Page 24

His smile was a little wistful.

Did he miss me?

Because fuck, I’d missed him so much.

“Want to turn on some music for us?”

“Yes, sure.” I pulled out my phone and paired with his car, choosing a playlist with all my dopamine hits. These were songs I had gotten stuck in my head at some point, ranging from horny to manic.

“Oh, I like this one.” Arne shot me a sideways glance, then focused back on the street.

“Yeah, me too.”See? Maybe we can do this without me wanting to jump your bones at every moment.

Could we just be cool with each other and not act wild like horny teens?

I lost all hope as soon as we parked. I really shouldn’t have found his functional hiking outfit so sexy, but those cargo trousers hugged his thighs and butt in a way that got me all hot and bothered.

He wore a creamy white knit jumper with a zipper turtleneck. It exposed a sliver of his broad chest, and a tight navy blue compression shirt that emphasised the ridge between his pecs. His dark hair fell into his eyes, framing those blue eyes that crinkled at the corners. He looked like he belonged in an upscale outdoor magazine. He was the type of guy from the Pine Peak Outfitters catalogue who teenage Max used to fantasise about.

A catalogue or one of my wet dreams. Damn you, Viking. Why do you have to be so pretty?

“Ready to go?”

You lead. I’ll follow you anywhere.

“Yeah, I’m ready.”

We shouldered our small backpacks and set off.

I kept my eyes fixed on my hiking boots. They were black, same as most of my stuff. Black had always been my favourite colour. It might have been because of my feathers. The Night Raven loved the dark; he excelled at blending in.

“This is the path that leads to the orchard. I’m so excited. I came here with Nate, Vee, and Bo last year. We had so much fun. There’s nothing like four grown men getting excited about picking apples.”

“You don’t say.” The idea of Arne getting giggly in the apple orchard was the cutest.

“So, Raven.” Arne gripped the straps of his backpack, biceps bulging under the knit jumper. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”

Are you breaking up with me before we even started dating?

“The other day when you were at my place.”

“Yeah?”

“Who was that on the phone?”

Oh.

“Uh.” I ran a hand over my nape, straightening out the feathers there.

“Come on through here. I want to show you something.” Arne led me off the path, and it came out on a little platform. The land fell down before it, and we took a seat on the wooden bench and got out our water bottles. “Protein bar?”

“Yes, thanks.”

He pulled bars from my favourite brand out of his pocket, gave me the strawberry and cream and waited until I’d taken a bite.

How does he know that’s the best flavour?

“You know I’m not judging you, right?”