Page 7 of Protecting Kelli (SEAL of Protection: Alliance #6)

CHAPTER FOUR

Flash looked tense.

Kelli couldn’t help but notice, and because he was on edge, it made her feel uncomfortable as well.

The other guys had looked a little sheepish when they’d arrived at the put-in spot for their trip, asked Flash why he’d ditched them, riding in the minibus with the girls…and he’d explained that leaving a vehicle full of women unprotected wasn’t the best idea, considering the issues in the country.

Kelli could admit to also being confused when he’d hopped into the front seat of their bus back at the resort.

Once she heard why he’d done it, a warm feeling settled in her bones.

Flash was a good person. And smart. She’d done her research on the country when she’d made all the arrangements for the trip.

She knew how dangerous it could be. But she also hadn’t been terribly worried, assuming they’d be fine at the private resort.

Now, she could admit to feeling a little nervous ever since Charlotte decided she wanted to head off the secure property. Having Flash along made her feel a tiny bit better. Safer.

Once the tubes were handed out, everyone quickly paired up, leaving Kelli with Flash…

which wasn’t exactly a hardship. She enjoyed his company, was extremely attracted to him, and the thought of floating down the river with the Three A’s and Charlotte for hours wasn’t something that sounded fun in the least.

However, Flash hadn’t said much since they’d arrived.

He was constantly looking around, sizing up the area, the employees and other visitors, and looking worriedly at the river itself.

His unease transferred to Kelli. She looked around as well, and didn’t see or hear anything concerning.

But Flash was the expert; he was a freaking Navy SEAL, after all.

He was probably used to bad guys jumping out of the weeds and ambushing him.

But that wasn’t going to happen here…right?

They were perfectly safe. They were surrounded by tourists, and it wasn’t as if the White River was some out-of-the-way place in Jamaica.

It was one of the main attractions for people arriving via cruise ships and for people staying at private resorts, like them.

Flash was just being paranoid…Kelli hoped.

They were getting a bit of a late start on the river because another tour group arrived just before them, and since the large bunch was from one of the huge cruise ships with a timetable to adhere to, those people were allowed to get their tubes and set out on the river before their smaller group of ten.

But finally, it was time to get in the water .

The Three A’s and Charlotte had no problem whatsoever stripping off their already almost see-through cover-ups and displaying their model-thin bodies. Their bikinis were sexy as well as stylish, and Kelli could practically see every guy in the vicinity drooling.

“You guys go ahead. Kelli and I will bring up the rear,” Flash told them, taking hold of Kelli’s arm gently. “I forgot something at the tube shack. We’ll be right back.”

Kelli was confused as she watched the rest of their group screech as they stepped into the apparently chilly water and get themselves situated on their tubes to float down the river.

“What’d you forget?” she asked, as Flash led them back toward the shack.

“Nothing.”

Kelli frowned. “Nothing?” she echoed. “Then what are we?—”

“It looked like you were uncomfortable around them. So I’m giving them some time to get ahead of us a bit, so you don’t have an audience while we’re getting into our tubes.”

Kelli stopped, giving Flash no choice but to stop as well.

He glanced at her. “I’m sorry, did I?—”

She didn’t give him time to finish his sentence before she practically threw herself at him. He went back on one foot but quickly regained his balance. His arms went around her, and Kelli closed her eyes tightly, trying not to burst into tears.

She couldn’t help but remember the last time she’d been at a crowded beach and had taken off her cover-up. She could feel everyone staring at her, judging. She looked nothing like the Three A’s or her cousin. And she’d always felt self-conscious around them. She was just…herself.

After a gentle squeeze, Flash put his hands on her shoulders and eased her back a little. Kelli forced herself to look up at him.

“For the record? There’s nothing wrong with your body. I told you before, you’re lush, and those idiots are probably jealous of your curves. So anything they might have said, or will say in the future, is bullshit. Okay?”

Kelli nodded, not really believing it. It was going to take more than one sexy man saying that he liked her shape to break down years of mental conditioning that said tall and slender was much sexier than short and chunky.

His gaze went back to the river. They could just see their group about to round a bend. “You ready?”

Kelli nodded.

Flash turned them back toward the water, where they’d left their tubes. The area that had been crawling with people ten minutes earlier was suddenly eerily quiet and empty, except for the employees of the tubing company.

Back at the riverbank, Kelli took a deep breath and peeled off her cover-up.

She put it in a box that had been placed near the water by the tubing company, specifically for their group’s belongings.

Refusing to look at Flash, she quickly walked over and picked up her tube and stepped into the river.

Despite the sunny day, it was still early, not even eleven in the morning…and the water was cold. She inhaled sharply and heard Flash chuckle .

“I’m not sure what you were worried about, it’s us guys who should be embarrassed. You do know about shrinkage, right?”

Kelli couldn’t help but giggle. “You sound like that episode of Seinfeld .”

“You like that show?” Flash asked, as he pushed his tube farther out into the current of the river.

“Love it,” Kelli told him with a smile. “And that episode…it just makes me giggle… It shrinks? Like a frightened turtle!”

By the time she’d gotten control over her laughter, they were gently floating down the river. Peeking over at Flash, Kelli saw he was staring at her and smiling in a way that made her wonder exactly what he was thinking.

It was taking all her self-control not to stare back.

Flash was…he was beautiful. There was no other word for him.

His biceps bulged with muscles, his abs were at least a six-pack, and his thighs were thick.

The man was a mixture of muscular while still being long and lean.

She could easily picture him in her mind wearing a skintight wetsuit while sneaking through the water doing Navy SEAL shit.

She had no idea what it was he did while on missions, but he obviously looked damn good while doing it.

Kelli felt frumpy and fat all over again.

Looking at her toes sticking straight up as she tried to adjust herself in her tube, she could only imagine what he was seeing.

Her black one-piece suit covered as much as possible.

She’d refused to get one of those suits that had a skirt though; that just screamed fuddy-duddy, as far as she was concerned .

Her suit was actually cut high on her hips, which she thought helped disguise some of the weight she had in her thighs and stomach.

It had a U-shaped back that dipped low, which she now regretted, as the rubber of the tube was already rubbing against her uncomfortably.

Looking down, she could see her boobs threatening to pop out of the top of the suit, and her belly showed her love of cheese and those Little Debbie snack cakes—Christmas Tree Cakes were her downfall every holiday season.

“How the hell are the girls comfortable in those bikinis on these things?” Kelli blurted, as she shifted once more, trying to find a comfortable position on the tube.

“I’m thinking comfort isn’t exactly their first thought at the moment,” Flash said dryly.

“True.”

“Relax, Kelli. This is supposed to be fun. And soothing.”

“I have a confession,” she said, looking over at Flash once more.

“Yeah?”

“I’m not the best swimmer.”

He looked alarmed.

Kelli went on quickly. “I can swim. It’s just, as much as I love the sun, spending time in the water at the pool or beach was never exactly my favorite thing to do.”

“Well, you’re in luck. Because I’m an excellent swimmer.”

Kelli figured that was probably the understatement of the century. She rolled her eyes at him and was rewarded with the huge grin returning to Flash’s face.

“I know you can’t tell me anything specific, but can you tell me a little about what you do? Like, when you’re on a mission?”

The next hour or so went by extremely pleasantly.

She could hear the laughter and girly shrieks from the others ahead of them, and every now and then they caught up enough to see the group.

Flash told her tales about his job, and she learned about the men he worked with.

She chuckled at their nicknames—Kevlar, Safe, Blink, Preacher, MacGyver, and Smiley.

Individually, they sounded like they were hilarious, and together?

She had a feeling they were probably a handful.

But it was the way Flash talked about his friends’ girlfriends that had her feeling a little jealous.

The women sounded…nice. Which was a totally inadequate word, but it had been a long time since she’d felt as if she were part of a tight-knit group like Flash described when talking about his friends.

And she couldn’t help but feel intimidated when he’d told her some of the things that had happened to the women, and how well they’d coped.

“Remi and Kevlar were actually left in the middle of the ocean to die?” she asked.