Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

J anet woke to find that they had somehow shifted positions during the night, and she was lying half under Sabrost. The blanket had shifted as well and she could feel his scales against her bare breasts, a surprisingly erotic feeling.

He hissed, and she looked up to find him watching her, his gaze fastened on her breasts again.

"Nipple," he whispered.

There was no cloth between them this time as he raised a finger to her breast. Her breath caught as that sharp black claw approached, but just as he had before, he circled it with astonishing delicacy. The light touch sent shivers of pleasure down her spine, and she found herself arching into his touch, wanting more. He grasped the taut peak and tugged it gently, too gently.

"More."

Placing her fingers over his, she showed him what she wanted. He caught on immediately, rolling her nipple firmly between his thumb and forefinger.

"I… want… taste."

The words were shy, almost hesitant, but the meaning was quite clear. The thought of his mouth on her breasts sent a little throb of excitement to her clit.

"Yes."

The word was hardly out before his mouth closed over her, shockingly warm and wet, but just as gentle as his finger had been.

"More," she urged again.

His tongue wrapped around her nipple and she suddenly remembered that forked tip, just as he began to tug on it. Oh my God. Her hand clutched the back of his head as he combined a rolling pressure with a deep sucking pull. His hand worked her other breast with the same rhythm, adding to the sensation. She writhed against him, her body hovering on the edge of climax, then a sudden firm pressure against her clit sent her flying. Bright spots danced in front of her eyes as she shuddered, waves of pleasure washing over her.

She was still shaking when Sabrost stood abruptly and turned away, the muscles on his back and shoulders rigid.

"Sabrost? Is something wrong?"

"Check area." His voice was hoarse as he strode quickly away.

Sabrost hurried away from their resting place, unable to face the Chosen and see the accusation in her face. As soon as he was out of sight, he forced his kalu back inside his slit, ignoring the pain. How could he have exposed it to her? He had not asked her permission.

Only last night he had vowed to be worthy of her, and at the first hint of temptation, he had been unable to control his body. But she had been so soft in his arms, so delicious on his tongue, the perfume of her arousal making his head spin…

His kalu threatened to emerge again at the memory, but even though he was now alone, he kept his hand over his slit. He hadn't had this little control since he entered puberty.

Determined to atone for his presumption, he started to kneel. As he did, a small rock skittered away from him, then slipped into a crack beneath one of the massive boulders that filled these hills.

He heard it drop, then… splash?

Peering through the narrow gap, he caught the glint of liquid and heard the trickle of water over rocks. Excellent. This would make it easier to attend to the Chosen's needs. Perhaps Tetlana did not find his behavior unforgivable after all.

Deciding to offer prayers of thanksgiving instead, he dropped to his knees once more.

He was halfway through the first prayer when he heard Janet scream.

The lingering satisfaction of Janet's climax disappeared as she watched Sabrost rush away. Was he upset by what had happened between them?

Anger began to mix with her dismay. It wasn't as if it had been her idea. Well, maybe she had urged him on, but he had been the one to ask to taste her. Was it her fault if it felt so incredible that she had climaxed?

Scowling, she climbed to her feet and rearranged her blanket as a sarong once more. The sun was already beginning to heat the surrounding boulders, but there were enough of them to produce some shade. As she took a small sip from the water pouch, she couldn't help thinking wistfully of the espresso machine at the restaurant. Even though she knew she was lucky to have the water, she missed that first delightful jolt of caffeine.

At the thought of the restaurant, her stomach growled, but she did her best to ignore it. Hadn't she read somewhere that you could exist for weeks without food? It was a depressing prospect, and she wondered if Sabrost could find food for them. He seemed remarkably competent. Perhaps she would mention it when he returned.

If he returned.

But despite the gloomy thought, she couldn't believe that he would abandon her.

As she put down the water bag, she heard a small clucking noise and looked up to see something watching her, half hidden behind another boulder. About the size of a chicken, it had a round body and an equally round head with two bulging green eyes. As she watched, it hopped a step closer on long skinny legs that were completely out of proportion to the rest of its body. The faded orange and pink stripes that covered its body matched the coloring of the surrounding rocks. It was so ugly it was almost cute.

"Hello there. Where did you come from?"

Was it thirsty? They had such a small supply of water, she wasn't sure if she should share it or not. She gave the water pouch a hesitant look, trying to decide how much was left, and when she looked back up, the original creature had been joined by two more.

All three of them hopped a few steps closer, those bulging eyes fixed on her face, and her heart started beating faster.

A loud squawk made her jump, and she looked up to see the flying creature she had seen the previous day, or at least one that looked exactly like it. Her three visitors paused at the bird's cry, but then they moved a little closer, and now there were four.

Without taking her eyes off them, she fumbled at her makeshift belt for the attached knife. Her hand closed over the hilt just as the fifth creature appeared.

Her pulse raced, noticing they had formed a semicircle in front of her, leaving her no easy way to escape. Where the hell was Sabrost? If he was checking the area, how could he have missed her visitors?

The one directly in front of her opened its mouth, revealing an alarming array of sharp looking teeth, and gave a yodeling cry. The bird screeched in response as all five of the creatures charged at her.

"Sabrost!" she cried. "Help!"

And then she had no more opportunity to call for help. The first creature dove for her leg, and she instinctively tried to kick it away, her foot connecting with a sickening thud. The bird dive-bombed another one of the creatures, despite its larger size, and sank sharp little talons into its back, making it screech.

Pain flared in her leg as claws dug into her calf, and she leaned down to swing her knife at the attacker. She felt the knife connect, but while she was bent over, another one leapt for her shoulder. She screamed as its claws sank deep, and then it was gone.

Sabrost had arrived, roaring with rage. He moved with lightning speed, his own claws slicing open one of the attackers and his foot disemboweling another before he dashed the third one against a rock. The creature the bird was grappling with collapsed with a gurgled cry, and the bird squawked triumphantly. The one she had kicked away still hadn't moved.

Everything had happened so quickly that she could only stare up at Sabrost in shock as he rushed to her side.

"Where hurt?"

"I… I don't know." But even as she spoke, the shock began to subside and she felt the burning pains in her shoulder and calf. "My shoulder and my leg. Those things scratched me."

He hissed angrily, then gathered her carefully into his arms before striding back in the direction from which he had appeared.

"Where are you taking me?"

"Water." He muttered something in his language, then added. "Clean wound."

"You don't think those things are poisonous, do you?" Were the scratches going numb or was she still in shock?

His hold tightened for a brief second, but he shook his head.

"Clean."

She wasn't sure that meant that the wounds were clean or that he would clean them, but she tried to believe he knew what he was doing. He carried her to another spot on the rocky hillside and carefully lowered her to the ground. With an apologetic look, he sliced off another piece of her blanket covering, but she didn't have the energy to protest.

Trying to distract herself from the growing ache of her wounds, she watched as he knelt down next to one of the boulders and dipped the scrap of fabric into a narrow crack. When he pulled it back out, it was soaking wet, so wet it was actually dripping.

"There's water under there? However did you find it?"

He looked oddly embarrassed, but he didn't attempt to answer her. Instead, he gently wiped the wet cloth across her calf. It was her turn to hiss at the unexpectedly fiery pain as the water touched the wounds.

"Forgive." Sabrost looked up at her with worried eyes.

"There's nothing to forgive," she assured him. "I know you're trying to help."

His expression didn't ease, but he continued to clean the wound. Eventually it reached the point where it was still sore but it no longer burned when the water touched it.

"That feels better. Thank you."

He gave her a grim look and indicated that she should sit in front of him. As she obeyed, she realized that her shoulder still needed to be cleaned.

The first swipe of the wet cloth across her shoulder hurt so much that she couldn't stop herself from crying out. Sabrost hissed and pulled her closer, but he didn't relent.

She buried her face in his shoulder, breathing in his comforting cinnamon scent, while he washed the wound until it too lost the fiery burn. He inspected it, then nodded solemnly.

"Clean."

A small chirp echoed his words, and she looked up to see that the bird creature had followed them, perching atop the closest rock. Sabrost growled and tensed, but she put her hand on his arm.

"I think he's a friend. He tried to help me when those creatures attacked." She shuddered. "Where do you think they came from?"

He shook his head in obvious frustration. "No sign. Go now."

She agreed with him one hundred percent, but when she tried to rise to her feet, her wounded leg wouldn't take her full weight. Sabrost had her up in his arms at once.

"You can't carry me all the time," she protested. "What if you need to defend us again? Which reminds me, we left the knife and the water pouch. We should go back and get them."

He hesitated, clearly reluctant, then nodded.

All of the rocks looked alike to her but he seemed to have no difficulty finding his way back to the place where they had camped. At least, she thought she recognized it, but the bodies of creatures who had attacked them were gone. There was no sign that they had even been there at all.

"I don't understand. Where did they go?"

Sabrost looked even grimmer as he rapidly collected their few belongings without putting her down. They were on their way in less than a minute.

"Food," he muttered as he increased his stride to the point where he was almost running.

"You mean something ate them?" A queasy feeling swept over her. "You think there's something larger than those things?"

He darted a quick look down at her, then shook his head and said reluctantly. "More of them."

The sick feeling increased as she realized what he meant – that they ate their own kind. And how many more of them were there?

She wanted to ask, but she suspected that Sabrost knew little more than she did. Right now, the most important thing was to get as far away as possible. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kept her mouth shut.

His arms tightened briefly in a quick hug and despite everything, she took comfort in his presence. Casting a quick look over his shoulder, she realized that the bird was fluttering along behind them. She found his presence surprisingly reassuring. It looked like she had two protectors.