Page 60 of Gravel and Grit

She distracted him by asking him to tell her the plan again, counting on his military training to make him want to strategize. He gave her a look like he knew she was trying to distract him, but he did what she wanted.

Unfolding the map she’d bought at the bus station, he pointed out the mountain ridge they’d hike to cross into Canada.

“They will have radar and satellite scanning the border, but we have no way of knowing if they will also have men stationed. We will have to hope they do not have the numbers to patrol the entirety of it.”

The driver spoke over the speaker, interrupting Zaek, and announced they would be arriving in roughly thirty minutes. He suggested they pack up, get ready to go, and use the restroom one last time, if needed.

Mira felt Zaek’s pointed gaze on her before he spoke.

“Your hand still bothers you,” he hinted, not very subtly.

She bit back a smile and nodded in agreement.

“It did twinge just a moment ago… ”

“We should remedy that,” he purred, bending to press a hot, open-mouthed kiss to her neck.

She made a sound that was part snicker, part moan, and part groan. She held out until he brushed his fingers over her nipples, already hard and visible through her shirt, before giving in.

Zaek was almost purring as he ushered her inside the small bathroom.

“I changed my mind,” she gasped as he stripped her faster than their extremely close quarters should have allowed, then dropped to his knees to lick her wetness. “You’re incorrigibleandinsatiable!”

“Only for you, Fluffy Bunny. Always for you,” he growled against her.

3 9

MIRA

Mira woke with a groan and stretched her aching muscles. After five days of flying and hiking through the mountains, she was so sore she wasn’t sure even Zaek’s magicaldassacould fix it.

They’d made it across the border and into Canada without issue and had been making steady progress to their destination. There hadn’t been any sign of the security teams, not since that night at Zaek’s cabin, and she was beyond grateful, but that meant her focus had shifted from running for their lives, to the reality that she would be leaving Earth very, very soon.

Excitement was uppermost, but fear had become a close second. She trusted Zaek completely and knew he would tell her if there were any trials or issues she might face living on his planet. He hadn’t, nothing beyond the obvious, which was mostly just the time she would need to acclimate, so it wasn’t any one thing in particular that had her worried. It was fear of the unknown, nervousness about doing something so final. The chances that she would ever return to Earth were miniscule.

The closer they got to Mount Nirvana, the more she found herself staring at their surroundings, trying to commit as much of her world to memory as possible. She watched the people, on the rare occasions they were around them, how they moved, talked, and interacted. The idea that she would never see another human again was a hard one to wrap her mind around.

Zaek thought they were only a two or three hour flight away from their destination. They would reach it that night.

It’s my last day on Earth.

Climbing out of bed, she looked at Zaek where he was sitting at the small table in the kitchen, bent over a map. She brushed her fingers over the leathery surface of his wing as she passed him on her way to the coffee pot.

They’d rented a cabin the night before to allow them both to get some real sleep and clean up so they didn’t beam aboard the ship looking like they’d been living in the wilds for almost a week.

Pouring a cup, she leaned back against the counter and eyed him over the rim.

“I’d like to go into town one last time before we leave,” she said softly.

Zaek looked up from the map and gazed at her silently for a long minute.

She could see in his eyes that he knew why she wanted to go. They didn’t really need supplies, not when they were leaving so soon. They were low on food, but they still had enough left for a day, if needed, and they’d washed their clothes the night before, so there was no reason to buy more.

Mira wanted to go as a way to say goodbye, to be around humans, to do something as simple as making a run to the convenience store for snacks, before she wouldn’t be able to do any of those things ever again. It was silly, she knew that, but she still wanted to go.

She could see him thinking and weighing the risks before he answered.

They hadn’t come across any hint that they were still being chased. If they had she wouldn’t take the chance.

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