Page 82 of Winter’s Teeth

“What? No. Of course I do. Things just depend on who is on guard. Little details. Nuance. Stuff only I understand because every cousin is different. Really, it’s okay. I just have to play a little by ear.” He finally met my eye, offering the barest smirk with a dimple appearing in his left cheek.

Some of the anxious tension eased in my chest. I wanted to believe him, but at the same time, I knew he was covering up his own fear to spare me from it.

Truthfully, we couldn’t fully prepare for what we were walking into next. There was no guarantee Everly was still there (if she ever was to begin with). We didn’t know what his family was planning either. If Arthur or the others would be waiting.

If they were already after us.

I slid my hat off my sweaty head, puffing out a breath to get the hair off my forehead. “Okay, I’ll go with the flow, but don’t get mad if I play it by ear, too.”

“I won’t get mad.”

“Don’t get killed either.”

“Not planning on it.”

Heaving a deep breath that bordered on a groan, I slumped forward with my head on my knees. Now came the fun part. Waiting for hours for slush to freeze and darkness to fall.

“If you think you could sleep, you should do it now,” Fox said. A zipper sounded as he closed the bag of supplies.

“You should, too.” My response was muffled by my snowpants.

“You’re not tired?”

Sitting up, I pulled pieces of stray hair out of my mouth. “No. Not yet. Maybe in a bit, but I’m too frustrated right now.”

“Then I might sleep for an hour or two first. Can you wake me if you start to get tired?”

“Sure.” I stretched out my legs, patting my lap with my coat folded on top of it.

Fox eyed the proffered pillow. At my waggling brows, he finally gave in and laid down with his head in my lap.

A sense of satisfaction swelled up in me. I’d been so dependent on him these last few days, so to finally be able to do something for him, no matter how small, felt right. Better than right. It was perfect.

Absentmindedly, my fingers stretched toward his fluffy, wavy locks of midnight. At the last second, I stalled, hesitating to touch him. We’d kissed, held hands, and shared more trauma than any two people should, but something about this tender, off guarded touch was monumental. A tremor of nerves rippled through me, stirring up in my stomach, making my fingers tremble.

With his eyes shut, Fox reached up and took my hand that hovered over him, laying it down atop his head. He didn’t say a word, merely shifting to get more comfortable.

A broad grin tugged at the edges of my lips, threatening to overtake my face as I tried to suppress it. It was silly—something stupid to be so giddy about.

“Don’t let me sleep too long,” he reiterated, voice thick with exhaustion as he drifted off.

“I won’t.” It was only a tiny lie. I would let him sleep as long as he needed. As long as I could bear to stay awake, reveling in his quiet presence.

We’d come a long way from the creek, and I never wanted to go back.

***

MY HEAD BOBBED, AND I jerked upright with a gasp, startling Fox in my lap.

“Shit.”

“You fell asleep?” he mumbled, words slurring with heavy sleep as he sat up, rubbing at his eyes.

“I swear I was wide awake just a minute ago.” I slapped two hands to my cheeks, trying to rouse myself. “I don’t know how I nodded off.”

The last thing I remembered was watching the shadows stretch across the ground, counting the minutes down as the sun disappeared little by little. It was full dark now, only the moon and stars to light up the otherwise pitch-black forest. It was much colder, too. Shivers trickled down my shoulders to my arms, my breath puffing out in clouds.

“The snow’s gotta be firmer now, right?” I asked, tugging my coat back on that still carried residual heat from Fox’s head. His slightly musky scent enveloped me, sending shivers of a different sort skittering across my skin.