Page 30 of Temel

The pretty color hadn’t retreated from her cheeks, but her nipples beaded beneath the bodice of her dress. He cupped a lush breast with his free hand and she immediately leaned into him, then bit her lip.

“If you mean the way you respond to my touch, then I can only be glad. Did talking to Mary soothe your concerns?”

“A little. She said it can be like that. With the right person.”

The unspoken question hung in the air between them, but despite his own conversation with Borgaz, he had more thinking to do. Rather than respond, he tugged at the tempting little nipple. Her eyes turned heavy with desire as she swayed towards him, but then she pushed his hand away with obvious reluctance, and gave him a shaky smile.

“I think we’d better be on our way, or I’ll end up in your arms again.”

“I would not object,” he assured her, but he set his horse in motion once more.

When they returned to the kitchen, Dora was slicing potatoes, Angel in a towel-lined basket next to her.

“Naffon found it for her,” she explained. “It’s more convenient than holding her all the time.”

“That was nice of him,” Ida said cheerfully, but her daughter only gave a noncommittal nod.

Dora looked disappointed but resigned when Ida explained that she’d decided to give the creek another day to go down.

“I suppose that makes sense. Is there anything else you’d like me to do?”

Ida accepted the change of subject, and he left them to their preparations as he finally returned to his neglected pile of work.

Lunch was less tense than their previous meals, Tommy full of excitement over his morning with the cows. Dora was less rigid and Naffon less provocative, even though neither of them spoke directly to the other.

“Kalpar doesn’t come back for lunch?” Ida asked as he helped her wash the dishes.

“Sometimes, but right now he’s moving the herds to spring pastures. He can be gone for many hours, and I believe that is one of the reasons he suggested hiring you to cook. No pressure,” he added quickly when she shot him a suspicious look. “Just giving you all the facts.”

She turned back to the dishes, but not before he caught the hint of a smile on her face.

He actually managed to get some work done that afternoon, although once again he kept the kitchen door open so he could hear her moving around. Tommy also joined him again, scribbling away happily on a piece of paper.

“What are you drawing?” he asked after a while.

“All of us,” the boy announced proudly, holding up a sheet of paper filled with colored shapes with stick arms and legs.

He examined it thoughtfully.

“Is that how we all look?”

“Yep.” Tommy frowned, pointing to a blue rectangle with horns larger than his head. “That’s you. And that’s Mama.”

He hid a smile at the round little blob standing next to him. The others were easy enough to identify, right down to the small pink oval representing Angel.My family.

His chest ached as he put the picture down and smiled at Tommy.

“You’re an excellent artist.”

“I know,” the boy said complacently. “Mama tells me that all the time.”

He was about to hand the picture back when he noticed another small blob half-hidden in the row of trees at the top of the drawing.

“And who’s that?”

“The fairy in the woods. I saw her earlier.” Tommy slipped down from his chair, losing interest in his drawing. “I’m hungry.”

“Don’t you want to take your picture?”

---