Page 49 of Hunting for her Heart
When I see her hand cover her mouth to hide her yawn, I use it as my excuse to take her to bed. I’ve been craving her all day, but ever since I held her almost naked body to mine in the pond, I’ve been itching to hold her once more. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep tonight without her in my arms.
I push to my feet and step over to them. “Let’s get you to bed,” I say as gently as I can muster before bending down and scooping her up, not giving any of them the chance to refuse.
She clings to my neck as I carry her over to the spot right behind where I’d been sitting, that one of the others has already prepared. A blanket lies folded, to provide as muchpadding as possible under her, and another blanket is folded at the end, clearly meant to cover her.
I set her on her feet and gesture. “Lie down.”
She frowns down at the bed, then glances around, as if looking for something else. “This isn’t big enough for everyone.”
“That’s right. It’s just for you.”
Her eyes widen, and she shakes her head. “Oh, no! I can’t take all the blankets. Can’t we share?”
“We are used to the hard ground. You are not.”
She frowns at my response, then bends down, grabs the folded blanket, and shoves it into my arms. “Hold that a sec.”
I do as she asks and watch as she bends down and unfolds the blanket that was placed for her to lie on. She spreads it out as far as it will go, looking at the area it covers then nodding in approval. “That’s better. We might all fit on it now.”
She eases herself down in the center, then looks up at me expectantly. My heart swells in my chest as I take in what she’s just done. Not only have we been blessed with a beautiful mate, but a kind and considerate one as well.
“Well?” she asks, tilting her head.
“Well, what?” I ask, still in a little awe over her wanting us to share the blanket with us.
“Aren’t you going to join me?”
I nod, then glance down at my leather coverings. “I will get changed and join you.”
“We all will tonight,” Ronan adds as he and Bo stand. “The traps we set will alert us to any intruders.”
I watch Willow long enough to see her cheeks turn pink, then quickly grab my now dry leaf coverings and change.
I finish before the other two and moveback over to find her lying on her back with her eyes closed. I kneel beside her and her eyes fly open, widening when she takes in my body looming so close to hers, but she doesn’t move away.
Instead, she seems to study me, her eyes not knowing where to look. I lie on my side, facing her, and she turns her head to look at me. The pink returns to her face as she offers me a nervous smile. Unable to stop myself, I reach out and stroke a finger down her pretty cheek. “Why are you nervous, angel?”
“I don’t know,” she whispers, her cheeks growing even redder.
“Hmm,” I hum in response, placing my hand on the blanket between us. “Is it me? Do you want me to sleep elsewhere?”
“No!” she exclaims, sounding worried, which settles me a bit. “I just… I don’t know. I’ve never slept beside someone before. Maybe this feels normal to you?”
“I’ve never lied beside anyone either.”
Her brows pinch together as if my answer confuses her. “What, like ever? I mean, you’re not a… you know?”
I shake my head, not understanding. “Not a what?”
The other two appear near our feet, and Ronan quickly moves to lie on her other side. She watches him with that same nervous expression until her eyes turn to Bo. She sits up when she sees him moving to lie on the other side of me.
“The blanket’s not big enough, is it?” she asks him worriedly.
“It’s fine, lie back down,” he tells her as he lies down behind me, half on the blanket and half on the hard ground.
“Use that one,” she says, pointing to the blanket by our feet that we were going to use to cover ourselves.
“Honestly, it’s fine, Willow.”
