The river is rushing behind us; the sound drowning our conversation out. All I can smell is the water and earth, and peanut butter cookies.
I want to lick her and see if that taste is on her skin.
“You all rejected me! You remember that, don’t you?” she almost yells.
I step closer, and she sidesteps, her eyes wary.
“Mmm, that was then, but today is a whole different day.”
She lets out a shriek that sends birds into the sky. The forest gets quiet but for the sound of the river and my heartbeat as it thuds in anticipation of her being mine.
Rory slinks out of the shadows of the trees, making no sound. He approaches our omega on silent feet and, when he gets close, slides his hand up her side.
She reacts instantly, grabbing his wrist and flipping him onto his back in the sandy soil.
I lean against a rock and laugh.
“Stop. It!” she hisses at both of us. “Just stop. I’m not forgiving or forgetting. You keep your damn hands to yourself. It’s going to be hard enough as it is.”
“Hard is exactly the problem,” I say under my breath.
She cuts me a look that could turn granite to dust.
“Stop.”
I flutter my eyelashes at her. “Okay, I’m behaving. We will woo you when you are less panicked.”
“I’m not panicking.”
“No?”
“No!” she says firmly. “This is just obscene. You four stay away from me.”
“Okay, sweetheart.”
She cringes and then races off, not letting Rory get a word in. I hold out a hand and pull him up.
“The suppressants are gone.”
Rory’s hand tightens on mine, but that’s the only reaction I get from him.
“Well, that’s going to be fun. Should we send her back without us? It would be safer.”
“Do you think she’d let us? I’m fairly certain she can handle herself.”
I get into camp where a warm and welcoming fire is glowing and sit down beside Vale, who is staring at Nathan. The other alpha is glaring at Vale as if he’d like to jump through the fire and kill him. I almost wish he’d try.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, we’re just having a moment to work out who the top dog here is.”
Bonnie hands out stew in our collapsible bowls. I frown, realising she doesn’t have one.
She passes me mine. I wait until she’s sitting and then shove the bowl and my spoon into her hands. I don’t acknowledge her attempts to protest, just turn to Kota, who spoons a huge mouthful into my mouth from his bowl.
It is a very effective way of silencing her.
She’s dressed in Vale’s jumper, but I can tell she’s cold. Her clothes are hanging on a rope near the fire. I make a note to make sure the fire burns long enough to dry her clothes.
