Page 28 of A Kiss of Frost

“I started the oatmeal,” Merry volunteered.

“That was nice of you, sweetheart,” she said, hoping that it wouldn’t be too lumpy.

Merry was a little haphazard in her approach to cooking. As she gave the pot a vigorous stir, Johnny stalked over to the door.

“Ain’t hungry.”

He slammed the door behind him, and Lorna gave her a wide-eyed look.

“Whath the matter with Johnny?”

“He is experiencing the growing pains of the young warrior,” Jack said, as he ducked his horns to pass through the doorway and enter the room.

He was once again fully dressed, but the form fitting uniform clung to every muscular inch, and her heart skipped a beat. She had only seen him upright once before, when he tried to prove his strength, but he’d weakened so quickly and she had been so concerned about getting him back to bed that she had missed the full impact. Now he looked every inch a Tandroki warrior, huge and imposing and alien in their small shelter.

But then Keffi chirped a greeting and tried to climb his leg. He laughed and picked up the pika and put him on his shoulder and suddenly he was his familiar self again.

Lorna beamed up at him with her gap toothed smile.

“Are you all better, Jack Froth?”

“I am well,” he said, with a brief, challenging look in her direction.

“Wow,” Merry whispered in her ear as Lorna started peppering Jack with more questions. “You did well, sis.”

Dammit, the annoying heat was back in her cheeks.

“I didn’tdoanything,” she said with as much dignity as she could manage.

Merry shook her head, an unusually adult look on her pretty face.

“Then you should. Guyten would never get past him.”

She had no doubt that was true, but it wasn’t as if Jack would always be there. She had to take Merry, and hopefully the children, to safety, and Jack had his mysterious mission.

I really need to find out what he’s doing, she thought but then he looked up at her from over Lorna’s head and the truth struck her with a blinding blow.

She didn’t care about his mission. She didn’t even care about safety. She wanted them to be together. If it had only been her, she wouldn’t have hesitated, but she had Merry and now the other children to think about.

“I will go after Johnny,” he said, rising to his feet.

“Thank you. Breakfast will be ready when you get back.”

“Do not wait for us. Our discussion may take some time.” He smiled at her worried face. “I promise I will return him safely.”

An hour later, he did just that. She’d spent the vast majority of that hour debating the wisdom of going after them, but each time she’d given the door a longing look, she reminded herself to trust him. Neither of them seemed the worse for wear when they returned. Johnny’s hair was ruffled, but his hostility had disappeared. Jack looked as serene as ever but as he reached for his now completely lumpy oatmeal, she saw a red gash on his arm that disappeared beneath his garment.

“You’re hurt. What happened?”

“It is merely a scratch. Do not worry. Sometimes this is how warriors communicate.”

She didn’t like how easily he dismissed it, but when he went to wash his bowl, the gash had already begun to heal.

All of them remained in the main room for the rest of the morning. She sat Johnny and Merry down for a lesson, and when Lorna showed an interest, she gladly added her. The twins also decided to play school and doodled happily on some extra scraps of paper.

After lunch, Jack took the children into his room for another story. Although she knew he would never admit it, he did look tired and she hoped he hadn’t over exerted himself. After a few finishing touches to her presents, she wrapped them in more fabric scraps and hid them away. Assuming she hadn’t lost track of time, tomorrow night would be the Longest Night and they would celebrate the following morning. Normally there would be a special dinner in the evening and another feast the following day, but she had very little to offer except more of what they were already eating. It was plentiful and filling, and even tasty, but there was nothing special about it.

She was looking regretfully at her food supplies when the story ended and everyone spilled back into the main room. Jack came to join her, putting his hand casually around her waist. She was sure she heard a quickly suppressed giggle from Merry and knew she should push him away, but dammit, she didn’t want to. She wasn’t sure how much time they would have together, but she wanted to take advantage of every moment.

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