Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Abydos
I woke with a human in my bed.
In my arms.
And I was surprised how strange it didn’t feel. Perhaps it was because of what we’d shared last night. And then again in the shower. And in the early hours of the morning.
Unable to help myself, I nuzzled my nose into Riven’s hair, pulling her flush against me. She was better than any pillow—softer, better smelling. Last night I’d marked her with my scent, and my Kteer preened happily.
Not sated, but satisfied.
My little human had met me nose-to-nose, taking all of me, and I don’t think I’d ever forget those sexy little determined noises she’d made as she slowly sank on top of my cock. Riven was so much smaller than me, I still couldn’t believe she’d taken me on her first try.
And while, in the past, I hadn’t been interested in training or stretching any of my lovers, last night when she’d climbed into my lap and I smelled her arousal, I’d known I’d do it for her. I’d been willing to exercise patience if it meant I could have her…but I didn’t have to.
My lips brushed against her scalp.
Gods below, a human. Not only had I fucked a human, but I’d taken her back to my bed. I’d never done that before—my liaisons had always been in rented rooms or in my office. But if I hadn’t taken her to bed, I wouldn’t have enjoyed myself at eleven. Or at two in the morning. Or in the shower.
This isn’t fucking.
The thought came through so suddenly, so clearly, that I stiffened, and Riven made a little noise of disapproval and wriggled closer, which allowed my hand to cup her breast.
No, this hadn’t been fucking.
I’m not sure what it was, but it hadn’t been just about sexual satisfaction, had it?
Of course I’d noticed the times when Riven had frozen as I’d touched her. I remember being the same way after my scars—fuck, I was still that way. But she’d kissed my ruined face, my ruined tusk, and told me I didn’t deserve to be in pain.
And then she’d been brave enough to show me her scars. To let me touch them. To let me worship them, the same as she’d done for me.
My little human was the strongest female I knew.
A human.
But last night—fuck me, a lot happened last night, didn’t it?
I snorted softly, ruffling Riven’s hair.
Before…this, I’d learned a lot about Eastshore.
About myself. About humans. After last night, after seeing their easy acceptance, their welcomes, their greetings and laughter and teasing around my brothers… Humans didn’t seem so scary.
Is that what this was about?
It is.
Vengeance, Inc. The way I’d walled myself off for so long. My hatred. It was because I was scared of humans. Hells, I refused to call Riven by her name for the longest time because of that fear.
But now?
Unconsciously, I flexed my hips forward, my rigid cock sliding along the cleft of her ass. No, this wasn’t fear. My Kteer began to growl.
This was something else.
In my arms, Riven huffed what might have been laughter. “Good morning. I see you have plans for the day.”
How long had she been awake? I’d been…distracted.
Making my voice stern, I squeezed her tit and rumbled, “I did have plans for the day. I’m considering canceling them all to deal with something more important.”
“More important, hmm?” She was smiling when she wriggled in my arms and rolled over. “Anything I should know about?”
“Yes.” Pushing myself up on my elbow, I pretended to scowl down at her. “Disciplinary action against my favorite employee. She’s late for work.”
Riven slapped her palm against her chest. “Oh no! I’m always such a good girl! I got my boss’s permission and everything!” There was a teasing light in her green eyes. “Punishment? Like a bad girl?”
“A very bad girl,” I growled, and when I loomed over her, Riven laughed outright and opened her legs to me.
But I wasn’t going to fuck her yet. I’d learned all sorts of things about human females last night. For instance, did you know they have this little bud right above their pussies? Riven said it was called a clitoris, but all I knew was that it drove her absolutely mad when I sucked lightly on it.
This morning, she tasted of me, and I made her scream my name twice before I carried her into my huge bathroom for a soak in the jacuzzi tub…where she climbed on top of me again and came twice more before I allowed myself to release.
“Mmmm,” she purred happily as I bundled her into a heavy towel. “Being a bad girl has its benefits. I need a nap.”
“Then take one.” I dropped a kiss to her brow as I laid her back on the bed. “I’ll go make us some breakfast—”
Riven—still wrapped up like a burrito—sat straight up. “Let you go banging about in my kitchen without me? Screw that. Get me out of here, I don’t trust you not to use metal spatulas on those new nonstick pans.”
When I began to laugh, she—now free of the confining terrycloth—smacked me.
Laughter. When was the last time I’d laughed? I wasn’t even sure.
A half hour later, I found myself in her kitchen, leaning against the counter as I thoughtfully watched her blend smoothies as the cream cheese roll-ups fried in one of the new pans.
My phone vibrated in the pocket of my sweatpants, and I pulled it out to see an email from Sylvik asking a question about yesterday’s reports.
On a whim, I texted him: Take the day off. I think I’m going to chill here, we can discuss the numbers tomorrow.
Almost immediately, my phone began to ring with his number, and I was grinning when I jabbed the answer button.
“Good morning, Sylvik,” I said, knowing it was early enough out there that he would’ve just been settling into his office.
“I’m sorry I didn’t give you more warning so you could sleep in. ”
“Abydos! What’s wrong? Have you been kidnapped? If you’re being held hostage, tell me you’re craving pineapple, and I’ll call in SWAT Team Six!”
I began to laugh.
“Gods of the ancestors, it’s worse than I thought!” my assistant exclaimed, hearing my laughter. “You’re ill, aren’t you? Crap, I’ll research the closest trauma centers—”
“I’m fine. Pineapple is fine, but I’m not craving it.” When Riven glanced over with a raised brow, I waved away her concern. “I’m just…interested in having a lazy day today.”
“What. The. Actual fuck, boss? This is not like you.”
I sighed dramatically. “Look, I met someone, Sylvik. I’m interested in spending the day…learning about her.”
“Her?” I heard the other male’s smile. “Praise to Malla the Beginner, you do have a heart!”
“Screw you, Sylvik.”
“Have fun, Abydos. If you’re taking tomorrow off too, let me know before I go to sleep tonight, please.”
After I hung up, I found myself staring down at my phone. I’d known Sylvik for years, having met him in Bramblewood. He was one of the local orcs, and I’d quickly come to rely on his talents for organization, his obsession with spreadsheets, and his ability to keep me in line.
He’d devoted his life to me, and he was well-paid for it. I relied on him for everything—not just in my business, but arranging shit for me so I wouldn’t have to go out into public. He took care of me, and clearly worried.
But all this time…had he been my friend as well?
“Everything okay?” Riven asked, heading toward me with that silver tray stacked high with the sweet roll-ups and bacon and cheesy scrambled eggs. “There’s pineapple in the smoothie.”
“Good.” I took the tray from her and bent to kiss her lips. “Everything’s amazing.” And it was. “Do you want to join me for breakfast?”
I watched her hesitate, glancing at the little table set against the bay window. The kitchen—like the dining room, the living room, my office, and my suite of rooms—was located along the cliffside of the house. I remembered the view of that thunderstorm the night we’d kissed for the same time.
“Abydos, are you sure?” she finally asked. “I’m okay eating here, honestly. You have that amazing dining room.”
“And the view is the same here,” I announced, plopping the tray down on the small table. “Eat with me.”
So she did, and the awkwardness dissipated.
Riven asked me questions—first about Sylvik, then about my company in general.
I found myself proudly telling her about how Vengeance, Inc.
had grown from nothing to the premier lithium producer in this country, and how the shareholders—the other orcs, most of whom lived here on Eastshore—had grown rich right alongside me.
I told her about the males who worked for me out in Colorado, and how they’d been interested in learning more about Eastshore, and she asked interested and insightful questions.
And after breakfast, I took her right back to bed. And after a few more orgasms, we napped—a nap! When had I last napped? In the afternoon she suggested a walk through the nature sanctuary, and I was surprised to hear myself agreeing.
By that evening, by the time I was helping her stir the mac and cheese with butternut squash—with a wooden spoon, not a metal one—I felt a sense of peace I hadn’t expected.
Maybe it was the changing of the season, maybe it was the fresh air in the pines as we’d walked.
Maybe it was the way she’d slipped her hand into mine.
I glanced at her and felt my lips curling. Peace. How was it possible things were so different now? It had only been a day.
But it was the first day of a tentative new routine. My instinct was to sweep Riven up, keep her close, take care of her. But she was strong, she was brave, and she could stand up to me in a way not even Sylvik did. I needed to tread lightly.
The morning after our reprieve, I went back to work, and so did Riven, teasing me about the grocery order she had to make. I insisted she choose a menu she liked as much as I did—no more lamb chops and plenty of cheeses—and although she’d rolled her eyes, she was grinning when she did so.
We ate together now, and somehow, the food tasted better.