Page 24
Story: Bound to the Orc King (Brides of the Moon Blade Clan #6)
Aldronn
When I make my rounds that night, the familiar glen is transformed, the quiet place tucked away from the world now turned into a bustling camp. Even though Naomi returned all the married couples to Moon Blade Village, my guards remain, along with all of the unicorns, Rune, Shadow, and Sheevora.
Wranth promised he and Naomi will return in the morning, saying he wanted one last night alone with his bride before beginning the trek north.
I stop outside my tent, surveying the crowded clearing. I will have no such privacy with my bride.
Yet I cannot regret this evening’s gathering. May fit in with the other witches as if they’d long been bosom friends. The way she won them over with her warm openness, daring, and willingness to laugh at herself was truly astonishing. My moon bound has the ability to put others at ease, and that’s no small feat.
Beyond that, May enjoyed herself immensely. Her laughter still echoes in my heart.
I strip off my sword belt and boots and crawl into the tent, settling on the soft furs beside her.
May lies curled on her side, facing away from the middle of the tent. I don’t think she’s fully asleep yet, but her eyes remain closed, her body still.
Tucking myself around her back, I pull a fur over us, making sure it covers her.
She relaxes against me with a little sigh, her involuntary noises once more giving her away.
Goddess, how I love these little sounds.
Her voice, as clear as if she spoke out loud, fills my mind. “I really like it here, but this isn’t going to work unless he loves me.”
It hits like a punch to the gut. My entire body tenses. I should never have worried about her fitting in with the other witches and orcs.
I should have worried about me.
I’ve spent my life molding myself into what’s expected of me in order to be a good king and warrior. How can I best this new foe, when it’s a part of my very self?
How can I be the man my moon bound bride needs me to be, one who can love her with all the wild abandon she deserves?
As I hold her close, her breaths deepen with sleep, yet I lie awake, searching the darkness for answers.
Naomi and Wranth return early the next morning, and my cousin delivers oats to the unicorns, since the clearing has no grass to forage. Naomi joins us at our fire, holding out one of the human beverages Olivia makes for them each morning.
“Oh, my god. Is that coffee ?” May snatches up the paper cup and sips, then throws her head back with a relieved groan. She’s wearing a set of her new orc clothes, and they make her look like she belongs here. “This is utter perfection, and you’re the best friend a girl could ever have.”
“I’m about to get even better.” Naomi plops onto the log beside my bride and opens a brown paper sack holding several human pastries. “I had Olivia make you these.”
“Fairy cakes! My favorite!” My bride bites into one of the gooey confections and chews happily.
Naomi holds the bag out to me. “Want one?”
Orcs don’t have as much of a sweet tooth as humans, but I want to know what this is that my moon bound loves so much, so I take one. The first blast of flavor is too sweet, but it quickly mellows into the familiar taste of honey. “What did you call these?”
“Fairy cakes.” May takes another big bite. “They’re actually short cupcakes, and I think they’re supposed to be pixie sized. But that just means I get to have two!”
“Does that mean I get three?” I pluck up another, ripping into the soft breading with my tusks as she laughs.
Wranth walks over and shoots me an amused glance, then snags one of the cakes for himself.
Once we finish eating, I turn to Naomi. “It will cut a couple of days off our trip if you can teleport us to the standing stone where I found May. I realize you haven’t been there, but would knowing the direction and what the stone looks like be enough?”
“Probably not. I could end up at any of the standing stones—they all look too similar.” Naomi’s lips twist in thought. “But May might have a connection to it I can tap into, since it’s the stone that activated her magic.”
“You mean I get to teleport with you?” Excitement blooms across my bride’s face.
“Yep! You’ll be the person I need to take with me on that first trip.”
“No.” The word emerges before I even realize I’ve spoken, driven by the primal protective instinct linked to the mate bond.
“What do you mean, no?” May’s eyes narrow as they meet mine.
“I mean it’s too dangerous for the two of you to go alone. Neither of you is a fighter, and you’ve already been attacked there once.”
“By an ogre who’s dead.”
“He might have told others about the location,” I say. “We can’t know.”
Wranth sets a hand on my shoulder. “Naomi travels far more easily with only one person. If they run into any trouble, they can be back here in the blink of an eye.”
“Yeah,” May says. “Are you getting a premonition about us being in danger, or is this just general bossiness?”
A sense of unease shivers through my magic, but it’s as yet undefined. I growl, wanting to protest further yet able to offer nothing concrete.
“Then we’re doing this.” May tosses back the rest of her drink, adds the empty paper cup to the fire, and leaps to her feet. “Let’s go!”
They link arms, and Naomi grips her crystal and closes her eyes. Right when I think I might have worried for nothing because she won’t be able to get a location lock, they disappear in a blink.
“How do you get used to that?” I ask my cousin. “Her going so far out of your reach, just like that?” I snap my fingers.
“I didn’t need to worry about it so much at first,” he says. “The magical tether that locked us together always sent me hurtling after her. But now that there’s no more tether…” He scowls and shakes his head. “Fuck, it’s not easy. I make it through by remembering I trust Naomi. She’s brilliant. She’ll bring them right back to safety if needed.”
I glare at the spot where they disappeared, each second a pained eternity that cranks the tension in my muscles higher and higher.
The noises of the rest of the camp only make it worse: Shadow teasing Rune, the guards’ chatting as they break down their tents, the soft rustle of the unicorns digging the last bite of oats out of the bottom of paper sacks. How can their lives go on as normal when I don’t know if my bride is safe?
I’m ready to leap to my feet and demand we act, all my carefully cultivated diplomatic composure stripped from me. I don’t even care that Sheevora the Magnificent will see.
“You really care for May.” Wranth eyes me carefully. “I’ve seen you around a lot of women. You’ve never been like this before.”
“It’s the mating bond,” I say.
He gives a slow shake of his head. “It’s more.”
I glance around to ensure no one’s near, then lean close to whisper, “How do you know when it’s love?”
“When you think about her constantly. When you feel like you’re going to die if you don’t touch her.”
It’s true I feel both these things for May, when I haven’t for any other. But are these enough? “Those could be infatuation.”
“When her happiness is worth any amount of sacrifice or pain on your part.” His deep voice rings with sincerity, all its usual growly hard edges rubbed smooth by feeling. “That’s when you know.”
May and Naomi pop back into view, sharing a laugh over something they’ve seen or said.
My heart clenches tight, then releases as I leap to my feet. “You’re back.”
They’re obviously fine, so I bite back the other questions that crowd my mouth, longing to pour forth: Are you all right? Why were you gone so long? Don’t you realize I worry?
Yet Wranth’s words echo through me as I watch May’s eyes twinkle with delight. Do I really want to steal the smile from her face?
I do not.
Maybe I don’t know what love feels like.
But that doesn’t mean I can’t practice it.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
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- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24 (Reading here)
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- Page 51