Page 22 of Klaz
I sank to the ground, exhausted. “Great. Wake me when summer arrives.”
Klaz crouched beside me, concern etched on his face. He spread out the thermal blankets, creating a makeshift bed. “You should rest,” he said. “I’ll take first watch.”
I wanted to protest, to insist I wasn’t some damsel in distress. But my eyelids felt like lead, and every muscle ached. “Wake me in a few hours,” I mumbled. “We’ll trade off.”
He nodded, though I suspected he had no intention of waking me. I curled up on the blankets, pulling one tightly around me. As I drifted off, I felt Klaz’s hand brush gently across my forehead.
In that moment, surrounded by ice and uncertainty, I felt strangely safe.
KLAZ
The cave’s chill seeped into my bones as I watched Cinta sleep. Her auburn hair spilled across the makeshift bedroll, made almost brighter by the icy blue of our surroundings. Even in slumber, her lips seemed to curl in mischief, as if she was plotting her next con in her dreams.
I shifted, wincing as pain lanced through my side. The crash had left its mark, but Vinduthi healing would take care of it soon enough. My attention returned to Cinta. In the dim light of our emergency lantern, her skin seemed to glow, soft and inviting.
This was madness. She was human, fragile, and far too young for me. Yet I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the gentle rise and fall of her chest, the curve of her hip beneath the thermal blanket.
Our situation was dire. Stranded on an ice planet with limited supplies and a damaged distress beacon. If rescue didn’t come soon... I clenched my fists, banishing the thought. I’d faced worse odds in the war and come out alive. We would survive this.
Cinta shook in her sleep, a small whimper escaping her lips. Without thinking, I reached out, my hand hovering just above her shoulder. Heat radiated from my palm, drawn to her like a magnet.
I yanked my hand back, clenching it into a fist. This wasn’t about attraction. It was about survival. Nothing more.
Another shiver wracked Cinta’s body, more violent this time. The cave’s temperature was dropping rapidly. If she got too cold...
Cursing under my breath, I made my decision. I scooped Cinta into my lap, careful not to jostle her as I layered the blankets over her. She was light, almost alarmingly so, and I tightened my grip instinctively.
“It’s just for warmth,” I muttered to myself, adjusting her so her head rested against my chest. “Nothing more.”
As if in response, Cinta snuggled closer, her small hand coming to rest on my bicep. Her touch was like fire, and I bit back a groan.
This was torture. Pure, exquisite torture.
I tried to focus on our surroundings, on potential threats, anything but the feel of her soft curves pressed against me. But my senses betrayed me, picking up every detail. The scent of her hair, a mix of ship soap and something uniquely Cinta. The warmth of her breath against my skin. The steady thrum of her pulse, so much quicker than my own.
Hours crawled by, each minute an eternity of sweet agony. I battled my rising desire, my growing need to claim her as mine. It went against everything I believed in, everything I’d fought for. I was her protector, nothing more.
And yet...
As the first hints of dawn filtered through the cave’s entrance, Cinta stirred.
What would I say when she woke? How could I explain this without sounding like a lecherous fool?
But Cinta didn’t wake. Instead, she mumbled something unintelligible and burrowed deeper into my embrace. Her lipsbrushed against my collarbone, sending a hot wave of need and desire straight to my cock.
I savored the moment even as I cursed myself for my weakness. When morning came, I would have to let her go. But for now, just for this moment, I allowed myself to imagine a different life. Where I was worthy of her trust, her affection.
Even if all of her sparkle and charm on the ship had been nothing but a game to her, part of some crazy plan where she needed someone like me on her side, I was willing to play.
The howling winds that had battered our shelter through the night suddenly died down. I blinked, momentarily disoriented by the abrupt silence. Sunlight streamed through the cave entrance, casting long shadows across the icy floor.
Cinta stirred in my arms, her eyes fluttering open. For a heartbeat, we stared at each other, faces mere inches apart. Then reality crashed in. She scrambled out of my lap, cheeks flushed.
“I... um, thanks for keeping me warm,” she mumbled, not meeting my gaze.
I stood, muscles protesting after hours of stillness. “We should check outside.”
We emerged from the cave, squinting against the glare. The storm had scoured the landscape clean, leaving behind a pristine expanse of white. Jagged ice formations glittered like crystal sculptures, refracting sunlight into prismatic rainbows.