Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 83205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
"It's going to be okay," I reassure him. "I'm not getting bad vibes from him. And we don't have to like him. We just need to get information from him."
"He was too smiley when he talked to you," Corvak growls. "I don't like that. I don't like how he looked at you."
"How exactly did he look at me?" I've been eyeballed by creeps in the past and you learn to pick up on that sort of thing, and Valmir was sarcastic and rude, but he wasn't giving me predator vibes.
"Like…like…I just didn't like it." He heaves a gusty breath. "I don't like that he's near you. It makes me nervous because you're less protected now. I am failing you."
Is this all because he's never been around another guy since we got together? Is he jealous? "I'm not interested in him."
"I know. I just…" He sighs. "Part of me wants to fling him off the nearest cliff. He is so smiley."
I bite back a laugh. Maybe this is the first time he's ever been jealous. We've never talked about it too much, but Corvak mentioned that he's never been in another competition before, and that women like me are the bait or the prize. He's probably been around very few women, if any. All these feelings must be new to him. "It's going to be all right, love. I promise. We'll just use him for his information about the others. And it's not as if he can escape, right? So we don't have to worry about him running off with intel about where we are. We'd catch him before he got anywhere."
"I guess." Now he sounds sulky and it's rather adorable. I jump when rough finger-pads touch my cheek in the darkness. "That's the first time you've called me that."
"What?"
"Love." He strokes my face. "You are not miserable here with me, then? Even though things are bad?"
"Are you kidding? If we take the snow-people out of the equation, we're doing better than we ever have. We've got clothes and a swanky cave. We've got hot water and our defensible stronghold. True, we've got a lot of annoying people underfoot, but let's focus on one problem at a time." I take his hand in mine and kiss his palm. "And I do love you. You take care of me and you make me happy. I'd be lost without you."
"I feel the same." He curls his hand around mine, then presses both of them against his chest. Even through the thick layers of clothing, I can feel the vibration of his chest, his heart parasite humming along. "No, I feel more than that. The words are the same, but they don't feel like enough to convey how I feel."
"I understand. We can just show each other." I squeeze his hand. "But maybe not with our guest around."
He chuckles, the sound reluctant. "Perhaps not."
"What the fuck is he anyhow? He looks like a cat."
"He is a race called praxiian. I have some of their genes."
"You don't look anything like him."
"Good," he growls. "I don't want you to find him handsome."
"I absolutely do not. I have a thing for tall, dark, and domineering." And I tap his chest with our joined hands. "Please don't worry about that, all right?"
"I know. I'm being foolish. I know I am the moment the words leave my mouth, and yet I cannot seem to help myself." Corvak sounds annoyed with himself. "He's in my territory, in my home, eyeing my female. I will tolerate it, but I don't have to like it."
Tolerate it, huh? I roll my eyes in the dark. Another comment for the book of grudges, but now isn't the time.
My stomach growls, and Corvak goes still. "You're hungry?"
I'm really not—the thought of eating meat makes me queasy all over again, but I don't want Corvak to have another thing to worry over. "Doesn't matter. There's nothing to eat in the cave and I don't want you leaving again."
"I am absolutely not leaving your side. Not while he's around."
"It's not that he seems dangerous. I just don't like it when you're gone. I miss you too much." The last few days have felt endless. I can deal with him leaving the cave for hours every day as long as I know he's coming back. I live for the quiet nighttime swims in our heated pool, the cuddling under the blankets, the foot rubs he insists upon giving me, but more than anything, I miss our conversations.
Corvak shakes his head, rubbing my arm to reassure me. "It's all part of his plan, I'd bet. He'll disarm us with his poor attitude and then wait until our guard is down before he strikes."
"You're the expert."
He releases my hand, and then a moment later, something hard, cold, and lumpy is pressed into my palm. It takes me a moment to realize it's a root. A second later, a few more are pushed into my grip, all of them small and oddly sized, but enough for a meal. "I pulled a few of these for you while we were traveling. I didn't like the thought of returning to you empty-handed."