Beks almost rolled her eyes, but her smile kind of ruined it.“I’m serious.Just a quick little wash?”
Lihvan jerked his head in a nod.“Tev, but I will take you to the fire falls.”
“Fire…falls?” she repeated slowly, her brow inching up.
“A pool of water, not too far from here.It will be safe there until the sun goes down.Let me finish with this and we will go.”
A pool of water?She would be getting arealbath?It was such a simple luxury to feel clean, but she felt like Lihvan had just offered her a winning lottery ticket.
“Remind me to show you howfunbaths can be,” she said in response, raising an eyebrow.
Lihvan’s breath hitched and Beks hid her smile when he started working faster.He finished whatever he was working on in record time and shook out two, almost identical small pieces of hide.
“We can leave now,” he said, rising.“Come here.”
Curious, Beks approached him and was surprised when he dropped down to his knees, lifting one of her legs.She reached out a hand to balance on his wide shoulders and asked, “What are those for?”
“For your small feet,” he said, brushing his fingers over the sole of her left foot.She twitched, a little ticklish, and he wrapped the hide around the bottoms of her feet, tying the cordage around her ankle.
Beks went quiet when she realized what he’d made for her.“You…you made me shoes?”
“Shoes?” Lihvan asked.“Tev, I suppose.”
“I…” she trailed off, her throat closing a little.God, why was he so wonderful?Why did he have to make her heart do crazy flips and make her stomach feel like it was filled with rabid butterflies?“Lihvan, thank you.”
He fastened the other shoe, but didn’t look up at her.“The hide is strong.You will not get hurt now walking on the rocks.”He finished and stood, grabbing and securing his knife.“Ready?”
“Yes,” she said quietly, still a little thrown by his unexpected kindness.No man she’d ever dated back on Earth had ever been as thoughtful or protective as Lihvan.And maybe that said something about her bad experiences with past men and why she’d begun to swear them off the past couple years.
She’d been happier single, but looking at Lihvan, she knew that wouldn’t be the case with him.For the first time, she wondered what it would be like to stay with him…on his planet.What would life be like there?Would his people accept more humans living among them?
Stop right there, Beks, she chided.She’d heard of girls moving to different states, or hell, different countries to be with their boyfriends.But certainly not differentplanets.
She was being silly…but for a brief moment, she allowed herself to fantasize about it, even with the warning floating around in her head.It was hardnotto think about, especially with someone like Lihvan.
He led her from the cave slowly, letting her eyes adjust to the intense brightness outside.Immediately, she felt the heat zap her.Intense, humid heat that made Lihvan’s shirt stick to her skin assaulted her.She realized that while a bath would feel amazing, they would still have to walkbackfrom it.
Oh well, she thought.Feeling clean, even if it was only for a little while, was certainly better than no bath at all.
Slowly, she tested out Lihvan’s creation on the sharp little pebbles and wasn’t surprised that she didn’t feel a thing.If he said it was thick hide, she definitely believed him.His vast knowledge about this planet had probably saved their lives by now and she was more than grateful to him.Forhim.
As they began their short journey, Lihvan went quiet.He was listening and scanning the black vine forest around them with a hunter’s intensity and Beks did her best to be as quiet as possible.She didn’t want to run into the creature that had made that warbling, yowling sound yesterday, that was for sure.
What Lihvan said was true.The fire falls weren’t that far away from their cave, maybe a little over half a mile at most.And when she saw them, she couldn’t help but stare in awe.
A huge rock wall faced them, nestled in a small valley, just on the edge of the forest.The jagged pebbles gave way into a soft pinksand that crunched gently beneath her covered feet.
“Oh my God,” she breathed.“It’s beautiful.”
Fire—or at least what looked like fire—was literally tumbling down into a pool of water at the base of the rock face, like a waterfall.When it reached the surface of the water, the fire hissed and steamed, creating a shimmering silver mist that floated over the emerald-colored pool.
“But, where does the fire come from?” she wondered out loud.
“Below,” Lihvan rumbled next to her.“The mountain pulls it from underneath the surface.”
“Is it safe?”
“Tev,” he said.
