18
“You have got to be fucking kidding me.” I stood and dusted the dirt and pebbles from me as best I could. I was covered in dirt, freezing cold, and completely embarrassed.
Sure, my slumber had been blissfully devoid of Tyler, and I hadn’t expected anything from Alec, but where the fuck was he?
I crept to the front of the cave and peered outside. The sun made the woods look almost cheerful this morning. Birds flitted from tree to tree and somewhere nearby I could hear a woodpecker pounding away. A light breeze rustled the trees and carried the fresh, clean scent of pine.
I covered my chest, aware that it wasn’t doing much to hide me from anyone who might have stumbled upon our sleeping spot. It did make me feel better as I ventured into the openness of the woods.
Hoping I’d find Alec nearby, I started walking away from the cave.Fuck. I hopped on one foot, grabbing my other foot. Of course I’d managed to step on something sharp. Carefully, I pulled out the pointy stick and tossed it aside. My foot was still a little tender when I set it back on the ground.
What was I supposed to do now? There was no sign of Alec and I had no idea where we were. He’d mentioned that there was a place to meet our friends but even if I knew the location, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to navigate there. Where was he? I wondered if he’d gone off to check our location or find something to eat. What were our chances that there was a home nearby with coffee and pastries?
I considered shifting. If I was in wolf form, at least I wouldn’t be naked. Plus, it was possible my wolf was better at directions than I was. Or maybe she could scent something.
The sound of a branch snapping made me tiptoe back to the cave. I peeked out, hoping it was a small animal and not a predator or human. My shoulders relaxed when I caught sight of Alec.
He was wearing what appeared to be a blanket around his chest and waist like a toga. In his arms he had a bundle of fabric. I didn’t care what it was. Blanket, nightgown, whatever. Anything to act as some warmth would be very helpful.
I stepped out from my hiding place. “So you went out to find clothes?”
“Went for a run this morning at sunrise to scout ahead a bit. Happened upon some trash left behind by humans.” He held up a beach towel. “It’s not much, but it’ll get us where we need to go.”
I grabbed it from him and wrapped it around myself. It was caked in mud in places as if it had been outside for a while. I wasn’t in any position to be picky. My body was covered in dirt and grime as it was. A little more dirt wasn’t going to make much of a difference. “Thanks.”
“They didn’t leave any shoes behind,” he said, glancing at my feet.
“I’ll live,” I said. “Did you see anything on your route?”
“Other than the empty beer bottles and stuff I grabbed for us, we appear to be in the clear.”
“Should we head to meet our friends?” I asked.
“Let’s go,” he said.
We started walking side by side. I spent most of the time with my eyes on the ground to make sure I wasn’t ending up with too much damage on my poor feet.
“About last night…” Alec said.
My eyes widened and I wondered where he was going to go with this. I kept my eyes on the ground, not looking up at him on purpose. What if I melted into a puddle of affection when I met his eyes? I wasn’t ready to be emotionally involved. “What about it?”
“I know it was a post-shift, keep-warm thing,” he said.
“Yeah. It was fun,” I added.
“It was fun,” he agreed.
An awkward silence fell between us. This was why I probably shouldn’t have had sex with him last night. It was going to change things between us. Though, things weren’t great between us before the sex, either.
“So, how far away is this rendezvous location?” I had to say something. Anything.
“Another mile or two,” he said.
“You seem to know this area well,” I pointed out. “No map or anything.”
“I told you, I’ve been working on the antidote. I come here pretty often. Sheila comes with me sometimes so she picked the meeting place.”
“Sheila knew you wanted to create an antidote?” I asked.