Jason woke up, wrapped up in her arms. He felt like a new man. His soul felt buoyant, fresh. He could take on anything, as if the dark events of the past few months had never been.
She lay beside him, her eyes closed. He ran his hand down the side of her cheek, brushing back a tangle of her soft hair. He couldn't help but kiss her lightly on the lips.
She stirred, her eyes fluttering open. Emerald facets drew him in. She smiled, snuggled closer to him, her skin warm against his.
He gave her some more kisses; she laughed, and kissed him in return.
She lay back against his chest, and he caressed the top of her shoulder, running his fingers down her arm. She buried her fingers in his hair, twirling it absently.
After a while of lying there in the morning sunlight, she flipped over, leaned over his chest. "I suppose we'd better get up."
"I'd be okay with staying in this room the whole time." He slipped his hand into her hair, longing for more of her, always. He didn't know how he could leave this room. Go on a mission? That seemed distant, insignificant.
"We could, couldn't we. But there's a whole country out there I've never been to. And then we can come back here tonight."
"That's the problem. I have to leave you here at night. I still have the mission."
"Oh. That." She pursed her lips.
He sighed, sat up. "We might as well get it over with. Want to go down and get some breakfast?"
She nodded, smoothing back her beautifully messy hair. She climbed out of bed and got dressed, her flawless form concealed by a pink blouse and shorts. White sandals slipped onto her delicate feet.
They went downstairs for breakfast. A wonderful omelet with fresh fruit and bread and cheese, coffee and orange juice. He ate a lot; he was hungry. Then he called a cab, and they piled in to go to Iguazu Falls.
The taxi wound through the upscale neighborhood, the driver pointing out things of interest, then sped onto the highway before dropping them off at the ferry.
Connie stood on deck beside him, the wind whipping her hair back. He put his arm around her, and she pressed close to him. Her eyes reflected the river, the sky—there was so much depth to them, depths he might never discover in a lifetime. He would savor every moment of getting to know every dimension of who she was. He would never let anything get in the way; in fact, he wished that he didn't have the mission at all. All he wanted was to spend time with her.
"Is that Brazil over there?" she asked, pointing to the tree-lined bank.
"Yes. And over there's Argentina." He pointed to the right.
"So when you were here before, did you go to all three of the countries?"
"I did. I was hopping from one country to another, trying to keep a step ahead of the smuggling organization."
"And then they shot you."
He showed her the scar on his arm where the bullet had grazed. "It's just a scratch compared to…the others."
"You're sure there won't be any danger this time?"
"Well, there's always some danger. But I'm not going to go looking for it, that's for sure. I don't want to risk anything taking me away from you."
"You'd better not," she said, her eyes serious despite her smile.
Connie leaned over the railing, mist rising from below. Across the river, waterfalls cascaded over the rocky ledge, framed by jungle trees. A toucan flew across the river and landed in a branch near them. It tipped its head sideways, looking down at her.
"It's all so perfect!" she said. "Like a fairytale. I'm glad you dragged me down here."
"I didn't exactly drag you."
"But you convinced me. It was a crazy idea."
"But a good one."
"Yeah. I can't imagine being back in Odyssey, going about my old life, not being married to you. I don't want to imagine it, in case I break the spell." She wondered if she closed her eyes, this beautiful dream would all fade away….
She took his hand, as if to make sure he was real, and they walked along the wooden walkway. They wound their way down to the boat tours. Connie buckled her orange life jacket on and sat beside Jason. The boat sped off down the river, slowing as they neared the waterfall. Before she knew it, they were beneath it, and water splashed onto her, soaking her completely. She swiped wet hair out of her eyes, and looked at Jason, just as wet as she was. She laughed, and screamed as the boat took them under the waterfall again.
After the boat brought them back to shore, Jason took her to one of the islands and they lay on the beach, drying off in the sun. She put her head on a tuft of grass, the clouds floating by in the brilliant blue of the sky, the static-like sound of the waterfalls filling the air. Orange butterflies fluttered past; one of them landed on her chin. She wanted to laugh—it tickled—but she didn't want to scare it. It opened and closed its wings, and looked at her with its multifaceted eyes. Then it flew away, higher into the sky until she couldn't see it anymore.
Jason took her wrist and softly kissed her hand. His eyes were the color of the sky—his hair falling across his forehead, still a little damp. She couldn't help but remember last night. The symphony they'd shared. How he was more amazing than she could have possibly imagined. It was as if she possessed a precious secret that she never had to share with anyone, only with him. It filled her with an incomparable joy such as she had never known. She didn't know how she could love him more—it filled her completely, humming through every cell in her body, through the core of her soul. She leaned over and kissed him, gazing into his eyes, knowing he loved her just as she loved him.
Reluctantly, she got up again, shaking sand off of her clothes. They hiked back up the hill and took the train through the jungle. Monkeys swung through the trees, looking down at them curiously. The train stopped and they followed a boardwalk along the waterfalls, until it jutted out over the edge. A sign said Garganta del Diablo—Devil's Throat. Connie gripped the edge of the railing; the river poured toward its broad mouth, turning white as it cascaded into the mists below. Cold droplets sprayed onto her face and arms. A rainbow appeared in the mists of the falls.
Jason stood beside her, his arm leaning on the railing, just touching hers, and they watched the waterfall together, absorbing its power and majesty. Alone, together, in paradise.
The sun set in the west by the time they climbed back into the taxi. An ache pierced Connie's heart; she wanted to capture this day and stay inside it forever.
But of course there would be more wonderful times that they'd share together. Every moment with him had its own version of magic. She just dreaded the time when he'd have to leave her side.
After the ferry dropped them back off at Paraguay, they took a bus back to the city. The bus drove through the streets for over an hour; their stop was one of the last. Darkness filled the sky; taxis and motorcycles and cars zipped through the streets, the tall buildings coming alive with lights.
Connie leaned on Jason's shoulder, her hand against the hard muscles of his bicep; she marveled at his strength.
The bus jerked to a stop. Jason stiffened. His body seemed locked in complete tension. Connie sat up.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
He didn't answer. He lifted his hand, and pointed out the window.
The bus rumbled to a start again. Jason sighed, leaned back, a shudder running through him.
"I'm sorry, Connie. I—it's just instinct. I thought I saw—but it couldn't be him."
Dread struck her. She hated the fear in his voice. She hated to find out what he'd seen, but she asked anyway.
"Who, Jason?"
"It must be my imagination. It has to be. Nothing else makes sense." He looked at her. "I thought I saw—Gray."