19
MEGAN
W e spend a lazy few hours soaking in the pool, chatting with Farli and Josie and Nora, and talking
about nothing in particular. Others come and go, and my fingers prune up and all the heat makes
me sleepy, so we retreat back to our cave for an afternoon nap, of all things.
I donโt think Iโve napped in the afternoon since I was a child, but Cashol lies down in the furs and indicates I should join him, and I jump right in next to him. His wet hair sticks to everything, and so does mine, and he tickles my sidesโฆand then goes down on me again, giving me a hard, fast orgasm that makes me utterly breathless and saps the last of my strength.
So I nap, content and happy.
When I wake up, Cashol rubs a hand up and down my back. โYou slept well.โ
โI did, didnโt I?โ I freely admit that sleeping next to him helps my too-active mind ease a little. Just having that human contactโor alien-human contactโmakes me relax. I roll onto my back and stretch. โI should probably quit lazing about, though.โ
โNo,โ he says, and sits up. โNow it is time.โ
โTime for what?โ Heโs got a playful look on his face that makes me squint.
โTime for you to enjoy Casholโs rubbing cave.โ
I chuckle. โRubbing cave, huh?โ
He takes one of my feet in his hands. โI know you are fond of touching feet.โ
Touching feet. Thatโs one way of putting it. More like Iโm obsessed with touching his feet, not mine, but Iโll take a foot rub. โSo thereโs a special rubbing cave just set up for me, huh?โ
โIf there are caves where they hand you food, there is surely a rubbing cave.โ He works his fingers over my feet, kneading, and I have to admit, it does feel pretty good. I sigh happily and relax as he massages my toes and works his way down to my heel. โI had a good day today,โ he tells me.
โI did, too.โ Today is one of the happiest days Iโve had since I arrived here.
โI think we should have more days like today.โ When I open my eyes to look at him, he continues. โI will finish my trap lines early and then you and I will spend the day together.โ
โDoing what?โ
Cashol shrugs. โWe will go for walks. I will teach you how to do things. Do you fish?โ
โNo.โ
โThen we will learn that. And we can gather tea. And the roots you humans are so fond of.โ
โIs anyone going to get mad?โ
โWhy would they get mad? We will be providing for ourselves. No one will need to provide for us.โ He continues to rub my feet. โAnd I bring in enough with my traps that I can also provide extra meat for the tribe.
But you are my first priority.โ
Heโs sweet. I have to admit that the idea of spending all this time with him makes me happy. โWhat if you get tired of being around me?โ
He lets out a derisive snort. โI do not think that is possible.โ
Oh, itโs possible. He can just ask all my ex-boyfriends back on Earth. But I suppose thereโs only one way to find out if weโre going to get this right, and thatโs to spend time together. Lots of it. And learning how to fish and collecting roots is a good idea. I can work on my leather projects in the morning and help cook with either the morning meal or at lunch, and then head off with Cashol in the afternoon to do our own thing.
Getting away from the cave on the regular might be a good idea. Every moment that I spend here, I feel like I need to be focused on a task so they can see just how good of a worker I can be. โIf youโre sure it wonโt be a problem.โ
โI am sure.โ He rubs my foot harder. โAnd I think you need new boots.โ
โI do? Why?โ
โBecause your toes are always cold.โ He shakes his head.
I pull my foot free from his grip and poke him with one โcoldโ toe. โI donโt know if youโve noticed, but this is an ice planet.โ
โI do not know if you have noticed,โ he counters, โbut your toes are cold when you press them against me at night.โ
My laughter dies in my throat. โIโm sorry. Iโll sleep alone.โ
โNo, you will not.โ He moves forward and lies down in the furs next to me, then tugs me into his arms. โI have not been very smart with all of this.โ Cashol slides his hands over my skin, pulling me against him until Iโm practically plastered against his front. โI have decided that you are sleeping in the furs with me every night from now on.โ
โBut what if I make certain parts of you ache?โ
โAh, but it is the best ache,โ he jokes. โAnd I do not regret it at all.โ
F ๎ ๎๎๎ ๎๎๎๎ ๎๎๎๎๎ ๎๎๎๎๎, ๎๎๎ ๎ ๎ ๎๎๎๎ ๎๎๎๎ ๎ ๎๎๎๎๎. S๎๎๎, ๎๎๎๎๎โ๎ ๎๎๎๎ ๎ ๎๎ ๎๎๎ ๎๎๎๎, ๎๎๎ I so happy. I canโt stop smiling from sun-up to sun-down. We fall into a fairly easy pattern of daily work. I wake up early and sit by the fire, helping out with the cooking and working on Casholโs pouch-belts. Theyโre a bit more involved than I initially thought, and I end up pulling the woven leather apart at least twice before Iโm happy with how itโs progressing. I also make simpler belts for Maylak and Eklan, both of whom admire my handiwork and Iโm thrilled to make the gifts for them. In exchange, Maylak gives me a pouch of an herbal tea that helps with nauseaโprobably for the morning sickness Iโm sure to have in the futureโand Eklan makes me a few fishing lures out of tufts of meaty-looking fur bits attached to deadly hooks.
Once the twin suns are high in the sky, I start looking for Casholโs return. He always comes back at around the same time, usually with a fresh kill from his traps. After the kill is handed out or cleaned up for us to eat later, we spend the afternoon together.
Some afternoons, we go fishing, and I admit, Iโm better at it than Cashol is. He isnโt a great fisherman because heโs impatient. Heโll sit for a while by the waterโs edge, watching the lure dance along beneath the surface, but then heโll grow restless. Heโll pick leaves by the shore and ask me to identify them. Heโll see hopper tracks in the snow and want to chase them down. Heโll go farther upstream and look for โthings to
spear.โ
The man just canโt sit still and fish.
Me, I donโt mind it. Fishing means sitting in one spot and teasing the line so the lure bobs and jerks and looks like a small, shrimplike creature that the fish love to eat. Eventually, it turns into a game to see if I can catch something before Cashol gets restless and races away again. In a way, itโs kind of amusingโmy sa-khui mate is good at everything he puts his mind to, usually. Heโs good at hunting. Heโs fast on his feet. Heโs likeable. Heโs strong. Heโs great at kissing. Even better at going down on me.
Yet the man cannot sit still to save his life.
There are tracking lessons. Not because Cashol expects me to go and hunt something down, but so I can recognize which tracks are made from hunters coming and going, which tracks are wildlife, and which tracks are dangerous and should be avoided. One day we see metlak tracks far too close to our usual fishing spot, and so after that, we stay closer to the cave for lessons.
I eventually learn how to make a fire. Iโm not fast at it, but given enough time and determination, I can now use the bow and spindle until I can get a spark. The day that I do, I feel a sense of utter elation and accomplishment, and Casholโs beaming grin tells me how proud he is of me, too.
There are berry picking runs, where we snag the tiny soap-berries from the bushes, or sometimes a sour- tasting, bitter green berry that grows on a piney-looking bush. Those berries are mostly used for the sticky sap they provide that acts as a good sealant. Iโm told that the elders used to boil them down and mix them with another type of leaf to make a very pungent drink, but no one in the current generation likes the stuff. I also learn how to identify which plants are decent eating, which plants are poisonous, and which leaves are added to sah-sah to make the fermented drink so tasty.
Most nights end up with us by the fire, talking about nothing in particular. Itโs nice to just sit down and talk about the day, and most of the time, it leads to Cashol rubbing my feetโฆor me rubbing his feet. Of course, every time I rub his feet, I get turned on. Thereโs just something about those enormous, perfect toes and his big heel and the feel of his strong foot against my fingers and I swear Iโm squirming by the time five minutes have passed.
Cashol figures this out quickly and sticks his foot in my lap the moment we get back to the cave one night, and before weโve even got the fire going, Iโm on my back in the furs with his mouth between my thighs, and itโs so good that I have to muffle my cries with the furs as he licks every sopping wet inch of me.
Itโs incredible. Every night, without fail, he goes down on me until I comeโsometimes more than onceโ and then he holds me afterward. He never wants more than that, never wants me to reach for his cock and give him pleasure, too, though I know heโs aching. He just wants it to be about me.
He tells me heโll wait for me to be ready.
And I want to be. He makes me so happy on days like this that I almost forget my worries. Iโm not sure what Iโm waiting for. Maybe Iโm waiting for him to break, or for the universe to give me a sign.
Maybe Iโm just enjoying what I have right now and not changing a thing, because I worry it wonโt last.
