Colt stared moodily across the fire at Kim.
Darn female!
Why did she have to look so cute slumped over against a tree fast asleep?
Her slight snoring did nothing to diminish her desirability. He looked away.
In a way he couldn't believe that he'd gone back for her after what she'd done to him. The memory of that caused his temper to burn again, but there was nothing he could do about it.
He didn't hit women. In fact he'd beaten up men for doing just that. You just didn't hit a woman.
Spitefully he'd tried to get back at her at first by keeping her glasses from her. All that had accomplished was to make him feel extremely childish and he'd soon given up on that.
He didn't need her breaking a leg or something. She had such nice legs at that.
Grimly he looked back away from her and up into the glowing sky overhead. What had that look of surrender that she'd given him been all about?
Beyond that strange look that she'd given him she'd also surprised him by keeping her mouth shut. She hadn't complained about anything even though he'd pushed her unmercifully to make up for lost time.
Introspectively he wondered as to what lost time was down here. This had been a one-way destination of that he was sure and as of yet he had no way of even understanding the measurement of time in this sunken world.
Colt looked back to the gently snoring form of Kim. He might as well make the best of what time there was.
Who was he kidding? 'Make the best of', yeah right, Kim was a fantasy come to life for him.
A woman like her would never have given so much as a passing look at him in polite society, but out here things were different. She hadn't liked being dependent on him at first, but something had changed in her.
He had been poised to throw his makeshift spear at one of the big overgrown mutts, when she'd shocked him by calling out his name. Her doing that had touched him deeply and diffused a lot of his anger.
He glanced down at his singed hand. It didn't burn so much now thanks in large part to Kim. She had come up beside him at one point today and smeared some gummy mushed up plant onto it.
She was definitely different somehow since he'd gone back for her.
When he'd stopped to make camp she'd given him that distrustful look that said, 'Now you're going to take advantage of me aren't you heartless barbarian'.