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I’d hoped it would help my own body stay controlled around her.
It did the opposite.
Being denied her natural beauty only made my mind paint memories of what was hidden beneath. I hardened, my maleness pushing painfully against the tight wrapping of the wolf pelt I wore.
Shifting slightly, I cleared my throat, willing my temper to ease and our argument from this afternoon to be forgotten.
Her eyes met mine, warm and calm. Gone was the worry from before. The war of right and wrong. Instead, she watched me with sweet affection that made my chest tighten.
“Hi,” I breathed. Even so quiet, the word echoed around the cave, making the wolves stretch and yawn in annoyance.
Placing down the basket she’d woven—much better than my attempt but still loose and uneven—she sat cross-legged and hugged Natim as he scrambled with his slippery hooves onto her lap. “Hi.” She smiled shyly.
Silence fell between us, but it wasn’t sharp like before. This was softer, like moss growing peacefully with no urgent expectations. My crescent-moon mark renewed its subtle hum now that she was close by, and I forgot about the pain I’d felt when she’d mentioned leaving and encouraging me that I’d feel this way about any other female.
None of that mattered.
Not now she was back where she belonged.
With me.
I said, “I’m sorry about—”
She blurted, “I gathered some—”
I chuckled. “You first.”
She smiled and tipped her chin down. “I would’ve returned sooner, but if I’m to stay another night...I needed something to eat.”
My own stomach rumbled at the mention of food. I hadn’t eaten today. I’d spotted a grass-nibbling rabbit on the way back from the river and my mouth had watered, but I didn’t want to slaughter something with Natim in my arms.
Salak would bring a piece of tonight’s kill home for me. I could be patient.
I leaned forward, poking through the basket full of leaves, petals, and a few dirt-dusted roots. “What plants are these?”
“Some raspberry leaves, sweet thistle stalks, burdock roots, and daylilies.” She fingered the bright yellow and orange flowers still attached to light-coloured tubers. “You can eat the daylily flowers as well as the bulbs.”
My eyes widened in appreciation as I sat back. “You know more about foraging than I do.”
She stroked Natim, shrugging. “I didn’t used to. One of my favourite chores while living with the Nhil is foraging. The grasslands are ripe now its late summer and our focus has been gathering enough grain to stockpile for winter, but before the grass needed harvesting, I often went on short journeys with the hunters.” She caught my eyes, sharing more of herself. “While Niya and the hunters tracked bison, Hyath and a few other females guided me on how to find the right plants. Some we’d eat and some we’d keep, replanting them by the Nhil camp to replenish their thriving garden.”
She smiled and pressed a kiss to the fawn’s head. “Pallen, their medicine woman, was the one to prepare me for the fire trance, and she used plants in completely different ways. Watching her mastery sparked a hunger within me to know everything there is to know about herbs and cures, as well as what ingredients create a tasty snack.”
Her voice warmed when speaking of the Nhil, sending a churning possessiveness through me.
She shook her head with a self-mocking grin. “I might sound knowledgeable now but when I walked alone, I knew nothing. If I’d known what I do now, I might’ve survived longer and been strong enough to keep walking.”
I picked up a cream-coloured tuber that she’d called burdock. “Odd that we both walked for years—or at least it felt like years—alone with nothing. Not finding any other mortal even though, according to what you told me, there are four kingdoms with many other clans, only to fade and almost die so close to one another.”
She froze, her hand on Natim’s shoulders. “I-I hadn’t thought about it. But you’re right.” Her eyes narrowed. “Strange that we both reached the end of our limit so near to each other.”
“Almost as if when one of us reached their end, the other did too.” I kept my attention on the root as I brushed off the rest of the dirt. “Almost as if we were linked.”
She sucked in a breath.
I lifted my head just in time to see her help Natim off her lap so he could wriggle his way toward Kiu’s belly and help himself to another drink. Her eyes met mine; a spark of awareness shot down my back.
“What I said this afternoon...” She hesitated. “About you finding other females fascinating—”
I held up my hand. “You don’t have to explain. You think I need someone willing to help cure me when I’m in ‘pain’.” I smiled softly. “But you’re wrong. I’m only in pain when I’m near you, and I don’t say that to guilt you into touching me.” Inching closer to her, I replaced the root back into her woven basket and captured her fingers. “I say it because only you bring out that need, and I don’t want anyone else. I’m happy to suffer because that suffering is worth every bit of agony. Even if you never touch me again, I’m happier with you than I’ve ever been.”
