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He ate in silence though, lost in thought, and when I remarked on the weather and then the festival we had been at, and then on his friends, he just shrugged and gave one-word responses.
I had never seen him so dejected. I had seen him angry, but sad was new and it didn't suit him.
When we were done, he took our dishes to the bucket of water next to the pond and washed them, then returned them to their shelf.
“I will go wait for the others,” he informed me. “If you need me, that's where I'll be.”
I watched him go, unsure what to do or what to make of this whole situation.
I was out here alone, didn't he understand that? We were all each other had at the moment. We couldn't ignore each other.
I knew that wasn't exactlyright. He was doing everything for me, trying to make me comfortable in all the ways he could but it still felt like I was being abandoned somehow and I couldn't stand it.
He needed time to nurse his wounds, I told myself and tried not to let it get to me too much.
But there was nothing else to do.
Sighing, I went to the edge of the pond.
Looking around, Addy was out of sight. So, feeling rebellious, I pulled off my robe and stepped into the cool depths.
The water was deeper than I thought. In the middle I had to wade. It felt so good against my skin, washing away the desert dust and cooling me down.
I sank down, going all the way under and completely resetting by the time I lifted back out.
To keep busy, I swam for a long while, occasionally wondering what I would do if Addy came back and saw me now, completely naked and exposed in the clear water.
I would probably brush it off, pretend it wasn't a big deal for an alpha to see me nude... but even the thought made me start to harden and I knew it would be messier than that.
Sighing, I swam back to the shore, suddenly worried that I would be caught and unable to hide how Addy's presence sometimes made my body react.
I almost pulled my clothes back on, but they looked so dirty now after washing that I hesitated and glanced around.
Convinced I was still alone, I went to the shelf that held all the new clothes we'd found.
The garments were mostly plain, nothing like what I would wear at home. I liked colors and jewellery, but this was more practical for out here.
Pulling on the plain white robes that hung a little too loose over my shoulders still felt good because they were so clean.
I took the gold chain from my original outfit though and used that as the belt.
The day passed exceptionally slowly and Addy never returned, not even when the sky began to darken.
I waited, feeling more and more hopeless as the hours passed. We didn't know when we would be rescued. If this was how it would be while we waited, I couldn't take it.
Still, I didn't go to Addy until the stars were over us and I was shivering in the coolness of the night.
He was sitting exactly where he had posted himself yesterday. His arms were crossed, and his gaze fixed over the starlit dunes.
When I stopped next to him, he looked up at me and froze.
“You changed,” he said.
“Mmhm. The pond was nice. You should swim in it with me tomorrow.”
I didn't know why I said that. After all, I had swum naked. I couldn't do that with Addy.
My body heated at the thought.
