Once Upon a Caveman (14 page)

“You’d
better!”

“…if
you make me.” He finished, simply.

She
blinked.  “Make you?”

“Kick
my ass.”  He invited.  “Do something to prove that you’re a god.”

She
didn’t move.

Rhawn
arched a brow at her worried expression and knew he’d been right.  She wasn’t
powerful, at all.  He wasn’t sure whether he was relived or not.  He stepped
closer to her, just because he couldn’t stop himself.  The woman drew him like
a magnetized stone.  He always wanted to be near her.  “Did you lose your
powers or did you never have any?”

Her
gaze went wide.  “I have no idea what you’re talking about.  I’m very, very
powerful.”

“Are
you?”

“
Yes.
 
And you aren’t going to like all the horrible ways I can prove it, so don’t
push me.”  She nervously licked the corner of her mouth and he felt a surge of
lust that the loincloth did nothing to hide.  Green eyes took in his reaction and
she inhaled a deep breath, her breasts rising so they brushed his bare chest.

Rhawn
groaned, heat and emotions swamping his mind.

Lucy’s
expression switched from concern to confusion, like she felt it too.  “How are
you doing this to me?”  She whispered.  “Around you, I feel… and I don’t…”  She
broke off with a baffled shake of her head.

But
he understood her perfectly.  He felt the same way.

“It’s
our fate, Lucy.”  Rhawn stepped even closer to her, so she was pressed against
him.  “We were meant to be together.”  Dropping his head to the side of her
neck, he breathed in her scent.  She gave a small whimper of a sound at the
animalistic move, but she didn’t retreat.  That just enflamed him more.  “I
cannot get images from the last dream out of my mind.  Your body opening to
mine and the feel of your skin and the taste of your lips…”

Lucy
swallowed hard and he could see her mind racing.  “I’m not going to sleep with
you.”  She desperately shook her head.  “I don’t believe in fate and I don’t
care
how
good it was in that dream.  We’re
not
reliving it, live
and in person.  No way are we doing any ‘Choosing.’”

Rhawn’s
mouth curved, amused by her frantic words.  “But, I’ve
already
Chosen
you.  There is no sense in trying to undo what is done.  You’re already mine.” 
Under every rule of god and man, her smooth, perfect body belonged to him and
no other. 
His
.  The thought had his blood pounding.

“Bullshit. 
I never agreed to that and you know it.”

“It
doesn’t matter.  The law says you are my mate.”

His
certainty seemed to unnerve her.  “Then I’ll change the law.”  She said, but he
could see she wasn’t so sure.

Rhawn
nuzzled her temple, trying a different tactic.  “Do you desire another more
than me?”  He asked quietly.

Her
eyes closed on a sigh.  “No.”  It was a whisper.

“And
I desire no one but you.”  He could smell her arousal and it nearly brought him
to his knees.  “I promise, I will do nothing you wouldn’t enjoy, Lucy.  You
know that.”  If she would just give herself over, he could have them both naked
and happy in a matter of seconds.

Sadly,
she wasn’t going to surrender so easily.  No goddess would.

“I’m
not having sex with you.”  She reiterated firmly, pushing away from him. 
“Probably not later and
definitely
not now.”  She ran a hand through her
thick, dark, magical hair.  “I need to think.”

Rhawn
had no idea what she needed to think about, when everything was so clear. 
Still, he saw the determined glint in her eye and he stepped back.  “Alright.” 
He agreed calmly.

Pushing
Lucy would just make her more intractable.  She was difficult.  Stubborn.  Rhawn
wanted her to
welcome
him.  But she wasn’t ready for that and nothing else
would be worth a damn thing, so he would have to wait.

She
watched him, gauging his sincerity.  “You’re just going to stop?”  She asked
suspiciously.

“Of
course.”  He frowned at the question.  “
Vando
, Lucy.  I would do
anything you asked.”

She
stared up at him, looking astonished at the use of the word.  He had no idea
why.  He’d been telling her for many cycles.  “You really are my caveman.”  She
finally murmured.  “Only he would say that.  You’re really him.”

Rhawn
slowly smiled.  She was starting to come around!  “Of course.”  He repeated.

Lucy’s
eyes widened at his grin.  “Damn it, that’s not fair, Rhawn.  Stop smiling like
that when I’m being moral and strong.  It’s cheating to be so handsome.”

He
didn’t know he
was
handsome.  This was good news.  “Women here rarely
care about a man’s looks.”  He assured her, reaching out to touch her hair so
the stands slipped through his fingers.  Even the dreams had not captured the exquisite
richness of the dark tresses.  “They care about survival.  They want a mate who
can best protect them.”  He met her gaze, wanting her to understand.  “I will
protect
you
.”

“I
know.”  She whispered.  “And I know you think I’m screwing up your customs or
whatever, but I’m still not just going along with this “Choosing” thing.  Only
I
decide who I sleep with, Rhawn.  Even if it really is you, I get a
choice
. 
I’m freaked out and I need to think and we’re
not
having sex today.”

Rhawn’s
mind went to Anniah’s distressed face when Skoll announced he would claim her
against her will.  “The law of Choosing a reluctant woman is… primitive.”  He
allowed, wincing at bit.

“No
shit.”

He
tried to think of a way to deal with this new problem.  Before Lucy arrived,
everything had been so clear.  “I will not pretend that I don’t know what I
know.  You
are
my mate.  I feel it with everything in me.”

“That’s
very reassuring.  I guess I’ll just give in and start planning our wedding
then.”

Rhawn
wasn’t sure what a “wedding” was, but he could tell from her tone that she
wasn’t happy to be planning it.  Shit.  He did not like it when she was
unhappy.  Lucy meant everything to him.  He just wanted her to smile.

He
hesitated and saw only one way to go.  “You will be in control, if that is what
you need.”  That was close to heresy in the Clan.  Going along with her odd
ideas was a small price to pay if it won him her heart, though.  “I want you to
Choose me.  I want you to want me back.”

“And
if I
never
want you back?”  The woman enjoyed focusing on the negative.

He
shrugged.  “You will.  It is fate.”

She
didn’t appreciate his confident words.  Green eyes narrowed in challenge.  It
turned him on.  Everything she did turned him on.  He could see her plotting
her next move and he could hardly wait.  She was so damn bright, he found
himself eager to see what she’d do next.  The woman was endlessly
unpredictable.

“You
know,” she said after a moment, her voice going soft and sultry, “where I come
from, there’s another kind of kissing.”  Her eyes slipped down to his erection.
 “Lower.”

Rhawn’s
jaw dropped as he realized what she was suggesting.  This was some kind of test
she was conducing.  In his head, he knew that, but his body didn’t care.  “That
would work?”  He choked out in amazement.

“Oh
yeah.  With a big, strong guy like you, who’s open to new and dirty things, it
could be
amazing
.  I could get on my knees and use my mouth to…”  Lucy
trailed off letting the words hanging there like succulent fruit.

“To
do what?”  He prompted, desperate to hear the rest.

“Well,”
she absently nibbled on her lower lip and Rhawn’s eyes nearly crossed in lust,
“you have to experience it firsthand to
fully
understand the mechanics
of it all.”

The
idea had his body stiffening painfully and his mind boggling with possibilities. 
Gods, even in the dreams, he’d never imagined anything so amazing.

“Right
now, there is an
infinitesimally
small chance that I’ll show you how it
works.”  Lucy continued in a seductive voice, moving against him in a way that
had
to be evil.  It felt too good to be anything else.  “Probably, it’ll never
happen, but there’s always a
tiny
ray of hope for an enterprising guy
like yourself.”

Rhawn
was hanging on her every word.

“But,
if you piss me off, your odds of exploring the mysteries of oral sex are gone
forever.”  She summed up archly.  “If you --for instance-- refused to help me
decide which way to go in our boats, I won’t be happy.  And when I’m not happy,
all my clothes stay on.  You’ll be left wondering what my tongue would feel
like, slowly licking at your…”

“West.” 
Rhawn blurted out, reaching his breaking point.  He pointed towards sun.  “From
what I know of the currents, the flowers come from that direction.”

“Then,
we go west.”  She smirked at him, her tone going back to its normal clip.  “See
how easy it is to get along with a goddess?”  She headed down the beach,
pleased with her trickery.

Rhawn
gaped after her.

Gods,
but that woman had powers.

Lucy
sits on the caveman’s lap, admiring the perfect angles of his perfect face.  He
is so handsome and thoughtful and gentle.  It’s no wonder she has no interest
in dating any of the idiots she meets in the real world.  How could anyone ever
measure up to her dream man?

“This
must be a mental condition or something.”  She says, running her hands through his
thick hair.  “Reoccurring dreams of somebody who doesn’t even exist?  I mean,
that’s gotta be bad, right?  There’s probably some scary name for this
condition and all kind of therapy involved to cure it.”

“I
do not wish to cure it.”

She
doesn’t want to cure it, either, but it seems very strange.  “Don’t you think
it’s --well-- kinda
crazy
to imagine the same person again
and again?”

“Yes.” 
He answers calmly, as if he’s already thought all of this over himself.  “But I
would rather be crazy with you, than sane alone.”

Rhawn
and Lucy’s Dream- Nine Years Ago

Stay
away from the caveman.

Stay
away from the caveman.

Stay
away from the caveman.

For
the next two days, Lucy silently repeated the mantra, but it didn’t do much
good.  She wasn’t listening to herself.  Which was a shame, because she knew
she was right.  It was just Rhawn was so damn awesome, it was easy to ignore
all her own good advice about him.  The more she was around him, the easier it
was to get attached to the guy.  He was generous and kind and protective and
handsome.

And
smart.

Rhawn
was way,
way
too smart to keep lying to.  That was the whole problem.

He
was going to figure out she was a complete fraud in the goddess department.  It
was only a matter of time, if she kept hanging around with him.  He put puzzles
together too fast.  Saw connections too clearly.  Several times now she’d
caught him watching her with a thoughtful expression on his face, like he was
trying to see through her lies.  He’d keep digging until he had every answer he
needed to expose her.  It was his nature to question.  Within a very short amount
of time, he’d figured everything out.  It was inevitable.

Rhawn
was a genius.

An
actual
genius, in the literal “Holy
shit
, is he smart!” sense of
the word.  The dawn of time probably didn’t have any standardized tests to
prove it, but Lucy didn’t need them to know that this guy was something
special.  She could look into his eyes and practically see all the gleaming IQ
points.  It was a little intimidating to be face-to-face with that kind of raw
brainpower.  Back in reality, Rhawn would’ve been inventing lasers at Cal-Tech,
or designing trillion dollar spaceships, or solving world hunger in a fancy think
tank.

He
really would be changing the world.

Hell,
even stuck on this damn rock he was changing the world.  Rhawn’s boats were
their only hope of escaping the volcano.  Lucy understood that, even if nobody
else did.  If this plan worked, he was going to save so many lives…  And he
wasn’t even
trying
.  That was the crazy part.  He was casually,
off-handedly,
apologetically
brilliant.  God, if he was actually
focused
,
he could do anything.

And
given Lucy’s
current
situation, that kind of intelligence was dangerous. 
How long could she really expect to get away with this whole “Destroyer” lie? 
He was already questioning her lack of powers.  She
had
to stay away
from him.

Which
was why it was
such
a bad idea to be staying in his cave.

See? 
Where Rhawn was concerned, she was blind to logic.  Shaking her head, she
continued up the path to his home, taking a quick detour to check on Warren.

For
reasons Lucy couldn’t begin to understand, she was worried about the guy.  It
wasn’t that she felt bad about hitting him with the rock, exactly.  She just
wished the big, dumb idiot would wake up.  Lucy sighed in annoyed concern when
she saw he was still out cold.

Why
did Warren always have to make things more complicated?

Since
he’d lost the glorious
Ardin
,
most of the Clan seemed to have
washed their hands of the “Savior.”  It must be quite a disappointment to
discover your god is a doofus.  Only the waif-y blonde, Anniah, was tending his
splayed body.  Lucy watched as she carefully dripped water into his mouth and
petted his dark hair with more tenderness than Warren deserved.

Well
that was interesting.

Lucy
cleared her throat and the girl’s head shot up in surprise.  She quickly
scampered to her feet, no doubt worried that Lucy was about to smite her.  Her
slim body moved between Warren and Lucy, like maybe she suspected Lucy was
there to finish him off.

Lucy
held up her palms in the universal sign of “I’m not a serial killer.”  “Hi.”

Anniah’s
eyebrows slammed together, unappeased.  She said something that was probably a
warning to stay away from the Savior’s comatose ass.

“Relax,
okay?  I’m not going to hurt you.  Or him.  Well, I guess I
did
hurt
him, but…”  Lucy trailed off with a sigh and sat down on a rock.  “Shit.  I’m
really anti-social, so it’s tough for me to make conversation.  Just bear with
me here, alright?”

Anniah
blinked at her, losing some of her rigid posture.

Rhawn
had said this girl was one of the few Clan’s people who didn’t hate Lucy, so it
only made sense to try and be friendly.  It didn’t come naturally, but Lucy was
all about trying new things, these days.  If she was stuck leading this bunch
of idiot cavemen, she might as well try to reach out to one of the few members
of the Clan who didn’t suck.

“I’m
Lucy.”  She laid a palm on her chest.  “
Lucy.
”

Anniah’s
eyebrows compressed, but she was getting it.  “Anniah.”  She said warily and
pointed to herself.

“Right. 
Good.”  Lucy gestured to Warren, then her own head, and repeated the movement. 
“Does he need anything?”  She gave an exaggerated frown to show her concern.  “Is
he okay?”  Anniah was the island’s leading medical professional.  Hopefully,
she would know how to treat him with roots and berries.  If Warren needed a CAT
scan, it might be a problem.

Anniah
said something in her language, then smiled and bobbed her head.  Okay.  That seemed
like a promising diagnoses.  Probably.  She also looked down at Warren like she
might actually be Florence Nightingale-ing the big dummy, though, so it was
entirely possible that the girl was high on herbs.

“Really?” 
Lucy arched a brow.  “You seriously
like
this bonehead?”

Anniah
seemed to be puzzling out those words.

“Warren.” 
Lucy held up one index finger.  “Anniah.”  Lucy held up the other and then drew
them together, to make a couple.  “Warren and Anniah sitting in a tree…” She
arched a brow.  “Am I close?”

Anniah
beamed, piecing together the sing-song charades.  “Warr-en
and
Anniah.” 
She said excited and bobbed her head.  Back in reality, the girl would already
be booking reception venues.

Lucy
felt honor-bound to warn her that was
terrible
idea.  “You know he’s a
used car salesman, with two bitter and vengeful ex-wives, right?  Even
I
felt sorry for him after the divorces and I usually find his suffering funny. 
In his whole life, I don’t think he’s ever gotten anything right and he knows
it.  He’s weak, whiny, annoying, can’t hold his liquor… Face it,” she swept a
hand through the air, indicating Warren’s football jersey-ed body, “he’s a
train wreck.”

Anniah
followed the gesture, her eyes traveling up and down Warren with obvious
approval.  She glanced back at Lucy with a small frown.  She put her two index
fingers together.  “War-ren and Anniah
oncho
?”  She drew them apart
again, looking crushed.

“No,
I’m not saying you
can’t
be with him.  I’m saying that you can do
better
.” 
Lucy gestured at Anniah and pantomimed approval.  “See?  You seem like a
nice
girl.  Two thumbs up, for the little blonde.”  Then she looked at Warren
and made a skeptical seesaw motion with her hand, her face creased into a “he’s-kind-of-an-asshole”
frown.  “But, he’s kind of an asshole.  Trust me.”

Anniah
hesitated and then finally seemed to understand.  She said something else in
that incomprehensible dialect.

“Uh-huh…” 
Lucy squinted.  Rhawn
really
needed to teach Lucy this language.  The
only word she kinda recognized was “
vando
.”  Rhawn said that sometimes. 
She wasn’t sure what it meant exactly, but he always said it in a gentle tone,
so it had to be good.  “You’re saying you want to keep him anyway?”  She
guessed, nodding towards Warren.

“
Vando
.” 
Anniah repeated earnestly.

Lucy
took that as a “yes.”  “Alright.”  She shrugged, seeing it was pointless to
talk the girl out of her crush.  “Well, if you want him, I’m sure you can have
him.  Believe me, once he sees you, he’s not going to be real hard to seduce. 
Hell, I’m in charge now, so I can probably just give him to you.”  She paused. 
“And I guess he
is
a better choice than Skoll.  Warren’s a nitwit, but
he’s not a violent sociopath.”

Anniah’s
expression darkened.  “
Cantara un ta ber-na
Skoll.”  Lucy translated
that as something like, “No way am I marrying that dickhead.”

“Yeah,
I don’t blame you.”  Lucy agreed, kinda of liking this girl.  “The good news
is, I changed the rules about “Choosing” around here.  Now the women get a
say.  I’ve totally invented feminism.  It’s going to awesome.”

Anniah
had no clue what that meant.

Lucy
tried again.  “Anniah.”  Up went the index finger again.  “All the men in the
world.”  She opened her other hand wide, counting off the possibilities. 
“Warren… Skoll… The guy with beard… Those big, ugly twins…”  She paused
meaningfully when she reached the thumb.  “And Rhawn, of course, but Rhawn’s
mine
.” 
She tapped her own chest.  “Rhawn and
Lucy
.”

Anniah
nodded earnestly, following this conversation with the intensity of an
undergrad at their first college lecture.

“Good. 
So now
Anniah
Chooses.” Lucy simulated deep thought and then Anniah-the-index
finger moved to tap on Warren-the-pinkie.  “
Anniah
picks the guys she
wants.”

Anniah
got the meaning and looked thrilled.  “Anniah
touma-la-ho
.”  She pointed
very deliberately at Warren.  Lucy was gonna guess that meant, “Anniah’s
Choosing this dumbass.”

Lucy
shrugged.  “Well, there’s no accounting for taste, I guess.  I mean, look what
I’m wearing.”  She gestured to the plastic mardi gras beads around her neck.

Anniah
gazed at the cheap green necklace like it was made of gold.  “
Byanho
.” 
She said longingly.

Lucy’s
eyebrows rose.  “Wait… you
like
this?  Okay.  Here.”  She took it off
and held it out to Anniah.  “You can have it.”

Anniah
looked stunned.  She sputtered out what sounded like a lot of caveman
language-y reasons as to why she couldn’t take something so valuable.

Lucy
rolled her eyes and reached over to grab Anniah’s wrist.  “
Here
.”  She
repeated firmly and pressed the necklace into her hand.  “Take it.  Please. 
It’s the least I can do to repay you for looking after Warren.”

Anniah
clutched the beads to chest, tears in her eyes.  She
totally
would’ve
sold Lucy the island of Manhattan for the damn thing.  In fact, she looked so
overwhelmed, that Lucy felt a little guilty.  “
Yhannt
.”  She said in a
heartfelt tone.

“You’re
welcome.  Really.  It was nothing.”

Anniah
unlooped the strands on shiny stones from her own neck.  “
Hynart
.”  She
held them out to Lucy, wanting to give them to her.

“No. 
Seriously, you don’t have to…”  Lucy began, but Anniah just grabbed her wrist
and shoved the necklace into her hand.  Apparently, she thought that was Lucy’s
custom for trading jewelry, because she looked pretty damn pleased with
herself.  Lucy certainly didn’t want to insult the girl by refusing.  “Um… 
Yhannt
.” 
She was taking a guess that that meant “thank you” and Anniah seemed thrilled
with her efforts.

And
really the necklace
was
pretty.  There were three strands of super-shiny
white stones that caught the light every time Lucy moved.  Rather than being
drilled through the middle, they were tied together with a series of intricate
knots.  All in all, this necklace was a
way
better fashion statement
than the souvenir beads from the ship’s bar.  The mix of rustic and glitzy
looked like something from a hip boutique in the East Village.

Anniah
was pretty sure Lucy had gotten the worst deal, though.  She couldn’t have been
more pleased with her plastic treasure.  The girl kept admiring her new beads,
her expression turning downright friendly.  All her reservations were quelled
now that they’d found some common ground.  Ah, the universal power of bling.