Page 46 of Black Mamba

“You do not need to come if you do not want to,” I say roughly. “I will collect the water and bring it back to you.”

She is quiet for a moment but then nods. “Okay—well—” She shakes her head and lifts her hand to her cheek, shyly glancing about. “Well…”

“Well, what?”

“I wanted to see the water.” She is quiet for another moment. “Levy tells me it’s incredible to see so much of it. Back where I’m from, there wasn’t much water and it was rationed. I had more than most but…”

A smile twitches the edge of my lips. “Come then. Follow me and I will bring you to see the water.”

Her mouth parts and she licks her lower lip, shifting on her feet. “Okay. You promise you won’t steal me?” She studies me with slitted eyes.

“I will not steal you.”

I tilt my chin as I turn and begin to lead her around her ship. I hear her footsteps behind me, past the length of my tail, keeping up with my pace. When the ground starts to slope downward, I look back to make sure she is there.

She hesitates when our eyes catch. I turn back around. “It issss not far.”

“I think I can hear it.”

“Yessss.” My ears prick to the water’s noisy hum. “Water can be loud.”

We traverse over the rocky dirt and spiny grass, around wild tangles of brush and fern until the water appears glistening through the trees. I do not take her to the brook I stole her from, which is closer to my nest.

Instead, we end up at a grassy knoll beside the river where it is easy for me to swiftly fill her bucket. Hauling the sloshing container briefly in the crook of my arm, I face her.

She is staring at the water, her eyes wide with awe, appearing much like the day I took her. I stiffen as her beauty overwhelms me. Even hurt, with a bruise above her eye, she is lovely to look at.

She is wearing her black sweatpants and a tight, light gray shirt. Her arms are bare, revealing her pale, scaleless skin. She is slight but with just enough curves to be mesmerizingly feminine, and… not for the first time, I imagine her body pinned beneath mine. I strain with tension as her eyes shift over the wide river.

“There’s so much of it. It really is incredible. Levy was right.”

I release a deep, annoyed hiss.

She startles like she is coming out of an enchantment and our gazes catch. Her dark hair, loose around her shoulders, emphasizes the shadows under her eyes. She shifts back and reaches up to grip her bad shoulder.

Pressure rushes into my middle, adding to the already annoying constant ache thrumming there. For weeks, I have been manually keeping my slit closed that it has become second nature, the muscles locked.

She points to the water, a fresh rush of heat spreading across her cheeks. “May I?”

It takes me a moment to realize what she is asking. When I do, I nod stiffly and move far out of the way. Once I am within the trees, she walks onto the knoll and peers out over the river. “I’ve never seen so much water before. It seems impossible.”

“There are larger lakes and rivers than thissss.”

“I can barely imagine it.”

“I will take you—if you would like to see them.”

She looks at me and I hold in a low hiss. “I’m not sure if that’s a good idea.”

“Why not?” My tail bends and coils. “I will protect you.”

“Lukys… you’re kind of… becoming nice and all, but I don’t want a…” She pulls her lower lip into her mouth and turns away.

“A?” I frown.

She waves her hand. “Nothing. It doesn’t matter. Forget I brought it up.” She turns back and bobs her head at the bucket in my arms. “We should head back. Thank you for showing me the river.”

“You still have not told me why I should not take you.” Is the idea of me protecting her, offering my body as her shield, and providing for her that bad she would not risk more time with me? “Do you not believe me when I say I will not steal you again?”