Page 102 of Till Orc Do Us Part

She shifts, tucks herself against me easily, her head finding its familiar place at my shoulder. The swing sways in time with the waves.

For a long while, we say nothing.

Words aren’t always necessary—not anymore.

The stars seem impossibly close tonight, the kind of sky you could fall into if you weren’t careful. The porch hums with the weight of the life we’ve built, every moment etched into the grain beneath our feet.

Rowan’s fingers slip into mine—warm, steady.

She squeezes once. “We built something good,” she whispers.

My chest aches at the simplicity of it, at how easily she speaks the truth we’ve both earned.

I turn, press a kiss to her temple, slow and deliberate.

“We’re just getting started,” I say against her skin.

She exhales softly, smile curving her mouth, and leans into me fully.

And through wars and towers and shadows—I feel it.

Home.

Not in stone or steel. But here.

In the soft weight of her beside me.

The small, steady hand twined with mine beneath a sky full of stars.

In this life we made. Together.