She waves off my discomfort with a wet swish of her hand. “It’s fine. I’ll be back at the end of term anyway, so I can do some extra days then, but I’m sure you want me out of your hair, and a little space might be good for us right now.”
Here I was eyeing the space that separates us in the pool, wondering if there’s any excuse that would let me pull her into my lap. The edge of the hot pool was bricked years ago to make it more stable, but maybe there could be spiders hiding in gaps between the bricks, or snakes…
Yeah she’ll see right through that.
Mites? She’d just climb right out of the water, though.
With a sigh I focus my attention on what she said. “You don’t have to do extra days. I know you want to graduate as soon as possible. To be honest, I’ve seen enough to sign off on the whole internship now if you want me to.”
“Thanks.”
There’s a pause where neither of us speaks.
I clear my throat. “Have you thought much about what you’ll do after college?”
She screws up her nose. “No. I should be job searching, but every time I see an entry-level position come up it’s on the other side of the country. I don’t want to be on the other side of the country.”
That, at least, is something we can agree on.
Vera shifts closer, sliding toward me on the ledge until she can reach up to my face. I bend my head to make it easier, hoping maybe she’s softened to my idea.
“You’ve got…” She brushes a lock of my hair at my forehead, twisting it with dampened fingers to lay straight. “There.”
She doesn’t take her fingers out of my hair immediately, though. They linger, tracing the curve of my ear and sending a shudder of need through me.
Her pupils flare wide and she sucks in a breath, snatching back her hand and turning away quickly. “Sorry. Not making things weird.”
My voice sounds more like a croak at first. “Vera if the heat isn’t over—”
She shakes her head. “I’m alright. We’d better get back. I guess we can’t spend all day soaking in the hot springs which are supposed to be closed.”
“It probably gives the wrong impression, but I’m not sure there’s much else to do until they get up here with the snowplow.”
“I guess not.” She meets my eye again, and there’s a flash of something bright and hopeful in her expression for a moment.
“I mean…” I trail off, aware that she has already turned me down several times today. I need to stop dreaming.
Then her gaze falls away, and she climbs out of the hot spring. I turn away while she dries and dresses hastily in the cold air.Her cheeks are pink from the heat of the water, though, and she’s warm when she climbs onto my back again.
I dry off before shifting so she doesn’t have to sit on wet fur. I have to admit the snow on my feet and legs is a cool relief against the heat from the pool.
I’m disappointed to find the road out is clear by the time we make it back to the cave. The air between me and Vera on the drive back to town feels anything but.
THIRTEEN
Vera
I roll to my other side on the narrow bed in my college dorm, ignoring the crick in my neck to scroll through yet another mindless video. It’s Saturday and I’ve been back at college a week and bed rotting all day instead of getting out and enjoying my weekend before my final term’s assessments start rolling in.
I don’t know what’s wrong with me.
Tucking my legs up tighter toward my chest I ignore the low-grade ache in my belly that’s been getting worse all week. I’m not due for my period and know I haven’t eaten anything bad. I’ve been living off instant ramen and diet cola, too lazy to leave my dorm and obtain real food.
OK, maybe it is the food. I’m in the process of swinging my legs off the bed to find my shoes and go get something to eat that resembles a vegetable when my phone buzzes, and I twist to retrieve it from next to my pillow.
Bas: Hey, how was your first week back?
I promised myself I wouldn’t text him, or at least I wouldn’t text him first, but I can’t help smiling. I open the message instantly to reply:long. Wish I was still on internship.
