Chapter Fifteen
Tonight, the full moonshone brightly upon the small camp. Their location was mostly underneath the stars, which told Felix they were getting closer to the plantation.
Felix sat by the fire, stirring a stick around in the burning embers. For half of the night, he kept a small fire stoked as he took the first watch. Everyone else slept in their tents, and occasionally the snores of the men drifted through the air. For certain, this particular noise would scare away small animals and other creepy-crawling things in the jungle.
But it was the larger animals he worried about. Like jaguars.
Being out here by himself gave him time to think about a lot of things. Sadness crept over him when he thought about the way Carlos had died. None of the men knew the crocs would be by the waterfall. It could have been any of them—even Felix. Even Katrina. It was so senseless, and he wanted to scream from the injustice of it all.
Something—no,someone—was out there in the jungle causing all this mayhem. How else would the crocs have gotten there if someone didn’t place them in that location? Felix would find thebad spiriteven if it was the last thing he did.
However, he didn’t want it to be the last thing he did. Now he had something to look forward to, a future he never imagined he could have. He’d met so many women like Eva, he assumed they were all made that way. Even some of the poorer women in Macapá were only after his money. Charming him was like a game to them because they knew he’d pay well.
Now he’d met the most amazing woman. His very own Katrina. It frightened him to think a woman could soften his heart in only a few short days, but they had been through many things together and shared passion, laughter, and heartache, times he’d never experienced with any other woman. He could honestly admit he was falling in love for thefirsttime in his life. What he felt for Katrina was far different than what he’d felt for Eva.
He realized she hadn’t told him about her deep, dark, secret...however, he doubted it would be that terrible. Especially, if she confessed about her God-given talent of having sights that let her see briefly into the future. He was certain he’d understand whatever it was she had to tell him.
He set the stick in the fire and stood, stretching his legs and back. Exhaustion was starting to take over his body. He needed to wake one of the other men to take over the second shift so he could get some sleep.
Looking over his shoulder, he zeroed in on Katrina’s tent. He’d go in there and snuggle with her tonight. A grin pulled at the corners of his mouth. He wouldn’t wake her, but just enjoy the closeness until he drifted off to sleep... what a wonderful way to rest.
Anticipation hummed inside of him, and he moved to Pete’s tent and peeked inside. Pete snored so loudly Felix feared his friend would wake the dead along with the living.
“Wake up.” Felix shook his friend.
The snoring became choppy until it came to a stop as Pete blinked awake. “What is it?” he muttered.
“I need you to take over now. I need to sleep.”
Pete rubbed his eyes and yawned. “I will.”
Felix waited outside the tent until the other man crawled out. He stood, stretched, and then scrubbed his hands over his face.
“Are you going to be all right?” Felix asked.
“Yes. I will splash water on my face.”
“Splendid. In three hours, wake Emilio and have him stand watch.”
Pete nodded.
“See you again at first light.” Felix clapped his hand on the other man’s shoulder and squeezed. “If there are any problems, call out or come get me.” He motioned his head toward Katrina’s tent. “I shall rest in there.”
Pete snickered. “Uh, sure you will beresting.” He walked away chuckling.
Felix’s chest shook with silent laughs as he crawled into Katrina’s tent. His men knew him well, that was obvious, yet what they would not realize was that he’d never do anything with Katrina like he had with those other women. Katrina was too special. She was the marrying kind.
Once again, his face hurt from smiling too wide. He did want to marry her, and he’d take her to England with him to be by his side as the Duchess of Rosewood. To be sure, his mother and grandmother would not approve of Katrina’s background, but none of that mattered to him. Katrina would make him happy, and he would be proud to introduce her as his wife.
He hoped she would enjoy life in England. Having Katrina with him would make life bearable over there. If only he could stay here, though. This was where he truly wanted to be.
She lay curled on her side, facing away from him. Quietly, he moved behind her and adjusted his body to spoon with hers. As he slid his arm under her head, she stirred a little but didn’t wake up. He draped his other arm around her waist. Immediately, her body stiffened, but within seconds, a soft sigh escaped her throat and she relaxed against him.
Ahh... so nice.
He pushed his face against her hair, breathing in her intoxicating scent of flowers. He didn’t think it fair that women always smelled so good even when they sweated. Nonetheless, he was content to inhale her fragrance and fall asleep this way.
With gentle care, he stroked her arms that were crossed over her bosom before moving to her waist. She wasn’t deathly thin like most women he’d touched, and now he knew why. Indeed, she was used to hard labor. He couldn’t imagine what it would have been like working in a tavern, but he was certain her beauty had drawn men to her like bees to honey. She had probably spent a lot of her time fighting off drunken men.
