When his gaze strays from the stars to her face, he’s surprised to find it creased with emotion that betrays how worried she is for him. Hell, he must be in bad shape if her tears are dropping onto his skin.
“You’ll be so angry when you find out,” he tells her, his eyelids sagging.
“When I find out what?”
“Everything I’ve been keeping from you. You’ll take that gun on day thirty and shoot a bullet right in my brain. I’ll deserve it.”
“Should I make some sausage out of you afterwards?” It’s a light-hearted joke coated in worry, and he huffs in amusement, not expecting that she’d remember his comment from the night they met.
“You’d better. Don’t waste anything.”
“You still plan to offer me that choice, huh?”
“A deal is a deal.”
She hums an agreeable sound, leaning her head back against the wall again to gaze up at the stars.
He only wants to look at her. His eyes droop, and his body starts to give out, but he fights it. “You’re so damn pretty.”
It’s a comment he never planned on saying, but she smiles, her voice light. “Now I know you’re delusional.”
“Why aren’t you mad at me?”
“Because you haven’t given me a reason to be. Your brain is scrambled, that’s all. You need rest, Wyatt.”
“Will you stay?” It’s a silly question considering he’s pinning her to the floor, but he asks anyway, needing the reassurance.
“I’ll stay.”
“Even if you hate me later?”
She hesitates, her tone gentle, if slightly placating. “Even if.”
* * *
When he wakes, he’s in his bed again, and he’s alone until Addison appears in the doorway with a bowl and a spoon. “Hey, you’re awake.”
“Did you feed them?”
She sets the food down on the table and dips the bed with her weight. “Who?”
“The polar bears.”
This is serious, but there’s a twitch of amusement on her face. “Yes, yes, I did.”
“You’re smiling like it’s funny, but it’s not. They’ll get upset. I saw three this morning. They’re one of the few animals that see humans as prey. You need a healthy fear of them if you’re gonna be in Alaska.”
“I am aware.” Her hand lands on his forehead, prompting a frown. “Still hot, but not as bad as earlier.”
“The brown one’s been trying to murder me. I told you, but you don’t believe me.”
That little brown bear has been trying to slice him open with its claws, and Addison watches the whole thing like it’s adorable.
“Brown one?” She smiles again, holding up one of the mutated polar bears, her hands under its armpits and its paws in mid-air. “This polar bear?”
“You’re in on it,” he groans. “I knew it the whole time.”
She puts the monster on the ground, where it scampers off to plot their demise. “Wyatt, it’s just the cat. Too small to hurt anything. You don’t have to worry about him.”
