Page 65 of Romancing Rem'eb

It all starts out decently, with Rukh and Harlow leading the way. Rukh pulls the two children along on a sled behind him, and the rest of us carry packs. Rukh and Harlow have been to the ship many times before, and they insisted upon coming along so we wouldn’t get lost. “Plus, I want to see if the computer is aware of Noj’me’s Oracle pod, and if so, if they’re able to contact one another,” Harlow adds. “If so, we might be able to set up a long-distance line of communication.”

I hope so. Maybe I can check in on Rem’eb when he returns underground. My heart hurts a little just thinking about it.

Rem’eb is quiet as we trek through the snow and into the mountains that encircle the beach cove. He insists upon carrying my pack on his strong, broad back and won’t hear otherwise. Chalath offers to carry the packs of both Colleen and Natalie in exchange for kisses, and both women make disgusted sounds and turn him down.

The brothers—Set’nef and Tal’nef—end up carrying the packs for the women and ask for no kisses. Something tells me they do it just to look better against Chalath’s selfishness. The two women walk with Noj’me, who keeps an endless stream of chatter up, as if it’s her personal responsibility to put us all in a good mood as we travel.

It’s a losing battle. Harlow’s kids are fussy because they’re bored, the brothers are stunned by the scenery around us, Chalath’s a dick, and Rem’eb and I are lost in our own personal misery. We walk behind the others, last in our straggling train across the snows.

“Hey, can we take a break soon?” Colleen calls out to Rukh and Harlow. “My boots are covered in ice.”

“It’s an ice planet,” Natalie points out, gesturing at the tall mountains around us that blot out the sunlight. It’s quite possibly the first time she’s spoken today. I also notice for the first time that she’s wearing her clothing inside-out, with the soft fur on the inside instead of the outside. Weird.

Chalath snorts with amusement, and Colleen scowls at both of them. They all stop walking, though.

Harlow taps Rukh on the shoulder and he nods. She turns to us, bright orange braids peeking out from under a furry round hat. “We’ll take a break and then pick up again in a little bit. How’s that?”

Her mate looks less thrilled at stopping, but Rukh never likes to bother with anyone much outside of Harlow and his kids…or maybe his brother Raahosh. I’m still a little surprised they came with us on the trip, but I think that’s more Harlow than anything. He’d follow his female to the ends of the earth. Or ice planet. Whatever.

Chalath throws down his blankets and gestures at them, indicating that Natalie, Noj’me and Colleen should join him on the furs. I’m kind of amused that all three of them promptly ignore him, sitting on their packs a short distance away. The ancestor brothers sit on a rock, talking quietly amongst themselves and adjusting their boots while Harlow hands snacks to her kids.

Rem’eb sets his pack down and gestures that I should sit on it. “Rest your feet. You need your strength.”

I indicate that he should sit so I can sit in his lap, and a little smile tugs at his mouth. It’s the first one I’ve seen today, and it feels rarer than diamonds. He sits on the blanket, cross-legged, tail thumping, and automatically reaches for me. When I sit in his lap, his arms go around me and he pulls his cloak over the two of us.

I snuggle down against his chest, content.

“Your idea was better than mine,” he admits, lips moving against my hair.

“I have lots of amazing ideas,” I say, even though I know he won’t understand. “Stick with me, baby, and you’ll find out.”

He just nuzzles my head, pulling me close. The wind picks up, snow drifting off of a rocky outcrop in the distance, and my gaze goes to it. Rem’eb’s does, too, and he leans in close to me again. “How big is the above?”

“Very.” I make an expansive gesture with my hands.

“I do not trust it. It is too open.”

“Why?”

“Anything could fall on you from above.” Rem’eb gestures at the sky above us.

I bite my lip to stifle my laughter.

“How high up does this place go?” he continues, feeding my amusement. “If I stand atop that cliff, can I touch the puffy white thing high above?”

The cloud? I chuckle. “No. You need to be a lot higher to touch those.”

“And where does the snow come from? And the wind?” Rem’eb shakes his head again. “Far safer down below, where nothing invisible is blowing air upon you.”

He’s so funny. “It’s just wind.”

“At least below it is warm,” he grumps, and I’m both amused and achingly sad at his words. If he loved it up here, maybe he’d stay longer. Maybe warmer weather could entice him to stay if I cannot.

I just lean in against him, closing my eyes and trying to drown out the world around us. I need to treasure every moment we have left together. I need to remember each minute with clarity so I can think about them in the years to come when I’m alone with our child and he’s back with his people.

Rem’eb strokes my arm with one hand, his fingers moving over my sleeve. “Are you tired?”

I shake my head. “Just relaxing.”

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