Page 34

Chapter

Twenty-One

ARLON

Leaving Tessa in the inn’s courtyard is a decision I wish I didn’t have to make.

Still, she gave me her promise, and I hope we’ve progressed enough that she won’t steal my horses and escape the moment I turn my back on her.

I let out a long breath, hand the reins over to her, and look her in the eyes one last time. “I’ll only be a minute.”

Then I walk away from my mate, even though every instinct is screaming that this is a mistake.

I duck under the low doorframe and enter the busy taproom. The groom’s words prove true. The place is packed, all but two tables occupied with boisterous travelers, broody locals nursing mugs of ale, and even a small band of musicians strumming their instruments in the corner.

I spot a short, thin woman by the bar, watching the crowd with a satisfied gleam in her blue eyes.

“Are you Mistress Maeve?” I sketch a small bow, even as my stomach growls at the delicious scents wafting from the kitchen. “The groom outside said I should talk to her about a room.”

“That’s me,” she says, her gaze sharp. “Is it just you for tonight, or…?”

I shake my head. “There are two of us. And three horses.”

She purses her thin lips. “Hmm. I have a room, but it might be a tight fit for you. When my father was still alive, we had rooms made up for your kin specifically. Larger beds. But it’s been a few years since I’ve seen one of you traveling through here.”

“Really?” It’s a strange bit of news, given how close we are to King Trak’s kingdom. “I’m not from the Stonefrost Clan, but I thought they still traded with the duchy?”

“Not recently.” Mistress Maeve folds her arms over her chest. “Well, do you want the room or not? I can’t keep it for you, we’ll be turning people away tonight.”

“We’ll take it,” I say quickly. “I’ll go see to the horses, but if you could show my mate to our room, that would be great. And send up some hot water for washing?”

I place a handful of silver coins on the bar, enough to cover our room, dinner, the stable fee, and a hefty tip besides, according to the prices listed on the board behind her.

She gives me a satisfied nod and pockets the money. “Dinner is only served in the taproom. Don’t want any food upstairs.”

I’d hoped for a quiet dinner with Tessa, but this will have to do. I turn for the door, and it hits me again that she might have left me here. For a brief moment, I hesitate, my hand on the door latch.

Then I push through, and Tessa is there, standing beside her mare, speaking quietly with the old groom.

Relief slams into me, so powerful I sway on my feet. I don’t know what this means yet, but she didn’t leave.

Her smile, tentative and almost shy, is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. My heart thuds, and I wish I could grab her and swing her into my arms, kiss her like I’ve been wanting to for days.

Instead, I let myself just stare at her for a moment. She ducks her head, as if embarrassed, then peeks back at me from behind her mare’s neck.

Fuck, I want her.

I release a breath and turn my face up to the sky, relishing the first drops of rain pelting down on me. If I could, I’d find another cold stream to dunk myself in. Maybe that would douse the fire raging in my blood.

“We got a room,” I announce as I close the distance between us. “If you can grab your saddlebags, you can go ahead, and I’ll take them to the stables.”

Tessa helps me unbuckle the bags, then pets her mare’s forehead and leaves with one last look over her shoulder at me.

I stare after her, then send a quick thanks to the gods for giving me a mate who likes to wear trousers instead of skirts.

When I turn back to the horses, the old groom smirks at me.

“Young love, eh?” He unties Cricket’s lead from Pip’s saddle and leads the gelding into the stables, motioning for me to follow with the other two horses.

I don’t reply to his comment, because it’s not love, like I told Tessa earlier. There’s want—a pounding, thrumming need to hold her, to bury myself in her and never let go—but not love. Not yet.

She doesn’t feel it, either, and I wonder if she ever will.

“I remember when I first saw my Clara,” the groom says as he undoes Cricket’s gear with sure, practiced movements that speak of decades of experience. “Couldn’t keep my eyes off her.”

Reaching up, I unbuckle Pip’s bags, then heft the heavy saddle onto the rack on the wall opposite the stalls. “Are you still together?”

The man nods proudly. “Forty years and counting. Four children. We’ve five grandbabies now, the youngest just three weeks old.”

A pang of jealousy goes through me at his words. He’s made a quiet, honest life for himself and his family, and spent the majority of his years with the love of his life.

“I can take care of them,” he says, nodding at Tessa’s mare and Pip. “You go on. She’ll be waiting for you.”

Gods, I wish he was right. I don’t have the heart to tell him she’s just as likely to run away from me, though I guess that’s not entirely true anymore.

She had the opportunity to leave and didn’t take it.

That spurs me on, and I leave with a word of thanks to the old man and a quick pat for Pip. I cross the courtyard with quick steps and burst through the front door of the inn, where Mistress Maeve directs me toward the stairs with an incline of her head.

“Climb as high as you can, then turn right. Second door on the left after that,” she instructs, already bustling away to serve another group of patrons.

I shuck my jacket while climbing the stairs. The warm air from the taproom rises with me. At least we’ll be sleeping in warm beds tonight, safe from the rain.

I reach the first landing and discover that the house, which I thought only had three floors, has an attic as well. That’s where we’ve been shoved, into the last available room in a very full inn. The door is ajar, and shuffling sounds drift through it as I approach.

At the sound of my footsteps, Tessa appears at the threshold, her hands on her hips.

“Did you do this?” she demands in a furious whisper.

I frown. “Do what?”

She clicks her tongue, then pushes the door open the rest of the way, revealing the inside of our room.

It barely deserves the name. The small space has no windows, the ceiling is open to expose the beams and thick sheaves of straw used for the roof, and the bed…

The bed is a simple, low mattress raised a few inches off the floor on a roughly hewn wooden frame.

It’s shoved right up under the slanted ceiling, with just enough room on the side for a small table holding a washbasin, a pitcher of hot water, and a small lantern casting yellow light on the wooden walls.

Tessa’s saddlebags lie on the narrow strip of floor, blocking access to the other side of the room.

“She called you my husband ,” Tessa hisses through gritted teeth. “Any clue why she might think we’re married?”

I send her a sideways glance. “Did you correct her?”

“No.” Tessa nudges me into the room, then follows and shuts the door. “I didn’t want her to think I’m traveling alone with a man who’s not my husband.”

Another human concern from her, but I understand. She’s been burned before, and not by strangers. I still can’t believe her family abandoned her because she took a lover. If mine did the same, I’d be on the street a dozen times over. But orcs aren’t as prudish as that.

“I told her you were my mate,” I explain, stepping back to give her room. “She must have misunderstood.”

Tessa sighs and gestures at the space. “Well, it is what it is. She told me all the other rooms were full on the way up. Apologized for the lack of a window, too.”

I glance down at the mattress, which is narrower than any bed I’ve slept in since I was a child.

“Do you want me to sleep in the stables? You can have the room if you want.”

Tessa stares at me, her pretty eyes wide. “You’d really do that, wouldn’t you? You mean it?”

I drop my saddlebags on the floor and hang my jacket on a hook by the door.

“Aye, not a problem. Just let me wash here, then we can grab some dinner downstairs, and I’ll go talk to the groom.”

It’s better than having Tessa worry about sleeping next to me. But it tears me up, this distance between us. None of my friends who found human mates ever talked about it, but I wonder—did it hurt them just as much to see their mates’ reluctant expressions?

Then Tessa steps forward and places a hand on my arm.

“That’s all right. We can make do.” She releases me, frowns at the neatly made bed, then looks up at me. “Do you snore?”

My mind goes blank. “Er, maybe? No one’s ever complained…”

She narrows her eyes. “I will wake you if you do.”

“That’s fair.” I scratch the back of my neck, still in disbelief. “You’re agreeing to share the bed with me?”

“ Only the bed,” she clarifies, her cheeks flushing. “And you will keep your clothes on.”

I nod in agreement, though I already know that’ll be uncomfortable. I’m sweating as it is, and the room will only get warmer with the two of us packed in here.

“All right. Let’s wash, then. I’m starving.”

Tessa’s voice is a little louder than usual, her words bossy, and it takes me a moment to realize what’s going on. She’s embarrassed but doesn’t want to admit it. I hide a grin, not wanting to make the situation worse.

As we shuffle around each other to use the washbasin, it’s impossible not to touch. Her arm brushes mine, her boot catches the edge of my heel, my hair swishes past her shoulder—it’s a clumsy dance in a too-small space, and every touch leaves me humming with interest.

I splash water on my face, wishing it were cold instead of warm, and rebraid my hair. As I straighten, I smack my forehead against one of the roof beams.

“Fuck!”

My forehead throbs, but it’s my pride that takes the worst hit. Still, when I glance down at Tessa, sitting cross-legged on the bed, I see nothing but genuine concern in her hazel eyes.

“Do you need the salve?” she asks. “There’s still some left over.”

I shake my head. “Takes more than that to knock me out.”

“Yes, a good hit with a wooden board, I remember,” she quips, the corners of her lips lifting.

I laugh, and she stares up at me, her gaze fixed on my mouth. For a moment, I think she might be staring at my tusks. Then her scent blooms in the small room, sweet and so fucking powerful, it nearly knocks me off my feet.

Tessa wants me.

I inhale deeply, letting the realization wash over me. It calms me in a way I didn’t expect. It fans my need for her, too. She might not know what to do with that desire yet, but the fact that she’s attracted to me is a fucking relief.

I thought I might have imagined the moment at the stream earlier today or that she was simply admiring my body. But this is different.

She wants me .

I reach down and offer her my hand. “Come, wife. It’s time to go to dinner.”