Page 51 of Hunted By Wolves and Shadow
The gentlemanly thing to do would be to slide my arm from under her and set her back on her pillow before she awoke to realize she was cuddling the man she hated. Luckily, I was no gentleman.
Instead, I curled my arm around her back and held her, breathing in that delicious Emi scent while I could. I would take this sliver of paradise, this one taste of Emi being mine in a heartbeat of perfect stillness, and I would treasure it when she was gone.
After last night, she might look at me differently, but that didn’t mean she felt the same way I did. I’d hoped seeing the enclave—what they meant to me, and what I meant to them—would be enough to spare my life in her eyes, but that was themost I allowed myself to hope. Only a fool would imagine that she could ever forgive me or that we could have this for real, and I was no fool, either.
When I opened my eyes again, I was alone. I gave myself a breath to relish the lingering smell of warm vanilla on my skin and smiled when I pictured her waking up to find herself twined around me. My poor little kitten must have been horrified. No surprise that she’d snuck away.
I found her not at Fawn’s fire, but sharing a cup of porridge with Bear, Robin, and Hawk. They were deep in conversation and it pleased me more than I expected to see Robin so engaged with Emi. She was like a sister to me, and seeing that Emi had gained her approval somehow made me glow inside. It was good to see Hawk with them too. He was basically my second in command, along with Lynx, so his trust would go a long way with any others who weren’t already won over by Emi’s kindness and good heart.
“Enough for one more?” I asked.
Bear handed over a mug, and I scooped the remaining porridge from his pot. It was thick and hot, with the perfect honeyed sweetness that coated my insides going down. We still had a curse to break, but I could enjoy a good meal and a morning with friends before going back to the cold and the Mist.
Emi wasn’t quite meeting my eyes, and I suppressed a chuckle. She’d dressed, while I’d only added my tunic, knowing we’d be leaving soon anyway.
“What were you all talking about?” I asked.
“You,” said Robin, at the same time that Emi replied, “Nothing.”
Amused, I couldn’t help myself. “Are you saying I’m nothing, witchling? Because I think I make quite a good pillow, for one.”
Finally, she met my gaze and a thrill zipped through my veins at the fire in her eyes. “Nothing but flea-bitten freckled menace, yes.”
I burst out laughing. Robin and Hawk joined in, and even Bear ducked his head and shook.
“Oh, I like her, Wolf. Maybe we’ll trade you for her,” Robin teased.
She wasn’t getting away with that, so I reached over and mussed her hair. “No you won’t, you pesky bird.”
“Hey!” She shoved me off and landed a punch to my shoulder. Any other day, I’d consider challenging her to a sparring match. Robin was a force to be reckoned with despite her small stature. But today, I had other things calling.
“Sorry, birdie, vengeance must wait. We have to get back to Ruby’s cottage to see if Em’s new magic can figure out how to cure us from this curse.” I turned to offer Emi a hand up, mildly surprised when she took it without question. “That okay with you, witchling?”
She nodded, but said she wanted to check on Fox first and say goodbye to Fawn. I went to follow, but Robin held me back.
“You sure you know what you’re doing?”
I sighed. “No. I haven’t known this whole time. The prophecy said—”
Robin punched me again. “Not about the curse, stupid. I mean about her. You have feelings for her.”
I’d never been able to hide things from Robin. “I’ve got it under control. Nothing to worry about.”
“Oh, Wolf.” Before I knew it, she was embracing me hard and tight. My arms lifted to hug her back. Robin was tough andpractical, so when she let go and looked up at me with soft eyes, it nearly broke me. “I’ll always worry about you. And we’ll be here for you no matter what, whether you break the curse or not, and whatever happens with your witch. You might think you’re hiding it behind the flirting and jokes, but I saw how you watched her last night. You checked up on her so often I thought your neck would be sore this morning.”
I moaned. “I did not.”
She patted my arm. “You’re cute. The thing you might not have seen is the way she watched you, too. She tracked you the whole time you made your rounds, and don’t think I didn’t notice the way she blushed furiously when you walked in this morning. I don’t know what happened between you two—”
“Nothing happened. We slept, that’s all.”
Robin pumped her eyebrows and gave me a sly grin.
“I mean it. She may not hate me as much anymore, but that doesn’t mean she likes me either.”
Robin’s teal-blue eyes went to Fawn’s fire where Emi stood with her back to us, her hair cascading over the red hooded cape. “I’ll bet you two skinned hares that she likes you plenty. I’m not saying you shouldn’t be cautious, but don’t lock yourself away like you do.”
“I don’t do that.”
