Stud (37 page)

The remainder of the company entered and settled in, all obviously weary and anxious to rest. Tarq wasn’t sure they would get it, though. The little hollow in the mountainside was camouflaged with coarse shrubs, but that didn’t necessarily mean they would be safe from attack—particularly if vrelnots hunted by scent like most nocturnal predators. Masking the scent of so many different species would be difficult, and he wasn’t betting on Walkuta’s ritual to keep the beasts at bay.

Setting down his gear, he passed through the boughs of pungent shrubbery out onto the open slope to get a feel for their location. He had made a slight detour from the path he’d envisioned, but this campsite was worth it. That route had allowed them to pass between two peaks with comparative ease, yet more mountains loomed ahead of them with no hint of the valley beyond. He reminded himself that they were still heading south, and probably wouldn’t see anything but mountains until they turned north and then east again, which might take several days.

Had it not been for the threat from the vrelnots, Tarq would have considered their journey to be relatively pleasant thus far. He couldn’t vouch for the others, but he was feeling better than he had for some time; the exercise and the crisp mountain air obviously agreed with him more than living in a cave.

Cave.
He turned around and studied the nook carved out of the mountainside. He suspected that vrelnots wouldn’t go into the other cave simply because they wouldn’t fit through the entrance. This place was much more open and if a vrelnot landed in front of it, they would be pinned against the back wall of the mountain with no way to escape. Disguising their scent would be helpful, but the question was, how to do it?

When he passed back through the shrubs, the answer came to him instantly. Gathering handfuls of the aromatic leaves, he carried them inside. “Does anyone know what these smelly plants are?”

“They’re called cripwood,” Crilla replied as she sat down heavily on a slab of fallen stone. “When brewed, the leaves make a restorative tea, if you can stand the taste of it. I prefer to use it as a foot soak.” Wincing, she twisted sideways, stretching her hunched back until it popped. “I could probably use some on my back, too.”

Natasha was frowning. “Well, if you’re going to make tea, I think Traldeck should heat the water. A fire might be all it takes to tell the vrelnots to come and get us.”

Tarq nodded. “That and our scent. This stuff might be enough to throw them off, though. It’s pretty strong.”

Lucy came closer and took a whiff. “Whew! Really opens your sinuses, doesn’t it? You think we should sprinkle the tea on our clothes?”

Bratol chuckled, indicating himself and Terufen. “Only if you wear clothing. Perhaps we should bathe in it.”

“Forgot about you two,” Lucy said with a grin. “Though as potent as it is, drinking it might be enough to make you smell weird.”

“I think I’ll pass,” said Terufen, his mouth forming a moue of distaste. “So, Crilla, is it good for the skin?”

Crilla began to reply, but Faletok cut her off. “She had one of those plants growing in our yard and used the tea all the time.” He gestured toward his wife. “Does it
look
like it’s good for the skin?”

Since Crilla’s skin was rather wrinkled and leathery, Tarq had to assume that it wasn’t.

“The tea had nothing to do with it,” Crilla said irritably. “If I look old, it’s because I
am
old—though it could be the result of having to live with you for so many years.”

Tarq glanced at Lucy, who was biting her lip to keep from laughing. He’d never seen her look more adorable, though he made himself a promise that he would never make similar comments about her, not even to make her laugh. In his eyes, she would always be beautiful, and he wanted to be there with her when she was as old as Crilla, loving her every bit as much as he did right now.

“I’ll brew some up,” Traldeck said, taking the leaves from Tarq. “If it keeps the vrelnots away, so much the better, but we’ve all got sore feet.”

Vertigan snorted. “It might make a good liniment, but I’ve never heard of anything that would repel vrelnots.”

“I doubt that it’s ever been tested,” Bratol said pleasantly. “And though I wouldn’t want to take part in a formal experiment to prove it, it’s better than nothing.”

Natasha shuddered. “If I were a vrelnot,
I
certainly wouldn’t want to eat anything that smelled like that. It’s disgusting!”

Lucy glanced at Tarq. “Do you think it would help—?”

Tarq had a pretty good idea what she was about to ask and wanted nothing to do with it. If his dick ached all night long from inhaling her scent, well, it would just have to hurt. He didn’t even wait for her to finish the question. “No, it won’t,” he replied. “But then, I’ve probably got a better nose than the average vrelnot.”

Kotcamp shook his head vigorously. “Oh, no, Lucy! We can’t have
you
smelling any different. I’d never be able to sleep.”

Lucy blinked, gaping at the Sympaticon with total bewilderment. “What in the world are you talking about?”

“I
adore
listening to you!” Kotcamp said. “I’ve never slept so well in my life!”

It was Tarq’s turn to bite his lip to keep from laughing. Lucy still didn’t get it.

“Nothing wrong with
my
hearing, either,” Terufen commented. “Wish I could make women carry on like that.”

Lucy blushed as their meaning finally registered. “I don’t make
that
much noise.”

Terufen nodded. “I’m sure you’d make a lot more if you weren’t trying to be discreet—but you don’t have to, you know.” Sighing, he waggled his tongue and sucker-tipped fingers at her. “We love it.”

“Speak for yourself,” Faletok muttered. “It’s been giving Crilla
ideas
.”

Tarq was beginning to feel a little uneasy. If someone didn’t change the subject soon, Lucy might never let him near her again out of sheer embarrassment. A glance at Vertigan revealed that listening to Lucy had given him ideas as well. No, claiming Lucy as his mate hadn’t completely eliminated that threat. But was it really a threat? Lucy hadn’t said anything about Vertigan attempting to get closer to her. Unfortunately, Tarq wasn’t sure if she would tell him or not.

“I’m starving,” Bratol said, rubbing his belly. “What do you say we all sit down and have some dinner?”

Tarq smiled gratefully at the little Zerkan. “Great idea. Let’s have some of that delicious smoked dranik.”

Natasha laughed. “Mmm, yeah. Great stuff. Right up there with roasted rock rat.”

“Too bad we don’t have any of Lucy’s chocolate pie,” Tarq said, but immediately wished he hadn’t mentioned it. No matter what you did to it, dranik meat couldn’t begin to compare.

“Oh, my frickin’ God!” Natasha exclaimed. “I haven’t had Lucy’s pie in ages! Isn’t that just the best stuff you’ve ever tasted in your life?”

Tarq could think of at least one flavor he preferred, but mentioning it would send the discussion right back to where it started. “I asked her to marry me right after taking the first bite.”

Lucy giggled. “He was kidding, of course.”

“Maybe, maybe not.” Reaching around her waist, Tarq pulled Lucy up against his hip and dropped a kiss on the top of her head. “Fell for her at first sight—well, no… actually it was more like first whiff.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Tarq realized he’d directed the conversation back to her scent again. Not waiting for further comments, he steered Lucy over to the far side of the shelter where he could be relatively private with her. Thankfully, no one followed.

“You were laying it on a little thick there, weren’t you?” Lucy said, keeping her voice low. She cleared a spot on the ground with the side of her foot and sat down.

“Maybe,” he conceded. “But what did you expect me to say?” He wasn’t surprised at her reaction, and even though he’d been telling the absolute truth, he still hadn’t told her all of it. He’d fallen in love with
Lucy
, not her face or her aroma—no matter how marvelous they both might be.

She didn’t answer, nor did she look up at him.

“I thought you’d be more upset over what Terufen and Kotcamp said.”

When she still made no reply, Tarq’s spirits began to plummet. “I’m sorry if this embarrasses you, Lucy. I’ll leave you alone if you like.” It hurt like hell to say it. He held his breath, waiting…

She shrugged and picked at the laces of her moccasins, still not meeting his eyes. “I never thought about us providing entertainment for the others—and it might not be entertaining to everyone. Some of them may find it annoying.”

“I don’t see that they have anything to complain about. It isn’t as though it goes on all night, and they all believe we’re newlyweds. I’m sure they don’t think any less of you for what we do together.” He knelt down beside her. He lifted her head with a hand cupped beneath her chin and gazed into her troubled eyes.

“But we’re not
really
newlyweds. I-I guess I’m having trouble getting past that. I mean, sometimes I almost forget it’s a lie, but then I remember…” She paused, blinking back tears. “I’m just not sure how to feel about it.”

Tarq hesitated. Was this the moment to declare himself or not? “Would it help if I told you I wasn’t sure how to feel either?”

“Maybe. But I’m pretty sure Traldeck knows—maybe not exactly what’s going on, but I think he’s sensed that there’s something odd about our… relationship.”

“Well, there
is
something odd about it, isn’t there? You had to run away from home to be with me—or so everyone believes. That’s a little different.”

“If that were the only thing he believed, I wouldn’t be worried, but—”

“Lucy, there’s no need to worry, no matter what he or anyone else thinks. As far as any of these people know, we
are
mates.”

“So you think we should just keep on the way we have been?”

“At least for now. There’s no point in creating any unnecessary drama. We’ve got enough of that already.”

“True.” She took a deep breath and smiled. “I guess I’m just feeling tired and a little grumpy. I’ll try not to worry about it anymore.”

“That’s my girl,” he said, planting a quick kiss on her lips. “You just need to eat dinner and get some rest. You’ll feel better in the morning.”

She nodded and began rummaging through her bag. “I’m fresh out of apples and chocolate pie, but could I interest you in some dranik?”

“Sure.” Tarq took the strip of dried meat she offered him, unsure as to whether he’d dodged a bullet or missed a golden opportunity. Time would tell.

Kotcamp volunteered to take the first watch, and Lucy got her first chance to see him transform. Sitting a little apart from the others, his natural shape began to blur until he appeared to be nothing more than a great lump of stone with eyes. The only time he gave himself away was when he blinked or spoke. Traldeck had brewed up several batches of cripwood tea and sprinkled it over each of the company. It’s effectiveness as a vrelnot repellent was questionable, but it did wonders for everyone’s aching feet. Crilla lamented the fact that she could only use it as a liniment rather than a soak, which led Lucy to conclude that Tarq was much better at foot massages than Faletok.

Lucy was already curled up on her blanket when Tarq spooned up behind her, his lips brushing her neck and his erection pressed up against her bottom. Enveloped in the warmth of his arms, the soothing vibrations of his purring permeated throughout her body. The last thing she heard was Terufen whispering, “Aw, c’mon, Tarq. Make her moan!” as she drifted off to sleep.

***

If only she could have awakened as pleasantly. Walkuta was right. The rainy season had arrived with a vengeance.

Horrific lightning struck from every direction, splitting the air with deafening crashes of thunder. Torrential rain pounded the dry ground, sending rocks and mud careening down the mountainside. Carrying sufficient water would no longer be a problem. To get a drink, Lucy would simply have to tip her head back and open her mouth—provided she didn’t drown. The rain was so loud, Tarq could have been making mad, passionate love to her and even
he
wouldn’t have heard her scream.

If he’d been there, that is. Sitting up, she glanced around. Despite the fact that it was still the middle of the night, the frequent flashes of lightning illuminated the little cave quite well. Tarq was nowhere in sight. Then she spotted Kotcamp stretched out snoring on a patch of ground at the rear of the cave and realized that Tarq must’ve taken the next watch. Getting to her feet, she picked her way across the stony floor and found him sitting near the edge of the overhang, bow in hand. He glanced up and motioned for her to join him.

“Glad we didn’t decide to camp under a tree,” Lucy said as she sat down.

He put his arm around her shoulders, giving her a quick hug. “Me too. Any idea how long these storms last?”