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He had always been the only man I wanted, and I didn’t see other paths for my future. There was one with Jake, and another of solitude and the study of my work. I could become an old spinster, probably never marry. And then I’d retire to the jungle life. Maybe rehab an endangered species, or maybe I’d stay in the states, and my studies would continue to educate the world on the importance of conservation, that seemed the most practical. The smart path for me.
All I had to do was get through the next several weeks of Ben’s crazy schedules and the ridiculous questions from the pampered cast and crew, and then I could get on with living my life.
Chapter Seventeen
Jake
I woke up and sat up in the bed as the alarm went off. Austin, who was sleeping like the dead, needed a little extra nudge as usual. “Get up,” I said, kicking his cot. “We have work to do.”
I got to my feet and walked over to my makeshift lavatory, where the bowl and bottled water were ready to be my sink, and I found my toothbrush.
Austin was just coming out of his sleep and sat up in the bed. “Am I still in hell?”
“Yes, we’re back to being roommates.”
“This sucks,” he said, getting to his feet and scratching his chest. He rubbed his arms and yawned.
“What sucks was tossing and turning all night. I barely got any sleep on that lumpy mattress.” I knew it wasn’t the stupid mattress but the throbbing erection that had kept me up. It wasn’t like I had any privacy to rub one out, and I wasn’t about to do that in the community showers. I hoped no one else would either.
“How long do we have before breakfast?”
“Ten minutes. And then we get to shoot, so you might want to get some extra protein in your system.”
“Good thing I brought these,” he said, taking out a protein bar. “I’m sure craft services didn’t plan the food according to my needs.”
“I’m pretty sure they didn’t.” They apparently hadn’t thought of our comfort at all.
I scrubbed my teeth and rinsed and spat. Then I took the bowl and dumped it out back of the tent before getting myself dressed enough to go to the showers. Per the schedule set up by Ally, I should have a stall reserved.
When I got to the bathhouse, there was one waiting. I hurried up with the task, trying hard not to think about Kate while I dropped my towel and turned on the water. I gave it enough time to get hot, but then when I stepped under the spray, I realized it was cold water only. “Son of a bitch.”
I had to get out of camp. I had to figure out a way to get better accommodations, but I was in a strange place, with no way to commute. Besides, I couldn’t leave Kate there alone to deal with Ben and the others.
Perhaps I could take her with me. Or better yet, ditch the entire project. I’d do it for her. In a heartbeat. Would she do it for me? If the past was any inkling, no.
I didn’t know why she still had her defenses up. We could be having a good time, but instead, she shut me down anytime I made any overtures, and then she pretended I wasn’t even there most of the time.
As I quickly lathered and rinsed under the cold spray, I told myself I only had a few more weeks of this. As soon as I could, I was getting the hell out of the jungle and back to the states.
Once I had cleaned up and dressed, I went to the dining cabin, where craft services were serving up pancakes and bacon. Kate was right in the middle of them, talking to a couple of the actors from the supporting cast who were listening to her talk about local traditions.
“It’s actually just mashed-up plantains with chorizo and pork fat,” she said as I approached. “I’ll see if I can coordinate and let you all have a taste sometime.”
“No thanks,” Darren, who was one of the supporting actors, said. “I’ll stick to my pancakes. You can keep your plantains and malaria.” He chuckled as he got his plate and walked away with the others, who were all in agreement.
By the time I got to the front of the line where she’d been standing, she’d walked away to help Roxie.
I took my portion and grabbed a juice before going to sit across the room with Austin, who was already sitting with Tess. The two were laughing and deep in conversation when I walked over to join them.
Ben walked up and pushed a cup of coffee at me. “Here, drink it.”
“Thanks,” I said, taking the cup. “I didn’t see any coffee.”
