Once clear, it seemed he could breathe. As if the intense humidity in the air had cleared.
Spine rigid, eyes locked straight ahead, Leighton remained unmoving.
“They’re gone,” he said.
She shifted her gaze to him. “Was I that obvious?”
“No more than I was while shooting daggers at Rayan.”
Leighton held his gaze for a long moment, then a slow smile worked into her expression. “I saw you doing that on the plane.”
Man, he liked that amusement in her face. The light in her eyes while they were enjoying the wildlife. And while he wasn’t sure how to read her expression right now, he knew he’d do whatever it took to get it done. Make sure it happened, free her of the fear that made her rigid and shoved her gaze to the ground.
He watched her leaning on the window again as they bounced along.
Wind whipped her hair and she laughed. “The moon is amazing! If it weren’t so bright, we wouldn’t see hardly anything.”
Please, God. I have to get her out of here. He looked out over the plains to the left. How did he convince her to let him do this? To go with him? Could he ever?
The Cruiser jerked and surged, then gave a death-rattling shudder before falling silent. Dead.
12
Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya
Apollo sat forward, homing in on the driver. “What’s wrong?”
Heart in her throat, Leighton peered through the windows, the incredible moment of taking in the herd of wildebeest near the small water source gone. Her heart, which had felt light a second ago, anchored with worry.
Bakari tried starting the truck a few more times and gave a huff. “Old truck,” he said with a mirthless laugh. “You go out. See animals. I will fix.”
“Out?” Leighton balked, ducking to again search the moonlit terrain. The soft but coarse hair of the lion’s thick mane brushing her fingers was still quite fresh in her mind. “Is that safe?”
“Yes, yes,” Bakari assured as he tugged out the keys, reached under the dash, and whatever he did unleashed a resounding clunk.
Owen glanced at something between the two front seats and pointed to it. “Can you use the radio to call for help?”
“No, it break long time.” Bakari lifted the hand receiver, showing it wasn’t working. “Go, go. Have fun.” He flung open his door and got out, then he went to the front of the Cruiser and hefted up the hood.
“Is he serious?” Leighton asked, uncertainty all but choking her.
“Yeah, I think he is.” Apollo motioned to her. “Let me double-check. Don’t exactly want us becoming second breakfast.” Door open, he hopped out. He stood there, facing her, glancing in both directions, then held up a staying hand. “Hang tight.”
Hovering on the edge of the seat he’d occupied a moment ago, she watched him head to the front, where the driver bent over the engine. “Think you can fix it?” came his distant question.
“Yes.” Bakari patted Apollo’s shoulder and turned him back in her direction. “You go with your girl. See elephants.”
Your girl?
Leighton’s heart tripped and fell all over that small phrase. It was such a small thing to say but held a world of implications.
Bakari handed over the flashlight, grinning. Said something that earned a perturbed look, then pushed Apollo back to her.
When he didn’t climb in, she took that as her signal to join him. She left the safety of the truck, boots crunching on the hard-packed road. A warm wind tossed her hair in her face, so she tucked it back. “Any idea what’s wrong…?”
“No, but we should be underway soon.”
She hoped so—what a forced-but-great opportunity to walk out here with the wild animals. Well, not exactly walk. More like watch from a distance. A very great distance, thankyouverymuch. While the wildlife here was probably used to humans tromping through their territory, they were still wild animals. “And it’s…safe?”
