Remembering her mother’s words, Lilith spread the blanket out on the ground. “I have magic,” she began without preamble, looking directly at Giles, who was currently pulling the mounds of food from the basket.
He glanced up at her. “You are the daughter of the Heartsong. I’m not surprised to hear it.”
She narrowed her eyes. Plopping onto a corner of the blanket, she snatched up an entire loaf of bread. Her body craved carbs with an almost obsessive nature. She’d been frozen into her woman’s form last year, and so couldn’t age or grow in any way.
Unless she was in heat, then and only then would her body alter, though only temporarily.
The call of the wild demanded she gave into the wolf’s instinct of making herself more alluring to her partner. Which meant putting on more feminine curves, rounder hips, plumper breasts—it was the sign of a good breeder. Though she had no intentions of becoming a breeder for anyone, she aimed to remain an independent woman responsible to no man.
She ripped into her hunk of bread.
“Plan to explain what that loaf of bread did to you to deserve such an ignominious end?” Giles asked then took a bite out of his wedge of cheese. His deliveries were dry, but there was no doubt he teased her.
Giving him the evil eye she ripped yet another chunk out of its yeasty hide and munched on it much like a masticating cow.
He snickered, but switched subjects. “We’ve kept up a good pace, but I’ve no desire to remain in shifter territory with an enflamed bitch during the night.”
“Call me a bitch one more time, demon, and I’ll rip your tongue out,” she snarled with a hint of gravel in her words.
He blinked. “I’d assumed that was the proper terminology for a female wolf. No offense meant.”
“I’m just sure, you demonic imp.” She crammed the rest of the loaf into her mouth, not caring one whit how unladylike it made her look. “But I’ll concede that while I’m in heat, it is probably best I sleep indoors or underground as much as possible. The monsters that would come for me right now would be a wee bit too much for you to handle.”
He notched his knee, resting his elbow on it. His grin was faint, but there. “I can handle myself just fine, and besides, wasn’t it I that rescued you?”
Snapping her teeth at him, she snatched up another chunk of bread. Mother had packed four large rolls, just enough for her to make it through lunch. “You do vex me.”
His eyes sparkled but he didn’t say another word.
They settled into a somewhat soothing silence after that, eating the entire contents of the basket, which for humans may have lasted two to three days. She liked a man with an appetite; most creatures couldn’t keep up with the demands of the wolf. At least in that she could not mock him.
“What is that?” He pointed to her chest.
Glancing down, she noted that the amulet was now on full display. Clutching the cold glass, she wetted her lips. “Fairy charm. Good for one wish and one wish only. I suppose Mother thought we’d get into a scrape bad enough that we might need a little wishy magic on our side.”
“Well.” He brushed crumbs off his shirt and leaned back. “That is wise; there are dangers untold hidden in the wilds of Kingdom.”
“I travel with a poet—great wolf, save me.”
Giles took a final swig of her mother’s ale with a slight chuckle and she squelched the ghost of a smile playing upon her own lips at his reaction. The man was gorgeous and had a sense of humor, which was a very heady combination for her wolf.
Wolves were a notoriously cranky lot, until one got to know them well. It was why they rarely made friends with any creature outside of their own species. But Giles seemed determined not to let her quips faze him. It was both novel and refreshing and even slightly confusing.
Frowning, she shoved the last bite of bread into her mouth and then chased her meal down with an apple, a banana, and a bowl of diced pineapple before leaning back with a contented sigh and a slightly distended belly. “I suppose we should be off. The sun is just beyond the tree line now, and we want to reach the safe zone before it sets.”
His lips twitched.
“What? What did I say that was so funny?” She scrunched her nose.
“Nothing.” He shrugged, planting his hands on the grass before shoving to his feet. “Only that I could swear I heard a thread of fear in your tone just then.”
“Shut up.” She fluffed her hair and hopped to her feet. That meal would only last her an hour or two before she’d be combing the words for nuts and berries. This need to eat was obnoxious to say the least. “I did not. I simply don’t wish for the little man-boy to wet his trousers when the sun goes down. That’s when the bad ones come out to play.”