SEAL's Desire (Alpha SEALs Coronado #1) - Makenna Jameison Page 0,21

onto him since he kept the flashlight off. Blake periodically adjusted his headset, testing the comms. “Damn it,” he muttered.

“Still nothing?”

“Nope. I’ve got a sat phone in my rucksack, but again, it won’t be much use either this deep in the forest. Normally it’s not an issue on most ops.”

“The canopy is too thick here. The river eventually widens though if we can find it. You should be able to get a clear signal there, unless we turn around and go back of course.”

Blake grunted, admiring her thought process. She was smart, that much was for damn certain. Lots of kidnap victims were hysterical, out of their mind with fear. He’d rescued women and children before in awful situations. He and his teammates had sometimes needed to physically carry them to safety. Clarissa may have been injured but she was thinking clearly, analyzing different ways they could escape.

And hell if he didn’t appreciate a woman who could handle herself. Not that he minded the way she stuck to his side. He felt about ten feet tall having a beautiful woman like that need him. Hold on to him for comfort and safety. Not that anything would come of this little rendezvous. They’d make their escape from the depths of the rainforest, fly back to the States, and then go their separate ways.

After ten minutes moving slowly through the dark, they heard the trickle of water. “That doesn’t sound like the river,” she said.

“No. We didn’t see a river when we moved through here earlier. It must be farther in. You said you were walking for several hours when they took you. We can probably stop and rest though if you want.”

“Okay. I do feel a little dizzy.”

“Shit. When was the last time you had anything to eat?” Blake asked, setting his rucksack down on some rocks. He flipped the flashlight back on, giving them a small amount of light in the middle of the dark forest.

“I’m not sure—this morning, I guess. Well, yesterday morning. They brought me some rice and that was it for the day. I don’t think they gave me any water either.”

“Hell,” Blake said, frowning as he looked at her. “I’ve got some protein bars and MREs stashed in here. I should’ve offered you something before.”

“There’s food in the rainforest, too,” she assured him. “Fruits and edible plants. Insects, although I don’t think I’ll be trying those unless we’re desperate.”

He chuckled. “What did you say you did? Biologist?”

“Yes, at the University of Texas.”

“Hook ‘em Horns,” Blake joked, digging through his gear.

“You’re a fan?” she asked with a short laugh, sinking down beside him.

His lips quirked. It felt good to talk about something normal in the middle of the chaos. For a brief moment, he’d put aside her kidnapping and the fact that he was incommunicado with his team. Not to mention that he was dragging a woman through the Colombian rainforest.

Jesus.

Missions often didn’t go as planned, but this had to be a first for him—separated from his men with a beautiful woman at his side.

“I’m originally from Oklahoma,” he said with a low chuckle. He moved aside a thermal blanket, digging lower to where his food was stashed. He’d stuck two MREs in there in case things went south, but damn. This was supposed to be easy in and easy out. They’d call for extraction when they were done, not hunker down for hours or spend the night out here.

“Somehow I can’t see you in a cowboy hat,” she mused.

“Protein bar or MRE?” he asked, holding both up.

“Protein bar, thanks.”

Unthinkingly he tossed it toward her, then cursed. Surprisingly, she grabbed it with her good hand. “Sorry,” he said, somewhat sheepishly. “I forgot about the hand for a minute.”

She fumbled, trying to open the wrapper with her one good hand, and he reached over to her. “I got it,” he said easily. Their fingers brushed as he handed it back to her, although he still had on his gloves. Fascinated, he looked at her slender fingers. She didn’t seem like the biologist sort—she looked fragile and beautiful. She wasn’t caked in makeup, obviously. What woman would be in the middle of the woods?

She was blonde, but not the stereotypical type he met in Southern California. She wore hiking boots and had a button-down shirt over a camisole. It was feminine yet outdoorsy. And she’d apparently willingly come here to study and collect samples.

He’d wanted to laugh the last time he took a woman outside for a date, and