“And these?”
“The scars? Cuts with a kitchen knife.”
“Your mother did these to you?”
She nodded. “Adoptive mother. I never knew my real mother. You know I’ve never admitted to anyone before what she did. Funny, now it’s out, I’m not sure why I kept it in for so long.”
“Why would she do that to you?”
“She wasn’t a very nice person.”
“I am sorry she hurt you.”
“She’s dead now. She can’t hurt anyone anymore.”
A silence fell between them for a minute. Cam held her tightly to his side, his hand stroking her arm softly.
“You have scars,” Rachel said eventually. “More than me.”
“These were from fights, not from my parents.”
“You miss them, don’t you?”
“The fights?”
“Your parents, silly.”
“Aye. I miss them.”
“How old were you when they died?”
“Ten.”
She turned to look at him, his face little more than gray against black in the darkness. She could only see the slightest glint of his eyes, nothing more. “I’m sorry.”
Before she knew what was happening his lips were touching hers. He pulled away almost at once but the tingle remained as if they were still kissing. Her heart began to thump loudly in her chest as she leaned in for a second. He was no longer facing her, he was looking into the darkness.
“Did that just happen?” she asked, her hands trembling wildly as she ran them over her lips, her breath coming in rough gasps. “Did you just kiss me?”
“I shouldnae have done it. It willnae happen again.”
“But why? Why did you kiss me? Where are you going.”
He was on his feet. “To find us some food. You stay here. I will be back.”
She sat alone in the darkness wondering if she’d done something wrong. It was the first kiss she’d ever experienced and it had come from nowhere. She was still experiencing it, her hands had yet to stop shaking. She felt more alive than ever.
Did it mean he liked her? It must. She felt his passion but then he sounded so angry afterward.
“People are confusing,” she said out loud, wrapping the coat around herself once more.
When he came back he lit a fire, cooking a single scrawny pigeon. “It was all I could find in this storm,” he said by way of explanation. “You have it.”
“No, you should have it. I’ll be going home in the morning.”
“What if you stay?”
She looked up at him but his expression was as inscrutable as ever. “What do you mean?”
