Page 34 of The Hero
Bob clutched her shoulders and stared into her eyes. “You’d make it. I have no doubt. You’re smart. And stubborn. And resourceful. But I give you my word that I’ll do everything in my power to get us both over that border. Okay?”
“Okay.” She took a deep breath. “I’m ready. Piece of cake, right?”
“Right,” Bob echoed. He couldn’t stop himself from leaning forward and kissing her lightly on the lips.
Marlowe grabbed his shirt when he started to pull away. She stared at him for a beat before blurting, “I want you.”
Bob blinked in surprise—but exhilaration coursed through his veins. “I want you too,” he admitted.
“Good. Then when we both get across that border, we’ll take a shower, find a soft bed of some sort, and make love before sleeping for hours.”
“Sounds like heaven,” Bob said.
“Yeah.”
They stayed crouched, staring at each other for another long moment, before Bob took a deep breath of his own. “The sooner we go, the sooner we can find that bed,” he whispered.
“Let’s do this.” She squeezed his hand.
They stood up, and Bob muttered, “Fast walk across the field toward the trees. No running, it’ll bring attention to us if anyone’s in these shacks. When we’re in the trees, we’ll make our way to the next road, wait until the coast is clear, then make a break for the border.”
“Got it,” Marlowe said a little breathlessly.
Bob imagined her adrenaline had kicked up a notch. Sirens sounded not too far from where they stood, and it was now or never.
Without another word, he stepped out into the narrow strip of field behind the shack, holding Marlowe’s hand and praying harder than he had in years. He had more to lose this time. Just the thought of Marlowe being hurt or taken back into custody was as terrifying as anything he’d ever experienced in his life. Including being a POW.
But he’d get her into Cambodia—or die trying.
Chapter Seven
Marlowe’s skin crawled. And not just because of the tropical bugs she was constantly brushing off her arms. The feeling of being hunted wasn’t a comfortable one, and she had no doubt she and Kendric were merely steps ahead of the authorities.
They’d made it into the jungle without drawing anyone’s attention, as far as she knew, but getting through the trees was much harder than either of them had expected. The thick vegetation and thorny bushes were relentless. There were pockets of wet, swampy ground that tried to suck her shoes off at least twice. They’d lost time as Kendric had fished her shower shoes out of the muck. She’d wanted to leave them, but he’d refused, saying there was no way she could walk through the thorns and foliage without something protecting her feet.
Marlowe knew he was right, but she hated that she was slowing them down. The closer they got to the border, the farther away it seemed. Fate wouldn’t be so cruel as to let them get so close, only to have them captured now, would it?
They finally made it to the edge of the road beyond the jungle, a one-lane strip of asphalt in the middle of the trees. Kendric had told her that to their left, about eight miles or so down the road, was one of the many official checkpoints leading into Cambodia. In front of them were fifty yards of more trees, more pricker bushes, shoe-sucking mud holes ... and a fence topped with barbed wire.
“Ready?” Kendric asked in a low, urgent tone.
Marlowe nodded, even though she wasn’t remotely ready. She desperately wanted out of Thailand, but for some reason, she had a sudden feeling they weren’t going to make it. She wanted to hide out in the trees for another day. Wait until those damn sirens that had been going nonstop faded into silence.
“Here we go,” Kendric said in an upbeat tone as he stood and held out his hand. Marlowe grabbed it, and he hauled her to her feet.
They weren’t even halfway across the road when they heard shouts to their left.
“Shit! Go, go, go!” Kendric ordered as he shoved her ahead of him toward the trees.
Five seconds. That’s all it would’ve taken to get across that road unseen. But of course, a roving patrol had to come along at exactly the wrong time.
Her heart beating out of her chest, Marlowe ran. Her shoes flew off, but she didn’t even notice. Their only goal was getting to the fence, then up and over it.
Kendric stayed at her back, his hand touching her as they ran. She had no doubt he could’ve gone a lot faster, but he refused to leave her side. He had her back, and nothing she could say or do would make him go on ahead of her. She knew that better than she knew her own name.
Determination welled up inside her. She wouldn’t do anything to get this man caught. She owed him her freedom. Her life.
She loved him.
