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It had to mean her daughter was feeling clean, well-fed, content, and warm, all of which were good things. Kinsley would just have to look forward to a time, not so far in the future, when her daughter would spend more of the day awake.
For now, Kinsley was just soaking in the warm, cozy feeling of having a happily sleeping baby strapped to her chest all day.
The other members of the crew seemed in good spirits, too. There were plenty of jokes being tossed around about last night’s battle.
Even Cloud-on-the-Mountaintop was grinning as he forked johnnycakes onto his plate. Sheriff Barr was talking to him about staying to the rear of the convoy today, just in case the bandits tried a follow-up attack, but he didn’t seem to be very worried about it.
Back home, physical confrontations were something to avoid at all costs. The desperate Terrans who searched for work and never found it often resorted to muggings and petty theft to get by. And then there were the occasional Cerulean forces trying to push folks around.
But here, she could see the warriors took pride in their work. After days of travel, they were glad to see that their presence was useful.
Kian strode in from outside, stomping off his boots.
“It snowed,” he said simply.
Everyone cheered, even though Kinsley wasn’t sure what they were cheering about. There didn’t seem to be a bad enough water shortage among the group to justify a snowmelt like they would have had back home. But when Kian grinned like a little boy, she felt her heart soar, and a smile stretch her own face to match his.
Once everyone had their belongings gathered and packed up, they headed outside. Kian had moved to her side and was carrying the pack of the baby’s things.
She felt his eyes on her as she stepped out into the brilliant morning.
“Oh,” she sighed, taking it in. “Wow.”
The snow had laid a blanket of clean white over the tundra, as far as she could see. The soft crystals sparkled like diamonds in the sunlight, so that she felt like a princess in a fairy tale.
Kian’s hand touched the small of her back, sending a frisson of fresh pleasure through her.
Between the baby on her chest, the man at her side, and the beautiful tundra laid out before her, Kinsley felt she had everything she could possibly need. Peace settled over her heart, in spite of the long journey ahead, and the need that pulsed through her veins.
Bill already had their sled set up, so Kian hopped in and offered her his hand.
She took it and swung in, enjoying the sight of the dogs capering and quivering with excitement to start their day.
One by one, the other members of the convoy got in their sleds.
Once they were all in place, Sheriff Barr called out to his team and they were off, the fresh snow smoothing the way so that the dogs were able to pull faster, with less effort.
Kinsley drank in the cold air, feeling snuggly warm under her fur, with the baby curled against her.
“Have you thought of a name for her yet?” Kian asked.
“Not yet,” she told him. “I’m really just hoping that you’ll slip up at some point, and I’ll get to hear her real name.”
He laughed, and the sound warmed her from the inside out.
She tried hard not to think about hearing him chuckle last night, and what had happened before.
But his big body beside hers was a source of constant temptation, and a familiar ache was forming in her belly, twisting her up with pleasant need.
The morning passed quickly with everyone in a good mood that seemed to extend even to the dogs.
Up ahead, the sheriff stopped his sled suddenly, breaking the spell.
Kinsley’s heart was in her mouth until she saw why.
A family of small, fluffy canines with narrow snouts and big, puffy tails were leaping in the snow, hunting tiny rodents.
“They look so happy,” she told Kian.
