tent since he’d been wearing his gas mask. And now? He had to admit it was enticing as hell. His libido instantly sprung to life, as inappropriate as it was in the middle of an op.

What could he say?

She was an attractive woman. Her clothing hid her womanly curves, but when she’d pressed against him, he’d felt her plush breasts. He’d been fully decked out in his gear, of course, so he’d only gotten the barest hint of her softness.

But damn. If they’d been back home in San Diego, he sure the hell would’ve noticed a woman like her.

They continued on in the darkness, Clarissa hanging