encircling her waist.
Combining their heat had worked. He was warm.
And he ached . . .
The realization made him scoot away from her as fast as if he’d realized he hugged a tarantula to him. His hasty scuttling in the blankets made her stir. He regretted awakening her. But it was mortifying, the uncontrollable reaction of his body. It was as embarrassing as it would have been if he’d peed his pants in the middle of the night, and a girl was about to discover it. And not one of the giggling, swarming girls from Poplar Gorge Junior High, either.
This wasn’t just
any
girl. It was Harper McFadden.
“Jake?” she asked sleepily.
“Yeah. It’s okay. Go back to sleep,” he ordered gruffly, reaching for a discarded sock.
“’S okay. I’ll get up, if you are.”
Both of them went to the waterfall and washed their hands and faces, then drank mouthfuls of the cool water. Slowly, Jake started to ache a little less, and his self-consciousness faded. They put on their tennis shoes silently. Harper sat cross-legged on the blankets when she was done. Her nose wrinkled.
“What’s wrong?” Jake asked her warily.
“I smell,” she said.
“Like peaches,” he mumbled under his breath, tying his shoe off extra hard. He froze. His eyes widened at the recognition of his misstep.
“Huh?”
“Nothing,” he muttered.
“I wish I could take a bath,” she said longingly, staring at the opening to the cave in the distance. Pale morning light was starting to shine through the small hole in the rocks.
“I brought some soap. I could give you some privacy and you could wash in the waterfall. Water’s ice cold, though.”
“I don’t care,” she said, sniffing in the direction of her armpit and scowling.
“I have another idea,” he said, standing. “It should be safe. One thing I know for sure, Emmitt don’t get up until way after dawn, even when he’s tracking. It’s like his brain doesn’t function in the early morning. We probably have an hour or more to do it, and then to get back here under cover.”
“Do what?”
He nodded toward the back of the cave. “If Emmitt ever did track us here, we’d have to make a fast escape. There’s a small opening onto a river cliff, back there in the second cave.”
“There’s a second cave?”
“Yeah. The entrance to the second cave is even smaller than that one.” He nodded toward the sunlit hole. “Emmitt couldn’t get through it, but we could.”
Harper smiled. “There are advantages to being small.”
He turned his head, afraid she’d notice his cheeks color. She was grinning gamely, and clearly hadn’t realized how her offhand comment about his size pained him.
“Are you afraid of heights?” he asked her.
Her smile faded. “A little. Why?”
“Because the only way off the cliff is through the cave, or over the edge. But the New River is nice and deep below. It’s safe. I’ve jumped the cliff six, maybe seven times,” he assured when he saw her eyes widen with anxiety.
“How far is the jump?”
“Thirty, thirty-five feet at
most
.”
Was it his imagination, or did she go pale? “See, the thing is, if we practice it early this morning, we’ll know we can do it,” he explained in a rush, feeling like he was losing her cooperation by the second. “That way, our escape plan will be in place. We’ll know that even if Emmitt walked right up to this cave, we could get away from him. Plus . . . you’d get your bath. We could bring some soap.” He added the last lamely.
“I don’t know. It sounds scary. Besides, you said that you don’t think your uncle could ever find us here.”
“I don’t think he will. But we have to be ready for the small chance that he does.”
She bit at her lower lip anxiously. Her lips reminded him of the color of ripe strawberries. They looked so pretty next to her copper-colored hair.
“Can’t I just jump if Emmitt ever comes?” she asked, her voice sounding squeaky.
“How’s this? We’ll
Combining their heat had worked. He was warm.
And he ached . . .
The realization made him scoot away from her as fast as if he’d realized he hugged a tarantula to him. His hasty scuttling in the blankets made her stir. He regretted awakening her. But it was mortifying, the uncontrollable reaction of his body. It was as embarrassing as it would have been if he’d peed his pants in the middle of the night, and a girl was about to discover it. And not one of the giggling, swarming girls from Poplar Gorge Junior High, either.
This wasn’t just
any
girl. It was Harper McFadden.
“Jake?” she asked sleepily.
“Yeah. It’s okay. Go back to sleep,” he ordered gruffly, reaching for a discarded sock.
“’S okay. I’ll get up, if you are.”
Both of them went to the waterfall and washed their hands and faces, then drank mouthfuls of the cool water. Slowly, Jake started to ache a little less, and his self-consciousness faded. They put on their tennis shoes silently. Harper sat cross-legged on the blankets when she was done. Her nose wrinkled.
“What’s wrong?” Jake asked her warily.
“I smell,” she said.
“Like peaches,” he mumbled under his breath, tying his shoe off extra hard. He froze. His eyes widened at the recognition of his misstep.
“Huh?”
“Nothing,” he muttered.
“I wish I could take a bath,” she said longingly, staring at the opening to the cave in the distance. Pale morning light was starting to shine through the small hole in the rocks.
“I brought some soap. I could give you some privacy and you could wash in the waterfall. Water’s ice cold, though.”
“I don’t care,” she said, sniffing in the direction of her armpit and scowling.
“I have another idea,” he said, standing. “It should be safe. One thing I know for sure, Emmitt don’t get up until way after dawn, even when he’s tracking. It’s like his brain doesn’t function in the early morning. We probably have an hour or more to do it, and then to get back here under cover.”
“Do what?”
He nodded toward the back of the cave. “If Emmitt ever did track us here, we’d have to make a fast escape. There’s a small opening onto a river cliff, back there in the second cave.”
“There’s a second cave?”
“Yeah. The entrance to the second cave is even smaller than that one.” He nodded toward the sunlit hole. “Emmitt couldn’t get through it, but we could.”
Harper smiled. “There are advantages to being small.”
He turned his head, afraid she’d notice his cheeks color. She was grinning gamely, and clearly hadn’t realized how her offhand comment about his size pained him.
“Are you afraid of heights?” he asked her.
Her smile faded. “A little. Why?”
“Because the only way off the cliff is through the cave, or over the edge. But the New River is nice and deep below. It’s safe. I’ve jumped the cliff six, maybe seven times,” he assured when he saw her eyes widen with anxiety.
“How far is the jump?”
“Thirty, thirty-five feet at
most
.”
Was it his imagination, or did she go pale? “See, the thing is, if we practice it early this morning, we’ll know we can do it,” he explained in a rush, feeling like he was losing her cooperation by the second. “That way, our escape plan will be in place. We’ll know that even if Emmitt walked right up to this cave, we could get away from him. Plus . . . you’d get your bath. We could bring some soap.” He added the last lamely.
“I don’t know. It sounds scary. Besides, you said that you don’t think your uncle could ever find us here.”
“I don’t think he will. But we have to be ready for the small chance that he does.”
She bit at her lower lip anxiously. Her lips reminded him of the color of ripe strawberries. They looked so pretty next to her copper-colored hair.
“Can’t I just jump if Emmitt ever comes?” she asked, her voice sounding squeaky.
“How’s this? We’ll
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