The Vow (Black Arrowhead #1) - Dannika Dark Page 0,56

little different because I liked Lakota. Maybe I wasn’t ready for him to see my body in its entirety, especially with an audience.

I didn’t know his friend well enough, and we were in the middle of the wilderness in unfamiliar territory.

“Where are the wolves?” I asked.

When Lakota stood, the waterline was just below his navel. “Dead and gone.”

Tak smirked. “Some dead, some gone. You’re a good shot with a bow.”

I wiped my face. “Not good enough. I missed the second one.”

Lakota gave me a wolfish smile. “You might want to cover your eyes.”

“Only if you promise to do the same.”

He swiped his finger across his heart and stalked away. Water splashed from the movement of his powerful legs, and even though I had my hands shielding my eyes, I couldn’t resist sneaking a peek between two fingers.

Oh. My. God. I’d never seen anything as glorious as Lakota’s backside. He had a strong physique with broad shoulders and taut muscles, but his ass was sculpted to perfection. He glistened, and his wet hair looked like spun silk the way it flattened between his shoulder blades. Every part of him was perfectly proportioned, and it made me want to dunk my head under the water and hide. A man didn’t go around looking like that without realizing he was an Adonis.

I’ll die if he sees me naked! I’d never been as self-conscious about my body as the second he turned and looked at me.

“Your turn,” he said. “We have to get moving before dark.”

Keeping my hands over my eyes while he put on his pants, I asked, “Are you done?”

Tak chuckled and stood up. “This is better than TV.”

I dropped my hands in the water and searched the area. “Where are my pants?”

They exchanged looks, and sheer horror swept over me.

“Tell me you didn’t leave my clothes behind.”

Lakota squeezed the water from the ends of his hair. “No worries. I saw a few big leaves back there. Maybe you can sew a dress.”

My jaw set. “You’re not funny.”

A robust laugh rolled out of Tak, and he turned away. “That’s up for debate.”

“Then shift,” Lakota suggested.

I tilted my head to the side. “My wolf isn’t going to follow you.”

Tak kept laughing. “That’s also up for debate.”

This was awful. Terrible! I wasn’t even sure how close we were to the house, and the idea of riding on horseback naked while holding on to Lakota was… kind of sexy. But not so much with Tak around.

“Come out of there,” Lakota ordered. “You’re being childish.”

I almost fired a comeback but snapped my mouth shut when I remembered no one was supposed to know that we were old acquaintances. “Modesty and childishness might appear the same to you, but someday I’d like to give my body to my mate as a gift without the whole world having seen it first.”

Tak arched his eyebrows and gave me a respectful nod. “I’d give you my pants, but then my modesty would be compromised.” He clapped his hand on Lakota’s shoulder. “I’ll just leave you two alone to figure this out while I round up the horses.”

When Tak was out of earshot, I admonished Lakota with one glance. “I see you took the time to get dressed, but you left my clothes behind? Those were my favorite pants.”

He pinched his chin. “Let’s just worry about one thing at a time.” After a stretched-out minute, he stripped off his T-shirt and offered it to me.

I splashed water at him. “That’s not going to cover up the important bits.”

He snorted, amusement dancing in his eyes. “No one will see anything on horseback.”

“Maybe I’m not enthusiastic about spreading my legs open on the back of a horse for the next five miles. That’s a rash I don’t want to deal with. Give me your pants.”

He tossed the shirt on a rock. “Shall I tell you the reason why men shouldn’t ride naked on horseback?”

“Then walk.”

“Naked. In my shoes,” he said, conveying the disrespectful scene we would give the tribe, who were in the middle of mourning one of their fallen.

It was an awful predicament.

Lakota glanced up at where Tak had gone. “We need to go, Mel. Get out of the water. Those wolves might have gone for backup.”

“Does this stream run by the house?”

“Are you going to swim the whole way? I’ve got a better reason to get moving. There’s a snake behind you.”

Does he really think stooping to such immature tactics will frighten me? “There’s no snake in here. Maybe I can