Page 33 of Escaping my Dragon

“Keep talking so I can find you.”

“I’m over here, somewhere. Feeling kind of dumb.” I orated aloud, the sound of my voice giving him a direction. Despite the blowing snow impeding my view, He soon appeared, a bundled and welcome figure.

“Geezus, there you are. Why did you wander off? You could have been lost,” he chided.

Should I admit that had already happened?

Never.

“I was just listening to the singing ice.”

“What singing? I don’t hear anything.”

At his claim, I frowned for indeed the melodic whistling—and the voice—had ceased.

“It stopped just before you arrived,” I lied. And then to make sure I was actually awake, I grabbed the lapels of his coat and yanked him close for a kiss.

Cold lips pressed together. Heated breaths mingled. My toes curled in my boots.

“We might want to finish this inside,” he murmured against my mouth.

“A great idea.”

The further from here, the better.

As we walked back to Building 155, Noah somehow knowing the way, I asked, “Everything okay?”

“Yes. No structural damage reported anywhere. Although, we do have a few new cracks in the roads that will need to be packed with snow.”

“Anyone know the reason for the strong quake?”

“Nothing confirmed, although there are signs of increased magma activity.”

“The volcano preparing to blow?”

“Not necessarily. However, as a precaution, the C17 will be arriving ahead of schedule.”

“Guess I’d better get as much footage as I can then in case we have to leave on the fly.”

“Weather permitting, we could check out Blood Falls tomorrow if you like. I know it was on your list.”

“Don’t you have to stick around the station in case shit hits the fan?”

“In the unlikely event there is an emergency, the personnel are trained how to handle an evacuation. Given our jaunt will only take a few hours, plenty of time for us to return and join an exodus, should Erebus blow.”

“In that case, sounds like a plan.”

The snow thinned enough I could see the blue building ahead.

“We’re home,” I sang. I glanced at Noah. “Care to join me for a nightcap?”

“Are you sure? It’s getting late.”

I snorted. “Late? It’s like, what? Seven o’clock? Eight, the latest?”

“Try past ten.”

I halted abruptly. “That can’t be right. No way was I out there listening to the ice for three hours.”