Once Upon a Caveman (12 page)

Rhawn
hesitated and turned at Notan.  He must have translated her words correctly,
because the old man looked appalled.  Notan began stammering out long sentences
punctuated with expansive hand gestures and beseeching glances towards Drunken
Beauty.  Anniah was crying, petting Warren’s hair.  It was all ridiculously
maudlin considering it was just
Warren
, after all.

“Warren’s
lost the battle.”  Lucy told Notan and, even if he didn’t understand her words,
he got the meaning behind them.  “
I
am your only hope, now.”

Rhawn
translated that, too.

Notan
whispered something that could only be a prayer.  Too bad for him, Lucy was the
only god listening and she had bigger problems than his stupid apocalypse.  Several
more people started wailing.

Lucy
felt a
little
guilty.  Since this was the only plan she had, though, she
kept going.  On the upside, maybe she hadn’t left school and changed the world,
but she was the only person in Woodward High’s graduating class to become an
evil deity.

Top
that,
Taffi.

“Look,
I’m not going to throw any of you into the volcano.”  Lucy promised.  “I just want
a way
off
this island.”  She arched a brow at the petrified Clan.  “Any
ideas, kids?”

“Only
the Savior can lead us from here.”  Rhawn reiterated.  “And you have just
killed him.”

“Oh,
he’s fine.”  She flicked a dismissive hand in Warren’s direction.  “I once saw
him take a header off the roof of the gym and still be well enough to sexually
harass the paramedic.  Forget about him and concentrate.  How do we get out of
here?  There has to be a way.”

Rhawn’s
brow furrowed like he’d never considered the idea before.  Or maybe it was just
that no one had ever asked for his opinion.  “Well,” he finally allowed, “there
is the
ragan
.”

Notan
started to say something else, but Lucy waved him silent.

“What’s
a
ragan?
”  She demanded.

Rhawn
glanced at Notan, who was making the universal sign for “shut-up, stupid.”

“Ignore
him.”  Lucy ordered.  “What is a
ragan?
”

Rhawn
cleared his throat.  “It is a device I invented to fish in.  It floats on the
water.”  He pantomimed a bobbing motion in the air, his flattened palm
mimicking the waves.  “The Clan believes it’s wicked, but I can paddle it into
the sea and gather…”

Lucy
cut him off, her eyes going wide.  “Hang on, you’re saying you’ve build a
boat?
”

“I
am unfamiliar with this word.”

“You
sit in it, staying dry, and it moves you across the ocean?”

“Yes. 
A
ragan
.”

“Holy
shit!  You invented a
boat!
  You’re brilliant!” She stepped forward to
grab his arm and yank him down for a smacking kiss.  It was only meant to last
for a heartbeat, but Rhawn had other ideas.

He
drew in a surprised breath as her lips met his.  A groan vibrated through him
and his hand fisted around her shirt, dragging her closer.  Lucy’s body was
jerked against his, her feet going on tiptoe to compensate.

Holy
shit! 
Her gasp of surprise was swallowed by his mouth.  Within seconds,
he’d taken control.  His lips opened against hers, his tongue claiming new
territory.  She’d forgotten he was fascinated by kissing.  And surprisingly
dominant in bed.

And
a caveman.

The
taste of him rushed over her like a tidal wave and all she could do was hang on. 
He shifted his body, somehow maneuvering so he was standing between her and the
Clan.  God only knew what kind of kinky stuff the cavemen did in their spare
time, because Rhawn clearly didn’t give a damn about privacy when he wanted a
woman.  Lucy kind of… liked that.  No one had ever wanted her like Rhawn did.

And
she had certainly never wanted anyone the way she wanted him.

He
lifted her up like she weighed about half of what she actually weighed.  The
heat of his chest was at her front, and the stone wall of the cave behind her,
and she whimpered at the sensation.  Every incredible, dirty, fun part of the
dreams filled her memory and she wanted more.  She wanted
him
.  All she
had to do was surrender and Rhawn would do the rest.  This place was probably
in some far-off
Star Trek-y
nebula, so normal sexual mores hardly
mattered.  Why not let the caveman have his way with her?

It
wasn’t like Rhawn was a stranger.  He was
Rhawn
.  She’d known him so
long, he was practically a part of her.  All those fragmented dreams when
they’d gotten so
close
… Lucy could finally have what she’d been aching
for.  She could feel how aroused he was.  The guy was really going to take her
right there and no one could stop him.  In another moment, not even
she
could
stop him.

Bad
idea
.

Wait…
this was a
really
bad idea.

Lucy
jerked away.

Rhawn
stared down at her, his chest heaving.  For once, his gaze stayed locked on
hers, his head titling to maintain eye contact when she would’ve looked away.  Up
until this point, he’d been pretty accommodating, luring her into believing
that she was in control.  Now he didn’t seem so tame.  He stayed within her
space bubble watching her intently and Lucy felt very vulnerable.

This
guy was not part of a domesticated species.  She’d dreamed of him, but could
she trust him?  Instincts said yes, yes,
yes
.

Panic
told her
no
and it was damn hard to ignore panic.

“That
was a mistake.”  Lucy quickly tried to reaffirm her status as a heartless
overlord.  Flattening a hand on his chest, she gave him a push.  “It shouldn’t
have happened.”

He
humored her by pretending he felt her shove and took a step back.  Rhawn was
the biggest, strongest, smartest guy in a world without laws.  He could do
anything he wanted to her.  He didn’t
have
to back down for anybody.  Certainly
not a girl who’d been banned from the health club for her bad attitude.  Men in
this place didn’t woo their dates with flowers and a nice play.  They could
just
take
.  It seemed to be part of their system, so it wouldn’t even be
breaking any rules.

The
only thing protecting her was Rhawn himself.  She didn’t like that.  It made
her feel out of control and vulnerable.

“It’s
alright.”  He soothed, seeing her nervousness.  “I can go slower, just as you
like.  I won’t harm you.”

Lucy
shook her head and tried to be practical.  He might speak in quiet tones, but
under the calm façade Rhawn was still a caveman.  “You
can’t
hurt me.  I’m
the all-powerful Destroyer, remember? 
I’m
the one who does the hurting.”

Rhawn
didn’t look so convinced, all of a sudden.  “I
will not
hurt you, Lucy.” 
He reiterated softly.  “Not ever.  You may still bring on the apocalypse, but I’ve
Chosen you as my own.  I will protect you.  Always.”

Lucy
wasn’t clear on what exactly that “Choosing” thing meant, but it didn’t sound
good.  She glowered up at him, hoping he somehow overlooked the fact that she
only reached his (really wide) shoulder.  “You didn’t Choose me, pal.”

“I
did.”

“How?”

“The
Savior and I were preparing to battle for you and he fell.”  Rhawn shrugged. 
“It was not how I expected things to go, but the outcome was clear.”

“That’s
ridiculous. 
I’m
the one who fought him.”

“Women
can make their preferences known in a challenge.  That is what you did.”  In
his mind, everything was settled.  “It was a fair contest, Lucy.  I have won
you and you are my mate.”  He nodded like he’d catalogued all the pertinent
details, made his decision, and now he was just waiting for her to catch up and
agree with him.

Smart
guys always thought they were soooo frigging logical.

“You
can’t Choose a god.”  She decided.  “
We
do the Choosing.”

Rhawn
frowned.  “Where is this stated?”

“I
just stated it.”

The
caveman didn’t appreciate the randomness of that pronouncement.  He reminded
her of an engineer, wanting everything in his world to be neat and
quantifiable.  “Choosing does not work that way.”  He argued.  “There are rules.” 
Rhawn was clearly a rules-are-rules kinda guy.  As far as he was concerned,
he’d followed them and she was cheating.

Too
bad.

“I’m
the god.  I’m above the rules.”  She gave a “what can you do?” shrug just to
piss him off.  She was getting the distinct feeling this “Choosing” deal involved
a lot of nakedness and prehistoric sexy times.  No
way
was she being
that stupid.

No
matter how incredibly tempting Rhawn was.

His
eyes narrowed, seeing that she wasn’t going to budge.  “We will speak of this
again.”  He warned.

Doubtful
since she was on the first boat outta
Land of the Lost
.  No sense in
antagonizing the really muscular caveman
too
much though.  “I’d rather
talk about this
ragan
thing.”  She arched a brow.  “Let’s start with how
many people it’ll hold.”

“I
got my master’s degree last week.”  The woman says.  “Thanks to these dreams,
I’m a certified expert on the Ice Age, now.  They inspired me to read
everything I could about it and get my degree. 
You
inspired me.  I wouldn’t have gone to graduate school, if I hadn’t met you.”

Rhawn
is not sure what that means, but it pleases her so it pleases him.  “I am
glad.”  He says and shifts her body beneath his.  His teeth graze the curve of
her neck.  She tastes of warm honey and mysteries unexplored.  He will never
get enough of this woman.  The fragmented pieces of dreams do nothing to
alleviate his ache for her.

“
Yeah,”
she sighs out and tilts her head to give him better access, “you seriously hold
the best study sessions
ever.
”

Rhawn
and Lucy’s Dream- Ten Years Ago

Rhawn
looked down at Lucy as she looked at the
ragan
and saw she didn’t look
happy.

“That’s
the boat?”  She demanded.

“It’s
the
ragan
.”

“’Cause
it looks like the mutant offspring of an outrigger canoe and Huck Finn’s raft.”

He
wasn’t sure what those words meant.  They certainly weren’t compliments,
though.  Rhawn was used to insults and derision, but he still felt his jaw tick. 
Ever since he’d Chosen her, the woman had been increasingly difficult.  What
had happened between them made her feel nervous and less in control.  Lucy
didn’t like it when she wasn’t in control.  She seemed to be trying to cover
her unease with sniping and with imaginary rules that prevented goddesses from
being Chosen.

Neither
tactic would work.  The laws were clear and she was his mate.

He
hadn’t
meant
to Choose her.  Well, at least not
yet
.  He was
still fairly certain she planned to end the world, after all.  But, Rhawn had
watched as the Savoir tried to take her as his own and something had snapped inside
of his already weak mind.  He’d known that he could never allow Lucy to belong
to another.  That he would fight to have her, even if it meant challenging a
god.

When
Warren fell, it might have doomed the island, but it had given Rhawn what he
most wanted.  Lucy was his according to Clan law.  Now that he’d Chosen her,
he’d never see the bond undone.  Regardless of how much she protested that
she
was the one who had to perform the Choosing, he knew they were already joined. 
He felt it.  She did, too.

Unfortunately,
the knowledge just made her more difficult.

“It’s
a
ragan
.”  He told her flatly.

She
let out a long breath.  “It’s not very big.  You sure it will it float?”

“Yes.” 
This was the first time anyone had ever been interested in one of his creations,
so Rhawn found himself wanting her to understand it.  To approve.  “It took me
many attempts, but the
thann
on the sides offer support even in large
waves.”

“The
pontoon thingies?”  She pointed to the
thann
.

“Yes. 
They create stability.”  Pleased that she was paying attention, he kept going. 
“The
um’nah
trees naturally float, so they provided the wood.  Then I
used the tar from the pits as a sealant to keep the water out.”

She
didn’t say anything.  She just stared at the
ragan
, her expression unreadable.

Rhawn
braced for her to tell him he was an idiot.  Everyone else did.  …Except he
didn’t want her to be like everyone else.  If she laughed at him, something was
going to break inside of him.  Lucy’s was the only opinion that mattered.

“It
floats.”  He told her, quietly.  “You have my word on it.”

Green
eyes flicked to him, weighing his promise.  Finally, she nodded.  “Okay.  So,
how far can it travel?”

Rhawn
didn’t know what to make of that question, but he breathed a sigh of relief
that she was taking him seriously.  “It would stay afloat over a long distance.” 
He hedged.  “Probably, even after everyone aboard succumbed to exposure and thirst.”

“That’s
good enough for me.”  No one ever had any faith in his ideas, but she seemed to
believe in them more strongly than even he did.  “You and I are getting off
this island. 
Now
.”  She made a face.  “And too I guess Warren.  I don’t
want to have to explain to the Alumni Committee why I left the dumbass marooned
in
The
Land Before Time
.”  She paused.  “Only there are
obviously
no dinosaurs in the Ice Age.”  She looked around with a stern frown, in case
someone dared to contradict her.

No
one did.

Rhawn
wasn’t sure what she was talking about or what she planned to do, but there was
one point he wouldn’t budge on.  “However you plan to escape Uooloa, you must
include
everyone
, Lucy.  I do not wish my people to die.”

“But,
they’re assholes who hate me and locked you up in a cage.  I’m not really in
the mood to save them.”

“They
are my people.”  He repeated.  “
Your
people, now.  They became your
responsibility when you won the
Ardin
.  We cannot leave them here to
sink.”

Her
eyes rolled so strenuously, she probably made herself dizzy.  “
Fine
. 
God, you’re such a Boy Scout.”  She gestured to the rest of the Clan, who were
hovering along the shoreline.  “Tell them to make more rafts, then.”  She did a
quick headcount.  “We’ll need ten or so.  Like five or six to a boat.”

Rhawn’s
eyebrows drew together in confusion.  He wasn’t surprised that Lucy agreed to
save the others.  Beneath her grousing, she had a kind heart.  He had no idea
how she expected the
ragan
to save them, though.  “Why do you wish to
build more?”

“So
we’ll have enough to carry all of us, obviously.  Isn’t that what you’re
insisting on?”

Rhawn
blinked.  She couldn’t
possibly
be thinking of trying to cross the Infinite
Sea.  “Carry us where?  There is nothing out there but water.”  He pointed at
the ocean.  “We would be sailing to our death.”

“That’s
what they told Columbus.”

He
was unfamiliar with that word and suspected she knew it.  It annoyed him.  “If
you wish to kill us, you could do it here on land, Destroyer.  It would be less
trouble.”

“If
I wished to kill you, I’d just leave you here with Krakatoa.”  She retorted. 
“I’m trying to
save
you.  And me…. And apparently the rest of these
morons.”

“What
is that bitch saying?”  Skoll demanded.  He finally awoken from the beating in
the cell and he was angry.  Angry at Rhawn.  Angry at the Clan for not
punishing Rhawn.  Angry with the outcome of the
Ardin
.  And
especially
angry at Lucy.

Everyone
in the Clan was upset, but Skoll was one of the few who wasn’t bothering to
hide it.  Even Notan tried to cover his feelings.  Skoll brazenly watched Lucy
with open hatred, tracking her every move like he was planning an ambush.

Rhawn
flashed him a glare and deeply suspected that he’d have to fight the bastard
again soon.  “She is a god.  When she wishes you to understand her words, she
will let you know.”

Skoll’s
fists tightened.  “You align with evil to protect yourself from punishment.” 
He spat out.  “You know that she is all that protects you from execution, Rhawn
the Accursed.  You should still be locked in your cell, awaiting your
punishment, but she set you free and now you are in her thrall.”

Lucy
glowered over at Skoll.  “What’s asshole saying?”

“He
doesn’t like you.”  Rhawn told her softly.

“The
feeling is mutual.”  She wrinkled her nose in distaste.  “He looks like those
movie villains who keep canaries in cages so they can eat them as snacks.”

Rhawn
kept his attention on Skoll, switching back to the Clan’s language.  “The
Destroyer triumphed over the Savior.  That was the will of the fates and you
wish to challenge it?”

“I
wish to survive.  For
all
of us to survive.  Be smarter than you usually
are and help us get rid of this monster.  She favors you, for some bizarre
reason.”  Skoll’s eyes gleamed, with rage… and lust.  “The men say she did
something with her lips on yours.  What did it feel like?”

If
he knew what Lucy could do, she would be in even more danger than she was now. 
Skoll would want her for his own,
before
he killed her.  The Clan had
seen the way Rhawn reacted in the cave.  He’d Chosen her in front of everyone,
openly challenging the Savior.  If Lucy hadn’t stopped him, Rhawn would’ve
taken her right there against the wall.

Rhawn
had never acted that way before.  He’d never been so blatant about wanting a
woman or so possessive of one.  Of course the other man would be curious about
kissing and what magic Lucy held.  He was probably going to have to kill at
least four of them, before they gave up on the idea of stealing her away.

“She
is
mine
.”  He warned Skoll in a deadly voice.  “I don’t surrender what’s
mine.  I will dissuade her from her evil plans, but I will not see her harmed.”

“Her
magic might be all that can revive the Savior.”  Anniah put in.  For whatever
reason, the girl was inconsolably worried about Warren.  “The Destroyer spared
his life, which means she may not be as cruel as we first thought.  I was
encouraged by the mercy she showed.  Perhaps, if we help her find a better way,
she will bring him back to us and…”

Skoll
cut her off in annoyance.  “The Savior is weak.”  He scoffed.  “We have no need
for him now.”

Some
of them men seemed to agree with that.  Tammoh stroked his beard, the way he
always did when he was thinking.  Ugghot exchanged a meaningful glance with his
twin brother Uyhot.  Ctindel looked over to Notan for guidance.

The
old man seemed torn.  “We must think on the proper path.”  He temporized.  “The
answer will reveal itself when the gods wish it so.”

“Warr-en
is not weak!”  Anniah announced, already knowing the path she would take. 
“There is
greatness
in him.  I see it.”

“The
Savior lost to a woman, without even putting up a fight.”  Skoll waved a dismissive
hand.  “Notan, tell your daughter to let the men decide the best course of
action.  She speaks nonsense.”

Anniah’s
blue eyes narrowed in his direction.  She’d been spurning Skoll’s advances
since she was child.  The girl had a mind of her own.  She was one of the few
people unafraid to stand up to her father’s second-in-command and it pissed
Skoll off.

Notan
made a hand gesture, urging his daughter to silence.

“
I’m
protector of this Clan.”  Skoll continued, jabbing a finger at Rhawn.  “If you’re
not smart enough to see that the Destroyer is manipulating you, maybe she
should belong to someone else.”

Rhawn
stepped closer to him.  “Do you wish to challenge me for her?”  That was the
way the Clan settled disputes like this.  The men fought and the winner got the
woman.  “I stood against the Savior and I will do the same to you, if you seek
to claim my mate.”  Skoll was strong and dangerous, but Rhawn was willing to
die to keep Lucy.

They
both knew who would win the battle.

Skoll
backed off with a scowl.  “For whatever reason,
you’re
the one she wants
and I don’t wish to incite her wrath by killing you.”  He muttered.  “Besides,
Notan and I have decided that I will Choose Anniah soon.”

Anniah
didn’t look thrilled with that news.  She frowned over at her father.  Notan
studiously avoided her betrayed eyes.

Lucy
watched the byplay.  “What’s this about now?”

“Skoll
wishes to take Anniah as his mate and she does not desire the Choosing.”

“Well,
who can blame her?  The guy’s a tool.”  Lucy snorted.  “Tell her that I’m
changing all the backwards rules of this place and
she
gets to be the
one to Choose her mate, now.  That’ll cheer her up.”

“That
will start another battle.”  Rhawn predicted, darkly.  “Skoll already dislikes
you enough.”  But he too was angry over the idea of Anniah being forced to mate
with a man she detested.  Perhaps Lucy was right.  Perhaps the laws of Choosing
were
backwards.

Perhaps
they
should
change.

“The
best option is for you to fuck the Destroyer, so she’s compliant and relaxed.” 
Skoll continued, either not seeing or not caring about Anniah’s unhappiness.  “Then,
when she least suspects it, strike her down.”

Several
others nodded.

Rhawn
shook his head.  “I told you, I will not…”

“You
must do
something
, boy.”  Notan interrupted.  “You’ve Chosen a vicious demon. 
We’re your people and she seeks to destroy us.  You’re the only one who can get
close enough to stop her.”

How
convenient that they decided to include him just as he became useful.  On some
level, Rhawn did relish the idea that everyone knew Lucy was his, but mostly it
just pissed him off that they thought he would harm her.  Finally, he had a mate
and they wanted him to kill her.  It went against all honorable conduct for a
man to hurt his woman.  It was his job to
protect
her.