TJ lay flat out on the trail, panting lightly. His ears pricked up when Erik said his name, as if delighted by the praise.
Jared dropped his pack and passed out granola bars, unwrapping TJ’s and tossing it to him whole.
“Where was the clue this time?”
“On a tree.”
“Drawn on?”
Erik shook his head. “Carved into the bark. Looks like it was done at least six months ago.”
Jared swore. “How the hell did TJ get a scent on something that old? That’s freaky impossible.”
Maggie stared down at TJ and could have sworn he winked at her.
Erik laughed. “Yeah. The kid has always said his sniffer was good, and he wasn’t kidding. We’re at the point I think we should set up camp. I’d like to make an early start tomorrow so we have enough time at the end of the day to figure out the first mental challenge.”
“You want to camp here?” Jared looked around. Maggie wondered too—there wasn’t much of a clearing.
“Sheep Camp should be within the next half hour of hiking. Let’s make that our destination. Once we get there, TJ can shift back and we’ll get supper going.” Erik turned her and Maggie froze. He reached and adjusted her chest harness straps then patted her cheek with his fingers before pointing for her to follow TJ’s lead. She stared at him even as her body obeyed, and she took her first steps still watching his face.
There was a laughing look in his eyes that made her want to haul him aside and ask just what the hell was going on.
She walked in silence for almost twenty minutes before it hit her. She’d spent the entire day with pack members, one in wolf, and she wasn’t having a panic attack. She hadn’t passed out and she was still safe.
Maybe Missy had been right. Maybe it was time to move on.
“So what do you think this is?”
Jared hit TJ over the head with his baseball cap. “Shut. Up. That’s why it’s called a puzzle, you idiot, because we don’t know what it means.”
“Jared.” Erik didn’t want to have to deal with a couple of young punks right now. Maggie reclined next to him and her scent filled the air. He’d far prefer to be able to continue the little mental fantasy he’d been enjoying than have to discipline his teammates.
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41
Vivian Arend
“But he’s asked the same damn question ten times already.”
Erik sighed and sat up with reluctance. “I know. I’m only four feet away and I’ve heard him every single bloody time. As well as heard you make smart-ass responses and guesses back every single bloody time.” He held out his hand. “Give me the puzzle page and find something else to occupy your minds. We don’t have enough clues to be able to solve this, and you’re both getting on my nerves.”
The two young men exchanged panicked glances and then got busy. Jared grabbed a knife and whittled at a stick, while TJ produced a mouth organ from somewhere and started playing some pretty damn good blues. Erik always had appreciated that—even though TJ was clumsy, everywhere he went music followed.
Erik was just about to settle back down when there was a soft touch on his arm.
“You did that well.”
Maggie sat with her arms wrapped around her legs, her face whiter than he remembered. Shit. “Did I scare you? I didn’t mean to. The boys know I’m joking around.”
She shook her head and frowned. “I’m not upset.”
“You look pale.” He shut his mouth quickly. What an incredibly stupid thing to say.
She rolled her eyes at him. “Gee, thanks. You’re really batting a thousand right now aren’t you?”
Yup. “Are you tired? Hungry?” Can I massage your feet—or any other part of your body? What he wouldn’t give to be able to touch her. The whole day spent together, even hiking, had made his desire for her rise.
“No, I had more than enough at supper. I just need to think for a bit. Thanks for asking the comedy duo to shut up. I haven’t been around a lot of people for a while and their constant yattering was getting to me.” She stretched lazily and he enjoyed the way her T-shirt pulled tight over her breasts, the display making his mouth water. She might be a little thing, especially compared to him, but her breasts were full and distracting.
She curled up next to him, her hip touching his and he smiled. There was no way to ignore the physical pull between them. He wasn’t even interested in trying to act as if it wasn’t there. He’d go as slow as she needed, but he wouldn’t back down. For the next thirty minutes he pretended to stare at the puzzle clues all the while looking over every inch of her body. She was going to be his—to care for and love and be with for the rest of their lives. The whole idea of fated mates didn’t bother him one bit.
Jared yawned, a loud juicy sound that made Erik laugh. Time to round them up. “Hey, good job today, everyone.”
TJ waved lazily, tucking away the mouth organ and letting out his own yawn. “It’s the altitude, I swear it is. I’m heading to bed. Early morning I assume?”