Page 31 of Alien's Heart
His nose wrinkled. “No.”
“Fine. Get soaked. I’m not going to argue with you,” Ruth said, putting her poncho over her head. Once it was in place, she started walking.
“Are we arguing? Is this our first argument?” Nox trotted alongside her, sounding thoroughly delighted.
Anger simmered in her. One minute, he’s sulking because she didn’t pay enough attention to him—whatever—and now he ruined her good mood, he’s back to being cheery because having an argument wassoentertaining. Seriously. Screw this guy.
“We’re not arguing.” Yet. She’d give him a piece of her mind once they got to the Sarl place. The house had sat empty for only a few months, so it should be in good condition.
“We can disagree. I will allow it,” he said.
He wouldallowit. How magnanimous of him. Irritation pricked at her. He had been a miserable grumpy just minutes ago but now he was all better and acting all happy-go-lucky. She wasn’t a fan of Nox’s mood swings, if Nox was even his name—
They were going to have that argument now.
Ruth turned around to face Nox when lightning flashed in the distance. Right. They didn’t have time for this.
“Hurry up,” she snapped, breaking into a light jog. Judging from the wall of black clouds that rolled across the prairie, they had about fifteen minutes before it started to rain. The wind picked up. At first, the cool breeze was pleasant, drying the sweat on the back of her neck.
Then the pressure dropped. Ruth felt it in her guts. The light quickly vanished, leaving the world in a strange twilight. The wind turned bitterly cold, tossing rain against her skin like shards of ice. It wasn’t ice. Hail, maybe, but the pelting rain didn’t sting like hail. Still, it wasn’t a good time.
Raindrops splattered on her glasses. The gravel grew slick. Her feet skidded, and she pinwheeled her arms trying to keep her balance.
Nox’s firm arm wrapped around her waist, pulling against him to steady her. “Careful,” he said, his mouth near her ear.
Ruth pushed away from Nox, walking as quickly as she dared, lest she fall again.
By the time they turned off the gravel road onto a dirt track, the rain came down in sheets. The poncho—good in theory, rubbish in practice—did nothing. Despite having the hood up, the rain got in around the collar.
“Which direction?” Nox shouted to be heard.
Ruth pointed. “At the end of this driveway. We can’t see the house from here.” A stand of trees blocked the view, but at the moment she couldn’t see beyond the end of her nose, partially from the heavy rain and the drops on her glasses distorting the world into blobs of color.
Her teeth chattered. The sudden drop in temperature felt colder than it actually was. She had a hard time believing that as her toes were numb. Wet shoes were the worst. Each step squelched, creating a miserable experience.
A sharp gust of wind sprayed icy pellets against her. She tucked her head down but that did little to help.
“You are freezing,” Nox said.
“Not freezing. Just wet,” she said in a loud voice, then shook her head. It didn’t matter. There was no point in having a conversation in this downpour.
With no warning, he picked her up. For a moment, Ruth was suspended in midair, unsure what was happening. He cradled her against his chest and took off at a run. Mud splattered into the air.
Ruth kept her eyes shut, hoping that he didn’t drop her. She wasn’t exactly lightweight. The opposite. Yet Nox ran with her in his arms like she weighed nothing at all.
The pounding rain changed. At first, Ruth noticed the noise. Well, the lack of noise. Rain no longer bounced off her plastic poncho and thundered in her ears.
They were on the covered porch of the Sarl house. The world had grown as dark as night. Sheets of rain acted as a curtain around the porch, creating a private space.
Nox gently set her down on her feet. “You were too slow.”
Ruth jerked away from him. “What is wrong with you?”
ChapterEleven
Ruth
Nox stalked toward her.Lightning flashed behind him, briefly illuminating the day behind him and casting him in shadow.
