Page 13 of Wayfinder (The Outlander Book Club… in Space! #5)
The Coq au Vin came together beautifully.
While the struzzi meat proved fattier than regular chicken, with the foraged vegetables from yesterday and another bottle of pilfered wine, it turned out delicious.
Despite the fact that I couldn’t look at Jutuk while cooking without dissolving into a fit of giggles.
Granted, I found it sweet that he made a point of finding the bird’s cock for me. That couldn’t have been pleasant.
I tried to get him to rest while I cooked. I could tell by the way he held himself and the grimace he tried to hide that his arm pained him. He stubbornly took up residence on the stool in the back corner of the kitchen, watching with apt attention as I sliced, diced, and seasoned.
The female Framaddi made something that looked and smelled like Chicken Piccata. I didn’t have a clue what heinous concoction Chef Uilay made. It looked like an uncooked slab of liver and smelled like rotten eggs. Which made it rather surprising that he beat out Chef Ala for second place.
Tomorrow was the last challenge—a creature of the sea. While I’d been fishing many times in my life, after watching Jutuk wrangle a beast that was more Tyrannosaurus Rex than chicken, I didn’t want to imagine what might await in the depths of alien waters.
After the Chancellor once again declared me the victor and dismissed everyone for the night, I practically had to pitch a hissy fit to get Jutuk to visit medi-bay about his arm.
After vowing to every god I’d ever heard of that I wouldn’t leave the room or open the door, he finally agreed.
Once Jutuk left, I took a shower and climbed into bed, almost too exhausted to move.
I hadn’t meant to fall asleep, but a low moan of pain brought me to wakefulness with a jerk.
Jutuk had returned, his large body stretched out in the area of the floor he’d claimed as a bed.
I noticed the tension in his muscles as he favored his injured arm.
Lines of pain and exhaustion etched his handsome face, a testament to the battle he endured today.
Weariness emanated from him like a thick fog, but he didn’t sleep.
“Jutuk?” I shifted into a sitting position, drawing my knees up to my chest.
“I am here.” Even his voice sounded tired.
“How’s the arm?” Even in the din, I could tell that a large, pale gray square of something had replaced the gel bandage.
Jutuk issued a faint, amused snort. “The healer was impressed with the care you took of the wound. It will heal.”
He lifted his arm easily, as if to illustrate his words, but I noticed the tightness around his eyes and mouth.
“Couldn’t they give you something for the pain?” I’d gotten my period during the time I spent at the Baron’s compound and would have killed to get my hands on some Tylenol. The harem girls had a tea that worked quite nicely, though.
“No,” Jutuk grumbled, as though the very thought of taking a painkiller might damage his warrior persona. “It would make me sluggish. I need my senses sharp to protect you.”
Well, shit. Here I was, thinking of him as arrogant when he was being sweet and protective.
“You really think I’m still in danger?” With the nasty blue bastard that tried to poison me gone... everyone else seemed rather accommodating. Save for the Kwado chef, but I suspected nastiness might be a way of life for him.
“The Framaddi are off the moon and no longer a threat. The Kwado... you should know from your dealings with Baron Oappo how arrogant and odium the species are. While I would not put it past Uilay to sabotage you, I don’t think he would dare try to hurt you.”
“You know, we cook and eat frog legs on Earth,” I quipped. Uilay didn’t worry me. If push came to shove, I could probably kick his ass myself.
“I’d rather eat a cock than a Kwado,” Jutuk teased, making me giggle.
“Who I truly worry about,” he said softly, all residual humor gone from his voice. “Is whoever is tampering with the contest.”
“They’re trying to help me win,” I argued, albeit halfheartedly.
“That’s what it seems.” Jutuk shifted onto his side, and his gaze found mine. “But until we know the endgame, you are not safe.”
I nodded, not wanting to acknowledge the danger but being unable to ignore it. While I believed Baron Oappo was behind the cheating—the froggy bastard—if what Jutuk and his crew suspected about the Duke’s son was true, I could be in far more danger than anyone realized. All of us girls could.
Jutuk rolled onto his back, a low grunt of pain ripping through the stillness.
The gash was on the outer edge of his bicep, which rested against the floor, making it nearly impossible for him to find a comfortable position.
He fought hard today. If one wanted to get technical about it, he saved my life.
I would have been the meal if the struzzi caught me alone.
The bed under me was soft, comfortable, and larger than any bed I had ever slept in. I couldn’t help feeling guilty for having it all to myself. Jutuk needed a good night’s sleep, and while I knew he’d refuse to swap places and let me sleep on the floor or sofa....
It would be temporary, just for tonight.
Just so he could get some much-needed rest. The bed was plenty big enough for two.
If it got crazy awkward, I could always move to the sofa.
For heaven’s sake, he got injured protecting me from a rabid alien Big Bird, so the least I could do was give him a soft place to rest.
I tossed back the blanket and patted the mattress before losing my nerve.
“Come here.”
Jutuk jerked his head at me, his expression so startled I nearly laughed. He found his voice after clearing his throat a couple of times.
“Excuse me?”
Well, hell, this was awkward, and I hadn’t gotten him in bed yet.
“Don’t get excited, big guy,” I teased, feeling humor was the best deflection. “I know your arm hurts, and we’re both exhausted after today. We need a good night’s sleep.”
Jutuk sat up slowly, blinking at me in confusion. “You want me to sleep with you?”
“Beside me,” I clarified, patting the mattress. “Big difference, and just so we both can get some sleep.”
Jutuk’s golden eyes sparkled with curiosity as he stared at me for a long moment.
I held my breath, thinking he would refuse.
Expecting him to say sleeping next to me was some breach of warrior-protector etiquette.
And wondering why the hell the idea of his refusal bothered me so damn much.
But then he slowly stood and grabbed his pillow, striding towards the bed with determined steps.
As I shifted to the opposite edge, I felt the mattress dip and sway under his weight.
It was amazing how quickly a space that felt so vast when I was alone now felt cozy and close with him lying beside me.
His deep exhale of contentment was reassurance that my decision to invite him into the bed had been a good one.
Although now that he lay beside me, I didn’t feel awkward like I expected. I felt antsy... in a good way.
“Thank you.” His voice was a purring rumble in the darkness.
“I should be the one saying thank you,” I confessed, my own voice barely a whisper.
“You kept me from being eaten by a giant chicken.” On impulse, I touched his arm.
His pelt was soft and so warm it felt like a heated blanket.
Lying next to him pulled the confession from deep in my soul.
“I know you think someone is rigging the contest in my favor, but even if they are, I wouldn’t have made it if not for you.
I’m really glad Jala talked me into bringing you along. ”
“Me too,” Jutuk murmured, his golden eyes finding mine.
Nope, it wasn’t awkward at all. It felt right to lay beside him. And that shook me.
“Good night, Jutuk.”
“Good night, Pearl.”
I shifted in the bed, closed my eyes, and feigned sleep.
Even though several inches separated our bodies, I felt Jutuk’s warmth, his deep sighs, and the gentle rise and fall of his chest, indicating he had drifted into slumber.
I opened my eyes, taking a moment to drink in his features, admiring the strong line of his jaw and the thick wave of his dark caramel hair.
He was gorgeous and sweet, all the things that got me into trouble where men were concerned.
But Jutuk didn’t seem like trouble. He seemed... wonderful.
I was far from being a virgin, but after Donovan, I never allowed anyone to get close again.
Letting someone get close meant he held the power to hurt me.
Jutuk wouldn’t hurt me—it was a truth I felt deep in my soul.
I suspected he would hold my heart with the same protective gentleness that he guarded my body.
I couldn’t recall ever feeling such an intense attraction toward anyone before—and I cooked dinner for George Clooney once.
He was an alien, for heaven’s sake. Yet my heart raced at the mere sight of him, every fiber of my being drawn toward him like a magnet.
The way his golden eyes shimmered like the sun, the deep, soothing timbre of his voice—everything about Jutuk seemed to captivate me in a way I couldn’t explain.
After the debacle with Donovan, no man had ever dared come between me and the kitchen.
My love of cooking and the ambition to be the best were the driving forces that kept me going—the fire in my soul that burned brighter than any infatuation.
My passion for the culinary arts was my true love, and nothing could distract me from it.
Every man who tried was seen as merely competition.
Until now.
It wasn’t about winning the contest despite him—like it had been with so many other men in the past. This time was different. I wanted to win the contest with him by my side, my partner in crime.
Jutuk moaned softly in his sleep, his face contorting in pain as he rolled onto his side.
His injured arm draped over my waist, and I froze at the unexpected touch.
But something about it felt right, and I couldn’t find it in me to resist as Jutuk pulled me closer, sighing into my hair.
I knew I should move away, to keep some space between us, but I didn’t.
Jutuk made me feel safe and treasured... and I liked it almost too much.
Seriously... what the hell was happening to me?
On Earth, I ran from something like this so fast that I should have a trophy case full of Olympic medals.
I didn’t want to run this time.
Could I be falling for Jutuk?
Would it be so awful if I was?
With these thoughts swirling in my mind, I finally drifted off to sleep, dreaming of Jutuk holding me tightly and pressing gentle kisses along my skin.