“Yeah.”
Lynn wasn’t sure how to make it better. Comforting people was not her strong suit.
Thankfully, Dani either realized that or got tired of waiting, because she scooted closer and leaned her head against Lynn’s shoulder.
Lynn saw her coming and wrapped an arm around her.
Dani exhaled audibly and settled.
Now what? She wondered if she should do anything else, but Dani seemed content just being close. Lynn looked out over the lot, now awash in reddening light as the sun slowly went down. Maybe this was something hugs could fix. She’d experienced herself how magical they could be.
“I was staying at another camp before the Homestead, at the coast.” Dani’s voice was soft, and the story started without preamble. “It wasn’t working out. They, um… they wanted me to be… more to the leader. Like—”
“I get it.” Lynn pulled her closer. People—men and women—demanding sex as a form of “paying your way” was nothing new to her.
Dani nodded and inhaled shakily. “I refused, things got heated, but where was I going to go? It was pretty horrible, but then Richard showed up. The Homestead and my camp had an agreement to trade once a year—my old camp’s dried fish for the Homestead’s metalwork tools. When Richard realized what was going on, he took a cut in the fish he was paid for the tools and took me instead. I was terrified and angry. I thought they’d arranged this sort of marriage thing where I was now Richard’s wife or something. And Richard kept the idea up too! He told me in private that he was married and had no interest in me that way, that he was just playing the part, but sitting by the campfire with his arm around me made me feel so small. So weak.” Dani shifted slightly.
Lynn loosened her hold, but Dani pressed back against her, so Lynn held her close again. “You’re not weak.”
“I know, and later Richard would tell me that too, but I felt like I was. As soon as we left, Richard became this perfect gentleman. He never tried anything while we traveled or after. I told him I would kick him in the nuts if he did, but he didn’t lay off me because of the threats. He genuinely just wanted to take me away from the camp and to a place he knew I would be safe. He had no idea if I would be a good addition. He just saw someone in need and fixed the situation.”
Even without seeing her face, Lynn could tell Dani was smiling. “He sounds like a great guy.”
“He was. He was reserved, moody, impossible to tie down, and sometimes he was a complete ass too, but he was a really good guy.” Dani tilted her head so she could look up at Lynn’s face. “Kind of like you.”
Lynn laughed to chase away a jumble of emotions that exploded in her stomach at the words. “I’m not a guy.”
Dani chuckled and settled her head on Lynn’s shoulder again, shifting until she found something softer than bone to rest on. “No, you’re not.”
Then Lynn felt Dani’s hand on her leg. She watched how it settled just above the knee, fingers curling around the inside of her thigh. The ball of emotions flamed down from her stomach—way down. She swallowed and stilled.
“You got quiet.”
“S-Sorry. W-What were you saying?”
“That you’re an ass.”
Lynn frowned, but Dani’s hand slipped a few inches up along her leg and her objections evaporated.
“But you’re also a good person.” Dani’s fingers curled.
Lynn could feel the pressure even through the layer of wool between Dani’s hand and her own skin—and the warmth. “A-Am I?” She was breathless. Her mind raced with a million thoughts—Dani’s touching me, we’re outside, and what does she want? primary among them. She glanced around quickly, making sure they were safe.
Dani hummed and tilted her head up a little.
Her breath ghosted along Lynn’s jaw, but she didn’t dare to turn her head. She shivered under Dani’s teasing touch and was completely incapable of coming up with a course of action. Her mind had fogged up for the second time today, but for an entirely different reason. She’d never felt as alive as right now.
“Lynn?” Dani shifted again, and the hand that was not wreaking havoc on Lynn’s body and mind cupped Lynn’s cheek and angled her head toward hers.
She tried to fight it, tried to catch up with what was happening. “What—?”
Dani angled her head more, and now her breath washed over Lynn’s lips.
Lynn shuddered. All thoughts of resisting seized. Dani was going to kiss her, and even though a chorus of warnings urged her to back off, her baser instincts had her lean in. She ended up too conflicted to move.
Dani pushed up and made the decision for her.
Their lips brushed.
Goose bumps coursed across Lynn’s skin, and her heart skipped a beat or two. Her eyes fluttered shut, and she leaned in, meeting Dani’s lips in a full press that ignited her from head to toe. She shivered. How could a brushing of lips affect her so? Light-headed, trembling… hungry.
She wasn’t the only one affected: Dani whimpered against her lips and cupped the back of her head to pull her even closer. It was an awkward angle; Lynn was all but holding Dani up, and her neck must be straining painfully, but it didn’t seem to matter. Dani initiated another meeting and then parted her lips in invitation before pulling back teasingly.
Lynn gave chase, and when they came together again, she was prepared. Her tongue slid between impossibly soft lips and found Dani’s.
Nails dug into Lynn’s scalp. Dani shuddered against her. The all-but-forgotten hand on Lynn’s leg moved up and squeezed.
She likes it. Lynn was acting purely on theory and instinct, but apparently, she was doing it right. As she moved her tongue over and around Dani’s, she very carefully ran her hand up her arm.
Skeever barked loudly.
Lynn jumped up as survival instincts tugged her back to reality. Her tomahawk seemed to materialize in her hand. Her heartbeat galloped, but she wasn’t sure which had sent it skyrocketing more: kissing Dani or impending doom.
When Lynn let go, Dani only just managed to throw her arm behind her to keep herself upright.
Skeever trotted over, tail wagging, tongue lolling, just looking for attention.
“Wow.” Dani’s voice trembled slightly. Her gaze slid across the landscape, but she seemed to come to the same conclusion as Lynn had: there was no danger, just an attention-seeking dog. She ran her hand through her hair and shook her head.
“What the hell, Skeeve.” Lynn glared at the dog and lowered herself back down with a deep breath meant to settle the dizzying rush of adrenaline in her system. She accepted a doggy hug and buried her face in his fur to hide the blush heating her cheeks. After a few moments, she dared to put into words what had just transpired, at the risk of making the experience feel even more real than it obviously already was. “You kissed me.”
“No,” Dani countered instantly. “We kissed.”
“There’s a difference?” Lynn found the courage to look up and sent Skeever away with a pat on the flank.
He ran off, chasing a bird he spotted.
Dani’s gaze didn’t lift from her. “There’s a big difference.” Her pupils had dilated, making her eyes seem darker.
“What’s the difference, then?”
The same tongue Lynn had tasted wet Dani’s lips and drew Lynn’s gaze away from Dani’s eyes.
She glanced back up.
“That you wanted it too.” It was supposed to be a statement, but the way Dani struggled to hold her gaze made Lynn suspect Dani wasn’t too sure about that.
Lynn chose her words carefully. “If I told you I did, then what?”
Dani finally couldn’t hold eye contact anymore and dropped her gaze to her hands. “Then it would complicate things.”