She returns my small smile with one of understanding. “It’s basic decency, Risa. Not something worth praising, and I’m sorry life’s been so cruel to you that you feel the need to do so.”
Chapter 28
Risa
––––––––
Still uncomfortablewith the netting digging into my side, I give up all pretense of toughing it out and roll the rest of the way on top of Mason in our shared hammock, using him as a living mattress. Bane and Stryker are in serpent form, and they readjust with me, draped across my legs and back like a scaly blanket.
Chuckling beneath me, his quiet laughter shakes his chest, and me right along with it. “Comfy?”
Huffing in frustration, I rest my chin on my folded arms, peering down at him. “Sort of. Not really.”
The moonlight is bright enough to paint the beach in a silver glow, Hunter and Addie in hammocks to our left, putting them closer to the beach with us as a buffer between them and the strangers in the nearby village.
“Is it the sleeping arrangements, or is something else bothering you?” he asks, using the bond to cheat and make him look far too insightful.
Straining my hearing, I confirm that the kids are really asleep instead of faking it, only risking continuing the conversation when I’m positive. Still, I drop my voice to barely more than a hushed whisper.
“Part of me was hoping that when we showed up here, it would turn out that they’d have a long lost grandparent or aunt that didn't know they were still alive, thrilled to be reunited.”
He strokes the back of his fingers across my cheek. “I agree. It's a lot, and I’m not han-“ he cuts himself off before sighing. “We’ll figure it out, one step at a time. It’s an adjustment for all of us, and every decision we have to make feels ten times more stressful than before. It seems like even the slightest, most innocuous choice will have a ripple effect of consequences.”
Humming to myself, I rest my cheek on his chest, letting my eyes close as he continues to run his fingers over my jaw and neck. “Honestly, I think just being outside is doing them a world of good. The rest we’ll deal with as it comes up, but for now, maybe we should stop looking for everything that could go wrong, and simply take the little wins when they happen. Lord knows, they’re too rare as it is.”
He slips his hand between me and Stryker, leaving his palm resting on my lower back. “You’re probably right, but it’s hard for me to ever expect anything besides the worst from people. I keep waiting for the grand reveal that this was all a trap that we fell for hook, line, and sinker, because we wanted it to be true so badly that we let it blind us. I’m just not sure how I could live with myself if I let my guard down and anything happened to you. Hell, I was on high alert when you were taken, Risa. This just... doesn’t actually feel like a win.”
He releases a pent up breath, the sound long and weary. “Even if we decide to trust the wolves? The odds that the hundreds of other people across these islands are as decent as them aren’t very good. People in general are hit or miss, but society as a whole leaves much to be desired no matter where you go.”
“I know,” I admit, as much as it pains me. “But I can still pretend a little longer for their sake.”
***
The sound of a whiningbark startles us all awake. The guys and I crash onto the too-hard ground, tumbling out of the hammock. Mason manages to keep from crushing me, throwing a hand out in time to partially brace himself, though it slips on the sand coating the dirt, and Stryker’s tail winds up pinned beneath me.
“For the love of,” Bane grumbles, yanking a pair of shorts on after shifting back, shaking his head at our unconventional alarm clock.
