Lynn quickly closed the door on him to preserve her appetite. Just enough of the fading daylight remained in the room to notice that Dani watched her as Lynn cleaned her hands on her wet sweater laid out in a corner—she wasn’t taking it anyway now that she’d found replacements. When Lynn sat again, Dani silently handed back her plate.
“You were telling me about what you’d found.” Dani was already halfway through her bread.
Lynn bit into an apple slice, chewed, and swallowed. “Right. Well, there’s lots. You should check it out for yourself. I didn’t take anything there wasn’t more of. There’s also water barrels up there, so we can fill up our bottles before we leave.”
“Good. I’ll check later.” Dani kept looking at her, which brought back that tingly feeling that made Lynn so uncomfortable.
“What?” She halted her assault on her dinner momentarily to meet Dani’s inquisitive eyes.
“We should be dead, you know?” Her tone was deceptively light. “Maybe those wolves were just too abused, too weak, but we should be in pieces.”
“We’re both trained hunters. Two wolves in tight quarters are a challenge, sure, but we made it through.”
“We did,” Dani said darkly. “But we should still have walked away with injuries. I’m guessing a lot of people weren’t so lucky.”
Lynn put her plate down and wiped her fingers on her new shirt. She took Dani’s hand.
Dani’s gaze darted to their linked fingers, but she didn’t object.
It felt odd to Lynn too. It also felt nice. Dani’s calloused hand was warm, and holding it made Lynn feel warm in turn. “You can’t dwell on that. It’s in the past. They’re dead, we’re not. And the people responsible for it are dead as well. That’s the law of the Wilds.”
“Do you think the wolves got them? The—” Dani hesitated. “The people they killed?”
Lynn shook her head. “No, probably not. Not as food anyway. I really hope they buried them, but I’m afraid that they ended up bait for any wolf that needed replacing.” The thought was disturbing enough to quench right away.
“I hate it out here.” Dani stared at the plate in her lap.
She sounded so dejected that Lynn looked up at her. “I can’t blame you. I don’t like the Wilds much either, but it’s… home. I guess.” She bit into another apple slice as she mulled over how messed up that statement was. It was true, though; she was much better equipped to handle deadly predators than settlement politics.
Dani seemed to think a moment, then captured her gaze. “Maybe you can stay at the Homestead if I talk to the others.” She refused to look away, which put even more weight onto the words. “We need someone who can go out and get things done. You could do what Richard did. If we bring him back, they will have to let you stay.”
Another warning coursed down her spine. “Is that part of the plan you cooked up with Kate?”
Dani stared at her without comprehension, then the light came on, and she shook her head. “Oh. No. That never came up. We figured the best-case scenario was that you’d help me get him back. They, um, they don’t trust you.”
The implied rest of the sentence hung heavily in the air.
Lynn decided to voice it. “But you do? Trust me?”
Dani shrugged. “I don’t know. So far, you’ve been pretty honest. Uncomplicated.”
“Uncomplicated?” She definitely didn’t know if she liked that term.
“I meant… straightforward. Loyal, maybe.” She glanced up at Lynn from under her lashes.
Lynn didn’t know what to feel about those terms either, but the words heated her chest and cheeks. “Dani…” She sighed and looked down at their joined hands. “You know Kate and the group better than I do, and maybe Kate already talked to you about this, but I-I think Kate wants you to take Richard’s place as your group’s scout.” She watched how the words landed, but the minute twitches and widening of Dani’s eyes could mean a host of things. She pushed on.
“If I’ve learned anything about settlements, it’s that the people in them always have to adapt quickly to changing circumstances, and in this case, that means filling a position of vital importance. You were all sure I wasn’t going to come back, and you’re the most logical person to fulfill the position. You have the basic skills, and Kate trusts you.”
Dani opened her mouth to speak, but Lynn had more to say, so she rolled right over what would undoubtedly be Dani’s objection. “If Kate already discussed this with you or if you think I’m totally wrong, then I’m sorry for even bringing it up. But what if Kate’s banking on you picking up everything you need to know about wilderness survival while you’re out with me so you can do the job once you get back?”
“I—” Dani cut herself off. Her hand twitched in Lynn’s grip.
Dread settled in Lynn’s gut, and she was suddenly sure she was right and that Dani knew it.
Then Dani pulled her hand away, and her certainty faded. Another possibility presented itself to her: maybe Dani thought she was just trying to cause a rift between her and the Homestead people so Dani wouldn’t want to go back. Or maybe she’s sad because she thinks you might be right and there wouldn’t be room for you. She shouldn’t have brought it up. “Look, maybe I’m wrong. Don’t worry about it, okay? We’ll just see what happens when we get back.”
Dani nodded slowly. She looked down at her lap. “I… I think I need to sleep.” She put her plate aside and settled onto the bedding, her back to Lynn.
Lynn pressed her hand against her thigh to chase away the feeling of emptiness. “Okay. Sorry.”
As Dani extended her legs, Lynn was forced to scoot away from the wall to make room for them. It felt like a clear dismissal. Lynn knew she’d messed up. Dani must be thinking Lynn was trying to play her again. Stupid! You were finally getting some solid ground under you!
“Lynn?”
Lynn whipped her head about so she could look at Dani. “Yeah?”
“Would you, um, stay with me tonight? Like… here. On the bed? I-I think I’ll have nightmares.” She didn’t elaborate on the cause of those nightmares—today’s events or her worries about the future.
“Um.” She hesitated. A spike of anxiety left a sensation of pinpricks on her skin. “You’re not… you know, mad?”
Dani rolled over and frowned up at her. “Mad? No. I’m just… I don’t want to think anymore.”
Lynn watched her, trying to draw the truth out of her by sheer willpower, but she didn’t spot dishonesty in Dani’s eyes. Of course that didn’t mean anything; she had never been capable of accurately reading her emotions, let alone whether she spoke the truth. “H-How do you…?”
Dani licked her lips. Her shoulder drew up into a little shrug. “Dunno. Whatever you’re comfortable with.”
I have no idea what I’m comfortable with. “Okay.” After a moment’s hesitation, she put her plate down and awkwardly lowered herself onto the bedding behind Dani. She made sure their bodies didn’t touch anywhere, but she could still feel the warmth radiate off Dani’s body. Very lightly, she laid her hand on Dani’s hip.
Dani jumped ever so slightly, then relaxed with an audible exhale. She rolled back over until she faced the wall again.
“Is this okay?” Lynn whispered the words. Her breath stirred Dani’s half-dried hair.
Dani nodded. She seemed to hesitate, then scooted back until she connected with Lynn’s chest. Her ass settled against Lynn’s crotch. The back of her legs pressed against Lynn’s thighs.
Heat flashed through Lynn. Her eyes widened, and she swallowed down a lump of panic. She hadn’t been this physically intimate with someone in years. Her heart rate spiked to a jittery gallop that made her a little light-headed again. She slid her arm more firmly around Dani’s waist.