“Are you going to wash me?” Her low, sultry voice only added to his desire.
“Of course, my mate.”
An expression he couldn’t read crossed her face, and small white teeth clamped down on her plump lower lip before she looked away from him. “You were right. This is really beautiful.”
He allowed himself to be diverted as he followed her gaze. The walls had been allowed to retain their natural crevices, and many of them were planted with small flowering mosses. The glow crystals were scattered throughout the space to create little sparks of light instead of forming a single overhead source of illumination. Water from the hot springs deep inside the mountain trickled gently down one wall and into the pool.
“You haven’t seen everything.”
After crossing to the outer wall, he threw the hidden lever that caused part of the rock face to slide to one side. Outside, a crevice in the rock formed a natural balcony. Snow lay deep and untouched in the small space, and beyond the edge, he could see the vast expanse of the snowy plains under a sky full of stars.
Isabel gasped. “What a wonderful view. Who thought to do something like that?”
“We have always believed that alternating a hot bath with exposure to the cold keeps you healthy.”
“I think I’m healthy enough,” she said firmly. “I have no desire to roll around in the snow.”
“Is this too cold? Should I close the wall again?”
“Not yet. The water is keeping me warm, and I like being able to see the stars. It’s almost like being back on the ship.” She looked at him and licked her lips again, and he knew she was remembering the nights they had spent exploring each other.
Unable to wait any longer, he joined her in the water, lifting her into his arms but letting her keep looking out over the landscape. They sat in silence for a minute, and despite the hardness of his aching kotra, he was content. Despite everything that had happened, the caves still felt like home to him, especially now with his mate in his arms. Remembering her earlier hesitation, he decided the subject needed to be addressed.
“Why did you look away when I called you my mate?”
Instead of looking at him, she picked up one of his hands and began exploring his fingers.
“What does that mean? Mate?”
“It means that you are mine and I am yours.”
“You mean like we’re married? For ever and ever until death do us part?”
The first term she used didn’t translate, but he understood the second part and breathed a sigh of relief.
“Yes, that is exactly correct.”
“Don’t you ask someone if they want to be your mate?” Her voice sounded strange, and his heart thudded against his chest.
“I did ask you if you chose me. You said yes.” He had to force out the next words. “Have you changed your mind?”
“Am I allowed to?” Her body felt stiff against his.
“I would never force you to mate with me,” he said gently even though his chest ached. “I want you to be a willing partner.”
A little of the tenseness disappeared as she turned to look up at him. “What about you? Can you change your mind?”
“Nothing will ever alter the way I feel about you.”
Her eyes widened. “How you feel?”
“Yes. I love you, Isabel. Why else would I ask you to choose me?”
“Don’t you think you should have mentioned that?”
“I thought you understood.”
“I think we need to work on your communication skills.”
But despite her words, she was smiling as she swung around to straddle his lap and face him. He breathed a silent sigh of relief. Although she had not returned his sentiments, she was once again smiling and happy in his arms, and he allowed himself to hope that it was simply a matter of time.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“So what is this paxha hunt that Njkall thinks you should go on?” Isabel asked much later. They were snuggled together in his big bed after a session in the bathing pool that had left him drained and satisfied, and she was gently stroking his chest.
“It is a tradition of my people. It is done to celebrate the changes of the seasons, and also each male child must complete a successful hunt before they are accepted as a full member of the tribe.”
“What about the female children?”
“They are considered too precious to risk. I’m not sure if you noticed, but we have many more males than females. I never expected to find a mate,” he confessed.
“What happens to the males who can’t find a mate?”
“Sometimes they agree to share a female if she is willing. Sometimes they turn to each other.” He gave her a rueful grin. “And sometimes, they dedicate their life to fighting.”
“I hope you think this is better than fighting.”
“Being with you is better than any alternative.”
“You’re very sweet, Baralt.” She reached up and brushed a much-too-hasty kiss across his lips. “But you didn’t finish telling me about the hunt. Do you go out on the plains?”
“No, we go down into the deepest underground caverns.” He nodded at the etching on the wall. “That was the result of my first hunt. I suppose I will need to find a place to display the second.”
“You mean that mural?”
“I do not recognize that word. That is an accurate representation of the paxha that I defeated. The skin is used to create the marking.”
She sat up, her expression horrified. “But it must be ten feet long.”
“It was a good size,” he agreed proudly.
“Is it some kind of fish?” she asked, still staring at the image.
“Yes, that is why we go so deep. They only swim in the underground rivers beneath the caves.”
“What do you hunt them with? I mean, what kind of weapons do you use?”
He grinned, baring his fangs, then let his claws emerge. “Only the ones that the gods provided.”
“Baralt, that’s crazy. What if something happens
