“And then?”
“Then we figure out who’s behind the poisoning and how to stop them. You know, easy stuff.”
The casual use ofweshould have irritated her. Should have triggered her fierce independence, her determination to handle problems alone. Instead, it felt like the first deep breath she’d taken in weeks.
Skeet wasn’t so terrible. And hehadtraveled all the way across the world to check on her.
She really didn’t know what to do with that.
Chai returned, checked his water-collection system, then sat down and settled against his pack.
“I’ll take first watch,” Skeet said. “You two get some sleep.”
“I can—” Chloe started.
“You can sleep is what you can do,” Skeet said. “Let someone else handle security for a few hours. Consider it a novel experience.”
“Wow, you’re bossy.”
He grinned, teeth white against all that grimy skin.
She wanted to argue, but exhaustion dragged at her bones.
“Where am I supposed to sleep?”
Skeet unrolled a blanket beneath the driest section of their shelter. “Here. I’ll take first perimeter watch. Don’t worry, I promise not to let anything eat you while you sleep.”
“That’s your blanket.”
“I’ve slept in worse places. Like that hotel in Bangkok with the mysterious stains and the air conditioning that sounded like a dying helicopter.”
“But—”
“Chloe.”
The way he said her name... Oh wow, she must be exhausted, because it hit her bones, filled her with a strange warmth.
“You’re safe with me. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
Oh, she was . . . in trouble.
Still, as she crawled under his blanket, she managed a feeble “I’m not your responsibility.”
“Today, sweetheart, you are.” His voice turned almost soft.
She pulled the blanket up, pressing her face into fabric that smelled like clean laundry and something indefinably masculine.
“Besides, North will skin me alive if I let his girlfriend’s sister get eaten by jungle cats.”
She smiled despite herself. And why not... “Skeet?” she called softly as he checked his weapon and adjusted his gear.
“Yeah?”
“Thank you. For coming after me.”
He was quiet for a long moment. “Thank me when we get you home safe.”
Rain continued its steady rhythm against the canvas above. Somewhere in the darkness, Chai moved silently along their perimeter, ensuring that their small sanctuary remained secure. Skeet rose and moved toward the edge of their shelter, his outline framed by firelight before the jungle swallowed him.