Chapter 2 #3
A strange vibration disrupted the quiet splashing of the water.
It started deep in Yarkur's massive chest, a low, rhythmic thrumming that traveled up his thick throat and vibrated straight through his scales into my palms. It sounded like a heavy, rumbling purr mixed with a stuttering, gravelly hiss.
His broad shoulders dropped a fraction of an inch, losing their battle - ready tension.
His thick tail, submerged beneath the surface, swept in a slow, languid arc, pushing a heavy wave of water against my hip.
The strange vibration grew louder, a raw, primal noise of deep satisfaction that made the water around his chest ripple in tiny, rapid concentric circles.
He leaned back just a millimeter, pressing his hot, heavy mass into the soothing, rhythmic pressure of my hands.
Then, he stopped the sound abruptly. The muscles under my hands coiled tight.
He rotated his heavy frame in the water, displacing a massive wave that surged against my chest, threatening to knock me off balance.
Yarkur looked down at me. Wet scales gleamed in the dappled sunlight filtering through the green canopy above us.
Droplets of clear water clung to his strong jawline, tracing the sharp, predatory angles of his face before trailing down his thick neck.
His golden eyes locked onto mine, the vertical slits blown wide in the shadows of the leaves.
"How are you?" he asked. The question rumbled in the small space between us, shedding the usual abrasive edge of his guttural voice.
I let out a long, shaky sigh, dropping my hands back into the cool water.
The lingering adrenaline that kept me standing began to recede, leaving behind a hollow, aching void in my chest. "I am fine," I murmured, staring at the wet, corded muscles of his abdomen.
"But you could have warned me about that specific monster.
If I knew the rock walls could grow shark teeth, I would have stayed in the shade. "
His jaw tightened. The dark, forked tongue flicked out, tasting the damp, heated air between us. "I told you to stay. I warned you the path belonged to the wild. You refused to listen."
The urge to argue flared briefly, a weak spark in a tired mind.
I opened my mouth to defend myself, to claim he was being vague on purpose, but the words died before they reached my lips.
My shoulders slumped forward. A bone - deep exhaustion washed over me, heavy and suffocating.
The reality of the near - death experience finally crushed the last of my Earth - born pride.
I did not want to fight him. I did not want to debate canyon survival rules.
"Fine," I whispered, the defiance draining out of my voice.
I closed my eyes for a second, rubbing the bridge of my nose. "You are clean. Let's go home."
I turned around, intending to wade back to the mossy bank.
My first step felt like dragging my leg through thick, wet mud.
The drenched linen of my tunic weighed me down, and the gentle resistance of the oasis pool suddenly felt like an unyielding stone wall.
My foot slipped on a smooth rock on the silty bottom, and my knee buckled under my own weight.
Before I could slip beneath the surface, a massive hand wrapped securely around my waist. The heat of his broad palm burned right through my soaked clothes, searing my skin.
Yarkur did not give me time to recover my footing.
He stepped closer, pushing through the water with effortless grace, sliding his other arm under my knees.
He lifted me out of the pool in one smooth, powerful motion.
The sudden shift in gravity sent a dizzying rush to my head.
I gasped, my hands flying up by instinct to grip the thick, scaled ridges of his shoulders.
He held me high against his chest, easily supporting my weight while he stood thigh - deep in the water.
I looked into his golden eyes, searching for a trace of mockery or a lecture about human frailty, but found only a dark, possessive focus.
The remaining tension leached out of my muscles.
I was far too tired to put up a false front or demand he put me down.
I surrendered to the exhaustion and the overwhelming physical dominance of his size.
I let my head drop forward, resting my cheek against the hard, warm plane of his chest. His heart hammered a slow, powerful rhythm against my ear, a steady drumbeat that chased away the lingering terror of the purple sludge.
Yarkur shifted his hold, pulling me flush against his solid body.
The wet friction of my soft skin against his rough armor sent a sudden, surprising jolt of heat low in my belly, a heavy throb of awareness that sliced right through the fatigue.
He began to walk. His heavy legs pushed through the water with unstoppable force, carrying us out of the pool and onto the dry bank.
I closed my eyes, inhaling the deep, musky scent of hot stone and raw power, and let him carry me back to the safety of the dark caves.