Page 30 of Knox's Mission

Amy wasn’t sure why she was included except to say it made sense people might worry considering danger lurked around every corner. She’d been too distracted with processing hurt feelings to see the bigger picture.

“We’ve been right here,” Lorna said sternly. “We’re fine. Now you can go.”

“Fine,” Donnie responded, tightlipped. He glared at Amy. “Thor is looking for you and he’s about to turn the village upside down until he finds you.”

Thor?

Couldn’t say she understood the reference except to say Knox had god-like strength and was damn good looking. His hair was too dark to be Thor’s, but the whole chiseled jaw bit scanned.

Amy pushed to standing and then looked at Lorna. “I better show him that I’m alright or he might actually turn the village upside down.” Not because he loved her but out of a sense of duty to her brother. It was the only logical explanation.

Lorna nodded but didn’t stand up. Was Donnie’s show of concern getting to her?

When Amy’s back was to them, she rolled her eyes. She also acknowledged how hard it was to break old habits. Lorna had been in love with Donnie for three years and was struggling to move on, despite her claim their relationship was over. Time would tell if she could stick with the breakupwhen Donnie seemed committed to winning her back.

The second Amy stepped into view, the villagers locked onto her. They started waving their hands in the air like they were trying to land an airplane. A couple of the kids scrambled in the opposite direction.

The attention freaked her out. It was uncomfortable to have all eyes on her. The kids came running, a pair of them on either side of Knox, holding his hands while urging him forward.

The jolt when their gazes connected could be felt even from where she stood. Even at this distance, she could see how distraught he’d been. Did he believe she would wander off in the jungle alone? She hadn’t considered it for one second. She hadn’t lost her senses despite being upset.

Knox ate up the distance between them in quick strides.

“I was just?—”

He stopped her cold when he brought her into an embrace and hauled her against his chest where she felt his heart beating wildly. “I thought I lost you.”

“I’m here,” she reassured. “I’m not going anywhere…I wouldn’t disappear without a word.”

It dawned on her those kinds of things happened in the wild and she realized her mistake. Being madwas fine. Being alone was okay. Scaring others wasn’t and hadn’t been her intention.

“Don’t ever do that again,” he said, feathering a kiss on her forehead. “Please. Don’t ever leave me like that.”

The desperation in his voice almost had her believing he meant that in a romantic sense. Would it matter if he was incapable of devoting himself to her?

Because right now, she wanted to promise him the world.

“I’m here,” she reassured. It was all she could give.

Knox had almost losthis mind with worry. Had he overreacted?

Not out here. Not when a villager left to get water in the river and was never seen or heard from again. Not when dangers lurked literally everywhere.

“What happened?” he asked. “Why did you take off like that?”

She caught his gaze, looking surprised by the question.

“You were…busywhen I stopped by your tent,” she stated.

“What?” He seriously wasn’t connecting the dots.Tracking back in his mind, it finally dawned on him. “Hold up. You didn’t think anything was going on between me and the woman who left my tent, did you? Because that would be a sacrilege.”

“It wasn’t any of my business,” she said, studying him. “I overstepped my bounds and had no right to get upset like I did.” And then his last words sunk in. “Why would it be a sacrilege? You’re two consenting adults. It’s your business what happens now or whatever happened between the two of you in the past.”

“You didn’t see the fact she was crying?” he asked. What exactly did Amy believe was going on? A fling?

“She refused to look at me when she blazed past,” Amy admitted. She shot him a look of confusion.

For a split-second, he thought about telling her what was really going on. Should he? Keeping a grip on his emotions when it came to Amy was proving more difficult than he thought. If she knew he was the reason her brother was dead, she would hate him.

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