Proximity (10 page)

Chapter Eight

They all slept for well over twelve hours before spending the next afternoon volunteering with the locals to help repair the damage done by the earthquake. Bill couldn't do much with his broken arm and bruised ribs, but he managed to help out as best as he could.

All day he'd been thinking about yesterday's dive and how lucky they were to be amongst the living. Tomorrow would be another day of volunteering where they were needed. Perhaps it wasn't the trip any of them had planned, but travelers adapted to changing circumstances and appreciated the privilege of immersing themselves in foreign cultures.

"Are you ready for your big date?" Derek asked from where he lounged on the other bed in the room with a laptop resting next to him.

He glanced down at his black t-shirt and jeans. "I didn't exactly pack for a date night."

Derek shut the lid on the computer and frowned. "Did you mean it the other night when you said you were moving to California and leaving the group? Savannah's like a sister to me, man, and I don't want you messing with her just because you want to fulfill some fucked up fantasy before you head out to parts unknown."

He met his friend's gaze before sitting on the narrow sofa lining one side of their tree house bungalow. "I came down here feeling like I was at a crossroads of sorts. Maybe I said some things the other night that I shouldn't have, but Savannah has been my best friend for years now. I guess I sort of thought we were stuck there because she wasn't interested in crossing that line and I want more from my life. Know what I mean?"

"Not really. Seems like you've divided your life into two areas over the past year or so. We're your best buddies out of the country but when we're home—"

"That's not true." He frowned and shook his head. "I see Savannah all the time, multiple times a week."

"Did you invite us to your housewarming party? You were one of the groomsmen at Jon's wedding, we all were, but when your company goes public, where were we?"

He had no answers that made any sense. "You guys keep me real. I protect you all, I guess. I want you all to myself. Why is that so wrong?"

"And Savannah? Will you hide her away, too? Maybe she's not good enough for your other friends." Derek stared at him, as serious as he'd ever seen him. "I wouldn't have thought any of these things if you hadn't declared your intentions to move and quit the group, Bill. You suddenly hit the big time and your good ol' buddies aren't worthy of your presence anymore. We've all been talking today—"

"All?" Dread smacked him in the gut.

"Not Savannah, no."

He'd never assumed they'd think he wanted to hide them from his so-called new friends. He scrubbed his right hand across his forehead and winced at his impetuous decision to announce his departure from the group as if he were someone more important than the rest. "It's been a confusing time for me. I had no right to dump on you guys before the dive. You need to trust me when I say that you all are closer to me than my own family. I'm really sorry if I came off as something other than genuine."

"I'm not going to let you hurt her, none of us will. You know that, don't you?" Derek shifted to sit on the edge of his bed. A big guy, he didn't need to try to look intimidating—his sheer mass got the message across. "If this doesn't go well, we'll all be more than happy to kick your ass out of Texas."

He laughed at the threat, even though he knew it wasn't idle. "High stakes...I understand. I notice no one is giving her a lecture or is Stewart over there now? What if she breaks
my
heart?"

Derek shrugged, a grin reappearing on his face lined with three days' worth of stubble. "We'll all assume you deserved it and kick your ass out of Texas."

"Ah, I see what's going on. Now you're acting like her big brother and making sure I know my place. Believe me," he stood and walked toward the mirror next to the armoire, "yesterday humbled me more than I'll ever be able to explain."

"You and me both," Derek admitted, his grin fading. "Just don't fuck up tonight, okay?"

"I'll try." He glanced at himself in the mirror and grinned at the bruise on his forehead. He thought it added to his rugged charm.

When Jon, Stewart, and Paul suddenly walked into the bungalow high in the trees, he knew they'd come with a similar message.

"Are you ready for your date with Savannah?" Jon looked him over from head to toe and shook his head. "A t-shirt? That's the best you can do?"

"I packed for a dive trip." He rolled his shoulders back, thankful for the pain meds that had stopped the throbbing from the bruised ribs. "We're in a jungle. What did you all bring? A tux just in case?"

No one looked impressed at his argument.

"We all have a lot at stake in this," Stewart said, walking toward Bill's luggage and pushing other t-shirts aside. "You're a big shot millionaire now and you seriously don't have anything nicer to wear?"

"I'm going to dinner with
Savannah.
" He widened his eyes when the four men gaped at him like he'd said something insulting. "What now?"

"Yeah, you're going to dinner with
our
Savannah." Paul shook his head in disgust. "I can't believe you said that."

"I said what you just said. What's wrong with all of you?"

"She deservers better than a t-shirt wearing punk in worn out jeans, that's what," Jon said.

"I'm a
punk
now?" He laughed at his group of buddies who he had known as long as Savannah. They'd traveled the world together, had had each other's backs, and now here they stood acting like he'd just strolled in off the street. "Okay, let me clear the air. I know I started the trip being a bit..." he struggled for the right word.

"Weird?" Stewart asked.

"Arrogant?" Jon suggested.

"What they said," Paul jabbed his thumb toward the others.

"Even if I move out of Texas—or am run out—I will never abandon this group. I'm sorry for acting like an asshole." He looked them each in the face so that they would understand his sincerity. "I love Savannah, have for a long time, and hope that our relationship won't change the team dynamic because that would really suck—for her and me."

They all stared at him for a minute in silence.

"Why are you still here talking to us? You should never keep a lady waiting." Derek stood and walked to the mini-bar where he grabbed beers for the other men. "Get going."

"You'd better make up for your appearance by treating her like a princess." Jon followed him to the door. "You know, in my marriage I—"

"Oh, stop!" Stewart tossed a pillow at Jon's back. "Not more words of wisdom via Jon. Do you know what hell it was being stuck in a cave with this guy going on and on about his perfect wife?"

Bill met Derek's gaze and laughed, "Yeah, I'm sure you all had it worse than the rest of us. Goodbye."

He stepped onto the suspension bridge, thankful for the relative silence of the jungle. The lanterns strewn over the bridge glowed in the twilight. Somewhere a howler monkey roared followed by the stirring of branches high in the rain forest surrounding them. Fireflies twinkled against a backdrop of green.

Although the resort had sustained some damage from the earthquake, it had all been superficial compared to the villages scattered throughout the countryside. He paused and listened to the river moving unseen not too far away. Thunder echoed in the distance yet the rain remained at bay.

He took his time walking to Savannah's tree house. With each step he thought of their friendship and the journey it had taken to get to this point. Everything had changed in that cave—kissing her, fearing for her life, making love to her, watching her climb away from him—they were different people than the two who had arrived.

He knocked, averted his gaze to the buzzing fireflies, and hoped that she hadn't changed her mind.

"Hey, honey baby," she drawled.

He smiled and took a step back to enjoy the view. "Damn, Savannah, you surprise the hell out of me time and time again."

She wore a strapless yellow sundress that showed off her delicious curves and endless legs. Her black hair had been brushed into a gleaming sheen that hung straight to her elbows. To his complete shock, she wore make-up—mascara highlighted her large brown eyes and a touch of red tainted her smiling lips. She'd look drop dead gorgeous wearing nothing but a potato sack, but seeing her like this solidified his belief that she was most definitely out of his league.

"What'd you do?" he managed to ask.

"I fancied myself up."

* * *

"Did you know there are two thousand species of fireflies in Costa Rica?" Bill asked while pouring her a glass of wine.

She loved it when he got all nerdy and started spouting off nature facts. Grinning, she let him go on and on about fireflies while indulging in simply staring at him in the candlelight. He'd reserved a secluded table in the resort's restaurant high above the jungle floor. White and purple orchids decorated the table. Lanterns moved in the slight breeze while the canopy of the rain forest whispered mysterious secrets.

Even with his left forearm encased in a cast and a nasty gash above his right eye, he managed to pull off the part of charming gentleman. When he flashed her a smile that gleamed white against his tan skin, she wondered how she'd been able to ignore her attraction to him for so long.

Then she remembered and looked away. All day she'd struggled with the idea of what to do with
Bill,
with this game of chicken she'd started, and realized she wasn't willing to hit the ditch.

Some people were worth risking it all for—even her heart.

"I'm boring you with rain forest statistics, aren't I?" he asked.

She smiled and shook her head 'no.'

"Why are you so quiet?" His eyes darkened.

"I'm thinking about our game of chicken."

He toyed with the rim of his glass. "I thought you'd forgotten about that."

"Me? Forget a dare?" She leaned her elbows on the table, dinner and desert long gone, and looked at him from across the table. "Yesterday you told me that you loved me. Do you remember that or were you out of your mind with fear?"

He grinned and took a long sip of wine before answering, "I remember everything."

Flashes of sensory memory from having sex in the cave melted her panties to her skin. She crossed her legs beneath the table. When she met his gaze, she knew he shared the same memory.

"Then pay the check and let's go back to my bungalow." She winked and pushed away from the table. "I don't fancy myself up for anyone, Billy Boy."

He stood and slowly walked around the table. Without touching her, he leaned an eyelash away from her face. "I don't want another girlfriend, I want the whole damn sha-bang."

Tears filled her eyes. He was really pushing the whole game of chicken thing.

Nothing scared her more than loving someone, trusting them not to leave, believing they wouldn't disappoint her time and time again.

He tipped her chin up with his fingertip. "Savannah, look at me."

She slid her gaze over his neck and face before finally looking him in the eye.

"You already trust me with your life every time we hit the water, now I'm asking you to trust me with your heart."

"I know what you're asking," her voice hitched on the last word.

"Then say yes."

She thought of all the times she'd looked longingly at other couples and wished she had a man adoring her like that, as if she were the only woman in the world, and here he'd been doing that all along.

"I could do worse," she said, her hands sliding up his chest. "I think I want to try."

"No bullshit?"

"I'd never lie to you, not about this."

Instead of kissing her, he snagged her hand in his and led them away from the restaurant, muttering something about already taking care of the bill before they'd arrived, and led them toward the bridge to her tree house.

Thunder sounded in the distance and lighting flashed momentarily. Moisture from the thick humidity slid between her breasts. Neither said another word as she unlocked the door.

Once alone, he pulled her against his chest and smiled. "I dreamed of you and me...but I never believed it could happen."

She kissed his chin, her hands working his t-shirt up his chest. She didn't want to talk because she wasn't sure she'd be able to articulate the crazy emotions spinning in her heart. The past few days had been too intense, too jarring.

"Are you really going to marry me, Savannah Willis?" He walked backward toward the king-size bed in the middle of the room.

Feeling more alive and daring than ever before, she smirked and pushed him back into the center of the mattress, not caring one bit that he winced from the bruised ribs. "How about we make a deal?"

"Sounds scary." He watched her lifting the dress over her head and tossing it aside without moving from where she'd shoved him.