Page 21 of Orc’s Promise (Knotty Monsters #3)

CHAPTER NINETEEN

VERIG

I watch my warriors spar in the training area. They train, but with no heart, no purpose. Their mood shifted after Baloq’s banishment, leaving me with dozens of warriors whom I would not trust to save our people from an attack of sartogs, let alone an army of vints and humans.

If we had lost Baloq in battle, we would have a funeral pyre and a celebration of his bravery and sacrifice. With his banishment, the warriors only have questions. Mainly, why our grak would tell Baloq he could take a female and then allow her to be taken by another. Me.

The questions I first heard behind my back are now spoken openly before me.

My warriors ask one another why our grak punished Baloq, and only Baloq, so severely.

They wonder why I have not incurred Atox’s wrath.

Then their concern turns to themselves and whether they will be allowed to keep a female, once it’s their turn to choose one.

My actions, even though within the law, have set a dangerous precedent.

Our warriors don’t understand the difficulties of command, but they know what it means to defy orders.

Baloq’s exile reminded them of the consequences of disobeying our grak.

Kodex, another male who kept his female in his quarters, released her weeks ago.

But he’s been watching her, as I watched Tansey.

I recognize that look of determination in his eyes.

He plans to take her. It’s only a question of how much patience he has, and if he’ll defy our grak’s orders not to touch the females without permission.

Kodex has chosen Phoebe, a plain and sharp-tongued female who is not nearly as quick-witted as my Tansey.

When he’s not performing his duties, Kodex follows the female at a discreet distance, marking her as his.

With each week, the space he leaves between them shrinks.

He’s growing restless. Many of the males are.

“Vekk, Kodex,” Telin shouts as he nearly relieves Kodex of his head when the male fails to block the downward strike. It’s a simple defensive maneuver, one that Kodex could do—has done—blindfolded.

“Kodex,” I summon. He nods to Telin and jogs over to me.

“Yes, Neld?”

“I have an assignment for you. I need a second.”

He slaps a knife across his chest, a salute used to honor a grak normally, but in asking him to be my second on this mission, I’m acting as grak.

“Will you fail me?” I ask.

Kodex’s posture straightens, and his pride in being chosen is clear. “Never.”

“Normally, I would select you without hesitation, but you have been distracted lately.”

He puffs out his chest. “I will not fail our grak, you, or our people.”

Spoken like the loyal orc he is. But that does not allay my worries.

“The female, Phoebe. Have you mated her yet?”

“No,” he says with a barely contained growl .

“Why?”

He opens his mouth to speak and then shuts it. I know how he feels, even though I’ve mated Tansey several times now. These human females are complicated.

“She will accept you in time, Kodex. You must be patient. Not follow Baloq’s lead.”

“She’s with the other women. I have not touched her or forced her in any way. I would never break our laws.”

I never thought Baloq would either, but a desperate male takes extreme measures when left no choice. I’m understanding Baloq more and more lately, as I feel that desperation. I will not lose my female.

“You will not speak of this mission to anyone. Is that clear?”

“Yes, Neld.”

“Even to the female Phoebe.”

“Why would I speak with her about an assignment? Females are not warriors.”

I often ponder such sentiments, especially now that I know Tansey and our graka. These human females are physically weak, but they are strong-willed and have conviction. They are warriors in their own right.

“A female will become your second one day, as you will become hers. While a warrior will give his life for you, a female will give her heart. If you are deserving.”

That is my issue. I have done nothing to deserve Tansey. I must prove myself.

Kodex nods as if he understands, but he does not. He can’t, not until he grows so close to a female that all he feels is her pain, her needs, her desires. Only then will he understand.

“I will not speak of this assignment to anyone, Neld. Especially my female.”

My thoughts exactly. I can speak of this to no one, especially Tansey .

His words confirm that I’ve chosen the proper second for this mission. I trust Kodex with my life, and he will follow my orders.

“We leave tonight, after the last campfire fades.”

He slams the flat of his blade against his chest before returning to training, while I head off to see my female one last time, in case I never return.

“Going where?” Tansey asks as I thrust into her tight cunt, pushing her deep into the furs of my bed.

“A mission. Do not ask for details.”

She lifts her hips to slam into mine, taking me deep. “I’m asking.”

Of course, she is. “You do not know when to cease, female.”

“I can stop now,” she says, dropping her body down, lying there flat and lifeless.

Vekk, she knows how to play me. I’d much rather have her fire and fight beneath me than a female with no life to her. But I’m not one to give in to blackmail.

I roll onto my back, taking her with me, my cock still inside her.

“You think giving me the top will satisfy me?”

“I will satisfy you. Always.” I buck, throwing her off balance. She grabs hold of my arms to keep from falling, and then I begin in earnest. Lifting her by her hips and thrusting from below, slamming her down on me while watching her breasts bounce. It’s a lovely sight and feels so vekking perfect.

“Oh, god, that’s good,” she says, her words breathless.

Her soft nails dig into my biceps, spurring me to move faster, harder, if only to see the ecstasy cross her face. There’s no fear there, only trust and pleasure.

I love when she depends on me. Being needed again, not by the masses of our people, but by a single female who trusts me and enables me to feel again, is a gift I never expected the gods to bestow on me. I need a female who will share her hopes and dreams with me.

Then it strikes me. Tansey already has. She dreams of having her son again.

She lifts her hips, taking me deeper each time she sinks down on my cock. “Where…are…you…going?” she asks as she rides me.

Vekk, she’s persistent.

“Far from here.” I stop moving, letting her take over, fascinated by the slight circle her lips form as they open and her eyes close as she takes her pleasure.

When her walls squeeze my cock, milking me of my seed, my knot forms.

I fall completely still, unsure if I’m dreaming or awake. A male only knots one female in his life, the one he’s meant to be with. And I knotted Haaka. We had a youngling.

The gods have forgiven me. Tansey and I are meant to be. I’m able to knot her. And have younglings!

The thought of another youngling fills me with joy and terror.

Tansey’s eyes open, blue orbs staring down at me. I brush back the golden locks that fell forward, covering those lovely breasts. As I think of a future together with Tansey, I run my fingers over her hard nipple before cupping a breast.

“You’re a boob guy, aren’t you?”

The word doesn’t translate for me, but I understand her meaning. Yes, I’m fascinated by her fleshy globes, but more so by the female herself.

“I may be gone a week.” I’m not compelled to tell her any details, but I wish her to understand that I would stay here with her if I could.

“The number of days depends on how long it takes to gather the intel we need. I cannot say more. And you must not speak of my trip to anyone, especially our grak and graka.”

“I get it. They’ll know you’re talking to me when you shouldn’t be. ”

Not quite, but I let her believe this. I’ll explain all to her upon my return.

She attempts to lift off me, but can’t, due to my knot. “What the fuck?—”

“My knot will relax soon. Be patient.”

“Knot? What do you mean, knot?”

“My cock has knotted inside you, to keep my seed where it will increase the chance of creating a youngling.”

Her eyes narrow, anger seeping into her face. “If this is your way of trying to make me forget about Ethan, then screw you.” Again, she tries to lift from me but cannot. Anger transforms into panic as she twists her form, but cannot separate from me.

I grip her face with my hands to calm her. “I do not wish for you to forget your youngling. This is not by choice, Tansey. It is the gods giving me another chance.”

“Another chance for what? Having a woman in your furs every night? I don’t care how good the sex is, Verig, or how much I like you, I can’t stay. I’ve tried to make that clear. Release me, now.”

My thumbs glide over her cheeks before I slide my hand down her delicate throat. The effect is immediate. She falls completely still and stares at me with a hint of suspicion I haven’t seen in her in weeks.

“You are mine, whether you share my furs or not. My knot will relax and release you when it is ready, so behave yourself.”

“Screw you,” she curses, but that only makes my balls tighten and my cock harden inside her while knotted. It’s painful and utterly thrilling—and rare . I’ve never found sex so addicting as with this female.

I pull her down to me, lock her against my chest, and force my lips on hers.

She fights me briefly, then relents, her lips opening to me.

The taste of her mouth, the way her tongue glides over mine, reminds me of floating naked in a lake, with the sun shining down on me and not a worry in the universe.

Peace. This is what she offers me .

Her lips leave mine slowly, blue eyes looking down on me with confusion. I cannot enjoy any peace while she is torn.

My cock finally relaxes and unknots. “You can pull off now, if you wish.”

She lifts off me and leaves my furs, quickly stepping into her dress, the one she wore the day Baloq stole her from her colony. When she faces the door to leave, I wonder if she will return.

Her hand grips the door handle, her body and face turned away from me. “I’m not a bad person, Verig. Nor am I whole, not without my son.”

I fling the furs aside, rise, and pull her in against me. She clings to me as I hold her tight. Her eyes leak, the wetness striking my chest. Tears, they’re called. A sign of deep sadness, she once told me. I only know that they pierce my heart deeper than any sword could.

In this moment, I know I will do anything, risk anything, for this female…