Page 37 of His to Worship
“So you’d rather be stuck in the Ice Age with Manny and Sid over there?” Krissy retorts, throwing a thumb at Kuvier and Enikk who are diligently chopping up meat.
“I’d rather not be recaptured and sold into alien slavery.” My voice is as cold as the ice that surrounds us. Krissy is really starting to work my last nerve with the way she talks about Kuvier.
“Look, we get that you’ve shacked up with Tall, Dark, and Hairy, but the rest of us—”
“You need to watch it,” Xiomara warns Krissy harshly. “Kuvier has done a lot for us. Both of the guys have. It’s thanks to them and Sedona that we’re all even alive.”
Krissy, always quick with a retort, scoffs from where she sits by the fire. “How is it thanks to them? She was too busy with her man to even wake us up when we all crashed.”
My cheeks flush with indignation, but before I can respond, Renata steps in, her tone sharp and commanding. “Krissy, enough.”
“Besides, what Sedona chooses to do with her affection and her body is her choice,” Amari adds with an indignant sniff. Despite my original dislike of her crying, Amari has turned out to be one of the girls I am becoming closest to. It is very much a big sister-little sister relationship, but I don’t mind.
Krissy glares at all of us but wisely says nothing more. I keep my composure as I break the short silence.
“I am fine with trying to find a way back home, but I don’t want to end up in a worse situation. We need to do this cautiously if we’re going to try.”
“This is all based on if I can actually get it working,” Samra replies with a sigh. “It’s alien tech, so that’s a big ‘if,’ but I’ll try my best, and I’ll be safe doing it.” I give a nod and ignore the glare Krissy shoots my way.
I’ve gotten to know all of the girls pretty well, considering we’ve been attached at the hip for days. Of all of them, Krissy is the one I can’t stand. She’s snobby, bratty, and rude. Sabrina once told me, in confidence, that she’s caught Krissy crying several times. I know she had a fiance and a life back home, more of a life than I did, so I try my best to recognize that her rudeness is just her lashing out against her situation.
But, I’m growing tired of being her punching bag.
TWENTY-THREE
- sedona-
We’re eating and talking as we all break off bits of xiixii meat, coupling each bite with mala and swallowing it down with water. The food here, while lacking in variety, is the freshest I’ve ever tasted, and it’s honestly delicious.
Enikk and Kuvier stand away from us, exposed to the snow, their heads together as they talk. My eyes naturally track him, and I can’t help but wonder what they’re discussing so seriously. I contemplate asking Xiomara to see if she can hear, but that feels nosey and invasive, so I let it go.
The conversation around the fire grows animated, but I find myself falling into a listening role as the women with the biggest personalities, Meghan, Krissy, and Xiomara, carry the topics. Amari sits beside me, also quiet, her eyes flickering with uncertainty as she picks at her food.
Leaning closer to her, I speak in a low voice. “How are you feeling about Enikk?” I ask, keeping my tone gentle.
It’s been days and days since his declaration, and she has continued avoiding him at all costs. For his part, despite the pain I can tell it causes him, he’s let her be. Besides ensuring that she has food and water, he hasn’t pushed being around her.
Amari hesitates, her brow furrowing slightly. “I...I don’t know,” she admits quietly. “It’s overwhelming.”
“I get it. It’s a weird feeling, knowing someone feels like they have some claim to you and you don’t even really know them.”
I don’t say I relate because my relationship with Kuvier is so different than theirs. In some ways, Kuvier is the least strange to me in this group. I am less and less concerned about how he thinks he has a claim on me, and more and more concerned about the fact that I am starting to feel the same way about him.
“I just—,” she sighs and starts again, “I just don’t have the best track record with relationships and finding good guys.” The look in her eyes is far more haunted than a twenty year old should possess.
“I get your hesitation,” I tell her. “But if it helps, I can tell that Enikk is a lot like Kuvier. He respects boundaries and cares deeply. It’s your choice completely, but I’d encourage you to give him a chance to prove himself and get to know him better before making a decision.”
Amari gazes at me, gratitude mingling with uncertainty in her eyes. “I wish I could. Really I do.” She shakes her head. “I’m damaged goods, Sedona. Their Great Mother fucked up making me his mate.”
“You’re not damaged and you’re not goods. No one can possess you.” I wrap an arm around her shoulder and squeeze. “Take it day by day. We’re stuck here anyway, for now, so what’s the rush?”
“Thank you,” she murmurs back, leaning into my hug just a bit.
Before I can respond, Kuvier’s deep voice cuts through the chatter, drawing everyone’s attention. He looks expectantly at Xiomara and begins to speak. She jumps to translate his words for the group. It must be important because Kuvier hates having Xiomara translate for him.
“‘Tomorrow morning,’” she relays, “‘we will head for our clan. I plan to go on one last hunt today to catch a large kill and Enikk will go searching for additional kindling. We will all refill our supplies before we leave.’”
“Why? I thought we were staying through the storm?” Meghan asks, looking between Kuvier and Xiomara, expecting her to translate, but he’s learned these words in English and instead begins responding immediately. He speaks in Leiq, since it takes him a while to form full sentences in English, but pride swells in my chest when I see the girls all briefly look impressed that he understood her.