“She’s in a bad mood because Garvin whacked her with a branch thinking she was a flesher,” I explained to Martin when he gave me a sideways glance.

“I am not in a bad mood,” Tammy pushed herself off the wall, slapping Cates’ hand away. “It’s just been a very long night and I am tired. Breeders forbid I mention that the bone below my knee is pounding to match the beat of my heart, because my dear friend’s might crack another ha-ha at my expense.”

“Is my beautiful woman bothered with another man’s business?”

“No, you big baboon. It’s not fair, if you want me to be honest. Why should he get to be comfortable if we have to wear this? And now we can’t even get our good clothes to put back on.”

Cates lifted Tammy like a child as she protested, carrying her deeper in the tunnel, as we all followed. It was the very thing that she needed; a little attention from her man. But I, too, was wondering how we were going to get clothes, at least until we made it back to our floating home. Monroe took up the end of our parade as we made our way to that first room in the tunnels that we had gone in before Martin had taken us to his home. We didn’t see any scavengers or fleshers along the way and, had there been any, they would have quickly moved out of our way because we made no move to be quiet as we walked through the tunnels. I, of course, didn’t pay any attention to anything but the man whose arm I held as we followed close behind Jacob.

“Why do you smile at me every time you look at me?” Martin asked.

“I can’t help it. I’ve never seen you out of sorts before; well, other than when we found you at Angelica’s place, but you weren’t walking and talking like you are now. I’m sure I look like the wrong side of a cow, even more so since holding you,” I laughed, knowing with the smeared make-up and dirt, and with my hair going every which way with hairpins sticking out here and there that I had to look worse than Martin.

“Jacob, do you think she looks anything like the wrong side of a cow?”

Jacob turned his head and was smiling, more than likely through my and Martin’s entire conversation. “No, not at all. Her actions, on the other hand, are very much like the wrong end of a bull.” He and everyone in front of him burst out laughing.

“For your information, smartass, that would be horse’s ass…my actions are like the wrong side of a horse. You know, like saying that I’m a horse’s ass,” I said with a smirk.

“Yes, yes you are indeed that as well.”

“Renee,” Derek called out, then fell onto the skull covered wall.

“Derek?” I ran to him. All joking had come to a halt. “We need to hurry and get to that room.”

“Let me take him,” Martin said, moving me gently with his hand on my shoulder.

“Please, allow me. He is my friend.” Fala nodded once to Martin and as Martin stepped back, he lifted Derek and we continued.

Sydney was also too weak to walk and was being carried by Garvin, while Martin leaned on me. After another turn, we were there. Monroe and Cates moved the stone door and helped everyone in, closing it afterwards. Most took the main room floor but Martin and I lay together on one of the small grooves that had been carved for the dead in one of the little areas off of the main room. Tammy and Cates had taken the other. As always, Fala slept with his back to the door in the event that anyone should try to gain entrance.

“Martin, may I ask you something?”

“Of course,” he replied, pulling me in closer.

“Was the man that you call your Pa, really your Pa?”

“He was the only father that I ever knew. But, no, he was not my birth father. He raised me and kept me as a normal until I was the age of twenty seven or eight. I can hardly remember.”

“One day you’re gonna have to tell me your story,” I spoke as the day began beckoning for my daily death.

“There will be plenty of time for that, my love. You rest now. Tomorrow we go retrieve the rest of our family and leave this place.”

I fell asleep in his arms with a smile in my heart. Our family, those words coming from him had given me more comfort than anything that I had felt since I was back home on my farm.

Chapter Thirty Two

The feel of his arms around me when I woke was absolutely amazing. I knew he was awake without opening my eyes. I could feel him breathing and his flesh was soft. Martin also knew I was awake for the same reasons. Once his hand moved on my waist, I rolled over and put my face up against his chest and took as much of his scent in as I could in one deep breath. Waking up with him like this every night was going to be the golden lining around our very dark cloud.

Martin ran his hand up under my shirt on my back and onto my neck, and then back down again. He would go lower every time he repeated the motion with his hand, running his little finger under the top of my leggings and causing me to become aroused in ways that I had never felt before. I wanted him to take me like he had taken me the night of our first joining, only this time, I was ready to participate on a much larger scale. I leaned back a bit and took the hand that had been on my back. As I looked deep into Martin’s eyes I placed that hand on my breast as my lips met his and he took full advantage of both.

“Excuse me, Renee,” Fala said in a low voice. I pushed Martin back so fast that I rolled out of the narrow stone slab and all but bounced up on my feet. “Yes, yes, what do you need, Fala.” I was pulling down on my filth covered shirt, making sure the buttons were in place and doing it all very fast, as Martin lay there with a smile from ear to ear, watching me.

“It is of great need that I relieve myself. Now that you and the master are awake, may I remove the stone if I do not venture far?”

“Of course, Fala. You never have to wait to go to the bathroom, not ever.” I stayed where I was when I spoke. I was too embarrassed to move. I had completely forgotten about our werewolf who had better ears than we did; and we could hear ten times better than any normal. I was mortified. Showing them that I loved Martin by holding him in public was one thing; having him almost make love to me in the next room with no door was a totally different story.

“Do I see a hint of red on those lovely cheeks?” Martin patted the spot where I had been lying.

“I think we better go in the next room and wait for the others to wake. Jacob and Cates are in there right now waiting for us to come join them and hearing every single thing that’s going on in here. So, no…you get up, I will not come back over there.”

“Oh, go ahead, give the man a wee bit O’ love. Tis a small thing to ask,” Cates laughed and Jacob joined him.

“See what I mean.” Then I whispered. “We can’t do that unless we have privacy.”

“If you have a hard time using the word ‘sex’, then call it by its true name. What we do with one another, Renee, is called making love.”

“Yes, I know that. I was trying to be discreet but you fixed that.”

“We are one,” he stood and stretched, “and all know that you cannot resist my overwhelming charms.” He grabbed me around my waist and picked me up. I couldn’t help but to start laughing.

“Is that right?” I kissed the tip of his nose.

“That is a fact if I have ever known one. I can resist you. Your charms are nothing that I would be concerned about,” he said with one side of his mouth lifted in a devilish grin.

“You are just too funny for your own good, aren’t you?”

“And I can be very serious,” he said, letting me slide down in his arms, my body as close to his as two bodies could get. I stood up on my toes as he kissed me, his hands exploring my body; my sides, back, and lower as his mouth moved from mine to my ear then to my neck.

“No more,” I spoke as low as I dared next to his ear. “Please, Martin.”

He stood straight, licked his lips and smiled. “The others should be waking soon. If we get the others from the village, we can have my ship ready to follow yours and out on the open water before midnight.” ***