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16
Julie added more snow to the pot balanced over the compact camp stove. The hiss filled the small tent she’d be sharing with the Rebels for the unforeseeable future. She’d had trouble lighting the small propane unit, more so than the slightly larger one just outside heating water for the dogs. The negative thirty temperatures hadn’t been the regulator’s friend. After a lot of grumbling, knocking of metal, and finally shoving the cankerous piece in her coat to warm it up, she’d finally gotten the thing to light.
Doubt had clawed up her shoulder, whispering her shortcomings, as she’d fumbled with the pieces of the stove, trying to figure out what was wrong. Everyone on the team had jobs, and, while they all differed in their physical requirement, every single one of them was essential for the success of the expedition. If she couldn’t get the stoves to work, they couldn’t water the dogs, prepare their food, or heat the tent.
The relief at hearing the fuel ignite had tears threatening to spill. Since the dogfight earlier, she’d questioned her qualifications for being on the team. Gunnar had recognized the problem before chaos had exploded. Her father would have too. What had she been doing? Not paying attention while she griped in her head at Mason to get the show on the road. She should’ve been yelling at herself to keep her head on straight, not moaning about Mason and his long-windedness.
She blinked the tears from her eyes, scrubbing them with a piece of cloth to wipe away any moisture, and slid her goggles back over her eyes. The tent’s door flapped with the wind as she unzipped it and crawled out. She still had one more team of dogs to water before she could settle in for the night. While she didn’t need the goggles to protect from the reflection of the sun against the snow anymore, she didn’t want any moisture her silly tears might have left on her skin freezing in the frigid wind.
After watering the last team, she carefully brought the extra stove into the tent, where it would stay warmer and hopefully be easier to light in the morning. The heat from the littler stove hit her as she crawled back inside. She’d have to take her parka off, or she’d be sweating. The last thing she wanted was her clothes or gear to get soaked with moisture this early in the game. Condensation would be a constant concern with sweating and, in the tent, simply breathing. The longer she could avoid ice building up in the layers of her gear, the warmer she’d stay.
Sunny sat at the stove, feeding it with more snow. Steam curled white above three mugs on the ground next to her. The rich, smoky aroma of salmon chowder filled the air, and Julie’s stomach rumbled.
Slipping off her boots and tucking them in the corner, Julie crawled onto her sleeping bag. Tent walls lightly flapping in the wind, she grabbed her pack from the sleeping bag next to her and propped it behind her for a backrest. The cramped space closed in around her, and she had the temptation to go sleep on her sled. The tight quarters would get even tighter when Gunnar finished securing the rest of the supplies.
She glanced to her left, then right, wondering how she drew the first sleeping-in-the-middle straw. Being in the tent with Gunnar would be hard enough, given how she’d practically thrown herself at him the night before and he’d walked away. Being curled up right next to him would be torture. She’d rather sleep frozen to the tent walls. Or better yet, snuggling with her dogs outside.
“I can’t tell you how thankful I am you brought Heather’s Choice backpacking meals.” Sunny inhaled the aroma from the mug she held, then passed it to Julie.
“Her stuff is the best.” Julie wrapped her chilled hands around the warm container and sighed at the instant relief. “I’m glad I talked her into being a sponsor. This chowder is to die for.”
“Oh man, and the African Peanut Stew? Mmm, mmm, mmm.” Sunny closed her eyes and did a little dance with each moan. “I love meat, like eat-it-every-meal love it. But after eating that vegan stew, I bought two cases of it to have at home. So… good.”
The zipper for the door opened, and Gunnar climbed in. His mouth twitched up in a smile, and excitement lined his eyes. His shoulders had relaxed since they’d left the crowds on the shore and ventured across the frozen ocean. He was totally in his element and loving it.
And dang it if he didn’t look sexy as all get out doing so.
Nothing would ever prepare Julie for seeing him every day like this. She focused on the chowder cradled in her hands and took a slow, methodical bite. If she could just keep her attention elsewhere, maybe she could guard her heart and not embarrass herself. Yet, she hated the discomfort that pushed the easy atmosphere she and Sunny had created.
“Dinner done?” Gunnar’s two words had her smiling into her mug.
“Yep, and you’re in for a treat.” Sunny placed one more lump of snow in the pot, turned so her back was to the stove, and pointed at the dinner. “Julie got us Heather’s Choice.”
“Yeah?” His eyes darted to Julie, one attractive eyebrow lifting in question.
He really needed to tone down the appeal. Not that he could actually do that. Which meant Julie needed to control her sudden lovesickness. She shouldn’t even be afflicted with it, not after all their relationship went through. Too bad the image of him stretched out in a makeshift barrack after a grueling day, her letters pressed against his chest in comfort, kept bombarding her mind.
She cleared her throat. “It’s an Alaskan company that creates these tasty freeze-dried meals.”
“Nothing like those nasty military surplus MREs you eat.” Sunny pretended to gag. “Those things have so many preservatives in them, I’m surprised you don’t glow in the dark.”
“They fill me up.” Gunnar shrugged, then took off his parka.
Four words this time. Could they get him to say more? Julie shivered as she looked at Gunnar sitting there in a lightweight jacket. The little stove couldn’t have warmed the tent above zero, and here he was in half the clothes she had on. Even when they were younger, he’d always ran hot. She didn’t think she’d be warm until they made it back to solid land.
“That’s about all they do. You’ll be eating like a king on this trip.” Sunny pointed her spoon at him. “In fact, I bet you’ll throw all the MREs you have stashed at the cabin away when we get home.”
Gunnar snorted. “Doubtful.”
Nuts.
They were back to one-word sentences.
Julie finished her soup, the heat pooling in her stomach. She gave a satisfied sigh, and Gunnar trained his gaze on her. He scanned her like he searched for injury. The action stirred her, turning the chowder into bubbling lava that rolled languidly through her veins the longer he looked at her.
She unzipped her parka with a jerk. The tent suddenly sweltered. She folded her parka on top of her pillow and adjusted her jacket. She wanted to take that off, too, but knew the temperature still wasn’t anywhere above zero in their arctic cocoon.
Sunny smirked as her eyes bounced between the two of them. “Welp, we got pretty far today considering how long it took us to get out of town.”
