Page 14

Chapter Thirteen

Susara

C aivid made it to the shelter so quickly it was like he’d traveled there a million times already.

I couldn’t see the grazing land that was now a pond in the darkness, and I was glad for it.

The shelter itself was just a bunch of sticks and downed logs piled on top of a few boulders, with a narrow opening at the front.

From most sides, it would look like nothing more than a bramble bush, but inside, it was large enough for my father and me to sleep side by side.

My eyes had more or less adjusted to the darkness by the time Caivid set me down in front of the shelter, but the interior was so dark I couldn’t help feeling nervous. Usually, I would check each part of it with my crook to make sure no animals had bedded down before trying to enter.

Then it occurred to me. “We left my crook behind.”

Caivid was a dark, looming shadow next to me with only the glowing of his eyes to see by, and after that last kiss, I was having a hard time meeting them.

Fades, he’d queued me up so strong and swift I still felt damp between my legs.

My longing for him was thick in the back of my throat and my stomach quivered with want to yank him into the shelter and. . . and. . .

My cheeks were so hot they may as well be on fire.

“Would you like me to go back for it?” Caivid’s voice was a husky rumble. Wool and wails! Even that was making me squirm. “Will the humans find it?”

My breath caught. “Oh. Perhaps they will. . .” They’d know immediately it was mine, too. “Maybe I should send a message to my father and the headman. If those villagers go back and report me missing, he’ll be so worried.”

Caivid nodded and whistled low into the night. I waited for the flapping of bird wings to sound. But there was nothing.

He whistled again, this time more sharply, and it was then that I remembered. “I tried this before. For some reason, the birds wouldn’t come here. It’s odd for them to ignore our calls, isn’t it? My father and I have sent messages to the headman from this shelter in the past.”

Caivid’s brow furrowed in confusion. “This. . . is an oddity I should report to Sythcol.”

Disappointment made me go cold. “I suppose we should go back then.”

Caivid was silent for a long moment before finally murmuring, “Do you want to go back?”

I absolutely did not want to go back. Not even in the slightest. What I wanted was for Caivid to kiss me again, to pull him into the shelter and forget anyone else in the world even existed.

A rumble sounded from deep in Caivid’s chest. A warm, rich sound that made me gasp. “All right then, sunshine. How about we linger for just a few moments? Just long enough to. . . sate you.”

To sate me? “Are we really doing this?” My voice came out so breathless I could barely hear it. “We both know it’s not a good idea for me to play conquest for you right now.”

Caivid’s eyes went soft in a way that made me melt. “Begetting you with child is the very last thing I have on my mind right now, sunshine.”

It was? Disappointment hollowed out my chest. “Then what did all those kisses mean?”

I could hear the smile in his tone as he said, “I’m not going to get you pregnant, Susara, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have plans for you. Should you consent, of course.”

Oh Fades, yes , I was consenting! “What exactly is your plan?” My voice was far too eager, but I couldn’t help it.

He hummed under his breath. “You told me that my tongue was only good for speaking.”

I blinked as he leaned down close to me. All the way until I could feel his hot breath curling around my ear.

He whispered, “Let me prove to you it’s good for more than that.”

A full-body shiver coursed all the way through me and my pussy throbbed.

Fades, how was it that just hearing him whisper could make my body melt like this?

“You can still say no, sunshine,” he said, and my toes curled. “I can still take you back to your crook. To your father. To your high walls, where you’ll be safe from all predators. Even me.”

My breath hitched at the sharp hint of worry that darkened his tone. I reached around his neck, gathering his cropped hair in my hands as I held him. Our noses were almost touching as I murmured, “I’m not going anywhere , Caivid. You’re the one who’s supposed to keep me safe now.”

His exhale was laced with pure relief, and then he chuckled. The warm sound tipped me on my axis and lit a fire in me until I burned .

“Then I will, sunshine, and I’ll protect and please you so that you’ll never want for any other protector for as long as you live.”

My breath caught in my throat. That should be too much, shouldn’t it? I’d just met him earlier that day. He was basically a stranger.

But as I took his hand in mine and rubbed my finger over his knuckles, I looked into his glowing green eyes, and I couldn’t help but think that this was where I was meant to be. Right here. With him.

I turned and crawled into the shelter, pulling him along behind me.

The inside was so dark I couldn’t see a thing, but I trusted Caivid would tell me if he saw a threat.

I found the blankets near the back and laid them out on the packed dirt floor.

The warmth they provided was decent, but it was nothing compared to the heat Caivid brought with him as he crawled inside.

“There’s a door made of moss there on the side.” My voice was shaky. “Keeps the heat in.”

“Good,” he murmured. “The last thing I want is for you to get cold.”

I doubted anything could make me chilled at this point. My pussy pulsed with heat.

He placed the door over the opening and all the light from the moon and stars was cut off completely. I could only see the glowing of his eyes now. He crawled toward me.

I reached out and stroked down his bare chest, outlining each of his abs.

He sucked in a breath. I could feel him trembling under my fingertips, and I didn’t think it had anything to do with the chilly ground. My mind reeled thinking about such a powerful male bending to my touch.

I leaned in to kiss him, and instead, he flopped down next to me. I only had time to blink with surprise before he gripped my hips and pulled me on top of him. My legs straddled his torso and my hands rested on his bare chest .

“The ground is too cold for you,” he murmured in the darkness and my heart skipped a beat.

Wool and wails! I could feel every trembling breath he took between my legs. My pussy clenched. I wanted to get closer to him , needed to get closer.

And my dress was getting in the way of that.

“I’m going to take this off.” I adjusted so I could start unbuttoning my dress.

His eyes went huge and his breath came out shaky.

Fades, he had a right to be shocked. I’d never been so wanton in my entire life. I’d had a few men in the past, but mostly because they pursued and I was curious. They’d always taken the lead.

I got the front of my thick, woolen gown open. The air was chilly on my overheated skin. My underdress was a thin cotton that did nothing to hide my body. The way Caivid’s eyes fixed on me with such longing made me squirm.

He hissed and gripped my hips tight to stop me. I could feel the swell of his cock, already hard, against my ass.

How big was he? Should I worry about it?

“Fuck, Susara.” His fingers stroked the curve of my hips. “You’re so gorgeous you make it hard to breathe .”

I chuckled. “You sure that isn’t because I’m sitting on your stomach.” I shifted my hips, purposefully moving back to rub his cock.

He let out a groan and his hold on my hips became so tight it was almost painful. “Careful, woman.”

My brows pinched. “I thought that was where we were going?”

He exhaled slowly as if trying to get his bearings.

“I’m going to use my tongue on you , Susara.” He growled low and shifted me further up his body. I let out a yip as he had me straddle his chest, far away from his jutting cock. “We aren’t going to do anything with me. ”

Disappointment brewed hot behind my eyes. “Why? I’m not worried about you getting me pregnant on accident. I know orcs have to rut a woman twice in the same night to get her pregnant. Can’t we just stop after your first spill?”

“No.” I heard him swallow in the dark. “I can’t stop, Susara.”

I blinked my eyes wide. “You. . . can’t?”

“No. Never have been able to. After the first time I cum, the need to release my second spill is instant . I lose my mind with the need to finish the rut. ”

“Oh!” Fades help me. The image of him out of his mind with lust for me, bucking and squirming and begging me for release, had my pussy clenching so hard it was almost painful.

He sucked in a long breath and his pupils dilated. “Susara, please. We can’t both be out of our minds.”

“Yes, we can. I’ll just make sure your first spill lands on the ground.” A wicked idea formed in my mind and I grinned. “Or maybe I should suck you off and swallow the chance.”

“What?” His fingers curled around my face and forced me to meet his eyes again. “ What did you say?”

Fades, he looked half gone already. “Why so shocked? You said you wanted to use your tongue, so I may as well return the favor.”

“I don’t think you realize what you’re asking for.” Fades his voice was vibrant, alive. It pooled liquid heat in me so thick I could hardly swallow down my longing.

“I know exactly what I’m asking for, Caivid. I may not have had an orc before, but I’m not an innocent.” I trailed my finger down his cheek to the sharp point of his tusk. “And the women who have played conquest before like to talk .”

He let out a growl so low it vibrated from the souls of my feet all the way up to the top of my head. “My inability to control myself isn’t the only concern, Susara. I’m larger than most human males by twofold. My cock may not even fit inside you.”

Oh fuck . That should have worried me, but it didn’t. Instead, it made me ache with wanting to try.

“How much?”

His brows pinched in confusion. “How much what ?”