Page 40 of Impossible Thrills
“Okay, you got me.”
They all laughed at that. Nick turned to Darcy. Her soot-stained nose and cheeks looked really cute.
“I’m sorry.”
“No!” She threw her arms around him and hugged him. “You did great. You’ll thrash him tomorrow.”
“Yeah right,” Jagger taunted.
Nick cuddled Darcy close. They were both dirty and sweaty. He didn’t care. He loved having her in his arms.
“We forgot to pray,” Darcy said. “I realized that halfway down.”
“Ah, shoot,” Nick said.
“Enough with the praying crap,” Jagger spit out.
“You can’t actually say praying and crap in the same sentence,” Darcy admonished.
Jagger only shook his head.
“We’ll pray hard tomorrow,” Nick said, softly kissing Darcy’s cheek, close to her soot-free mouth.
“And kiss a lot tonight,” she whispered in his ear.
Nick’s day and night suddenly looked a lot better.
Captain Hendry flew them to a beautiful volcanic lake next, Laguna del Tigre, where they swam and floated, washing off the volcanic dust. Nick helped Darcy swim, and they worked on floating on her back and some basic swim strokes. It was fun just being with her. After the swim, the good captain produced towels and clean clothes for them. They changed into the dry clothes, but they still weren’t very clean. Nick thought it was impressive that Darcy didn’t say anything about not having makeup on or being able to wash her hair. Some of his sisters would’ve hated that.
They flew to the city of Leon, a historic city with plenty of cathedrals, art, and monuments. They toured the city, eating a delicious traditional Nicaraguan meal with chicken, fried plantains, rice, pinto beans, and cabbage salad. It was reminiscent of a lot of Caribbean countries Nick had visited.
Being with Darcy as they explored was exciting. He pushed away future worries, held her hand, and teased with her, Jagger, and Hays. Captain Hendry was a much more serious but informative tour guide.
Nick only wished the time would slow down. Soon he’d have to face the real world and some serious decisions.
When they got back to the yacht, Captain Hendry excused himself and within minutes, the yacht was moving at a faster speed than they’d previously gone.
They all showered and got dressed for dinner. Nick dressed in a short-sleeved button-down white shirt and gray slacks. He hurried to knock on Darcy’s door. Moments later, it opened. He blinked and swayed, putting his hand to his heart like a sappy, lovesick boy.
If he’d thought the white traditional Spanish dress last night had been gorgeous on her, the pale blue silky formal blew his mind. It had a V-neck, no sleeves, and fell to the floor, highlighting her slim body. The color made her tanned skin and dark hair look even more pretty.
“Oh, my,” he breathed out. “How do I convey to you that you’re even more exquisite and breathtaking than last night?”
“Nick!” She pushed a hand through the air at him, her cheeks turning a becoming pink and her lips curving into a smile. He would appreciate those lips dancing with his. Soon.
“I shouldn’t have gotten the door,” she said. “I still have to curl my hair and put on some makeup.”
He looked over her dark hair and beautiful face. “I can’t imagine you could be any more beautiful.”
“Okay, stop it. I seriously am going to cry if you keep that up.” She fanned her face.
“Don’t cry,” he begged.
She laughed. “I’m teasing. Sort of. Give me a minute?”
“Take all the time you need.”
She smiled and shut the door in his face.