Barbarian's Prize(55)
“Mmm.” Sounds a bit like criticism to me, but Georgie always thinks like the chief’s mate, so it’s not unexpected. I boop Talie’s tiny little nose. She’s so stinking cute with her fuzzy blue skin and the mess of golden-brown curls atop her head and her witty-bitty horns. I’m so hugging the snot out of every baby in this cave before I go back. “So are Harlow and her family here? The surgery machine was broken back at the ship and I wanted to ask her about it.”
Georgie nods and gestures deeper into the cave. “We’ve opened up three more caves and she’s running scans on the walls to see if there’s more to be found. She thinks the cutter has one or two more caves in it before it craps out again. The parts burn out fast.”
I sure hope she’s not cannibalizing from the surgery machine or I might lose my shit. If I can’t get this IUD out – and believe me, I’ve tried the manual method, I’m going to go nuts.
“You okay?” Georgie asks, giving me a concerned look.
“Yep! Just wanted to check out a few things in the girl area.”
Understanding dawns on her face as I hug Talie close to my chest again. “It’ll happen, Josie. Just be patient.”
I’m tired of being patient, though. Everyone says be patient when they don’t have to be. But I smile at her, because moping does no good. “You’re not getting this cute baby back until I leave.”
She laughs. “A few hours with a babysitter? I’ll take them and be glad of it. You have no idea how bad I want a nap.”
Probably not as bad as I want a baby.
TIFFANY
It’s quiet with just me and Salukh here at the old space ship that the sa-khui call the Elders’ Cave.
I think we’re still adjusting to the fact that no one else is around. Every time I glance over at Salukh, he’s keeping his hands busy: sharpening spears, stoking the fire, checking supplies, or melting snow. I’m more or less chair-bound with my bad ankle, and I don’t have any of my usual work implements. My skinning tools, my scrapers, my bone knitting needles, and my spindle – all are back at the cave. I’ve literally got nothing to do.
It’s nice at first. I doze off and on in my chair, trying to get comfortable without bugging my leg. After a while, though, I get bored. There’s a bathroom of sorts set up in one of the back rooms and I refuse to let Salukh help me walk there. I spend longer than I should and use some of the melted water to wash up, wiping down my body and cleaning up the travel grime. Once I’m done, I’m restless and don’t feel like returning to my chair, so I limp over to one of the doors and order the computer to open it so I can peer outside at the weather.
The moment the doors slide open, I want to close them again. The wind is gusting so hard it nearly knocks me over, and the air that rushes in is bone-chilling cold. There’s snow everywhere, and it’s so gray outside I can’t see a thing. I gasp at the sight of it. Josie’s out there in that, if she didn’t make it to the cave in time. If her compass didn’t work, she could be wandering in the storm, desperately trying to find shelter….and no one at the main cave will know she’s coming.
I quell the panic I feel and take a wobbling step back from the door. “Close, please.”
The doors slide shut again slowly, and I watch as the ice forms where the landing snow melted against the warmer metal. It fills in the cracks and hardens immediately, and I shiver.
Be safe, Josie. Be safe.
“She will be fine,” Salukh says, his voice gentle. He’s standing next to me, and as I look over at him, he puts his hands on my shoulders. “She is smart and brave. She will make it. Likely she is already back at the cave and being fussed over.”
He’s probably right. “I just worry.” His hands are big and warm, and comforting. It feels good to have his touch, and I lean back against him. “I’d be a bad friend if I didn’t.”
“You are a good friend to her,” he assures me.
“Is it bad that I haven’t worried a bit about Taushen?” I grimace.
He chuckles, and my skin prickles with awareness at that low sound. “It is because he is a capable hunter. He will be fine, even if he is caught in the storm. It is far more dangerous for humans than for a sa-khui hunter.”
That seems to be the story of everything on this planet. I nod and start to limp back over to my chair. My ankle’s throbbing fiercely, protesting the fact that I’m standing. Before I can move further than two steps, though, he scoops me up in his arms and carries me back over by the fire.
I don’t protest – what’s the use? Besides, it’s kind of nice to be babied when I want the attention, instead of having it foisted on me. Salukh settles me into my chair with the utmost of care and I give him a smile of thanks. His long, thick hair brushes against my arm as he stands and I can’t help but run my fingers through it as it whispers out of my grip. He’s so…sexy. I shouldn’t be thinking about how sexy Salukh is when he’s taking care of me, should I? But I can’t help it. I watch his butt flex as he strides across the room to get another fuel chip for the fire, and I watch as he squats to tend to the flame. He moves like a dancer – a dancer the size of a basketball player mixed with a linebacker. People his size shouldn’t be so lithe, but he’s graceful and beautiful to watch and I just want to run my nails down that rock-hard chest. Mmm.