Page 10 of His Fierce Fugitive

I strain, but all I hear is the rustle of foliage and maybe a few creatures—hopefully, harmless birds.

I shake my head. “Your ears are like five times the size of mine.”

He smiles. “Forgot about that.”

He leads me through some six feet tall brush—a wall of pink and white—that opens to a small secluded waterfall spilling into a serene purple lagoon. As I get closer I see the water is crystal clear and easy to spot anything within it.

"This place is breathtaking," I whisper in awe, taking in the lush foliage and the strange mist that dances in the air. “Is it safe?”

Tak's gaze travels around the perimeter. He nods. "It should be fine. But keep your shoes on, just in case."

“God,” I say, staring into the water, wondering what creature will pop up from the lagoon floor. Still, I haven't felt truly clean since I was abducted, and at this point, I'd risk almost anything to wash away the grime.

“You won’t be able to see whatever might be there,” he says, with a smirk, removing his shirt.

“Not help…ing…” I trail off as my eyes take in Tak’s body. Pecs, biceps, shoulders, and a washboard of delicious abs. I gulp. He goes to pull down his pants. He’s not going to drop trou right in front of?—

Ho, my lord!

I spin around to face the other way.

Yes, yes he is.

I pick up my jaw from the ground. “Tak, you can’t just get naked in front of me.”

“I’m going to bathe.”

“I know, but it’s not…appropriate.”

He sighs, and I can tell by his tone he truly didn’t know. “Sorry, Iris. Should I put my clothing back on?”

“No, just…get in the water enough so I can’t seeeverything.”

I hear him wade into the water.

I turn back around and the water is about rib high on him.

“Is this acceptable?” he asks.

I nod. “Now, look away for a moment. I need to undress.”

He does and I quickly rip off my top and bottoms, and slide into the lagoon.

It feels amazing—so cool and fresh on my skin.

“Can I turn back around now?” Tak asks.

“Yes,” I reply.

He dips under the water, wetting his hair.

“You don’t happen to have any soap, do you?” I ask.

He shakes his head, then looks to one of the rock-covered banks. I watch as he swims over and scrapes what looks like a blue moss off one of the rocks and then moves back over to me. I try not to look down into the water, because it really does nothing to hide what’s in it.

“This moss acts like a cleanser. It has moisturizing properties, too.”

“Perfect.” I open my palms for him to give me some of it, but he just smiles.

---