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I nearly jumped out of my skin, which certainly would've been awkward considering I was in the middle of wiping. Looking over to Darla, who was staring at the ground and pacing, I tried to control my racing heart.
We were farther from the rest of the group, as I’d needed to relieve myself and there wasn’t exactly toilets in the middle of the forest. Darla had come with me to keep watch while I found a place to relieve myself where my scent wasn’t likely to be picked up by our enemies.
“Um?” I murmured.
I knew most likely every shifter in the house knew what Kai and I had gotten up to, but I'd thought none of them would actually talk about it to my face. A gentleman’s courtesy, so to speak. But was Darla really about to call me out the moment I finished peeing?
“I…”
Goodness, Darla’s face was pretty serious. Was she upset because I’d given into my attraction to Kai after encouraging me to do just that for years? That made no sense.
“I made out with Tristian last night.”
Wait…
What?
“You did what now?” I asked as I pulled up my pants, both relieved and incredibly curious. I hadn’t even been aware there was anything going on between them.
“We made out, and I’m not gonna lie, I do wish that it'd escalated into something more dramatic.” She gave me a half-embarrassed, half-eager look through those thick lashes of hers. “A bit more horizontal, if you know what I mean.”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” I said, my head reeling. I'd been so sure that I was going to have to listen to jibe after jibe about me and Kai last night that I was still thrown for a loop. “Did you cut it off? Did he?”
“Neither, actually. Mad Dog walked in, that big oaf, and made things awkward.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t just start making out with both of them. He’s pretty handsome, in a rugged, wolfy way.”
Darla heaved a sigh. “While not ahorribleidea, I’m not really interested in dating, and Mad Dog is clearly the loyal type.”
“Really?”
Darla’s dreamy gaze narrowed at me. “Hey, why do you look so surprised?” I didn’t know how to answer that. “Look, I know I love flirting with everyone at the base, but that’s just for fun. Anyone I could really see myself with is, uh, well… totally unobtainable, we’ll say.”
I understood right down to my very bones.
“If it means anything, I don’t think the world is gonna melt down because you made out with Tristian. He’s the rolling stone type, after all.”
“Yeah, he is. I guess with all the adrenaline and everything else going on, I just wanted to vent stress in a healthy way.”
“Hooking up with a man-whore is healthy?”
“First of all, don’t judge me,” she said with a laugh. “Second of all,healthier.”
“All right, fair enough.” Despite knowing I needed to increase the distance between myself and the people I cared about, I still approached to put a hand on her shoulder. “I honestly don’t think it was that big a deal. You didn’t endanger the mission, and sometimes blowing off a little steam can help you keep a clear mind.”
“You think so?”
“Have you ever known me to say things I don’t believe?”
“That’s a great point.” Darla took a deep breath, then straightened up. “You’re a good friend. You know that, right?”
Unfortunately, that seemed to be quickly becoming an actual issue. But pushing down that dread, I gave her what I hoped was a supportive smile. “Thanks, I try.”
Avoiding Kai was exceedingly difficult under the best of circumstances, but he seemed more determined than ever to make it a real trial, even with all of Darla’s buffering. He put his sleeping bag next to us. He ate food next to us at night. He often tried to draw me into conversation on our rare moments of downtime, and was successful more often than not, becausedamn,was he clever and just generally fun to be around, the asshole.
I tried to pretend like everything was normal anyway, aware of Irina and Darla’s eyes both on me. Thankfully, Tristan and Mad Dog seemed locked into hours-long competition over all the crazy hijinks they’d gotten into over the years, so at least they were distracted. I didn’t think Irina was going to run around the fort with a banner saying that Kai and I had fucked, though sheprobably wouldn’t keep our secret under lock and key. She had an influential circle that spread out far wider than I ever knew.
Naturally, that set me on edge, and I didn’t get the best night’s sleep. That certainly didn’t help when our next day involved a treacherous landscape with sheer rocks, sudden drops, and thick bogs disguised by peaceful looking expanses of verdant moss. The path was pretty intimidating to most of the group who were on high alert, but to me, the pitfalls were steeped in nostalgia, reminding me of how I’d often explore on my own when I was young.
