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He leans toward me, his face close to mine, and I hold my breath as he runs the tip of his nose over my cheekbone. Caught off guard, my heart races, and I suddenly imagine him pressing his lips to mine. I hear him inhale, as if he were memorizing my scent.
He moves closer, and I feel his thigh pressed against mine. An ache between my legs causes me to tense. He wraps his free arm around my shoulders and holds me closer to him, and I let out a sharp breath that threatens to turn into a sob.
I don’t know what’s happening to me. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do with myself here, in a cave, in what is likely thousands and thousands of years before I have even been born. I can’t wrap my head around it, let alone try to come to grips with it.
And then there’s Ehd.
Where would I be, and in what shape would I be in if it weren’t for him? As much as he had terrified me in the beginning, I know well enough now that he’s kind and gentle. He might not talk, but he’s far from stupid. He’s sweet and he’s warm, and I think I might actually be falling for him.
My caveman.
Chapter 3
“Here’s the deal, Ehd,” I say as I scoot a little closer to the fire. “Once this clay dries and hardens, we can drink out of the cups and eat off the plates. I know they won’t be as good as the ones fired in a kiln, but at least those classes at the Y weren’t for nothing, right? If the cups work, I won’t have to drink water out of some bovine’s stomach, which is seriously gross even if you don’t realize it.”
Ehd ignores me, far more focused on the fish he’s caught. I’m convinced he’s absolutely obsessed with fish and firewood. With my clay dishes set near the fire, I sigh deeply and help Ehd with dinner.
As we eat, I try once again to get Ehd to offer me some kind of communication other than his expressions.
“See?” I say as I use a stick to draw a fish on the ground. “That’s a fish. Fish.” I tap the drawing, but Ehd just stares at me and chews. “Yeah, I know. It looks more like an oval with fins. How about this?” I draw two stick figures on the ground and point to each of them in turn. “This is me—Beh. This one is you—Ehd. See?”
He tilts his head to one side and then reaches over to stroke my hair.
“Beh!”
“I guess I suck at art, huh?” I try a couple more times, but I’m getting nowhere, so I toss the stick into the fire and finish eating.
Once we’re done with dinner and cleanup, the sun has mostly set. Ehd does his usual caveman thing, which is to grab me by the arm and haul me to bed as soon as it gets a bit dark.
“I’m not four,” I tell him. “It’s probably about seven o’clock. I can actually choose my own bedtime at this point, you know.”
Ehd pays no attention as he pushes me down into the furs and lays down beside me.
“I’d actually like to make some more clay dishes,” I say, waving my hand in the direction of the fire. “If I can make dishes, maybe I’ll be able to make some other things, too. I feel kind of ridiculous with all this knowledge of things that exist in the future and no clue how to make them. What else is made from clay? Jewelry is useless. I need to think of something good. At this point, I don’t even know how to make a damn wheeled cart. I’d need a proper saw to make wheels from logs, and flint isn’t so good for that.”
I’m babbling, and I can see from the way Ehd keeps looking at me that it’s starting to annoy him, but I can’t help myself. The physical presence of another person is far better than the alternative, but not having anyone else to talk to means I can only talk to myself.
“I need to come up with some better way to communicate,” I say.
Continuing his proper caveman ways, Ehd explains to me precisely how he feels about blathering by placing his hand over my mouth. He leans over me as I look into his eyes and touches my cheek with the tip of his nose, then runs his nose across my face and down to my jaw. The touch is so soft I can hardly feel it, but it still makes my heart pound.
He releases my mouth and twists his fingers into my hair as I sigh. I’m not the slightest bit tired, and I don’t want to give in. I reach over to touch the side of his face, then drop my hand to his shoulder. I swear his muscles are bulkier now than they were when I first encountered him.
“You’re pretty hot,” I say softly. I feel heat in my face, which I try to ignore as I finger the outline of his bicep. “Do you know that? You clean up pretty well, and I bet if Teresa and Sheila were here now, they’d probably go insane with jealousy.”
As if he understands my words, Ehd suddenly flexes his arm, making the round muscle bulge. I glance up at him and smile.
“Are you trying to impress me?” I ask. “Is this the caveman equivalent of picking me up in your sports car?”
Again he flexes, and I examine the tight muscles in his arm, shoulder, and then across his chest. A soft growl escapes him, and when I glance at his face, he’s smiling, clearly pleased with himself.
“Such a guy,” I whisper as I run my fingers down his arm all the way to his wrist.
Ehd moves his hand from my waist to my stomach and then farther up. He brushes against my breast, and I hold in a gasp as my nipple hardens instantly. My body tenses, but Ehd doesn’t grope me. Instead, he strokes my neck and leans in to touch my nose with his.
Ehd’s eyes sparkle in the firelight. His look is full of warmth and longing, and though I can feel something hot and hard against my thigh, he doesn’t press against me. He just stares into my eyes until I feel like I just might get lost in his gaze for all eternity.
*****
