able to see each other every day. If he’s with Rian and Matthieu like I hope he is, maybe he can bring them too.
A long time later, a twig snaps, jarring me from my daydreams and silly fantasies for the future. I look up, expecting to find Mal checking on me. Instead, there’s a large, white animal standing a few yards in front of me.
I say animal in a vague sense because I have no idea what it is. It’s the size of a fucking wolf, but it looks like a rabbit. Sort of. It’s got fluffy white fur, four long, gangly legs, long, rabbit-like ears, a fluffy tail with a little poof at the end, and crazy long whiskers.
Remaining completely still and silent, I keep my eyes on it and hope it’ll leave without a fuss. To my dismay, it takes a step closer to me, and I scream Maalik’s name as loud as I can.
The animal doesn’t go running off. Not even when Mal crashes into the woods behind me. The animal sits there stupidly, staring at me with its big, black eyes. I point it out to Mal, which shouldn’t even be necessary considering how big the damn thing is.
Maalik huffs out a laugh and grins at me like I’m ridiculous. He says something, probably explaining the animal won’t hurt me. I smack him for laughing at me, but that only makes him smile wider.
The fluffy forest rabbit thing steps closer, looking clumsy on its four long legs. If Maalik thinks it’s safe, then I have no doubt it is. But also, the thing clearly has shit survival instincts if it’s not afraid of Mal. It has to smell that he’s a predator, right?
When it gets close enough to touch, Maalik reaches out with zero hesitation to stroke the thing’s ears. I do the same, and it doesn’t look at us. It’s much more interested in my nearly full basket of berries, and I squawk out a laugh when its fuzzy black tongue darts out to steal a few.
Maalik shoos it away with a warning snarl after it eats a few berries, and it gallops away into the forest.
Maybe I should feel embarrassed, but I don’t. I just feel happy and lucky. I miss Alistair. I miss Reule, Audun, and Caelan too, and I hope they stay safe until they can come back home to me. But I’m glad for this time with Maalik. I’m glad for the warmth and love and security he and the other guys have provided for me.
“Je ti zima?” he asks, brushing the back of his hand over my cheek.
I grin at him and shake my head, stepping close enough that our noses touch when I tilt my face up. “You can warm me up, can’t you?”
He might not understand exactly what I’ve said, but heat pools in my lower belly when his pupils dilate. This time, he doesn’t wait for me to kiss him first. He brings his hand up to the back of my head and presses our lips together in a searing kiss. I gasp into his mouth and pull him closer, satisfied when his other arm wraps around my waist.
His hands and lips feel so good, and I seriously want to lick and kiss every single freckle on this man’s body. I shiver at the thought of finally feeling him inside of me again, and I almost drop my basket of berries and lie down on the snow-covered ground right then and there. I’m so hot for him right now I’m not even sure I’d feel the cold.
Maalik pulls away, making me whine. He grumbles something about it being cold, and I roll my eyes at him. He snorts and gives me a lopsided grin. Like a gentleman, instead of the beast I really want right now, he takes my hand and leads me back through the woods. It takes longer than I thought it would to reach Maalik’s workshop. I didn’t realize I’d wandered so far.
“Jdi dovnitř.” He points to the cabin.
Assuming he’s telling me to go inside, since he’s so worried about me being cold, I smile and beckon him to come with me. “Come with me, please? Prosím?”
He furrows his eyebrows and points to the workshop and the trees he chopped down that he’s dragged here from the woods.
I’m suddenly filled with irrational anger. He’d seriously rather stay out here and work than come inside with me? He’d rather carve wood than fuck me? Seriously?