13. Rosey
Chapter 13
Rosey
A s I brushed my teeth, showered, and tugged a sundress over my head, stuffing my feet into my sandals, I kept grinning.
Ostor . . .
I didn’t know what to make of what had happened this morning, but I’d spent so much time analyzing what I had and hadn’t done with Jacob to do it all over again with my new sorta boyfriend. There was nothing wrong with letting this play out however life intended.
When I emerged from the bathroom, I found him sitting on the deck, a cup of coffee in his hand.
“Yum.” I swiped it from him and with a laugh, took a long drink. I gagged and coughed, smacking my chest, my eyes watering. “What . . .” I croaked, glaring down at it. “What is this?”
“The coffee smelled weak, so I emptied many of the tiny containers into my cup along with the pale brown water. I strained the contents of the containers out when they kept catching on my tusks, but did I miss some of the grit?” He looked up at me with complete innocence.
“They’re called pods, the insides are called coffee grounds, and usually, one pod is enough per cup.”
“Not for me.” He fed me a tusky smile. “In case you haven’t seen, I’m strong. It takes a hearty drink to maintain my power.” He flexed his arm, making an impressive muscle I wanted to run my tongue across. Would he let me?
He totally would. And because I knew that for a fact, I didn’t do it. Coming from his magical tongue and fingers was one thing. Licking him in return was another bridge I wasn’t yet sure I wanted to cross. We barely knew each other.
How long did it take to decide if someone was “the one”? I’d heard others say they knew the instant they met the other person.
Was that what the dreamy feeling in my heart was trying to tell me?
Macy said she knew the moment she met Jacob. It was clear he’d felt the same.
And that thought made my smile fade. I handed Ostor his mug and glided my fingers across his shoulder, because I didn’t want him to think I was upset with him, I went to the hallway and made myself a cup of coffee—using only one pod.
He passed me in the hall, his big hand stroking along the back of my waist as he strode into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.
I'd finished my drink by the time he emerged, his hair wet and tousled, dressed in a snug white t-shirt and his swim trunks. After plunking his cowboy hat on his head, he joined me on the balcony, where he drained the rest of his coffee and stared toward the ocean.
“Let's have breakfast at the buffet,” I said. “And then we can take a walk on the beach.”
“I’d love that.” He shot me a shy smile, as if he was as unsettled about what we'd done in bed as me, but also like me, he didn't know how to put it into words.
And maybe we shouldn't. We had three more days together. We'd talk, have fun, and when we returned home, we could decide if we wanted more.
Although, I was beginning to believe I wanted much more from Ostor than one long weekend.
We ate breakfast and strolled through the resort, aiming for the front and the turquoise water of the Gulf of Mexico.
When we reached the beach, we left our sandals near the outdoor shower, tucking them beside neatly stacked others, his comically larger than all the rest. He wasn't the only orc here, just the only orc cowboy I’d seen so far.
“Do you always wear that hat?” I asked, squinting up at him before sliding my sunglasses off my forehead to cover my eyes.
“I don't have any other hat to cover my face.” He stroked his fingers across my cheek as if the gesture was completely natural. No one was watching, so he didn't have to pretend.
And I loved it.
“Would you rather I didn't wear my hat?” He tugged it off and swept it out, giving me a cute bow. “My oldest brother, Dungar, insists all the gals love a male in such a hat.”
“Gals, huh?”
He nodded fast.
I grinned because he was right. I couldn't stop staring at him, touching him, though I kept my gestures as casual as I could. Did he feel the same way? “You do look amazing in your hat.”
He placed it back on his head. “I won't wear it to the pool today. I don't mind if it gets wet. It's a working hat. But I noticed no one else was wearing one. They're wearing . . .” He frowned. “I don't know what that style of hat is called. It's snug to the head and has a brim across the front shaped in a half oval.”
“Baseball cap. We can get one of those in the shop.”
“Only if you allow me to pay this time. Not only that, but I also want to buy you something special. Something you can keep and look at or wear and . . .” His swallow took a long time to go down. “Something that'll help you remember.”
I had a feeling I was never going to forget this weekend and Ostor. “Alright.” I tried to keep my voice breezy, but it came out in a croak, because emotions kept lashing through me. I didn't know what to make of them. I'd liked Jacob and look where that got me.
What would keep Ostor from doing the same thing?
The second the thought went through my mind, I stomped it flat with my heel. The two males were completely different. While it hurt when it happened, Jacob was honest with me. How could I be upset when it was clear he adored my sister? I wanted Macy to be happy, and that happiness was linked with Jacob.
When had I started to accept that fact and find peace with it in my heart?
Not long after I met Ostor.
We stepped onto the beach and paused.
“This place is paradise,” I breathed.
The soft, powdery sand was speckled here and there with tiny pearlescent shells and fragments of coral that glinted in the morning sun. Grains moved like silk against my soles, and the air felt warm but not hot, carrying with it the familiar briny smell of salt water, fresh air, and seaweed.
Ostor stepped beside me, rolling his muscular shoulders as if the ocean breeze was massaging the tension out of them. He bent to touch the sand, sifting it slowly between his fingers, studying it as if he was determined to memorize its texture. “The surface world is full of wonders, isn't it?”
“Yeah.” I smiled and watched as he brushed the sand off on his thighs, sunlight glistening on his green skin. “Does the orc kingdom have similar places?”
“Somewhat.” His brow furrowed. “The ground below isn’t bright with sand like this.” His attention dropped to the gritty white grains. “In our kingdom, the sand is darker, almost black, and small crystals mixed in make it shimmer like polished silver. This . . .” He gestured with his hand. “It’s as if the earth stretches out to meet the brightness of your sky.”
It was hard to explain how it felt, hearing him talk like that, as if everything was exciting because it was my world and not his. Warmth settled somewhere deep in my belly, and I sent my gaze to the horizon where the sky met the endless expanse of ocean, blending from turquoise to indigo to the palest of blues.
He reached for my hand, pausing as his fingers brushed mine. I looked up, catching his eyes—dark, questioning. Vulnerable.
Did he think I’d shrug off his touch?
A part of me wanted to say something light, to pass this off like touching, looking at each other, and what happened in the bedroom this morning didn’t pull at my heartstrings. But trust flickered between us, him offering, me accepting. That mattered more than the overanalyzing thoughts pinging around in my head.
With a smile that held some of my own vulnerability, I wove our fingers together, squeezing his hand.
His gaze softened. My heart gave a little kick, and something akin to warmth unfurled there too. It was too soon for more. Too early to say what this feeling was. But if anything, I knew Ostor wouldn’t hurt me. And that was enough for now.
He tugged his sunglasses from his bathing suit pocket and slipped them on to shield his eyes, and we walked down toward the ocean, our footsteps scrunching on the sand. When we reached the waterline, I stared at the vast beauty. A wave rushed in, washing over my toes, making me grin. Cool water swirled around my ankles, splashing before retreating.
“It’s colder than I expected,” I said, a freeing laugh rising up my throat.
Ostor contemplated the water as it swept across his feet. “Not too cold.” He took a step forward, letting more wash over him, his green toes wiggling in the buffeted sand. “So strange. It feels alive.”
I joined him, the water splashing against my knees. “Alive?”
“Yes.” He watched the next wave roll in. “We have vast rivers. The water flows endlessly there. But there’s nothing that moves like this in the orc kingdom. It roars in and then backs away, only to come at us again. Alive, like a fluid beast.”
I waved toward the slice of a moon nearly hidden in the sky. “Tides create the rush of water up the shore, the waves, but don't ask for an explanation beyond that. As I said, science has never been my forte.”
He nodded. “Our lakes sparkle from the minerals coating the bottom. but the currents move sluggishly compared to this. They never catch you by surprise. Can you turn this off?”
I laughed, picturing him trying to wrestle with a stubborn current or the moon itself. “It's endless, timeless. The water flows up and retreats. Like life, I suppose. We're born, we live, and we die. Then the cycle is repeated with someone else. The ocean’s got a mind of its own. You can’t tame it or slay it.”
“I don’t think I’d want to,” he said, half to himself, as the next wave hit our legs. “It fights, but there's a beauty to its battle.”
We turned and walked parallel to the water, the waves teasing our feet. On our right, grand resorts gleamed and palm trees swayed in the breeze. Fellow tourists strode along the shore while others jogged on the packed sand. Couples strolled hand in hand like us, and kids holding bright plastic buckets and shovels built fortresses in the sand. The wind kicked up little gusts, shooting warmth around us, and I could tell today was going to be another scorcher.
Peace settled over me as we took it all in.
“So, what do you think?” I asked, glancing up at him.
He didn’t answer right away, his gaze locked on where the ocean met the sky, his fingers snug around mine.
“I think . . .” He smiled a grin so unguarded it made my chest expand. “I think it's nice to be here because I’m with you.”
For once, I didn’t overthink my response. I let the feeling settle, let this moment linger to give it what it deserved.
“Yeah,” I said, squeezing his hand. “It is.”
Sunlight glimmered on the water’s surface, casting the world below in shifting silver and blue, so bright I still had to squint behind my sunglasses.
There was something about walking here with Ostor, something about just . . . being with him alone, that did something wonderful to me, though I couldn’t define what the feeling might be. It didn’t need a label. I didn’t need to think about what came next or try to figure out where whatever this was between us could be going.
For once, I was okay with not knowing.
I’d been holding onto anxiety about this weekend, about Jacob and Macy, about the whole awkward situation of faking a relationship with a guy I barely knew. But walking with Ostor made all that drift away.
We continued in comfortable silence for a while, swerving around clusters of people, tracing the tide’s edge as it ebbed and flowed against the pearly white sand.
As we passed a group of kids splashing in the shallows, Ostor tilted his head, curiosity creeping into his voice. “What do your sea gods think of all this water?”
“Some cultures have myths about sea gods, but most people just come to enjoy the beach without thinking about it that way. It’s a place for relaxation, family time, fun.”
“Hmm.” He squinted out at the waves, as if searching for a deity shrouded somewhere in the foam.
We turned to head back, but he stopped walking, shifting around to face me. He tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear, his fingers lingering on my cheek. “Thank you again.”
“For what?”
“For this. For everything. I know this weekend isn’t what you expected, but I want you to know that you’ve made it something more. Something special.” His brow pinched, like he was trying to find the right words. “The orc kingdom is far, far away, but I don’t believe I’ve ever felt so at home.”
My chest tightened in the best way possible, and I held his gaze and smiled back.
“Me neither,” I whispered.