I huff. And he tellsmeto behave!
I hit the bullseye the next three rounds to prove a point.
He raises an eyebrow in praise, and it’s enough to make me perfume.
“Where did you learn to shoot?”
He’s methodically packing his large duffle bag, placing each gun in a protective case with careful movements. I’m struck by the almost reverent way he handles the equipment. I suppose when your life depends on your gun, you make damn sure it’s in tiptop shape.
I shrug. “Picked it up as a hobby.”
He pauses, considering that information.
“Do you have a hobby, Viper?”
He doesn’t respond.
“Okay then, how about this, what’s your favorite food?”
“Anything.”
“Favorite color?”
“Don’t have one.”
I scoff, handing him a magazine laying on a rock. “You have to have a favorite color, everyone does. It’s the same as your favorite flavor; they’re the two things we’re most wired to have an opinion on.”
“I don’t have a favorite color.”
“Oh come on. Just pick one!”
“Fine,” he sighs, like he’s long suffering, and turns to look at me. He studies my features with a burning intensity for a moment longer than polite. “Purple.”
My brain stutters.
“Purple?”
“Yeah. That’s my favorite color.”
He turns back to his task.
My eyes are purple. Did he… does he…? Is he flirting with me? I suppose, in his own odd Viper way, he has been all day. Teasing gently, almost like it’s an accident when he gets a reaction from me.
I clear my throat and busy myself with tightening my laces, preparing for the uphill hike back to camp. When I’m done, I rise to help him zip up the duffle bag. I hold the bag closed, keeping the strain off the zipper, and Viper pulls the zipper one tooth at a time until it’s closed.
“I guess it is a good color. But if I’m being honest, I’m really feeling green right now.”
I glance up and he’s staring directly at me, his eyes shining green. The corner of his mouth quirked in a half grin.
“Yeah. Green’s feeling you too, pretty girl.”
We walk back to camp, side by side, bumping shoulders occasionally.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Halley
I stir awake to a symphony of birds chirping their morning song.
