Maybe it was better if he let her believe he was having a fling instead. It would force distance between them because after his world tipped on its axis back there in the water, he was beginning to believe she was the light. And damned if he wasn’t living in the dark.
Rather than dig a deeper hole, he needed to change the subject. “I’m just relieved that you’re safe.I was going out of my mind when I didn’t know where you were.”
Amy pulled back. The hurt look in her eyes only passed by for a nanosecond. “I’m sure my brother would appreciate everything you’re doing for me if he was here.”
The jolt of pain he’d witnessed threatened to rip his heart out.
This way was for the best. If Knox needed to remind himself of the fact every second, he would. He would do whatever it took in order to keep Amy at arm’s length. Any closer, and his willpower might shatter.
“Do you need anything?” he asked, needing to meet with the elders in their tent so he could come up with an exit strategy out of the jungle. Keeping three civilians alive was difficult, not impossible. Donnie was a wildcard but he was distracted with losing his power over Lorna at the moment. Good for her. Knox hoped the breakup would stick for Lorna’s sake.
“No, I’m good,” Amy responded. “The villagers have supplied everything I could have needed, including food. I think I’ll go lie down in the hut and try to sleep. Unless we’re heading out soon.”
He was already shaking his head before he let her finish her sentence. “We all need rest so we can be at our strongest for the next stretch.”
“Okay then,” she said, taking a step back, creating more space between them.
Even though the move was for the best, he didn’t like it.
“I’ll check on you after I meet with the men,” he said.
She cocked an eyebrow at the last word. “No women?”
“Not saying it’s better, just saying it’s still the way things run around here,” he stated. His beliefs might be opposite but it wasn’t his place to tell the tribe what their values should be. Women gathered food. Men hunted and made the decisions. Children were viewed and treated as little adults from the moment they were weaned from their mothers.
In his opinion and based on his experience, women were fully capable of hunting, defending, and making decisions. The tribe was missing out on their wisdom, if anyone asked him. Since they didn’t, he went with the flow.
Amy walked around him as he sidestepped to get out of her way. The effect was that they crashed into each other, which he knew was the last thing she wanted. Physical contact with him seemed to piss her off.
Again, it was probably for the best. Even considering the jolt of electricity he felt from contact had tobe reciprocated because he saw the same jolt in her eyes.
Knox needed to walk it off. He was getting inside his head about how to deal with his attraction to Amy when in reality, he needed to shut it down. Move on. Stay in his lane.
Easier said than done.
After taking a walk in the perimeter of the village to get perspective back, he stepped into the hut where the elder men were meeting. He’d been here before with Garrett and they’d gone through the same rituals. First, they each drank from the same bowl, passing it to the left. The smoky liquid burned his throat. He was then given a headdress made of feathers, held together by a strap of leather, which he immediately put on. There was a round of chanting followed by sharing a peace pipe. Knox participated as signs of respect for the elders and their hospitality.
An hour later, he emerged after removing his headdress.
His thoughts drifted back to the reason Amy had run away from his tent. If only she knew the truth about why the villager was there in the first place. Going down this road again was a lost cause, he reminded.
Since he wasn’t ready to retreat into his hut, he figured checking on Amy would help his pulse slow to a more reasonable rhythm. Being here in thejungle with her kept him on high alert if he couldn’t see her.
“Hey,” he whispered, not wanting to wake her if she’d fallen asleep. Sleep would be good for her.
“Come in,” came her raspy, sleepy voice.
Damn.
He toed off his shoes before stepping inside. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you.”
“No,” she said, curled up on her side in the hammock meant for two. “You didn’t.”
On closer look, tears soaked her eyes.
“We’re going to be okay,” he soothed, taking a few steps closer and then taking a knee next to her. “You know that, right?”
She nodded before wiping away the moisture.
