Page 7 of My Orc Contract Husband (Eastshore Isle #9)

Chapter Four

Sami

By the time Wednesday rolled around, I was doing better.

I mean, not better , but at least I wasn’t bursting into tears every chance I got.

Luckily, I hadn’t had any appointments yesterday, and Aunt Sharon took time off from her volunteer work at the food pantry to keep me company—mani/pedis and a new purse from one of the cute little shops on Main Street meant I was suitably distracted.

But whenever I had a moment to sit, the dread came back.

My aunt had assured me that, as an adult, I couldn’t be forced to take over my father’s business interests. I could sell them—we both knew they were worth a lot —or I could hire someone to take care of them for me. I didn’t have to be involved at all.

But just the thought of having to face the legal battles, or sticking my toe back into that fake, cruel world made my stomach knot up and my heart start pounding in dread.

So I was glad I had this meeting with Tarkhan this afternoon to distract me once more.

Because Tarkhan was very distracting.

Look, let’s be honest: I didn’t have a lot of experience with guys, okay? When I’d been living in Dad’s world, he’d been the one to set up my dates, and then later that disastrous arranged engagement. There’d been no one there I wanted to get to know better, if you know what I mean.

Once I moved to Eastshore and reinvented my life, I was…well, I guess you could say I was aloof when it came to dating. Dating and… more .

I’m a virgin, is what I’m trying to say.

I might not have had sex with a guy, but I wasn’t a complete prude, and Lord knows I’ve experimented enough to know what I liked.

Like half of Eastshore’s female population, I’d ordered myself an orc-shaped dildo after they started moving here.

What can I say? We were all curious, yeah?

I’d been shocked by the size and the ridges, but let’s just say I’m now a convert.

Yeah, I knew what I liked… And I very much liked Tarkhan.

I liked his easy smiles and his strong arms and the way he seemed to genuinely care about everyone he met. He was curious, and he listened well and, well…I just found myself wanting to share all my thoughts and struggles with him, because I knew he would listen and not judge me.

He was a good guy, is my point. And I couldn’t help liking him.

And maybe he didn’t need to know I sometimes thought of him when I was playing with my dildo, yeah? Try to be professional, Sami !

The point is, I was looking forward to this afternoon. Getting the text from him yesterday morning that he’d been turned down for the loan for the house hadn’t fazed me either. We just pivoted. We’re good at that.

“You ready to see your new property?” I asked him brightly as he climbed out of that gigantic pickup of his, the one I struggled with. Yesterday when he dropped me off at my house, I’d almost fallen out, dropping that stupid folio on the way.

Tarkhan, who’d been slipping something into the pocket of his jeans, jerked his head up, his mouth open to say something. But when he saw me, he just stopped and stared.

I glanced down at myself self-consciously. “What?”

“You…look great.” Did he sound like he was choking? “Very nice. I like that dress.”

It was just a sundress, in my favorite shade of green. Nothing special, but I liked that he was complimentary. With a shy smile, I tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear and tried to remember this wasn’t the male I sometimes fantasized about; this was my client .

“Thank you. Although it might be a little inappropriate for this property.” And for the dark clouds I could see forming in the east.

“Property. Right.” Tarkhan shook himself and looked around. “Is this…a farm?”

I smiled and began to walk, and he fell into step beside me, his dark gaze taking in everything.

“All of this used to be an orchard,” I announced, sweeping my hand and gaze around the property.

“You can see it’s kind of gone to seed. The owner’s heirs are parceling off the property for home sites, but none will be smaller than five acres, so you shouldn’t have any close neighbors.

This site is the least desirable, because it has the original barn on it, and the new owner will have to tear it down. ”

Tarkhan was listening and grunting in agreement.

Now, as we came to the old barn, he stopped with his hands on his hips to survey it.

“Yeah, I see what you mean. But it doesn’t bother me—hells, it’s not at all ideal, but I could use it as a shop, since if I buy this one I will have to start saving again for the shop I really want.

I’ll bet it’s not zoned residential though, which means I can’t live in it.

” He slanted a look my way. “But does less desirable mean cheaper?”

I grinned at the possibilities. “It does indeed. I think we could get it for you for…” I swiped through my phone a few times, then named a number.

The little whistling noise he made around his tusks was completely adorable and distracting. “I guess… ”

When he trailed off, I nudged him. “What are you thinking?”

With a little shrug, he took off toward the line of fruit trees. “I could pay for that with my savings. I wouldn’t need a mortgage.”

“That’s great!” I hurried to catch up with him. “Right?”

“Since I’m not going to get approved for a mortgage on my own, it might be my only hope.

” He began to pace, the heel of one foot up against the toe of the other, his heavy work boots eating up the space.

“But if I do that, then I won’t have the funds to build my shop, which means another year or two living in that apartment, unless I borrow money from friends. ”

Oh. Not ideal. I let my wince show when I murmured, “I know all about not wanting to do that.”

“Really?” He paused in his measurements to glance at me. “You struck me as someone who always has enough money.”

With a little laugh, I flicked my fingers dismissively. “I grew up with money, but it’s important to me to stand on my own two feet here.”

I’d tried to be flippant, but maybe some of the last two days’ worries leaked through my expression or tone, because Tarkhan had stopped and was studying me, those gorgeous lips pulled into a little frown.

Worried that he might see too much, I hurried to distract him. “What are you doing?”

He glanced down at his boots, then at the space around him, between the trees. “Measuring the area. Trying to figure out if I could build a shop without having to cut down any trees.”

“Using your feet?”

He grinned. “Orc feet are a great standard of measurement. Mine are exactly seventeen and a half inches. Once I know that, I can figure out a lot of stuff.”

He was completely adorable, wasn’t he?

Growing up, I’d never met someone like him—not just an orc , but a male who worked with his hands and was proud of his talent. He was unapologetic, and kind, and attentive, and for God’s sake, he quoted Shakespeare .

Well, not exactly, but the whole thing about the plants? How could I not adore that? “Hey, what did you do with those aloe pups I gave you?”

“They’re soaking up the sunshine on my windowsill above my kitchen sink, where I can watch them grow.

” He’d gone back to pacing, but now he shot me a rueful smile.

“I’ll repot them once I get my new place.

But it won’t really make up for having to cut down that peach tree”—he pointed—”and that pear. ”

I’m a realtor. My business was putting people in their dream properties, yeah? But I was also a gardener, and realizing that Tarkhan understood the importance of living things, and had the same reverence I did for them?

Be still my heart.

Yeah but also be a professional, Sami .

Right, right. I could manage that .

I lifted my phone again and began to rattle off information about the property and what was expected as he continued to pace and mutter to himself—or maybe in response to what I was reading.

When he finally halted, I finished up as well and lowered the phone…only to see it had grown pretty dark overhead. “Uh-oh,” I blurted, looking up. “Looks like we’re about to get some weather.”

Tarkhan’s dark gaze flashed to our cars in the distant drive, then to the barn. “Come on, the building’s closer. Just stay behind me so I can test the floorboards.”

Glad I wasn’t going to have to look for nails with my little summer sandals, I gratefully followed him. But we weren’t fast enough, and long before we reached the dilapidated doorway, the downpour began.

I heard him curse, and I had to giggle, even as I tipped my head back to let the rain run down my hair. But before I could decide if I wanted to bother running, a huge green forearm snaked around my middle, and then I was in the air.

My breath caught on a squeak when I realized Tarkhan had picked me up and was jogging toward the barn.

Oh my .

I was being carried by an orc. Not just any orc, but Tarkhan.

Oh my . I wanted to focus on the sensation, on the feel of his skin next to mine…

but unfortunately, it was over in a blink.

One moment we were in a deluge, the next he’d ducked into the barn and the rain was a distant patter on the roof, high above, and he was setting me down .

“Are you okay?” he murmured.

Was I? I patted my dress, my cheeks. “Yes,” I managed, somewhere between a laugh and a sigh. “Thank you. I’m only damp.”

Wet, Sami. The word you’re looking for is wet, and it has nothing to do with the rain and everything to do with Tarkhan holding you .

From the way his nostrils flared and his tongue darted out to flick against one tusk, I wondered if he could tell.

So I wrapped my arms around myself and looked around. “Well, I guess we’re getting a tour of the barn. It has…character.”

“It has tetanus, is what it has,” he muttered, shaking his head.

“The roof is sound, though.” I pointed to a bench that ran the length of the near wall. “And some of the furniture isn’t completely riddled with rot. Of course, as a woodworker, you could take care of all that.”