He carefully removed the pelt from her mouth and lowered his lips for a gentle kiss.
“I’m finished applying the antibiotic cream and bandages,” Jade said. “Bronto, she should rest. Let her sleep for a while.”
Chapter Twelve
“Bronto, may I come in?” Jade asked from outside the doorway.
“Yes,” Ivy whispered. Sunshine fled through the entrance when Jade stepped into the hut.
“Good morning, baby doll. I thought you’d still be asleep.”
Ivy smiled and glanced at Bronto, where he lay stretched on his side right beside her. “I’ve been up most of the night watching him sleep.”
“You should’ve been resting.”
“I wasn’t tired. I’ve slept too much lately.”
Jade returned the smile. “That’s a good sign, I suppose. Do you mind if I change your bandages? They’re already twelve hours old.”
“No.” Ivy lowered the fur to the top of her thighs and raised the frock to her waist. “It feels better.”
“That’s good to hear,” Jade replied while she sank to her knees at Ivy’s waist. She gently removed the bandages and lightly pressed on Ivy’s tummy. “Does this hurt?”
Ivy shook her head. “Very little.”
“It looks good.” Jade sat back and relaxed her shoulders.
“Can Birmon help now?”
“I think it’s best to wait at least one more day to make sure the infection is completely gone.” She caressed Ivy’s arm with fingers as gentle as her eyes were compassionate. “Do you want to talk about what happened?”
Oh gosh no. “I want to talk about you and Rocko. It seems he’s no longer shunning you.”
“Not anymore. We had a long talk. He wasn’t upset with me as I thought. His silence and avoidance was his way of dealing with the rape.”
“Like I thought.”
Jade nodded as she applied clean bandages to Ivy’s belly. “Yes, you were right. He just needed time to accept what happened before he could move on. Much like what you’re doing.”
Ivy’s brows scrunched. “Me?”
“You cannot hide inside the hut forever, baby doll. I know you’re afraid but you must face your fears to overcome them.”
“I’ve been trying.”
Jade cupped Ivy’s hand. “Bronto has work to do. He can’t shirk his duties because you’re too scared to be alone. That isn’t fair to him, is it?”
“I…” Gosh, she hadn’t thought of that. How selfish of her. She’d been so wrapped in self-pity it hadn’t crossed her mind. Not once. In six days. Six long days. She glanced at Bronto then looked Jade in the eye. “I didn’t… He must… I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. I understand,” Jade was quick to respond. “While he sleeps, why don’t you come outside with me? It’ll do you good to move around anyway.”
Leaving the security of the hut was unsettling and caused her belly to knot but was something she needed to do. “You’ll stay close by?”
“Yes, of course.” Jade smiled the motherly smile Ivy adored. “If it makes you feel better, Grunt hasn’t been around in days, nor has there been any alien activity. The men might have obliterated all of them. If not, destroying their lab might have convinced them to flee Helixis.”
Grunt didn’t scare her. Not anymore. What now scared her was the prospect of disappointing Bronto by staying confined inside the hut, feeding a weakness. She’d never been a woman to hide or back down from anything. Not her father. Or Sledge. Or Grunt. “Okay.”
She wanted to see Wisteria anyway. Other than the day Ivy woke up to see Wisty sitting by her side, she’d only visited Ivy briefly a couple times a day. Despite Bronto leaving to give them privacy, it wasn’t the same as sitting around the fire and talking about girl stuff. Ivy didn’t want to discuss aliens but they were Wisteria’s primary topic lately.
“Then shall we?” Jade said, taking a stance and offering her hand.
Ivy took hold of Jade’s fingers and carefully rose to her feet. Rising to full height stretched her belly but it didn’t hurt enough to address.
“You’ve got to be hungry, baby doll. You’ve hardly eaten.”
“I am.” She followed Jade to the door but when they stepped outside Ivy stopped to look around.
Ruby and Pearl were stirring two large pots that were hanging over the cooking fire, and Wisteria and Vulcan were standing near the pen, feeding leaves to the baby dinosaurs. Numerous men stood between the fire and the supply hut.
Ivy tilted her face toward the sky and inhaled the fresh air. The sun bathed her skin and wrapped around her like Bronto’s embrace. Gosh, she missed this.
“Ack.”
She glanced at the ground just as Birmon waddled to her feet and looked up, his rhino-shaped head tilting side to side.
“Ack,” he repeated.