The trail was barely wide enough for one person. Ramsey led the way, with Avalyn directly behind him. Avalyn appreciated the opportunity to be in nature and move her legs. It helped calm the anxiety over her impending doom. Bridger was walking behind her. She glanced over her shoulder, and he gave her a reassuring smile and a wink. Avalyn smiled back.
How could he make her feel so special and safe when there was no reason to feel either? She knew she couldn’t be special to a man who would never settle down with one woman, and she was the furthest thing from safe—walking directly behind Bridger were men with guns strapped to their backs, and not because they were worried about animals in this remote jungle. They were worried about Bridger attacking their boss, and with good reason. It warmed Avalyn clear through that Bridger wanted to take Ramsey out for her.
Water pounding against rocks reverberated throughout the forest. Ramsey glanced over his shoulder at her, his blue eyes lit up. If Avalyn didn’t know he was a murderous psycho, she’d think he was a fun-loving, happy guy. She’d seen him in different videos of Bridger’s and always thought he was funny and seemed like a good guy. How wrong perceptions could be.
“Do you like to swim in waterfalls?” Ramsey asked.
“Yeah,” she said slowly. Who didn’t like to swim in waterfalls?
“You’re going to love this.”
Bridger’s hand rested on her back, as if to assure her he was there and she wouldn’t be subject to Ramsey. He kept it there as they crossed the last fifty yards and then entered a small clearing.
She stared up at the beautiful waterfall dancing over mossy rocks. It wasn’t as powerful as some she’d seen, but it was very pretty as it pranced from one boulder to the next before doing a freefall descent forty feet to a clear pool beneath. The water from the pool trickled out and down the stream they’d been walking next to.
Ramsey ripped off his shirt and climbed up the boulders next to the waterfall. It was a precarious climb, but he moved like a mountain goat. When he was about sixty feet up, he yelled, “Watch this!” and pushed off and dove into the pool below.
“Is that pool deep enough?” Avalyn gasped out. Then she shook her head. She shouldn’t care if Ramsey split his skull open.
He surfaced, beaming at them. “Try it!”
Avalyn shook her head. “No thanks. I’m afraid of heights.”
Ramsey’s face blanched. Avalyn wondered if he actually felt remorse, if he was even capable of it. He seemed like he had multiple personalities or maybe was bipolar.
He swam to the edge of the pool and stood, the water about waist deep. His tanned body glistened with water droplets. Avalyn supposed most women would consider him attractive. Not her. His mouth worked, and he finally said, “Good thing we’re done with the parachuting, then.”
Bridger wrapped his hand around her waist as Avalyn’s stomach churned.
“You’ll do it, won’t you, Bridge?” Ramsey asked, like an eager child.
“He really needs to find some friends,” Bridger murmured to her.
Avalyn hid a laugh.
The guards stood stoically, not taking off their shirts to swim. Their faces were impassive. She supposed Bridger was right. If these were Ramsey’s usual companions, he desperately needed some real friends. Maybe that was why he was so crazy.
Avalyn hoped Bridger wouldn’t do the jump. If he got hurt, who knew what Ramsey would do to her? She could see him eyeing it as if he wanted to jump.
“We’ll just swim,” Bridger said.
Avalyn’s eyes widened. Bridger had turned down a quick thrill. For her?
“Aw, c’mon. Bridger Hawk never turns down a challenge,” Ramsey taunted him. “‘What’s a challenge, and where do I find it?’ That’s the Bridger Hawk we all know and love.”
Bridger tensed against her. He ignored Ramsey and looked to Avalyn. “Do you want to swim?”
She nodded. She did want to swim, but the pool wasn’t very big and she didn’t want to be anywhere near Ramsey.
“Come on in.” Ramsey splashed some water at them, a gleam in his eyes. He pushed his way out of the water and sat on a rock.
Bridger directed her around the pool, twenty feet from where Ramsey sat. He let go of his grip on her to pull off his T-shirt. Avalyn took a moment to gape at his defined chest. She forgot Ramsey and his cronies were watching them and traced her finger along his muscular shoulder. Bridger gave her a smile that warmed her much more than the tropical sun.
“You two need a room?” Ramsey asked, laughing to himself.
Bridger rolled his eyes. Avalyn sat down on a rock and unlaced her shoes and slid out of them and her socks. She was not going to take any of her clothes off, even though she had a sports bra on underneath. She’d rather have her blue T-shirt plastered to her chest than nothing covering her as Ramsey’s gaze on them never wavered.
She walked carefully into the pool, the irregular stones a little uncomfortable to walk on. Bridger joined her, and as soon as they were waist deep, he dove under. Avalyn bent down and pushed off the rocks but kept her head above water. The pool wasn’t huge, but it was deep. They quickly swam over to the waterfall and ducked underneath it. The spray massaged their heads, necks, and shoulders.