Releasing her hands, he bent down and unzipped yet another section of his backpack. He pulled out the extra black t-shirt and pair of boxers he’d packed, along with a travel-size deodorant, new package of cleaning wipes, and a travel-size mouthwash.
The items were his staples for every job that took him in a wooded area for any length of time. Or, in this case, a jungle.
He always packed the extra clothes because, he never knew when the need would arise. Normally, he wore boxer-briefs, but the white, cotton boxers he brought this time were made of a thinner material, which was cooler in the jungle’s heat..
The deodorant helped to keep his body odor from attracting unwanted predators, and the alcohol in the mouthwash fought against dangerous infections. The wipes were pretty self-explanatory.
It might seem like a lot of extra shit to haul around, but as long as you knew how to pack efficiently—which he did— it really didn’t take up much space.
Jake straightened and held the bundle out to Olivia. “Here.”
“What’s all this?” she asked, taking the items from his hands.
Ignoring the jolt he felt when his fingers brushed against hers, he said, “Just some stuff to clean up with and a change of clothes. I figured you’d want to get out of that dress.”
Jake’s own words spawned an image in his head, which he chose to ignore. He cleared his throat. “Those, wipes aren’t a hot bath, but it’s surprising how much better they can make you feel in a pinch.”
Olivia looked at the items in her hands. When she glanced back up at him, he was rewarded with an even bigger smile. One that finally reached her eyes.
“Wow! You’re quite the Boy Scout, aren't you? Prepared for anything.”
Anything except you, baby. The words nearly fell off Jake’s tongue, but he rolled his lips inward to keep them at bay.
Before he did something stupid—like take her in his arms and slam his mouth against hers—he teased, “Sorry about the white boxers. But don’t worry. I promise I won’t peak at your undies...much.” He gave her a goofy grin and waggled his eyebrows.
Her smile didn’t grow in amusement as he’d expected. In fact, what lift her mouth had before, was now gone completely. Though,, he wasn’t sure why, Jake suddenly wanted to kick his own ass.
Olivia licked her lips and shook her head. “I don’t...um...I mean, I’m not...”
Jake’s gut churned. He’d never seen her look so nervous.
Her eyes skittered away from his, and she took a steadying breath before quickly whispering, “I’m not wearing any underwear.”
His teeth clamped together. Normally, the idea of Olivia wearing a dress without panties would have resulted in an instant and massive hard-on. When Jake thought of the possible reasons she wasn’t wearing any now, the only thing rising in his body was bile.
Until this moment, he hadn’t allowed his mind to go there. Jake honestly didn’t know how he’d react if those bastards had touched her like that. The thought of their filthy hands on his Liv...
“Sweetheart, were you,” he pushed back the need to vomit. “Did they,” another hard swallow. Christ, he couldn’t even say the words without the threat of gagging. Please, say no. God, please let her say no.
Sensing his fear, Olivia eyes grew wide, and she shook her head frantically. “No, Jake. They didn’t rape me. I think...I think Scarface would have, just to hurt me. But I head-butted him and kneed him in the balls before he could.” One corner of her mouth turned up with the satisfying smirk. “I think I broke his nose, too. After that, I ran. That’s when you found me.”
The breath he’d been holding came out in one loud, rush. Rubbing the heels of his hands against his eyes, he prayed she wouldn’t see the tears of solace forming there. When he lowered his arms to his sides, Jake blinked the rest away.
“Thank God.” He gulped in some more air before shoving away his pent-up rage. “The way you reacted when I made that stupid crack about the boxers...I thought—”
Olivia looked at him apologetically. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you like that.” She bit her bottom lip and scrunched her face before explaining, “I just didn’t really know how to tell you I was going commando.”
Jake shook his head and laughed, his relief so staggering, his fucking knees shook. Thank God, she’d at least been spared that particular brand of pain. And speaking of pain...
His smile dimmed as he zeroed in on her bruised forehead and cheekbone. “He do that?”
Olivia’s hand absentmindedly went to her face. “Yeah.”
Jake’s hatred was visceral. The image of some guy’s fist hitting Olivia was so wrong that he—“Wait. Did you say ‘Scarface’?”
One corner of that delectable mouth turned up again, and damn if he didn’t want to kiss it. Not now, dickhead.
“That’s what I called him in my head. He was the guy in charge. He had this mean-looking scar that ran down the entire right side of his face.”
Jake’s pulse quickened because he knew exactly who she was talking about...Javier Cetro.
There wasn’t a lot in this world that scared him. Knowing Liv had been in fucking hand-to-hand with that bastard terrified the shit out of him.
Quickly schooling his thoughts, Jake nodded toward her dress. “That his blood?”
“No.” Sadness and regret flashed in her eyes before she added, “It’s his brother’s.”
He tried not to let his fury show as she recounted how she’d come to be covered in the boy’s blood. If Javier Cetro was still alive, the fucker wouldn’t be for long.
“What happened with that boy wasn’t your fault. You know that, right?”
Olivia innocently bit her bottom lip, and out of nowhere, Jake was hit with the image of him pulling it between his own teeth. For fuck’s sake, McQueen. Put that shit away!
“I know.” She started to reach for the dress’s top button but stopped and looked back at him. “Can
