“Come on, just let me have a little feel,” Leonid whines.
“I’m sorry, Leonid, but I’ve got a headache from being out in the sun all day.”
“Whatever.” Leonid lifts his hands in annoyed exasperation and heads down the hallway without looking back.
The way Arlene is biting her lip and fighting tears makes my heart break for her. Then she lifts her head, and before I can move away, her eyes lock with mine. Even in this fragile state, she is a pure beauty. I give her a small smile.
“Why don’t you go and rest for a while. I’ll light the firepit in a couple of hours.”
“Thank you,” she says, and this time, her smile reaches her eyes.
* * *I’m putting more wood on the embers when the soft sound of footsteps alerts me to her presence. I turn around and lose my ability to talk. I can’t utter a
