Page 13 of Kian

Maybe Imberian babies were better sleepers than Terrans. She knew her preschool nappers would wake up at the slightest sound.

She gazed down at the baby’s soft, pillowy cheeks and was calmed by her steady breathing. Something about watching her daughter sleep slowed her own heart rate.

Finally, the stress of the day, the excitement, the wild flight, the emotion of meeting her daughter, the strange unwanted attraction to Kian, and the adventure with the mammoth family landed on her all at once, and she felt wrung out and heavy as wet wool.

With the baby strapped safely to her chest, it was the easiest thing in the world to lean back, close her eyes, and let the bumping of the sled lull her to sleep.

6

KINSLEY

Kinsley woke up in velvety darkness with stars twinkling overhead.

For a moment, she was disoriented. She was deliciously warm and shivery cold at the same time, and somehow, she felt a deep sense of rightness, in spite of her growling belly.

Then everything came roaring back into her mind.

She snuck a peek down at the sweet babe in her arms. who was still sleeping soundly, her little mouth pursing slightly as if she were dreaming of food.

“Me too, baby,” Kinsley whispered.

She wouldn’t mind a big drink of water and a bed for the night, while she was at it. For now, she had a snuggly baby and a fur cloak to keep her body warm, though her cheeks felt wind-chapped with cold.

Looking around, she was amazed at how much starlight illuminated her surroundings. The stars above appeared to be closer than they were back home.

Kian was unloading the sled, his muscles rippling as he carried a bag into what looked like a long, low structure that appeared to be made from some sort of composite mixed with the local stone and plant material. It made her think of some kind of log cabin, or maybe a hunting lodge from back home.

The delicious scent of a fire issued from within, and she could see a plume of smoke unfurling from the chimney.

Kinsley shivered with happy anticipation.

“She’ll want to eat,” Kian grunted, as he grabbed the next load from the sled. “Go on in if you want. I set a fresh nappy and a cell of milk on your bed.”

“Thank you,” she said sincerely.

After a little sleep, she was feeling even more ashamed that she had thoughtlessly launched herself out of the sled to help the baby mammoth.

She didn’t like the way he had yelled at her about it, but Kian was right. She had put the baby at risk.

“Hey,” she said softly, before she could lose her nerve.

“Yeah?” he asked.

“Helping the little mammoth when I had the baby was a really bad judgment call,” she said. “I’ll try to stop and think first from here on out.”

He nodded once, but she caught the pleased look in his eyes before he turned back to his task.

Letting out a breath, she hopped out of the sled and approached the door of the large cabin.

He hadn’t apologized for yelling at her in front of everyone, but she wasn’t in charge of him. At least she could feel better about how she had handled things.

Up close, it looked like one of the longhouses used by the first people of Old Earth. And when she pushed open the door, she saw that the interior was completely open, just like in the history books.

The front portion was a large, open kitchen space, based around the pellet stove. The rear two-thirds consisted of two rows of beds, going all the way to the back of the house.

“Hope you don’t like your privacy too much, mammoth whisperer,” one of the gray ladies with red hair said and then bellowed a deep, good-natured laugh.

The second gray lady joined her, and then the two Terran hands began laughing along with them.

---