This ruse will not last. I can imagine reaching the ship and the others swiftly realizing that we do not act as mates should. There is no understanding between us. Even though I cannot communicate silently with her, she should still want to be with me and seize the opportunities to be alone.
If we were alone, we could work through this and make our mating appear more believable.
Mia stands and smiles at Bridget. “I’ll be fine.”
She is more confident than me.
10
Mia
Ifollow Sunif to the river. He is silent and glowering as though I offended him. When I left him this morning, he seemed to be okay with the situation. Now annoyance radiates off him.
“You are the one who suggested this deal,” I remind him.
“I am aware.” He doesn’t turn to look at me.
Of all the aliens, it is the cranky one I am stuck with. I would rather be back at the fire sitting with Bridget. At least I felt safe there.
I’m not sure I’m safe with Sunif at the moment. I slow and leave a bigger gap between us, not that it will help me much if he decides that he cannot deal with his rut. Is the need to fuck all consuming?
I’d ask, but I don’t want to be snapped at, so I traipse after him.
It doesn’t take long before I can hear and then see, the river. I gasp. Again, I have only seen photos of rivers and streams, but they did not capture the reality of seeing so much water in one place, or the sight of it swiftly flowing past.
“Is this all drinkable?”
“Yes. Why wouldn’t it be?”
“Because not all water is.” We were taught to always check the water first if we were in the field.
“This is flowing off the mountains. It is still water, or water with dead creatures floating in it, that you must not drink.” He removes his boots, rolls up his trousers and wades into the water without even looking at me. He fills two bottles and walks back before picking up the skins and filling them too. He stands in the water, holding them as though he is trying to make a very difficult decision.
I run my fingers through my hair, feeling the grease and sweat. “Do you bathe in the river too?”
He glances over his shoulder. “This is snow melt, it is cold. You do not want to bathe in it.”
“How else am I supposed to bathe?” I will never be able to shower again, and the only running water is the river. The little things I took as necessities are now luxuries that I am already missing. “What do you use for soap?”
He turns to face me. “I cannot give you a bath or proper soap. I do not have land to build a house on, or livestock to provide wealth. My brothers and I are always travelling, and we do not carry a tub in which to bathe. We do not have the things needed to make soap. For those things, you need a tribe,” he snarls.
“I want to wash my hair. You must wash yours.” His is longer than mine. It’s straight and silken and filled with braids and decoration.
“I wash in the river.” He returns to the shore and places the filled water skins on the ground, before stripping off his shirt and then his pants. His dick juts forward, thick and heavy. In daylight it seems bigger and the bumps that run from base to tip seem as though they’d rub in all the wrong places. There are scars on his thighs that run in parallel lines. There must be a dozen of them on each leg.
Before I can say anything, he turns and steps back into the river. His back is crossed with more scars, and I can only see the ones that his hair isn’t hiding. He goes further out this time until the water closes round his waist. Then he sinks beneath the surface.
I scramble up. I can’t swim, so if anything happens, I am useless. The camp, which was only a few minutes’ walk, now seems too far away.
“Sunif?” My voice is a whisper because I don’t want to let any predators know I am alone.
I may not feel safe with him, but I definitely feel safer with him nearby.
He resurfaces, water streaming over him. His body is all muscle, the kind that comes from surviving. That is all he has been doing since he was banished. Will that be me in ten years?
Hard and angry at the world?
In his hand, he is holding a plant. He rips off the red leaves and crushes the roots in his hands before smearing it over his skin, and then his hair.
