Page 37 of Delirium

I trailed behind Nash, following his footsteps easily. Somewhere behind me I could hear Camp, or maybe it was James, tramping through the brush as well. Just like Nash’s voice had felt like it was coming from all directions, so did the footsteps trailing us. It was impossible to separate the sounds individually from the cacophony of the rainforest surrounding us, alive on every level. A chorus of frogs croaked, deeper than I could’ve ever fathomed. Cicadas came alive in the damp heat. I thought I could make out the trickle of running water, but it just as easily could’ve been my imagination. I sniffed the air, surprised to find the heavy scent of orchids once more. Outside of the rainforest, they were considered a rarity, but here…they seemed to bloom without hesitation.

Eventually Nash turned to me with yet another smile on his face, as if the previous moment was all but forgotten. “Are you ready?”

I met his easy grin, even as my thoughts reminded me I had no idea what was behind the curtain of leaves in front of us. “Always.”

Nash parted the leaves, shifting to the side so I could walk past him.

Stepping through the canopy was like stepping into an alternate reality, even more lush than the wild rainforest we already found ourselves in. My mouth fell open as I took everything in, trying to remind myself what I was seeing was real, tangible. It was hard to know it was right here, instead of behind a screen, or on a photograph, or even just in a dream.

Because it surely looked like a mirage.

The rainforest opened up to a clearing, nearly a perfect circle, with the immense azul waterfall directly in front of and above us, spilling into a stunningly clear pool of water at its base. It was the most serene shade of blue, clear enough I could make out the bottom even from where I stood.

“Nash…it’s beautiful,” I whispered, tearing my eyes away from the scene in front of me to look at him.

He smiled. “I told you that you would like it. And now you understand why I asked you if you brought your swimsuit.”

I shook my head. “Is it safe to swim in there?” The water didn’t look stagnant or diseased, but I didn’t think that alone meant it was safe, either.

“As safe as anything in this world can be.” He pointed up to the top of the waterfall, a good twenty-five feet above our heads. “There’s enough water coming down that it keeps the water from staying still for too long. And then this tiny stream feeds back into the main river.” He trailed his finger down to the pool, tracing the outline of the small stream I had missed at first glance.

“Holy shit,” Camp cursed, coming out of the trail behind me. “Now this, this is what I’m fighting for. To keep places like this free and safe from humans and their pollution.”

“We’re humans, and we’re here,” I pointed out.

Camp grabbed my shoulder, squeezing lightly. “I have a feeling you aren’t here to destroy nature’s beauty for a couple of bucks in your wallet.”

Nash spoke over both of us. “Right, well, I’m going swimming. Anyone joining me?”

Camp looked just as dumbfounded as I felt. “We were supposed to bring a swimsuit?”

Already tugging his shirt off, Nash turned to shake his head at us. “Don’t tell me you’re scared of getting a little wet after blowing up a pipeline and running from the cops.”

I knew what was going to happen before the last words even left Nash’s mouth. Camp was not one to turn down a challenge. When I glanced over at him, he was already stripping out of his clothes, dropping his pants until he stood in nothing more than his boxers.

“What are we waiting for then?” Nash asked.

I tried to ignore the way my pulse raced, and the goosebumps trailed up and over my skin, even in the thick heat. Nash, broad, tanned shoulders and thick muscles raced Camp’s lean build to the pool. Now I was certain—I really had died and gone to heaven. It was the only way two men, who I found myself captivated by, were about to go swimming half naked in the most stunningly perfect place I’d ever seen. There was no other way any of this could be real.

Nash whooped, leaping into the pool with an effortless grace, while Camp followed close behind, diving in without a splash.

“Jesus, that’s cold!” Camp cried, and Nash laughed. Their friendship was an odd one, likely built more from proximity than things they had in common, yet they had struck a balance.

The crunching and swearing grew louder behind me, as James appeared through the underbrush.

Still dressed in one of his perfectly white shirts, the only thing that gave away how uncomfortable he was in the heat was his quiet panting. Otherwise, he could’ve been in a boardroom, leading a dozen men in some corporate meeting. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, exposing the muscles that usually lay hidden underneath. They flexed when he wiped his brow of seemingly imperceptible sweat. His blue gaze drilled into me, piercing me with a thousand unspoken words, before drifting over to where the guys floated.

“I’m going to go ahead and guess this was a lost cause for me,” he muttered beneath his breath, taking a seat on one of the rocks surrounding our tiny bit of paradise. “Which Nash probably fucking knew in the first place.”

I wasn’t sure if I was meant to hear what he said or not, but I couldn’t help myself from finding out more—a curse to be sure. “What was that?”

James seared me with another sharp glance. “Nothing you need to concern yourself with.”

I rolled my eyes. Nash must have lured him off the boat with the possibility of his hidden city being out here, and now we were all going to have to deal with the fallout of a miserable James.

“Maybe you should try and keep your inside thoughts inside, then.”

James cocked his head, weighing me up as competition, or possibly as prey. Whatever he was about to say passed, because his expression shifted to a neutral one once more. “At least you seem to have more brain cells than Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum out there.”

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