A Rare Breed by Mary Tate Engels

water was shockingly cold as it crept over her feet, and she realized that she felt dirty and in need of a warm shower. She squatted down and washed her face, scrub bing her complexion with the clear water. It was chilling, but refreshing, and she considered stripping and taking a bath in the stream while everyone was gone. The more she thought about it, the better the idea sounded.
    Within minutes Brit had shimmied out of Jake's oversized clothes and was wading into the shallows of the pool. She splashed herself all over, delighting in the crude, but welcome bath. Her skin tingled from the icy water. It was refreshing as well as cleansing.
    A hawk swooped overhead and screeched at her in its high-pitched voice. At first startled by the intrusion of a pair of eyes, she laughed and waved at the fantailed bird. Lifting her face, Brit let the gentle breeze caress her skin, drying it. The wind brought songs of unfamiliar birds as well as some familiar sounds . . . people talking.
    Suddenly someone shouted her name. "Brit! Brit, where are you?"
    The men were returning! So soon? And here she stood, bathing in the nude! She splashed through the knee-high water as she scrambled to get her clothes. But they were out of reach, draped on a rock all the way over at the pool's edge. Inadvertently, she had waded out near the middle of the stream where the water hit her mid-thigh. Scrambling, she reached for the shirt.
    Jake's voice sounded alarmingly close. "Brit! Brit?"
    Startled, she looked up. He stood on a rock ledge directly above her. Dark and towering, he seemed to dominate his world. Furthermore, he had a full view of the little pool—and of her, in the nude.
    "Everything all right?" he called innocently.
    Quickly Brit lifted the red plaid flannel shirt in front of her exposed body. "Until a minute ago, everything was just peachy!" Realizing the shirt wasn't covering her completely, she gestured angrily. "Can't I take a bath in privacy?"
    "Sure, excuse me. I just . . . was worried about you. Didn't know where you were."
    "Now you know."
    He backed away, with no real apology that she could detect in his devilish grin. But his intense, stern expression had softened for the first time since they'd arrived. She'd gotten a response from him, but not the one she wanted.
    Jake turned his back and pretended to be busy when Brit arrived back in camp. It wasn't that he was embarrassed at seeing her naked. On the contrary. He'd been delighted with the sight of her smooth, shimmering skin, still wet from her bath. He turned away because he didn't want her to see that pleasure still on his face. Besides, he knew she'd be furious. And, he admitted privately, rightfully so.
    As Brit approached, the group was arguing, as usual. And Yo landa was at the center. "No ex cuses! How could you let him slip by? You had one thing to do, and you blew it!"
    "Look, I didn't see you rolling out of the sack to make sure it was done right!" Rudi countered.
    "You're back so soon," Brit said. "What happened?"
    "Plane was earlier than scheduled. We missed him," Frank explained.
    Brit frowned. "What do you mean 'missed him'? He came by. I heard him."
    "Sure, he flew over," Frank said with a futile gesture. "Early. He dropped supplies. But we didn't get a chance to signal anything. Cloud cover was too low, so he couldn't see us, anyway."
    "Can you beat that?" Yolanda said, stomping around and shaking her head. "Our one chance outta this hole, and you missed him. What a bunch of bumbling idiots."
    Brit felt Yolanda's frustration. How could they have let this happen? She turned accusingly to Jake. "So what'll we do now?"
    "Try again in a week when the next drop is scheduled." Jake tried not to let them see that he was as upset at the thought of them hanging around as they were. He ripped open one of the supply boxes and pulled out a couple of items, then left the rest packed. "We can use this cereal. Everybody like oatmeal?"
    "Wait a minute. The plane isn't coming back