Green blurs through the glass window, and I focus on the forests passing by and ignore how his thumb makes small circles on my skin as he hums along to a song.
Twenty excruciating, tension-filled minutes later, we pick up a family of five; three small girls, all under the age of ten, climb into the van and take over the back bench. Giggles and noise fill the vehicle, and two tired parents follow close behind.
“We’re Johannes and Hedda, and these are our girls: Ada, Ella, and Mia.”
One pointed glance, and Jett tugs at the collar of his t-shirt, replacing it with the one in my bag. I suppress a victorious smile as I shed mine.
These are going into a trash bin at the next stop. I’ll donate to a charity when I get home for adding to the global waste problem, but I never want to see or hear the wordssugar titsever again.
“I’m Jett,” he says once we’re in appropriate clothing, “and this is my girlfriend, Sofía. We’re on vacation from the United States.”
“Girlfriend?” Quirking an eyebrow, I pointedly ignore the weird flutter in my lower stomach.
“Well, I wasn’t going to tell them you’re myfakegirlfriend,” he says while Pete takes a hard left and my body collides into my so-calledboyfriend’s. “Didn’t feel right.”
Any response I could offer is ripped away when the guide bellows “Oi, it’s a long-nosed bandicoot,” then slams on his brakes and points at his windshield. “Bloody magnificent.”
“Let me get a shot of it,” Tanner yells, climbing over his grandparents to the right-side window, pressing the camera against the glass.
Jett huffs. “Total noob move,” he whispers from the side of his mouth. “The camera isn’t even recording.”
Sure enough, the light in the corner is dark and the screen is blank. He didn’t even turn it on properly. I slap a hand over my mouth.
We make a handful of pit stops as we traverse deeper into the rainforest, short walks around boardwalks and a longer hike around a lake. Mud cakes my running shoes, and Pete almost left me, Cecil, and Lynn behind because we couldn’t keep the pace he preferred.
Needless to say, our little group of three stragglers is not his biggest fan.
The car jostles as we hit every pothole on the road, and Jett chats with one of the toddlers, Ada, ranking all the princesses in order of prettiest dresses.
“Purple sparkles are better than yellow sparkles,” she argues, and Jett sighs dramatically.
“Babe, back me up here.” He taps my bicep, but I’m still caught up on the wordbabe.“Tell Ada that I’m right, and yellow is so much better.”
“Well, what about rainbow sparkles?” I get a toothy grin from Ada and a glare from Jett. “Or iridescent, the ones that change when you move them.”
“Fairy sparkles,” she cheers.
A tug on my top pulls my attention. “Traitor,” Jett mutters.
The sun sets, the magnificent swirls of orange and pink disappearing behind the trees, dusty purple deepening into a dark night sky twinkling with stars as we reach our final destination—the side of the fucking road.
“Here we—oh, shit.”
I’m launched into the air and slammed into the seat in front of me when Pete doesn’t put the car fully in park. Jett curses beneath his breath, a string of swear words aimed at our guide.
“Are you hurt?” he asks, his hands roaming my body.
The children laugh and clap, and I rub the side of my head, defusing the pain.
“One-star review,” I grumble before adding, “I’m fine. A bit startled is all.”
An “Oops” is the only apology we get before we’re ushered from the car and handed bright-orange safety sashes and headlamps. I search for the start of a trailhead or a boardwalk, but there’s nothing but a quiet road surrounded by forest.
“Right-o, let’s check out some nocturnal creatures,” our guide says, leading us in a single-file row down the side of the road. “If you see a car, step to the side and keep your vest visible.”
He aims an ultra-strong light into the tree canopy, scanning branches and patches of leaves for any sighting of a tree kangaroo, possum, or flying fox. Jett’s palms are hot on my shoulders, keeping me steady and offering the illusion that I lead a conga line.
Mia and Ella zip in front of me, cutting me off as leaves rustle to our left high in the treetops. The group pauses, and our guide checks it out but shakes his head.
