“I get it. I don’t have family back in the States. Just my brothers.”
“You don’t have family, but you have brothers?” Talia frowned. “I don’t understand.”
Harm’s chest swelled with the pride of belonging. “My teammates are my brothers. I’d do anything for them.”
“And they’d do anything for you,” Talia added.
“I know families with real brothers who aren’t as close,” Harm said. “I didn’t understand the brotherhood until I became a SEAL. When the going gets tough, I know they have my back, and I have theirs.”
In that moment, Talia envied Harm. When Michael was alive, she could rely on him to be there for her. But he’d died, leaving her without a support system. Yes, she had the staff of the resort, but they had their families, and lately, they were skittish and scared of coming to work.
“I’ll tell you what,” Harm said. “While I’m here, I’ll have your back. You need something, I’m your man.”
“Thanks,” Talia said. “Again, I don’t want to rely on anyone. You and your team are only here for a week. Then you’ll be gone. Besides, I’ve dealt with rumblings before.”
“What do you mean?”
“A while back, the local witch doctor stirred up my staff and the community. Ever since Michael died, Raila Gakuru has been campaigning against the All Things Wild resort, spreading rumors and innuendos. He started out whispering that the area would have very bad luck—bad juju—as long as the resort was run by a woman.”
Harm’s jaw tightened. “Nice guy.”
“For the past year, when bad things happened, Gakuru attributed it to me. I ignored the claims, hoping the rumors would die down. And, for the most part, they had. Until a few weeks ago, when the poachers showed up stealing baby animals for sale to foreign markets.” She smiled. “Thankfully, you and your team were here to thwart their efforts.”
“Seems we didn’t stop all of it.”
Talia crossed the hallway to a linen closet, extracted two bath towels and turned. “My gut tells me this is totally different from the poachers who were stealing animals. I think someone is trying to scare me off.”
“The witch doctor?”
“Maybe.”
“I could have a talk with him, if you like.”
She shook her head. “No. That only gives him more credibility. Ignoring him worked the first time. I’m leaning toward repeating that tactic, since it worked before.”
Harm shrugged. “Seems like it didn’t work well enough, if he’s back at it.”
Talia entered the bedroom and laid the towels on the end of the bed, then straightened. “Either way, it’s not your problem. It’s mine and I’ll handle it. You’re a guest.” She gave him a lopsided smile and moved past him, back out into the hallway. “Enjoy your stay.”
Harm threw a snappy salute. “Yes, ma’am.”
She grinned. “That’s more like it. Now, let me get back down to my kitchen and see if any of your friends want to move to the lodge.” She headed toward the stairs only to be brought up short by a hand on her arm.
“If someone is trying to scare you away, you could be in danger.”
“I have my gun,” she reminded him, her arm tingling where he held it.
“Are you a good enough shot to kill a cobra in your bed?”
She nodded. “I’m that good.” At least she hoped she was. But she wouldn’t let him know she wasn’t quite so sure.
Harm held her gaze for a long moment, his hand tight on her arm. “What if whoever is playing these games gets more personal?”
Talia lifted her chin, her entire body tingling now. Why couldn’t he let go of her and sever the electric current racing along her nerve endings? “What do you mean, more personal?” she asked, her voice breathy. She cleared her throat and continued. “I’d say attacking my clients is already pretty personal.”
“What if someone corners you?” He backed her against the wall. “Are you prepared to fight for your life? Do you know how to defend yourself?”
Her body hummed with the electricity burning through her nerves and veins. “I think I can,” she whispered, her gaze shifting to Harm’s lips. Holy hell, she had the sudden urge to kiss them. What was wrong with her?
Harm shook his head. “There is a difference between thinking and knowing.” He bent close. “I can show you some moves.”
She ran her tongue over her suddenly dry lips. “I’m sure you can...” Sweet heaven, she was sure he had some sexy moves. And now wasn’t the time to demonstrate. Not when she was steps away from the room she’d shared with her dead husband.
“I... I have to go now.” Talia pushed her arms between them and raised them sharply, knocking his hands from where they gripped her shoulders. Then she ducked beneath them and made a dash for the stairs.
A warm chuckle followed her down the staircase, making her insides hot and feeling like liquid. She’d do well to stay away from the handsome SEAL. Harm could rock her world. And she wasn’t ready for her world to be rocked. Though Talia suspected he was halfway there, and it scared the bejesus out of her.
While Talia was in the kitchen helping his teammates feed their late-night hunger, Harm stepped out of the lodge and hurried to the cabin he’d been assigned, wishing he had a flashlight to shine at the ground. Though he didn’t have a deadly fear of snakes, the cobra in Big Jake’s bed would shake him as much as it had shaken his friend.
Once he reached the cabin, he flipped on the light switch and made a careful study of the interior, just in case another cobra had found its way in while Harm had been away.
The question burning in his mind was how did a cobra get inside Big Jake’s cabin? And why would it end up on the bed?
After a thorough search of his own cabin, Harm studied the bed. The comforter had been neatly fitted over the entire bed with a colorful throw draped at the foot. Someone could have stashed the snake in the throw. Until Big Jake slid beneath the comforter, the snake might not have felt the need to move.
Using a hanger, Harm lifted the throw off the end of the bed. Nothing lay beneath. He shook the fabric. Nothing fell from the folds. Harm released the breath he’d been holding and set his gear bag on the bed. He unearthed the flashlight he kept in an outside pocket of the bag and unzipped the main opening.
A few minutes later, he’d ascertained his bag was free of snakes, bugs or anything else that might keep him up at night. After he zipped the bag, he hefted it onto one shoulder and left the cabin, closing the door behind him.
The screaming howl of jackals filled the night. Harm didn’t consider himself very superstitious, but Africa and the savanna lent itself to being creepy.
He hurried back to the lodge and up the stairs to ditch his bag before joining the rest of the gang in the kitchen.
His five teammates were seated at a large wood and steel kitchen table, digging into ham sandwiches and drinking beer.
“Would you care for a sandwich?” Talia asked.
T-Mac held up what was left of his. “You gotta try the ham. I don’t know what the chef put on it, but it’s damned good.” T-Mac glanced at Talia. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to curse.”
She smiled. “No worries. I’ve heard worse. I think I’ve even said worse.”