* * *
I am too keyed up to return home, offering instead to take over guarding the bridge from River and Rynan. They gawk at me as if I ordered them to eat rocks. Although I would rather be left alone with my thoughts, Maddox and Gryff insist on keeping me company. Maybe their bickering will help take my mind off the hopeless situation with Kerris.
I toss another log onto the fire, and sparks shoot into the sky while the gray smoke curls toward the layer of mist hanging above us. Maddox holds out his hands, offering me a giant flat rock. “I have baked a pie for you, Ever. Here. Take a bite. You know you want to.”
I shove Maddox back, and his “pie” goes flying. “You are one to talk. ‘Oh, Nia, blueberries are my favorite.’”
He shrugs, not the least bit irritated by my retort. “What is so wrong with that? She is beautiful.”
“She hates you.”
“She only hates me because she does not know me.”
Gryff shakes his head, unstrapping his dagger to stoke the coals beneath the fresh log. “And if she ever has the misfortune of getting to know you, she will hate you even more.”
“Fuck off. You do not know that. Kerris Dawn is smitten. Maybe her cousin wants to cross the bridge for a taste as well.” The way Maddox rubs his hands together makes it look as if he is plotting something terrible. May the fates help whatever female has the misfortune of choosing him as a mate. “Just wait till Leah Locke finds out.”
Shit. Shit. Shit.
In my elation, I completely forgot about Leah.
I will have to be on alert in case she tries to cross The Divide. There is no telling what Leah would do to Kerris if she found her. This situation is becoming more complicated by the minute.
The thump of hooves echoes in the distance, growing louder with each passing breath. Whoever approaches is in a hurry.
The three of us stand to greet them.
Our chieftain arrives in a cloud of dust, leaping from his mount with the energy of a youngling. “There’s no need to stand on my behalf. I only came to speak to my new son.”
He has a daughter, not a son.
Perhaps his mind is not as keen as it once was.
He stalks over to where I stand, grips both sides of my face, and presses a dry kiss to my cheek. “Leah told me the good news, and I was waiting for you to return from the hunt to congratulate you.”
Now I know he is confused. “Congratulate me for what?” I have done nothing of note that I can recall.
“Accepting my daughter’s proposal of course! She showed me the skillet you gave her. Why did you not tell me when we last spoke?”
Accept her proposal? Skillet?
“I…” I do not have a fucking clue what he is talking about.
He claps me on the back once more, sending me stumbling a step forward. “Tell me, how was the hunt?”
How does he expect me to speak about the hunt when I am still trying to figure out why he thinks Leah and I are to be mated.
“We took down two bears, five elk, and a handful of foxes,” Gryffin clips. I can feel his glower but cannot bring myself to face him.
Our chieftain beams with pride. “Well done. That should feed our people for weeks. Any sign of the wolves?”
“No.” Not so much as a track.
“Excellent. After you have rested, I expect you to come to my home for a celebratory drink.”
All I can do is stare as he slaps my shoulder once more and then stomps back to his mount and rides away.
Maddox and Gryffin turn toward me, their jaws hanging open.
