Page 27 of Purring, Presents, and Parties

She laughed. “Put like that, it sounds ridiculous, but you said there was a geothermal vent up here. I thought it would keep this section of the mountain warmer.”

“It does,” Tarrian said and pointed to another mountain peak in the distance, a little lower than theirs. “At this height the snow never melts, but that peak has snow so thick I could stand on another Talin’s shoulders and still not be above it. On this peak, the snow is never as thick, and that’s due to the vents. One is under the monastery and powers the kitchens and other necessities. If we were on that peak, we’d probably be frozen solid by now.”

“I guess warm is relative,” she said with a little shrug, turning her attention back to the rock wall.

Tarrian followed behind her, carrying the bag and an extra omnie in case she got chilled. He hadn’t said anything yet, butshe knew he was keeping an eye on her color and the steadiness of her hands.

She couldn’t believe how lucky she was to have such a dedicated male ready to keep her from accidentally suffering frostbite because she was too distracted to notice.

The bag was about half full, and they’d descended a little when Tarrian sounded a purr and drew her into his arms.

She tried to pull away. “Do you see—”

Her words were cut off as he pressed her face against the exposed section of his neck. Pushing back, she leaned away from him as far as his embrace would allow. She wasn’t interested in cuddling right now!

“Tarrian, what the hell?” she exclaimed.

“I think your core temperature has dropped too much,” he declared, picking her up with a purr. Now she understood what he was doing. The strip of exposed skin on his neck was the only place he could really feel the true temperature. By putting her face against it, he could gauge how chilled she was.

She stopped pushing and let him cradle her against his chest. Now that she was pressed against his warmth, she realized how cold she’d gotten. She couldn’t feel her face or her fingers. Her feet weren’t much better despite the plush slippers and waterproof covering Tarrian had slid over them.

“I guess I’m not really dressed for this place,” she said, feeling sad because it was all over.

“Not for spending all day outside,” Tarrian agreed. “Let’s get you warm, and then we’ll see about coming back out.”

“Great!” Aubrey cheered at the same time she watched the monastery get farther away as she looked over his shoulder. “Uh, Tarrian, I think we’re going the wrong way.”

“We aren’t going back to the monastery,” he said. “I’m taking you to a sheltered spot I think you’ll enjoy.”

“Sounds fascinating,” she agreed, even if it also sounded cold. At least they’d be out of the wind, and if she kept snuggled up against Tarrian, she’d be warmed up in no time.

The first thing she noticed as Tarrian carried her closer to a small, keyhole-shaped cave opening was that there was almost no snow in the area. The next thing that hit her was the faint smell of sulfur. Yup, there was a vent close by!

To her surprise, the smell of sulfur didn’t get much worse as Tarrian squeezed them through the opening. The narrow opening gave way to a nice large cavern that allowed Tarrian to stand straight and carry her without having to maneuver. The problem was that she couldn’t see anything.

“Should we stop here?” she asked. “It’s dark, and I’m worried we might get lost.”

If she was being honest, she was more than a little worried. She liked rocks, but she wasn’t ready to be buried among them just yet!

Tarrian stopped. “I didn’t realize you wouldn’t be able to see.”

“Are you saying you can see?” she asked, relief making her feel a little dizzy. She’d been more scared than she wanted to admit.

“My vision is impacted by the low light, but not enough to cause me confusion,” Tarrian assured her. “I know where I’m going, and when we get there, I can retrieve the light I packed for us.”

“You packed a light,” Aubrey said, excitement starting to bubble up inside her. “You planned this little adventure.”

“I always plan our adventures to the best of my ability,” he assured her. “Are you comforted enough to allow me to continue, or do you require the light right now?”

“I can wait,” she said, snuggling close and enjoying the warmth radiating from him. He started moving again, rumbling out a purr that sounded more intense due to the acoustics in the cave.

She couldn’t see where they were going, but it was clear the temperature around her was steadily climbing. They had to be getting closer to the vent. It felt nice, and she could imagine curling up with Tarrian, surrounded by thermally warmed rocks and taking a nap while she finished defrosting.

After they’d turned a few corners, she heard water. It was faint and only sounded like a slight trickle, but it was definitely water. The humidity in the cave increased sharply, as did the temperature. Compared with the cold outside, the change felt positively tropical.

“I’m going to set you on your feet,” Tarrian warned her. “Please remain still until I’ve found the light.”

“I won’t move,” she agreed. Despite the warmth of the room, she shivered a little once he wasn’t holding her anymore. Tucking her hands in the opposite sleeves of the omni, she grasped her own wrists and waited. To her, it was pitch black and all she could hear was the water and Tarrian rustling around in the bag he’d brought. She heard her smaller bag of rock samples land on the floor and a short burst of an irritated rattle.

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