Page 52 of Hunting for her Heart
“It’s beautiful,” I whisper, taking in where the edge of the grass reaches the pond that Hawk and I swam in yesterday.
“I don’t trust it,” Ronan says, frowning down at it.
Pulling away from Hawk, I step off the blanket and into the grass beside where Bo stands. The soft blades feel much better on my feet than the cold, hard stone, and I’m grateful it’s given me a path to one of the ponds. I notice it’s stopped raining, and part of the cave is damp from where the raincame in from above, but it doesn’t align with where the grass has grown.
Bo bends down and strokes his hand through the grass. “It feels normal.” He plucks a small purple wildflower and stands up as we both stare at it, as if waiting for the grass to grow angry and respond somehow. He twirls it in his fingers and holds it up for Ronan to see. “I really don’t think this is caused by anything sentient.”
“Then why does it keep happening wherever we go?” Ronan asks, not looking appeased.
Bo tucks the flower above my ear, smiling at me as he answers him. “Maybe it’s part of the Hunt. Like they somehow enchanted the land.”
“They wouldn’t do that,” Hawk says, shaking his head. “Magic is forbidden here.”
“Well, we can’t keep abandoning perfectly accommodating caves,” Bo says as he wraps an arm around my shoulder and pulls me into his side. “It’s too dangerous to camp in the woods. We still have four days until the end of the hunt.”
Ronan steps into the grass and stares down as if waiting for it to attack him. He moves to the wall and runs his hand through the moss before picking off a small piece and examining it carefully. Finally, he lets out a long sigh. “I suppose you’re right. Besides it growing rapidly, nothing else seems off about it.”
“Could this be something to do with your charm?” I ask. They all turn to me. “Isn’t this exactly what you are looking for?” I gesture at the newly grown grass. “Something to spread life on your island where it has died?”
Ronan frowns as he slowly looks around the cave and contemplates what I’ve said.
“She’s right,” Hawk finally speaks. “Whatever is causing this must be what we’re searching for.”
The fact that men have actually listened to what I’ve said, and not dismissed my idea because I’m a woman, alights something inside me that I’ve never felt before. I feelheard. Worthy. As if my opinion actually matters.
“What could it be, though?” Bo asks from where he holds me against his front. “We’ve seen it in every cave so far.”
Ronan glances at the firepit, then moves over and squats down to assess it. “Maybe the burning of the logs somehow triggered the magic?” he suggests. “We used the same kind each time.”
“Well, let’s light another fire with it and see what happens,” Bo suggests, and both Ronan and Hawk nod.
“Good,” Bo says. “Why don’t we get that started and eat some leftover meat for breakfast, then we can check out that hot spring?”
“After we eat, we should give Willow another swimming lesson,” Hawk interjects. “Then the hot spring.”
“Is that okay with you?” Bo asks, looking down at me.
I nod, surprised to be asked for my input and appreciating the gesture. Hawk and Ronan get the fire going as Bo seats me in his own lap and feeds me.
“You need to eat too,” I tell him when he places piece after piece in my mouth without taking any for himself.
“Once you’re full,” he tells me. But I don’t think that’s fair, so I take a piece from his hand and hold it up to his lips.
He raises an eyebrow in amusement. “Open up,” I tell him. He does as I ask, and I pop the chunk of meat inside. I smile when he closes his mouth and chews. He offers me another piece, and I let him feed me before giving him another.
When I give him his third piece, he leans forward and wraps his mouth around my fingers. His tongue swirls around my fingertips and makes me inhale sharply. Desire coils tightly low in my core, surprising me. I had no idea that I could feel aroused from such an action.
He sucks my fingers as he pulls his mouth free, a look of satisfaction covering his face.
“We should get some food for later,” Ronan says, pulling me from my trance. “Bo, if you want to take care of Willow’s swimming lesson, Hawk and I will hunt and stand guard.”
I knew they’d have to move their traps aside so they could get back in, so leaving the cave is now a two-man job, one man standing guard to let the other back in.
By the time Bo and I are both full, the other two have already changed and left. Bo tells me to get changed as he’s already in his leafy loincloth, then he waits for me by the pool.
I still feel rather exposed in my leaf bikini, but each time I wear it, I get a little more comfortable.
He reaches for me as I approach him and guides me to sit on the edge of a large rock, like Hawk did. He steps over the rocks and lowers himself into the water. “What did Hawk teach you yesterday?”
