“I’m not tired.”
“Mara.”He said my name with a slight roll on the R.I liked the way he said it.I’d never heard it said that way.He lay back on his side, untangling his hand from my hair, and placing it on my waist, keeping me in place.“I must stop.”
“Why?”I hadn’t meant to say that.I sounded like a petulant child.
“Because I want you too much, and I refuse to take you on the ground, fumbling about to keep quiet so as not to wake the others surrounding us.”
I felt as though he’d turned on a spigot.The world suddenly rushed in again, and I heard Finnrey and Yung murmur “all clear” as they passed each other and continued their circuit.I heard Nize’s snores.I’d heard them many nights when on patrol and recognized them.I heard the first notes of birdsong and knew dawn wasn’t far off.Heat rose in my cheeks at what I’d been thinking and wanting.If he hadn’t stopped us, I don’t know what might have happened.He was right.This was no place for our first time—myfirst time.
“I’m sorry.”I lowered my arms from his neck, but he caught them and kissed my hands.
“Don’t apologize.I want you just as much,morethan you want me.”
I might have argued, but I had my wits back.And I was realizing that I had at most another hour before I’d have to be up and walking all day, possibly fighting to stay alive.“You’re right.We should sleep.”
Just to make sure I actually did sleep and wasn’t tempted to start kissing him again, I moved away and turned my back to him.I put my arm under my head and closed my eyes.My heart still pounded and little zings of pleasure and desire zipped through my body, but I tried to ignore them.I shifted again, trying to get comfortable.Taio’s arm came down over my ribs, and he pulled me into his warmth.The hardness of his chest pressed against my back did nothing to reduce my desire.I bit my lip and tried to pretend he was just a wall at my back—a very solid, very warm, verymalewall...
I heard a huff across the clearing and opened my eyes.Though it was still dark, it was the dove gray darkness that comes at twilight and just before dawn.In that charcoal light, I saw Gaz’s eyes.They were open and fixed on me.I couldn’t see the expression on his face, but I had no doubt he’d been aware of what Taio and I were doing.
If the hard stare he gave me was any indication, he hadn’t liked it.
Gaz turned away, giving me his back, and I watched it for a moment before the warmth and comfort of Taio’s body against mine lulled me into sleep.
Chapter Twelve
The forest was darkerand colder than the grasslands had been.The trees towered above us, fragrant pines and firs, reddish cedar trees, and the thick trunks of the occasional redwood.The dry ground was littered with sharp cones and prickly needles, some new and others years old.Ferns grew under the trees, making a carpet of green.Some of the ferns were as tall as I was, and their leaves brushed against my face when I pushed them out of the way.Other trees and plants grew as well.I didn’t know their names, and some were completely unfamiliar.The foliage seemed not to notice that the air had turned cold and the rains dried up.They were still a vibrant green.
Taio unearthed a rudimentary path, though it disappeared in places.My guess was that the trail had been used at some point long ago and was on the verge of being overtaken by all the vegetation.We walked in a single file line, Taio leading and Nize in the rear.Gaz walked behind Taio, and something about that made me uneasy.
“I don’t like it in here,” Finnrey said.She was right behind me, and Kintle right in front of me.
“It’s cold,” I agreed.“And the sun is shut out by all those branches.”I glanced up at the canopy above.The day was cloudy, but if we’d been in the open, we’d have seen the sun poking through the clouds here and there.“How are they so green this time of year?”
“They’re called evergreens,” she said.“They’re always green.”
In front of me, Kintle raised a hand and slowed.My hand went immediately to my belt and the hilt of my skullcrusher.That was another thing I didn’t like about the forest.I couldn’t see anything but what was immediately in front of me.Hollows could be just a yard or two away, hidden by all the foliage.I hoped I would smell them.Surely, the reek of decay would pierce the clean scent of cedar and pine.On the other hand, the wind rustling the trees blew from behind us.The Hollows might be right in front of us, and I wouldn’t catch their scent until too late.
