Page 38 of Winter's Scorching Kisses
Mathar bent down next to her. “No one showed you how to start a fire?” He seemed flabbergasted by this revelation.
“I always had someone else start the fires in my manor.” Adorra couldn’t help but notice how close he was and how his freshly washed masculine scent appealed to her. He smelled even more like sandalwood. “You bathed?”
“I did.” He dug around in a pouch at his waist and pulled out some flint.
“In a stream?” Up here in the cold mountains. Bathing outdoors when it was this cold seemed like a preposterous idea.
Mathar nodded, and she watched small droplets of water flick off his short silver hair. She was amazed it hadn’t frozen in the cold air, or maybe the air wasn’t as cold as she made it out to be?
“Aren’t you a bit cold?”
“You forget I’m an ice giant. I was adapted for the environment all the way up here, and that includes being able to take a bath in a stream in this type of cold.”
“True. So, you never get cold?”
Mathar shook his head. “Ice giants have been known to die from exposure. It would just take us a lot longer and a very low temperature to harm us.” He chuckled. “Right now I could be butt naked and have no issues for days.”
“Please don’t.” Adorra held up a hand as she grimaced. That was all that she needed. Him running around butt naked in all his glory.
“Afraid you might like what you see?” He teased.
Adorra grimaced even more. “More afraid of you getting some ideas and hurting my delicate female senses.”
He snorted.
“What was that for?”
Mathar motioned for her to take the flint from his hand, and she did after she gave him a few more glares. The moment her fingertips brushed up against the palm of his hand, she noticed the little sparks that flew through her. Yanking her hand away, she prayed to the heavens that she was the only one who’d noticed.
“You may not know how to survive in the wild, but somehow I doubt you have many delicate female senses to hurt.” She opened her mouth to contradict him, but he held up a hand to stop her from speaking. “Even though I’ve only known you for a short time you seem like a woman who knows her place in the world. Confident. Able to bounce back despite any problems life throws your way.”
Adorra wasn’t sure what to say because to her that sounded like a compliment.
“So, how do I do this?” She was just going to pretend like it wasn’t an intentional compliment and move on.
Mathar reached around him and grabbed some small dry twigs that they could use as kindling. “Once we get these lit, we will introduce larger pieces of wood.”
She nodded.
“Now strike the flint.” He instructed her.
Adorra did as he instructed, but when she struck the flint, only a couple of sparks were produced. She frowned at it. “Am I doing it wrong?”
“Here,” he leaned over, took her small hands in his and guided the stroke, “like this.” He guided her hands with his, striking the flint hard and fast. Sparks shot forward, and the kindling caught fire.
Slowly, the kindling burned in front of them, and a smile grew across her face. Now she knew how to start fires. It was a step in the right direction for her survival up here in the freezing mountains.
“Now I’ll be able to keep myself warm while I’m with your people.” A smile turned up the corners of her mouth.
Mathar chuckled as he pulled back his warm hands, leaving hers to the cold air. She regretted the loss. His touch had been soft and comforting despite the fact that he was an ice giant and he should repulse her.
Rising back up to his full intimidating height, Mathar kicked some dirt over the flames, extinguishing the tiny kindling fire they’d started.
She rose up to her feet and handed the flint back to him.
Mathar stopped her with a hand held out. “Keep it. I have more.”
“Thank you.”
