A smile split her lips, catching my mention of our magical moment of mermaids.

“Wait.” Conner poked his sister. “What secret?”

Pippa stuck up her nose. “Not telling.”

“Go on, Pippi. You can tell us.” Galloway joined in, tickling the girl, making her squeal. “Not going to stop until you tell us.”

I laughed, moving to sit close by.

Galloway didn’t let up, drawing giggles and happy noises from her. To her credit, she didn’t break and she managed to escape Galloway’s hands and run.

I opened my arms. She barrelled into me, her tiny body trembling with exertion. “Never. I don’t tell secrets!”

I kissed her cheek. “Good for you, Pip. You tell ‘em you’re not a tattler.”

Her happy smile undid me. The fact she’d found some sort of joy here...that was priceless. Suddenly, her arms wrapped around my neck; she buried her face in my hair. “I love you, Stelly.”

Tears instantly sprang to my eyes.

She loved me.

My hug turned to steal; I crushed her to me. “I love you, too, Pippi.”

My eyes drifted over her head, meeting Galloway’s. He stood with every complex severity of our situation along with a faraway wish on his face. His mouth pursed, eyes bright, chin cocked with emotion.

I fell.

Staring at him.

I fell.

Harder and harder, deeper and deeper.

The way he watched me. The way he made me feel.

I couldn’t deny what my heart and body wanted any longer. I couldn’t lie that I wasn’t terrified of what I felt for him. This wasn’t an opportunist fling because of our circumstances. It was a true connection between two people who happened to be thrown together by fate.

Galloway left Conner, moving toward Pippa and me.

Goosebumps broke out. I couldn’t breathe as he moved smoother than he had in weeks, putting a little bit of weight on his broken ankle before transferring to the crutch. We didn’t speak as he kissed Pippa’s hair and pulled her away from me.

The little girl went, her brown eyes glowing. Galloway bent and whispered in her ear.

I couldn’t hear what he said, but she nodded and headed to Conner. Her brother welcomed her, his smile scripted just for his younger sibling.

Holding out his hand, Galloway waited until I put mine in his. Jerking me onto my feet, his bicep tightened, intending to pull me into him.

My lips parted, preparing for a kiss. My heart danced a furiant, expecting a bolt of passion.

But his eyes dropped from my face to my arm.

My red and scratched arm.

He froze. “What’s that?”

Shaking myself from my sexual stupor, I frowned. “What?”

“That.” Untangling his fingers from mine, he grabbed my wrist, twisting my arm for a better view. The sunshine shone directly on my self-inflicted injuries—red and long, irritated and green-stained.

I slapped my palm over it. “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

“What do you mean it’s nothing?” His voice was deceptively soft. “It’s not nothing. It needs to be treated.”

My heart raced for an entirely different reason. “Ah, well...it’s not that kind of wound.”

He imprisoned me in his gaze, waiting for me to dig myself further into a hole. When I didn’t continue, his fingers tightened on my wrist. “Explain...”

“It wasn’t an accident, okay?” Tugging, I freed myself and hid my arms behind my back. “It’s a trial.”

“A trial?” His eyes narrowed. “What sort of trial.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“Like hell, I’m not going to worry about it.” He leaned closer, anger glinting. “What are you up to?”

I blew salty bangs from my eyes. “We need a better diet. I remembered my teacher saying the best way to see if something is edible to do a scratch test.”

His eyes bugged. “And you thought that was a good idea?”

“Well, yes.” I shrugged. “We need other things to eat, and unless you’ve studied botany and know what plants are okay, this is the only way I can think of.”

He stared blankly then livid temper coloured his face.

I flinched, waiting for the blow-up. Instead, he snagged my wrist and yanked me toward the forest edge.

“Hey.” I tugged.

“Be quiet.” Hopping in an angry hobble with his crutch, he didn’t let me go as he dragged me past the children. “We’ll be back. Adult time.”

Conner rolled his eyes. “Adult time....riiigght.”

Pippa wrung her hands. “Don’t be mad at her.” Her eyes flickered between us with worry. “Please?”

I smiled, fighting the uncertainty in my blood. “He’s not mad, Pip. I’m just going to show him which plants I tested. He’s happy at the thought of rabbit food. Aren’t you, G?”

Galloway’s fingers tightened. “Yes. Exactly. Don’t worry, Pippi.”

Pippa nodded. “Okay...”

With a final look at the children, Galloway stole me into the treeline.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

...............................................

G A L L O W A Y

......

OF ALL THE hare-brained, stupid, idiotic, crazy things to do.

I can’t believe this.

I didn’t want to believe she would willingly hurt herself and run the risk of a serious allergy, all so we had a better bloody diet.