Total pages in book: 118
Estimated words: 106646 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 533(@200wpm)___ 427(@250wpm)___ 355(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106646 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 533(@200wpm)___ 427(@250wpm)___ 355(@300wpm)
A'tam never takes his gaze off of me, either.
It's hugely flattering that the hottest guy here wants me. That he looks at all the faces of the women here, and I'm the one he chooses. It's been smoldering between us since that night of spin the bottle. It's been a stream of flirting and running into each other, of teasing jokes and longing gazes and a few stolen kisses when no one was looking.
And tonight, we’re moving past that.
I head to his hut. Earlier tonight, at dinner, he leaned close and invited me to come take a look at his home after dark, when everyone else is asleep. The meaning of that is loud and clear. We’ve been stealing kisses for days and days now, but the fact that there’s no privacy has always been a sticking point.
There’s privacy now, though. And his meaning is loud and clear.
I'm a little nervous, but mostly, I'm excited. This is a new life, a new me, and who knows what tomorrow's going to bring? So I'm going to enjoy today, and I'm going to enjoy a furtive hook-up with a smoking hot guy with a banging body who absolutely cannot get me pregnant.
There are zero downsides to this.
I move toward the cliffs and the line-up of huts makes me pause. In the dark, they all look the same. Each one is built on a low platform of wood to keep it off the sand, and then it's mortared rock walls with a teepee-like domed roof with a smoke-hole. Several of them have tiny curls of smoke coming up from the apex, because of course. It's late and people are keeping their huts warm. I suddenly panic, though, because in the dark I can't tell which one is A'tam's hut. I don't want to go knocking on the wrong guy's hut or it'll be all over the camp in the morning.
And we're deliberately sneaking around because I don't want anyone to know that we're going to hook up. It's a small, gossipy group, but we're allowed to have some secrets, right? I hope?
Someone pulls a flap back on one of the huts, peering out into the night. I freeze and then let out a sigh of relief when I see it's A’tam. He grins at the sight of me, his teeth bright against his shadow-darkened blue skin. Am I really doing this? Yes, I am, I decide as I take a few steps forward. It's just sex. Sex means nothing. Women are allowed to have meaningless hookups, too. I can do a one-night stand.
So I put a casual, easy smile on my face and join him in his hut.
A'tam closes the flap behind me, and then he's standing at my side. This close together, he's huge. I'm average height for a woman, maybe a little on the shorter side, but A'tam is enormous. He's near seven feet tall and powerfully built, and I feel tiny next to him. Delicate.
"I was not sure if you were coming," he says, his voice overloud.
I immediately put my hands on his chest, motioning for quiet. "Keep your voice down," I whisper, grinning up at him. "Your hut is like a stone's throw away from Vordis's."
"Bah. Let him listen." A'tam waves a hand. "He has other things on his mind than whether or not I have a mate."
A mate. I decide I'm going to let that comment slide for now, and I study A'tam's hut. The man is pretty, but a carpenter he is not. The floor isn't entirely even and there's a finger-sized gap between a few of the logs. The mortared rocks look helter-skelter and even the teepee top of his hut seems as if it's about to fall down. "You're lucky you're pretty," I tease him, gazing at the inside of his home. "I don't know that many ladies would be impressed by this house."
"It impressed you, did it not?" A'tam teases back, brushing my hair off my shoulders. "You are here."
I pat his chest again. He's wearing a furry vest and a loincloth, and neither one covers much skin. It's positively, deliciously distracting. "I'm here because you're handsome, not because your hut is great."
He laughs as if I've said something funny. "You don't like my hut? What is there not to like? It has me inside it."
I roll my eyes, but I can't help but smile at his arrogance. "You kinda rushed, didn't you?" When he bends down and pulls at the laces of the front of my tunic, I suspect that yes, he did rush. A'tam's not the type to patiently wait for something. It's cute. He leans in and kisses me, his lips brushing over mine. "But I guess I'm not here because of your amazing hut," I whisper, distracted by his nearness. God, he's tall. He practically has to fold himself in half to kiss me.