“They’re so cute,” I whispered, afraid to scare it off.
“Not as cute as you,” he smiled and for a moment he looked sincere, but that couldn’t be right. Drovo didn’t like me like that.
“Right.” I rolled my eyes and refocused my gaze on the moth with the fuzzy body and fluffy looking wings.
The little bug walked up my thumb and flew away.
“Thank you. That was nice,” I conceded.
“You’re welcome. Shall we return to eat some dinner?”
Drovo shifted back to his Sirret form and led the way back to the fire.
When we returned, the stew was cooked, we ate, chatted, and made plans for the next day’s travel.
“Did you ever go camping back on earth?” I asked Taylor, as she irritably swatted away another bug.
“No, I was more of the indoors type back at home. I went hiking a time or two, but only if there was an air-conditioned restaurant at the end of the trail.”
I let out a hushed laugh. We’d been keeping our voices down ever since the sun went down.
“What about you?” Taylor inquired.
“Me? No. I like the outdoors, but not that much.”
“What’s camping?” Drovo asked.
“This,” I gestured at the fire and the shelters Drovo had made. “Camping is choosing to sleep outside when you have a perfectly good house or mountain to sleep in.”
Taylor laughed at my joke, while Drovo and Brexl just looked thoughtful.
“It would not have been safe to make the trip all in one day,” Brexl offered as an apology.
“Oh, no. I wasn’t implying that camping is bad.” Taylor tried to ease his worries. “It’s just not something I would have done on earth.”
“This is nice, though.” I added. “The shelters we use for camping on earth aren’t nearly as good as these.” As soon as the words left my mouth, I regretted it. I knew better than to compliment Drovo.
“I’m glad you like them,” he smiled smugly, as if he’d won some on-going fight. “You know,” he continued with his grin growing ever wider. “It might get cold tonight. You and I can share a shelter and I can keep you warm.”
There it was. Give him an inch and he’ll take a mile. I was growing irritated by his empty flirtations. Why did he insist on flirting with me when he didn’t like me?
“No thanks,” I replied in a flat tone as I got up and dusted off my pants. “I’d prefer Taylor’s company if that’s alright with you.”
“Sure, sure, but I don’t think she’s as warm asme,” he grinned again and I rolled my eyes.
I spared a glance at Brexl, who looked horrified. I couldn’t imagine him sharing a shelter with Taylor. He looked at her like a spiked gift, something he wanted but couldn’t touch.
“I’m ready for bed if you are.” Taylor yawned, and we both ducked into the domed tree structure and laid out our furs.
Chapter 8
Kayla
“This isn’t half bad,” Taylor commented as she laid on her fur looking up at our leafy ceiling. “It’s surprisingly warm, and the ground is more bearable than I thought it’d be, especially since I packed three furs instead of the suggested two.” My companion smiled to herself as she brought her blanket up to her shoulders, looking as cozy as could be with her hair tucked in her bonnet. My freshly braided hair was tucked away now, too.
I had only packed two furs and found the ground to be harder than I’d like.
“Sooo…I think Drovo has a thing for you. Do you argue with him because you enjoy it or because you genuinely don’t like him?”
