Page 10

“Yes.” I stepped forward, stooping to lift her.

“Oh, I, um…”

“I’ll take you where you can change.”

“Um, alright?” she squeaked.

I gathered her carefully, cradling her against my chest as I carried her down the hall to my room, my fingers gentle under her knees. The warmth of her skin seeped through my own.

The second I lowered her onto the end of my bed, I knew I'd made a mistake bringing her here.

Shebelongedhere. That was the worst part. She felt right in my arms. Sitting here in the room I'd shared with no one else. Like this was where she was always meant to be.

I forced myself to step back, to take my hands off her. The bed creaked under her small frame as she settled, gathering her bag into her lap as though clutching it would steady her. She hadn’t looked at me with fear. Not yet. But I waited for it.

What did she see when she looked at me? A brute? A warrior of the old orc ways, unpolished and simple in his needs? I had no fine manners, no fancy way of speaking. My hands were meant for labor, not for touchinganything as delicate as her. I knew the feel of a sorhox beneath me. Tools in my hands. Of rough rope sliding across my palms. I wasn’t sure I’d ever felt silk outside of her dress. Lace would fall apart if I so much as touched it.

I couldn’t give anyone the kind of luxury she'd grown up with. Would she see that in me now? Soon, she’d look around at my simple home, at the dust-streaked windows, and know she didn't belong here. She deserved fine things. All the best. A life I could not offer her. Soft cushions on chairs that had been built for her tiny size. Many-course meals with cloth napkins, something I’d only read about online. She was like porcelain, a precious, breakable thing, a person meant to be held with care. A few wrong touches, and I’d snap her in two.

I was all sharp edges and worn wood, not a person meant for someone as beautiful as her. And yet, here she was. Sitting on my bed, even if I could never dream of joining her on the surface, let alone laying back on it with her, side by side.

I fumbled my way to the door as if distance could save me from the ache digging its claws into my heart.

I could not make my swallow go down.

Her blue eyes lifted to meet mine.

I froze, unable to move. The world shrunk too fast around me, and it was all too much, until nothing existed beyond her gaze, the soft rise and fall of her chest, and the way her fingers tightened on the bag she’d placed on her lap.

Panic slammed through me.

Only now did I notice the state of my room. My bloodturned to sludge in my veins. Shirts and equally dirty pants lay draped over the end of the bed right beside her. The big chair in the corner held a pile of tumbled clothing I knew was clean but hadn't yet taken the time to fold or put away. A belt lay on the floor near my other pair of boots. The covers on my bed hung askew, probably touching the floor on the right side. I'd washed my sheets and blankets not long ago, but I always forgot to make the bed in the morning like Aunt Inla told me I should.

What if a female came here and saw this disarray?she'd said, with that kind yet assertive crick in her voice.Would you want her to see your home looking like this?

I'd listened. Tried to remember. But I hadn't.

I spun into motion, scooping up the clothes from the chair and the bed, fumbling with the knob, wrenching open the closet door, and throwing everything inside.

The belt went next, followed by my boots. I yanked the covers straight, smoothing them down with both hands, trying to make it look…better. More presentable. More like a place Beth wouldn’t regret stepping into.

She hadn’t moved. She sat where I'd left her, her hands resting in her bag. Her eyes tracked my frantic movements, her lips parting, like she was thinking of saying something but contemplating not.

Surely she thought I was a fool.

Heat crept into my pointed ears that weren’t smooth and small and delicate like a human’s.

Orcs were warriors, hunters, builders. We weren’t supposed to care if a home looked perfect for a guest. Butshe wasn’t just any guest. She was my mate, even if she didn't know it.

Mate.

And here I stood, unsure if I should follow the proper protocols or not. I didn't want to frighten her away. I knew enough about humans to know that if I dropped to my knees in front of her and started licking her palms, she'd either smack me or leap up and run away.

It would kill me if she did anything like that.

So I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room, rubbing the back of my neck, unsure what to say. Unsure what to do.

“I, uh…” My voice came out too rough, so I cleared my throat. “My home is not usually this messy.” Actually, it was, but I was going to try harder from now. Put things away rather than drop them wherever I was at the time.