Chapter 20
Chapter
Twenty
Roasting meat ended up being the tether that dragged me back into the waking world.
The savory scent filled my nostrils long before I opened my eyes, creating a delicious trail my nose could follow back to the cave. I knew I was close when my stomach grumbled in hunger, and my mouth watered in anticipation. Physical reactions like those require a physical body, after all.
A few moments later, other, more subtle sensations pushed their way into my consciousness—the heaviness of leather, the warmth of a crackling fire, the soft brush of fur against my skin. All it took was a few moments for these feelings moving through me for me to finally open my eyes.
“Lash!”
The thick pile of covers both above and below me shifted as I shot up at the waist. I must have been out cold for Lash to be able to make the bed around me without waking me up.
Without thinking, I grabbed onto the corner of one of the furs before it could slip below my breasts.
Even though at this point he’d seen every inch of me, I still couldn’t escape the surge of vulnerability I felt in his presence.
“I’m here.” His voice traveled across the cave, steady and calm, from the side of a small fire that had been built a few feet from the opening.
With the sunlight glowing bright behind him and the flames flickering in front, it took my eyes a moment to focus on his face.
“Oh, thank God,” I said, pushing myself up straight. “We have to get out of here. We’re in—wait…are those rabbits?”
An amused grin flashed across his face as he spun the wooden spit he’d impaled the poor animals on over the flames.
“I was getting tired of dried meat and oatcakes,” he said. “I need something with more substance. We both do.”
He was right. After days of expending way more energy than I was taking in, I was uncharacteristically weak. A real meal would do me good.
I’d never eaten rabbit before, and maybe it was just because I was starving, but the meat smelled delicious. Better than Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners combined.
“When did you go hunting?” I asked.
“Right after settling you in bed.”
“I guess I was out for a while.”
“A couple of hours,” he answered with a shrug.
Long enough to hunt, clean, dress, and cook our lunch. That sounded like a lot of work. Meanwhile, I’d been passed out like a lazy slug.
“You should have woken me up,” I told him.
But Lash just shook his head. “You needed the sleep.”
“And you needed help.”
His gaze lifted to meet mine, orange and yellow flames dancing in the mirrored darkness of his eyes.
“You wanted to help?” He sounded somewhat surprised.
I nodded. “Despite what it looks like, I’m used to keeping myself occupied.”
“There’s nothing more to help with,” he said. “The meat is just about done. All that’s left is to eat it.” My disappointment must have shown on my face because his brows bunched together. “That upsets you?”
“Not really,” I assured him. “It’s just that I can get antsy if I’m not doing something. I’m not the type to waste the day away in bed.”
“You consider our time together this morning a waste?” A hint of a smile flashed over those wicked lips. “Don’t tell me you fell asleep unsatisfied. Because if that’s the case?—“
“Stop it,” I cut him off, shooting him a playful glare. “Or next time I’ll just assume you don’t want my help.”
His chest expanded as his gaze narrowed in on my face. “Oh, I want it.”
Even though I knew he was teasing me, I couldn’t hold back the rush of heat that flooded my cheeks…along with all the other parts of my body.
I thought I was immune to easy pickup lines. Why did he, of all people, have this power over me?
“Toss me my clothes,” I said, pointing at the crumpled tunic lying just a few feet away from where he was sitting.
He glanced over it; his smile grew even more sinful. “I’m busy. Come get it yourself.”
I pursed my lips, but couldn’t quite manage to work up the sense of real frustration I was hoping for. Not when every word that rumbled out from his chest caused tingles to race across my skin.
“Do you know what a pain in the ass you are?” I asked.
“One or two people might have mentioned it.”
His dark eyes stayed steady—never swaying, never blinking—as I gripped one of the furs tighter to my chest and rose up to my feet.
Instantly, I realized I should have picked a larger pelt.
While this one was long enough to hang down to my knees, it wasn’t wide enough to wrap around my waist. The best I could do was hold it in front of me like a shield while my backside remained exposed.
Lash didn’t seem to mind.
The tip of his tongue flicked out to wet his lips as I moved off the tangle of bedding, his breathing growing deeper with every subsequent step, but at least he stayed put. He didn’t reach out for me. Only his eyes moved.
Until I bent over to pick up the wrinkled pile of clothes.
Then, in a flash, his hands shot out. Impossibly fast arms wrapped around my waist. I squealed, half in surprise, half in delight, as my feet flew off the ground. I sailed through the air before landing safely in Lash’s lap.
He grinned down at me, the look in his eyes almost joyful.
Almost.
I got the feeling this was about as outwardly happy as he’d ever been…or would ever be. Anything more joyful would require letting down his guard, and I couldn’t imagine that happening.
“See, isn’t this better?” he said, shifting my weight so my head was against his shoulder and my legs crosshatched over his.
“Better than what?”
“Being alone in bed?”
“I don’t know,” I said flatly. “I was really hoping to get dressed.”
“And I like you better like this.” Cupping his palm around my calf, he slowly slid his hand up my leg…over my knee…and under the edge of the fur that still barely clung to my chest.
He couldn’t be serious. I slapped my hand down over my upper thigh, blocking the path of his fingers.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I said, though I could already see in his eyes that he wasn’t. “You can’t be hoping for another round already.”
“Why not?” he asked, easily brushing my hand away with a flick of his fingers.
“Because we just finished the first one.”
“That was hours ago,” he argued.
“Yeah, but—ahh!”
Even though I knew it was coming, I couldn’t keep myself from gasping as he plunged his fingers between my thighs, the side of his hand dangerously close to the hardening nub of my clit.
His eyes flashed up, locking with mine.
Dear God, this close, the man looked like the personification of sex. Like lust come to life. Like every secret desire humankind had tried to keep hidden.
“But what?” he teased, his voice breathy.
It took me a second to get my thoughts back in order.
“But aren’t you tired?” I finally managed to ask. “I mean, I just woke up from a nap, and I’m still spent.”
“I must not be taking good enough care of you then. Let me remedy that.” With his free hand, he tore a chunk of roasted meat off the spit and brought it to my lips. Savory juices ran across my lower lip as he teased me with the bite. “Eat. It’ll give you back your strength.”
He made a good point. I opened my mouth, allowing him to slip the morsel of food inside.
Somehow it tasted even better than it smelled. I closed my eyes, fully enjoying the moment, and when I opened them up again, Lash had another bite ready for me.
“I don’t need you to feed me,” I told him. I wasn’t that weak.
“Need?” He shook his head. “Maybe not. But want?”
Oh, there was no way in hell I was about to admit all the things that I wanted. Especially not when I still couldn’t admit half of them to myself.
But I was also too damn hungry to argue.
“Thank you for doing all this,” I said after I’d swallowed the next bite. “For making the bed and letting me sleep. For hunting and cooking. For all of it.”
He shifted his weight, seeming slightly uncomfortable with my gratitude.
“You don’t have to thank me for every little thing, Felicity—or even the big ones,” he said. “You’re my mate. It’s my job to take care of you.”
“It doesn’t have to be,” I told him. “I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I’ve been doing it my whole life.”
“And look where that got you.”
Naked in a cave, eating roasted game with the sexiest damn creature the world had ever seen—honestly, it could have been a hell of a lot worse.
“Yeah, don’t take this the wrong way, but you don’t strike me as someone who’s got their shit together either,” I shot back. “Remind me how many packs you’ve been kicked out of now?”
“The last one was your fault, you realize,” he said. “I would still be there if not for you.”
“Well, then I’m glad I showed up,” I told him plainly. “Nelissa is a psycho bitch, and that camp was a shit show. You’re better than all of them put together.”
His eyes narrowed as they searched my face. I could tell he was having trouble believing me, but the tenderness stayed in his touch as he offered me another hunk of meat.
“A few minutes ago, you called me a pain in the ass.”
“Two things can be true at the same time,” I said with a shrug. “What can I say? You contain multitudes. Some make me want to kick your ass. Others I appreciate the hell out of.”
He thought about this for a moment as he chewed on his own bite of meat (ripped straight off the bone with his teeth, of course). “You have to be the only person who sees me that way,” he said after swallowing.
“And you’re the only person to see me cosplaying as one of the Flintstones,” I joked, knowing he wouldn’t get the reference.
We ate in companionable silence for a while after that. Until my belly was back to full, and my head was back to thinking straight. Only then did I open my mouth again, knowing full well there was a good chance that what I had to say would kill the first truly enjoyable moment between us.
“I had another dream while I was sleeping.”
The words hung, cold and leaden, between us.
“Who was in this one?” he finally asked.
“Nelissa.” Another silence. I waited a beat before continuing unprompted. “I found a way into her tent.”