Page 91 of Till Orc Do Us Part

“For me?” I ask softly.

He nods, bouncing on his toes. “You earned it! You fixed the shack. You helped. You’re a Green Giant now.”

I glance toward Rowan’s shop, half-expecting to see her watching.

She isn’t.

But I will wear this anyway.

Carefully, reverently, I pin it to my shirt—over my heart.

Jamie beams brighter. “Now everyone’ll know.”

“They will,” I say quietly. “And I will wear it with pride.”

Later that day, in the first planning meeting with city officials—surrounded by sleek suits and sharp tongues—I do not remove the pin.

Let them see.

Let them know where I stand.

Thisis the future I will build.

That night, alone in my temporary quarters above the old shipwright’s office, I light a single lamp against the quiet.

The compass rests near my drafting pad. Jamie’s story lies open beside it.

I pick up my pencil.

No towers tonight.

No steel and glass.

I sketch the broad arc of a porch swing—wood slats, thick ropes braided strong, wide enough for three.

I trace the swing beneath a shaded overhang—framed by driftwood beams, facing the sea.

A place to rest.

For us.

The tide whispers beneath the floorboards, endless and steady. I sketch long into the night, and dream about what I might keep.

CHAPTER 27

ROWAN

Itell myself not to overthink it.

Which, of course, guarantees that I do.

Every damn step down the sea-slicked path toward Drokhaz’s beach house, my head runs wild. My heart pounds so loud it could drown out the waves if I let it.

It’s just a house,I think.

It’s just a visit. Just a man.

But my heart knows better.