Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 71832 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 359(@200wpm)___ 287(@250wpm)___ 239(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71832 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 359(@200wpm)___ 287(@250wpm)___ 239(@300wpm)
Or maybe I'm just cynical. Either way, I'm glad that there are more than enough warm blankets to last us through the night. Once the distant twin suns go down, the temperature drops dramatically. I turn to Valmir, who's busy building the fire up. "What do you need me to do?"
"Tend to your pet. I've got the fire." He doesn't look over, his focus entirely on adding fuel to the small flame.
I pull Makana out from his sling and set him on the floor of the cave. He hops away a short distance to do his potty business and I hunt through baskets, looking for something to feed him. I find a few dried roots that are his favorite, and I give Makana one. He makes a happy grunting noise and lies on top of it, nibbling his way down the long, tough stalk. With a scrap of leather, I clean up his mess and head out into the snow to "wash" my hands. Our waterskins still have enough for the evening, so there's no need to gather snow to boil just yet.
I make a nest for Makana out of one fur, tucking it into an empty basket and setting it near the fire so he can be warm. He's so cute and happy that I give him another root, and when I look up, Valmir is watching me.
"No wonder he wanted to stay," he teases. "You spoil him rotten."
"Is that such a bad thing?" I scratch Makana's little head affectionately. "We should all be so spoiled."
"I can spoil you if you like," Valmir says, leaning back from the now briskly burning fire. "But I know you like to be independent."
"I'll allow you to spoil me a little," I tease. "If you want to. What does spoiling me entail, exactly?"
"Taking care of you," Valmir says as I sit down cross-legged next to him by the fire. He puts a hand on my lower leg. "I'll start with taking those wet boots off of you."
Wet boots? This sounds suspiciously like a cliché from a book where the guy tries to get the girl naked, except I know Valmir is completely unaware of such clichés. If he was aware, he probably wouldn't start with feet, anyhow. I put my foot in his lap. "You're the boss."
With nimble fingers, he unties the knot just below my calf, then unwinds the long laces that hold the leather wraps of my boots to my legs. The boot slides off my foot, and then the second layer of fur tucked around my foot for warmth is removed and laid out by the fire to dry. My feet look pale and wrinkled in the cold damp, and I curl my toes reflexively. He puts a warm hand on the arch of my foot and I can't help it — I let out a sigh of pleasure.
"Your feet wouldn't get so cold if you had fur on them," he tells me, his tone reproachful. "Your toes are like icicles."
This makes me laugh, because only Valmir would criticize my feet for not being hairy enough. "I'm sorry. Next time they're handing out furry skin at the cloning factory, I'll speak up."
"Please do." He considers my foot, eyeing it as he moves his hand over it. "This is the first time I've really looked at your feet. Humans are built so strangely. How are you supposed to hold onto anything without claws on your toes?"
"I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to be holding on with my toes," I admit with a laugh. Just the mental image is enough to make me bite back a stream of giggles. "Anything else I'm lacking?"
"A tail. You should really have a tail for balance."
I grin. "An excellent point. Maybe whatever kid we have will get the tail and the claws."
His expression sobers, and our eyes meet. For a long moment, there's no sound but the crackle of fire and the hum of our khuis singing. His fingers continue to move over my cold foot, rubbing warmth back into it. "I keep forgetting there will be a child at the end of this."
"I can't forget," I tell him wryly. "I'm very aware that we're going to be making a life together. It's one reason I haven't been in a rush. I'm not sure I'm ready to be a parent. The responsibility feels terrifying."
He acknowledges my fear with a small nod. "I have heard from the others that no one is ever ready. And you do a great job with Makana. Just treat our child like you do the two-fang."
"Feed it too many roots and clean up its poop?"
His whiskers twitch. "Make sure it's happy. Love on it. Spoil it with affection and make sure it lacks for nothing. Show it constantly how much you care." He strokes my foot as he speaks. "It will be the happiest creature alive."