There was a moment of silence before her head turned toward me, her murderous eyes throwing darts in my direction. “Princess?”
I lifted my chin and held her stare because her murder eyes only scared me a little bit. “It seems fitting with how you’re acting right now.”
Well done, Marten.Thatstatement definitely got a reaction. “HowI’macting, Fabio?”
“Yup. I want to talk to you.”
She stared at me for a long, incredulous moment before she sat up in her bed, her legs brushing against mine. “Okay, go ahead.” She said the words in a way that a serial killer might offer their victim a chance to plead their case just before slitting their throat.
“First up.” I tossed her a sandwich. It landed on her lap where she stared at it like it was laced with cyanide. “You need to eat. We’ve got to put this food away.”
She threw it back. “I’m not hungry.”
“I’m not talking to you on an empty stomach. I’ve learned that lesson, believe me.”
“Well, I don’t eat when I’m angry.”
“I thought you weren’t angry.”
“I’m not. I was stating a fact.”
My lips twitched. Hers did not. I could feel my body tighten with annoyance.
I opened my sandwich and took a large bite. The smell of peanut butter immediately filled the air. She glowered at me before lying back down, facing the wall again.
“Mmm. This is good.”
“Great, peanut butter. The bears will love that,” she said, still not looking at me.
I took another bite and moaned. “This might be the best PB&J I’ve ever had.”
“Did your mom make it for you?”
I smiled, holding back a laugh. “No, she said I had to do it myself.”
There was an almost imperceptible shake of her head. She was a stubborn thing. I finished my sandwich, making a big, annoying production out of it before taking a swig of water from my water bottle.
“Last chance to eat,” I said, gathering up the food scattered between us.
She didn’t answer. I grabbed my phone and used it as a flashlight as I made my way to the bear box, deposited our food, and crawled back inside the tent. I turned off the lantern and settled into my sleeping bag, facing away from Tessa. I was very aware that if I moved one inch, our backs would be pressed together. I didn’t want to make her uncomfortable or push her too far, so I held firm in not allowing my back to touch hers. I had imagined this night going differently. Not that I expected anything to happen, but from our time in the hot spring, I had definitely imagined more cuddling. The happy kind. Not the kind where if I relaxed a fraction of an inch, I might lose a limb.
Like a little boy pulling pigtails for attention, I tested my theory and allowed my back to relax into hers the tiniest bit. She pushed against me before jerking forward.
The most uncomfortably hilarious minute later, her back bumped into mine with a surprising degree of force.
“Logan, I swear, if you’re laughing right now, I will cut your head off and feed it to the bears for a snack.”
I rolled over onto my back. “You kiss your mother with that mouth?”
“Logan.”
“Easy with the bear talk, alright? You keep this up, maybe I’ll let you get eaten.”
She spun around, her shoulder landing on top of mine as she did so. “You’llletme get eaten? Instead of what—savingme?” She scoffed. “We both know I can run a lot faster than you.”
“Maybe, but I’m stronger.”
Her eyebrows lifted, and I thought I detected the slightest hint of laughter lurking on her face before it was gone. “So, what do you do with all that strength when a bear attacks you?”
