CHAPTER NINETEEN
MARCUS
What was he doing? Here he was, in the middle of nowhere with a girl he’d known for a week, and he was experiencing emotions that he thought had long been buried.
Happiness.
Guilt.
Elation.
More guilt.
Yearning.
Definitely more guilt.
He wasn’t even looking in Katy’s direction, yet he could feel her presence. She was one of the sweetest, most down-to-earth people he’d ever met on the planet, and he’d met quite a share of the opposite.
Now he held her heart in his hands, with her sharing her pain.
To respect her was one thing, to love her another, and to act on it, yet a completely different story. He didn’t know where this thing with Katy was headed, but he’d give it a cautious chance.
Katy paused at the steps of the bus and turned to Marcus. “You want the window seat?”
“No, it’s okay. You’ll be able to see better without me blocking you.”
“But if you’d rather…”
“Really, it’s okay.”
She turned back toward the bus and headed in as his heart did a little flip-flop again at how kind she was.
Once everyone was on the bus, the driver angled it through the jungle.
“I hope this bus is four-wheel drive,” Marcus said.
It was pretty obvious it wasn’t when the wheels stalled just a few minutes in. Marcus and Katy exchanged glances as the driver revved the engine. When the exercise sounded futile, Marcus stood.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“To help push the bus.”
Marcus got out, followed by several other men, and they dislodged the bus from the rut. The rest of the passengers cheered from their seats. The crew clambered in quickly before the bus got stuck again.
“Maybe we should have taken the helicopter,” Katy said as he returned to his seat.
“Yeah, but this is more interesting.” Marcus grinned. He was actually enjoying himself.
With every dip and bump and rut, Marcus told himself this. Otherwise, he would have gone insane. His head and stomach jostled with every movement.
“They should do this at Disneyland,” he suggested. “The Chicken Bus simulation ride.”
She laughed.
With each bump, their arms touched. Marcus tried hard to keep himself from touching her, but it was hopeless. He jabbed her with his elbow accidentally.
“Sorry,” he said.
On a bumpy rut, she practically fell against his chest. Out of instinct, his arms went around her to steady her.
“Sorry,” he said yet again.
But he really wasn’t. Her face was just inches from his. She felt soft and warm in his arms.
Her eyes widened.
Amanda’s face floated in his mind.
You can’t afford to lose someone else in your life.
He withdrew his arms from around Katy and, despite the ensuing strain on his body, kept to his side for the rest of the ride.