A dimple popped out in his cheek as he smiled back. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Phew.Had that dimple always been there?
Nodding, I backed away from the tent entrance and zipped it up.
Well, now I was warm and it had nothing to do with gathering firewood.
Focus, Lana. Firewood. Gather firewood.
Right.
Shoving away the memory of Toren’s crooked, dimpled smile, I scurried back out into the snow, retracing my footsteps to the lean-to. Thankfully, the snow was deep enough the falling snow didn’t fill in my prints, and I was able to easily find it again.
When I reached the little shelter this time, I spread the sling out on the ground and carefully laid the remainder of the platform logs into it. I’d make a third trip and grab the long poles too. Toren probably had an axe tucked away in that Santa bag of his, and there was enough wood in those two poles to last for hours.
Sling loaded, I scooped up the handles and left the lean-to, heading back to the alcove. When I reached our campsite, Toren was up, leaning on one of his walking sticks as he stared down at the pot on the fire.
The scent of reconstituted meat hit my nostrils. “What are you making?” I dropped the sling near the rest of the firewood and sank to my knees to unload it.
“Sausage and eggs. I don’t have pancakes, but I have some biscuit mix, so we’ll have that too.”
My mouth watered. I picked up my stacking pace. “I’ll hurry back, then.”
“There’s more?”
“Just a little. Two long poles. You have an axe, yes?”
“Yes.”
“Awesome.” I got to my feet, leaving the sling next to the wood pile. “I’ll be right back.”
This time, my pace back to the lean-to was a little quicker. I wanted to eat that food while it was still hot.
When I reached the lean-to this time, I did a quick circle around it, looking for anything else we could use. The snow obscured the ground, but there were a few lumps that might be interesting, so I kicked at a few. Most were just fallen branches and rocks, but I did find a tangle of rope that wasn’t in bad shape.
I also found the firepit.
Normally, that wouldn’t mean much, especially when I knew I was at an old campsite, but this one had very little snow on it. That told me it was probably still smoldering when the rain and snow started. It melted the snow as it fell.
Goosebumps rose on my arms and the hair lifted on the back of my neck.
I stilled, looking deeper into the woods.
Was someone out there, watching me dismantle their camp? Maybe following me back to mine?
That last thought set my feet in motion. I didn’t want to get caught out here alone.
Logic told me if someone wanted me dead or to capture me, they’d have done it already, but my fight or flight instinct didn’t listen to logic.
With a pole under each arm and the length of rope settled over my shoulder, I hiked back to camp.
Chapter 13
Toren
While Lana was gone, I rolled a few small boulders toward the fire and stacked several flat rocks on top to create a bit of a counter. Once I was satisfied with the surface, I moved the sausage and egg pot onto it. It kept the food out of the flames, but close enough to keep it warm.
Turning, I put my bad foot down. A quick grunt of pain escaped. I really needed to stop doing that. The problem was it didn’t hurt unless I put weight on it, and I kept forgetting.
