She immediately dug her fingers into the hunk of meat.
“Careful, it’s hot!” I exclaimed.
She ignored me as she peeled off strips of juicy meat and shoved them ravenously into her mouth.
“Okay, sure, help yourself,” I said, amused.
She must have been starving, because she ignored me and stuffed her face.
The girl could eat. She wouldn’t have gotten a salad on a date, that was for sure. She would have ordered the bone-in ribeye.
Outside the cave, I heard the frustrated snarls of the wolves.
I peeked over the edge of the cave through the driving snow.
Sure enough, the entire pack was down there, pacing back and forth. They occasionally leapt up into the air, their jaws snapping in savage frustration.
Too bad, fuckers. No food for YOU tonight.
I turned back to my ‘guest’ and watched as she continued to devour the venison.
I leaned over, grabbed my metal water bottle, and offered it to her.
She flinched away from me and growled.
It was kind of cute – a high-pitched, feminine growl. Like what I imagined a female fox would make.
She was definitely a fox, that was for sure.
I put the metal water flask to my lips and drank a little, then offered it to her again. “Water.”
She frowned, probably because she didn’t understand what I’d said. But she reached out hesitantly towards the cannister.
The way her hand slowly inched forward as she kept a wary eye on me, she must have suspected I would double-cross her.
But she finally grabbed the cannister and snatched it way, spilling water on her furs.
“Careful,” I warned.
She sniffed the contents of the container, then dipped one finger inside and licked her finger – which was incredibly sexy, I have to confess.
Her eyes lit up as soon as she realized what it was, and she tipped the container back and slurped the water down. A little spilled down the sides of her cheeks, but she ignored it.
When the water bottle was empty, she examined it wide-eyed – like it was some bizarre, alien technology she couldn’t comprehend.
Judging by her clothes and her spearhead, it was quite possible she had never seen metal before – which would explain her fascination with the new material. She kept running her fingers across the smooth surface, caressing it.
I held my hand out for the water bottle. “Give it here and I’ll melt some more snow.”
She warily eyed me… looked down at the water bottle… then inched forward again, placed the container in my hand, and scuttled back next to the fire.
“I’m Jack,” I said, then put a hand on my chest. “Jack.”
She narrowed her eyes as she stared at me… then said, “Jack.”
“Ja… ack…”
“Jack,” I repeated, nodding. Then I pointed a finger at her and lifted one eyebrow as though to say, And you are…?
She understood what I meant immediately. She put a hand on her chest – which was still bundled up in fur, revealing nothing of the skin beneath – and said, “Lelia.”
Her voice was soft and feminine and beautiful, just like her.
LEL-ee-uh.
“Pretty name,” I murmured.
“Pret… eee… name,” she repeated.
I laughed to hear her mimic me.
She smiled at me for the very first time.
God she had a beautiful smile. Perfectly straight white teeth beneath her sensual lips.
I sat there thinking for a few seconds.
How the hell do you communicate with somebody who doesn’t speak your language?
I didn’t have any paper to draw on, and the rocks weren’t exactly conducive to cave paintings. Plus I couldn’t draw for shit.
I could have tried to pantomime some things out, but I was shit at charades, too.
Finally I just figured I would just go with what had been working so far.
I scooched up closer to her.
She immediately jerked back, alarmed.
“No, no, it’s okay,” I said, soothingly, holding my hands up in the air so she could see them.
She frowned at me warily.
I pointed at the flames next to us. “Fire.”
She glanced over at it, then back at me. “Fi… uhr.”
I nodded. I wanted to nod and say Good, but I was afraid to get into anything too abstract just yet.
So instead I picked up a small stone and said, “Rock.”
She took it from me hesitantly, turned it over in her fingers, then said, “Rock.”
Right on, babe!
I pointed at the venison. “Meat.”
She kind of overdid the first consonant.
“Mmmmeat.”
It was adorable – like watching a child learn to speak.
Although a pretty damn brilliant child.
I pointed at her and said, “Lelia.”
Then I pointed at myself and raised my eyebrows, like, Who am I?
“Jack,” she said, this time saying my name perfectly.
I pointed at the flames and gave her the same questioning look.
“Fire,” she said.
I pointed at the venison.
“Meat.”
I held up another stone.
“Rock.”
I laughed joyously.
She giggled in return – a high-pitched, beautiful sound.
I thought for a second – then took the metal water bottle and scrambled over to the mouth of the cave.
Lelia watched me with consternation.
Night had fallen, and the moons (I was still having trouble believing it was ‘moons,’ plural) and the stars were covered by thick clouds, blocking out all light. The outdoors were almost completely black. I could hear but not see the wolves down beneath me, and I could only see the driving snow outside because of the reflected light of the fire.
I packed the bottle full of the snow piling up at the cave entrance, then crawled back over to her.
I pulled out a bit of the white powder with my fingers. “Snow.”
“…snow…”
Then I put the snow in my palm, where it quickly melted.
“Water,” I said as I let the liquid drip from my hand.
Her eyes lit up, and she reached out for the container. I gave it to her.
She dug her fingers in and scooped out a small snowball.
“Snow,” she said.
I nodded.
Against her hot skin, the snowball melted within seconds.
“Water,” she said, cupping the liquid in her hand.
“Yes,” I said enthusiastically.
She immediately frowned. “…yes?”
Shit.
I thought for a second, then put on a big smile and nodded. “Yes.”
She pulled the corners of her mouth back into an obviously fake smile and bobbed her
