Page 18 of A Discovery: Love and Other Things
He wasn’t a man of many words, nor did he like to listen to them. I was still surprised at how many he had shared with me inside of the temple. The moment should have felt awkward, yet it hadn’t. In fact, my body had filled with warmth whenever he’d urged me to continue. He was obviously passionate about his work since he was a prominent figure in the field, but to see him light up as he helped me read basic hieroglyphs had been completely unexpected. The feeling was like a drug, and I wanted more of it.
“You guys seem like you’re getting along now.” Felipe’s cheerful voice ripped my focus from Dr. Campbell. His smile was gentle as he crouched down onto the ground next to me.
“Yeah, I guess I magically got less annoying to him since last week.” I smirked as I continued brushing away the sand to expose more rock underneath.
Felipe took hold of one of the available brushes on the ground next to me and mimicked my motions. “You’re not annoying. He’s just a penis,” he said flatly in his thick Spanish accent.
My brush ceased its job and I stared back at him wide-eyed. “You meana dick?”
“Yes, a dick,” he confirmed.
My belly rumbled with laughter, and the sound that came out of my mouth bellowed around me.
Felipe joined me, chuckling. “You had better quiet down. Thedickis looking at us.”
My eyes caught Dr. Campbell’s intense glare, which strangled my laughter.
“I take it that your conversation went well with him, since your suspension seems to be old news?” Felipe asked as we continued brushing.
I kept my answer short. “Words were exchanged, but I’m not sure how much of an effect they had.”
“They must have worked. He seems to be more tolerant of the rest of us, too.”
“Well, at least some good came from my outburst,” I teased.
“You were right for putting him in his place. The things he said to you were out of line.”
I didn’t like that news of our heated exchange had spread through the site like wildfire, but I was glad I wasn’t the only one who thought my feelings were valid. “I just didn’t like being called lazy.”
“You’re anything but lazy.” He brushed my cheek with his fingers.
My hand flew to the spot he had touched as I gaped back at him. His touch had been soft...gentle...but had felt foreign to me.
“Sand,” he answered bluntly.
“Oh.” I brushed the spot off some more.
Felipe stared at me like he wanted to say something, but I diverted my gaze before he could continue. Whatever it was, I felt like I wasn’t ready to hear it.
My brush worked furiously at the earth in front of me. Something hard prevented me from digging deeper.
I dipped my head closer to inspect the area.Blue.A small speck of vibrant blue below the khaki-colored sand.
“What? What’s wrong?” Felipe asked.
“There’s something here,” I gritted out as I moved away the sand that concealed it with my trowel instead.
“Here, let me help.” Felipe began working alongside me to brush the debris away.
More blue stone was revealed with our efforts. Small box-shaped gems glistened under the sunlight. I reached for the trowel and pushed it under the sand holding the item and gently lifted. The object finally dislodged from the earth and sat atop the trowel.
“Holy shit,” Felipe gasped in amazement. “What is it?” He leaned in so close our foreheads nearly touched.
Tiny slabs of deep blue shined back at me from my tool. Thin brown strings ran through holes in the tops and bottoms of each slab, stringing the slabs together. The strings appeared to be made of leather, and one of the tails had a knot tied into it, like it was used as a closure. At the end of another of the tails was a silver medallion, murky from natural deterioration over time. I examined the face of the medallion. The etched design was difficult to see, and I squinted to make out the insignia.A wreath of flowers.
“I think it’s a bracelet,” I breathed out. It was beautiful but unlike anything I had seen before.
Felipe jumped up suddenly and waved his hands. “Dr. Campbell, come quick!” he shouted.
