“I’m not the one passed out in the mud-covered in my own blood. What did you do anyway? Break your nose?”
“I wouldn’t have broken my nose if someone hadn’t tied their tent in the public walking space.” I said annoyed, and she snorted.
“You aren’t on the walking path, Theo. You walked between the two tents.”
I glanced sideways, and another tent appeared next to me… dammit, she was right. I must have tried to cut through and didn’t realize. I frowned, trying to get to my feet and stumbled. Cynthia caught my arm, and I held onto her, smiling down at her through hooded lashes. Her face was so close to mine, I could count all thirty-eight freckles that brushed over her cheeks.
“Do you know where my tent is?” I asked on a breath and Cynthia’s cheeks turned pink as she stepped away from me again.
“You mean the one you are standing next to?”
I blinked again at her and laughed as I remembered I made her stay in a tent next to mine. “You found it!” I exclaimed, grabbing her and hugging her to my chest.
“Urgh—you’re covered in mud, Theo, get off!”
I released her and grinned, leaning in to whisper, “Want to know a secret?”
“Is it that you have a spare tunic to lend me?” she grumbled, wiping off mud that now clung to the front of her.
“Well, I do if you want one, but no, that’s not it.”
She glared up at me. “What Theo?”
“I stole a bunch of sandwiches and hid them under my cot.”
A small smile lined her lips. “Is that so?”
“Come on, I can share!” I grabbed her hand before she could argue and pulled her out from between the tents, anddragged her into mine. I dropped her hand and ran to my cot, crouching down and pulling out a small trunk.
I heard Cynthia moving behind me, and could have sworn I heard the tent flaps.
Fine, more for me.
I flipped open the lid and frowned. They were gone!No, I know I put them in here!
I lifted the trunk, shaking it as if I could make them appear. I threw it down, ducking back under the cot but nothing else was under there. They had to be in that trunk… I lifted it again, peering into the empty box and growled.
Laughter echoed behind me, and I turned to find Cynthia, grinning. She was holding something, and it took a moment for my vision to focus on what it was.
“You mean these sandwiches that I stole from you yesterday?”
The grin that was on her lips was diabolical, and my mouth popped open. She didn’t. She did! And the bag was half empty! I pushed to my feet, stalking toward her and grabbing the bag from her outstretched hands.
“Those weremine,” I snarled angrily, and my blood only heated further when no trace of guilt entered her gaze.
Her brown eyes danced with playful glee. “You need to find better hiding places.”
I closed the distance between us, and she had to tilt her head back to look at me. “I knew you were a spying thief,” I growled, but she only laughed in my face. The sound made my jaw clench, the muscle twitching like it always did when she irritated me.
“It really is all too easy to rile you up, Theo,” she said, batting her lashes up at me, as if she were just some innocent girlplaying a prank. But I knew her. I’ve watched her, studied her, and there was nothing innocent about her.
Our gazes remained locked as she challenged me to react, to do something, punish her. And I should, she deserved it, but all I could focus on were her lips as her tongue darted out to wet them. I leaned down so that my lips hovered just over hers. Gravitating to them, unable to stop myself.
“That fucking mouth of yours is going to get you in trouble one of these days,” I breathed, the noise coming out as a gravely whisper.
Cynthia’s eyes darted to my lips, lingering there longer than they should.
“I thought you liked my mouth, seeing as you can never stop staring at it?”
