I hold his gaze, daring him to comment. He doesn’t, but when Orik gets up to gather breakfast, he leaves with him.
Sabine sits next to me, using Edilk’s blanket as a cloak. “You shouldn’t use another warrior’s blanket.”
“Vari is still sleeping. Orik and I were talking.” I don’t think Vari is going to lose his shit and attack Orik for sitting with me. If he does, then he will see me lose mine.
“That doesn’t matter. You will smell of him.”
“Maybe Orik sat with me because I smell of Vari.” Even as I say it, my cheeks heat. I doubt Vari will mind that I smell of his boyfriend.
She helps herself to tea. “We need to follow their customs.”
“Do we? Because my understanding is that different tribes have different customs.” I pull the blanket tighter around me as I watch Vari crawl out of the shelter and stretch. The glow of his markings are visible to all. “Why can’t we make our own?”
Sabine presses her lips together.
“I don’t want us to be scattered across the other continent. Far from all other humans. We need to stay together.”
“I know.” She clasps my hand. “Edilk is not keen to sail and leave Aldit and Tiril behind.”
“Then we need a plan.”
“Now the mating issue is sorted, that is the next thing to discuss.” She draws in a breath. “He wants to consult with Sunif about how to handle it, because the longer we stay here, the more tempting raiding the colony will become.”
I hadn’t thought of that. “That will not go down well with the colony.”
She lifts her eyebrows and nods. “Exactly.”
“This camp site was never meant to be anything but temporary. We need proper shelters and such.” While there is a river, and creeks, as well as the ocean, in a big storm where we are sitting will flood. There’s nowhere to plant crops or set up a latrine. All things I had to help with when planning how the colony should be laid out before we started construction.
She stands, nods at Vari, and then takes a walk to the trees, as though not wanting to be in the way of the argument she expects to happen.
Vari frowns as he gets closer. He knows whose blanket it is without asking. “You are up early.”
“Had to pee.” And then I’d seen Orik sitting alone and couldn’t walk away. He’s the kind of guy that is easy to be around. I didn’t need more time to fall for him, even though I couldn’t have him. He never hid that he had a boyfriend, or what his tribe was like, nor did he put any pressure on me. In part, I think that was because he wanted to discuss the possibility with Vari first—and that didn’t go well.
He sits next to me. “Another warrior might take offence.”
I smile sweetly, keeping my teeth hidden. “A good thing you are not that other warrior.”
A frown forms as he processes my words.
Orik and I agree about many things. And while I would have never considered it before, given the way men outnumber women in the colony, I don’t see why there can’t be two warriors for each woman if everyone is in agreement.
I open the blanket and offer him some, the same way Orik had to me. “Want to warm up?”
In the soft morning light, his markings glow. He looks at me, and then the blanket, as if it is the hardest decision that he’s ever had to make.
I bite my lip to keep from speaking.
“People will talk, seeing you in his blanket.”
I shrug, but keep the offer open. “Would they talk if we are both using his blanket?”
“I know what you are doing.” But he moves in close, sliding his arm around me and pulling the blanket over his shoulder.
“Well, I’m glad one of us does,” I mutter.
He closes his eyes. “I am in rut, meaning my body is craving you. Now you smell of him and you have no idea how confusing that is.”
