Page 31 of The Rake OR The Orca Who Met His Match in a Selkie Desiring Revenge

Over the course of their journey, Elspeth told the story of the day that she and her brother had been kidnapped, and though she was vague on specifics, he grew to understand some of what she’d endured during her captivity. Though her pelt was not often visible, it was rarely far from her person.

She often wore it tucked around her shoulders, hidden under a cloak, or folded neatly in a bundle she could keep on her pack, her hand straying frequently to touch it. After a few days, she began touching him casually, though almost always over clothing. The faint scent of her arousal plagued him each evening when they settled in for sleep. Though he never pressed it, instead enjoying how she warmed to him, and the way it would flare when she grew bold enough to place a hesitant hand on his.

For one as experienced as he, such chaste touches should have quickly become mundane, a tantalizing overture that quickly fizzled out to become commonplace. Instead, each time she touched him was avictory. Each one became a momentous occasion that made him want to crow with joy. After all she’d experienced, she waschoosingto engage with him. Instead of habituating to the touches, he only craved more.

1. Generally speaking, the first time Aegir learns a face or disguise, he prefers to have a mirror to check. However, because he makes changes to his DNA usually based on a specific individual, he doesn’t require one. For frequent disguises, he has them all memorized.

2. When possible, Aegir mimics his orca coloring where he can.

3. Strictly speaking, all adults who live in Sanctuary are members of an organization called the Shades. This organization is who employs Aegir, specifically the subset of their guard.

Chapter eleven

Elspeth

IN WHICH THE TRAINING MONTAGE CONTINUES

According to Aegir, itnormally took a week to reach Berggeheimnis from wherethey’d come ashore, though with their extra stops, it had taken nearly two. She worried they were falling behind, but Aegir said he didn’t mind the extra time their stops added, because Jokith needed to round the southern tip of the continent in his boat,The Lady’s Revenge, and they’d still beat him by several days if she understood correctly.1

There were inns placed periodically along the road, so each night they had a warm meal and comfortable bed. Though they maintained the ruse of a married couple, Aegir always found a chair to sleep in.

Late at night, when her dreams were too much, she’d scoot to the end of the bed, to where he’d have proppedhis legs, and sneak hers underneath. Though she hated her nightmares, it became one of her favorite parts of the day. As a small child, her mother would sit on her bed, singing Feann and her to sleep. On the nights when she’d sat on Elspeth’s bed, Elspeth had loved to tuck her cold toes under her mother, and ever since, having weight on her legs had soothed her in sleep. As an adult, she’d made a pillow, weighted with sand to help, but as she didn’t have it with her, Aegir’s legs seemed the solution. Further, because he was asleep, it didn’t bother her in the least. In fact, over the week, the weight of his legs became a great comfort to her, and on the morning of their last day, she woke to find him still in his chair, instead of stealing away early to collect breakfast.

She cracked an eye in the early morning sun, and snuck a look at him. He caught her immediately, but not before she spied the soft smile on his face. He was looking at her and Elspeth was certain no one had ever looked at her so tenderly. She blushed and looked away, the warmth of his gazeoverwhelming her.

“I suppose it’s nearly time for breakfast?” she ventured.

“Yes, sorry, I had trouble leaving. I was too comfortable.”

That was all he said, before he left to fetch them food, giving her time to dress in peace.

They’d fallen into arhythm over their time together. Traveling until the late morning, training for several hours, eating a quick lunch, and then they’d be on their way to their next destination. After several days, Elspeth had grown used to Aegir shifting to look like her brother’s captor. He’d drop his centaur form and morph into their constructed facsimile of the elven soldier. Their schedule that day was no different though everything seemed… charged. Aegir had acknowledged her burrowing feet, so, they both knew, and what was more, they both knew that theother knew.It tilted everything and made every smile, every comment feel like a flirtation.

“Today,” he said, flipping a dagger in the air. “I want to see how you are at evasion. We can’t guarantee that there won’t be others bent on capturing you, and I need to be sure you have some skills to avoid it or freeyourself.”

Elspeth nodded, assuming the fighting stance he’d taught her. To begin, he stood surprisingly close, and while on previous days he’d often kept a genial air to their training, he set his face in a scowl.

When he reached out and grabbed Elspeth’s hand, her mind blanked. That face, and the firm hand on her arm, it was just too much. Her mindscreamedthat she was in danger, pumping her full of adrenaline and insisting that she flee. She wrenched her arm, trying to do just that, but his grasp was too firm.

Logically, rationally, she tried to remember that it was only Aegir, and they were only training, but her body pulsed with fear. It flooded her senses and she started shaking. Aegir spoke to her, but she couldn’t focus on his words, couldn’t even look at his face without a scream bursting from her.

Elspeth squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. No,shewas in charge of her mind. She could overcome this. If only she weren’t so weak, letting these horrible memories control her, she’d be able to get away from him.

“Ellie…” The whisper broke through her haze, the nickname he’d only recently started calling her reminded her of home and family. “Ellie, can you look at me?”

With a deep breath, she squeezed her eyes shut and then snapped them open. Instead of that horrible man, it was only Aegir who stood before her. By instinct, she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his torso so tight that he grunted.

“Happy to see me, then?”

She could only nod against his chest, deriving strength from him. Gods, Aegir smelled sogoodall the time, but up close? He flooded her senses, blocking out any of the terrible memories that threatened to overtake her. His tentative hand touched the back of her head, and she nuzzled into it, letting him know that she, miraculously, welcomed his touch.

They’d travelled for days, but she thought that this small glade where they practiced was her favorite place they’d been. The wind rustled through the trees, bringing scents of wildflowers that were so unfamiliar to her as to not even have a name she knew. The feeling of Aegir, though?Thatshe seemed to know as deep as her soul.

Reluctantly, she remembered their purpose. “We should get back to it.”

“No, I think this might be more important.”

“What?”