Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Anna
Iwake up confused.
The room is bright and morning light streams through the windows. I’m in Keric’s bed, tucked under the covers, still wearing my oversized t-shirt and leggings. And then I remember why I’m not in my apartment in Truckee, that life is over.
The last thing I remember is falling asleep against Keric’s chest on the couch. The warmth of the fire. The safety of finally telling someone everything.
He must’ve carried me to bed.
My cheeks heat at the thought. Since I’m plus sized, I’ve never considered myself small enough to be carried anywhere, but Keric is so strong, I was probably light as air for someone like him.
The thought makes butterflies dance in my belly.
That powerful orc carried me to his bed and tucked me in.
He let me sleep peacefully while he must’ve spent an uncomfortable night on that too-small couch.
I stretch, noticing how deeply I slept. No nightmares, waking me up to check the exits and no panic about someone finding me, just real sleep for the first time in three years.
The smell of bacon drifts under the door and my stomach growls in response. Keric is awake and cooking. Faint sounds of movement tinkle from the kitchen, pans clank softly and I hear heavy footsteps.
I get up and pad to the bathroom in the hallway. Then I wash my hands and splash water on my face, brush my teeth and try to tame my short hair. I look tired still but better than yesterday. My face doesn’t have that pinched, hunted look anymore.
I take a breath and head out to find that sexy orc who listened to my whole story last night and then held me in his arms until I fell asleep.
The orc I secretly want in bed with me.
Keric stands at the stove, shirtless again. His black horns gleam in the morning light and those massive green shoulders are a sight to behold. Muscles ripple across his back as he moves and the tribal tattoos sleeve both arms and seem to shift with each motion.
Bacon sizzles in a pan. Eggs wait in a bowl. Toast sits ready by the toaster.
He notices me immediately, like he has some sixth sense for when I enter a room. A wide smile spreads across his face, exposing a bit of tusk.
My heart skips a beat.
“Good morning. Sleep well?”
“Yes.” I hover by the doorway, suddenly shy. “Thank you for carrying me to bed. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you like that.”
“You needed rest.” He turns back to the stove, flipping bacon with practiced ease. “And you’re perfect to carry.”
The compliment causes my face to heat. “I could’ve walked,” I say, moving into the kitchen properly. “You didn’t have to—”
“I wanted to.” He plates the bacon, cracks eggs into the pan. “You were exhausted. It was no trouble.”
I sit at the small kitchen table with a cup of coffee and watch him cook.
There’s something mesmerizing about the way he moves, like he’s done this a thousand times.
The domestic scene feels surreal, this massive orc making me breakfast in his cabin in the middle of the Maine woods while I’m in witness protection from a corrupt US Senator.
My life is truly insane and hasn’t let up much in the last three years. But somehow, sitting here watching Keric cook, it now has changed and feels almost… normal.
I continue to remain thrilled that he knows how to prepare our meals, considering my main skill is calling for takeout.
He told me yesterday that on the commune he always takes care of himself and doesn’t mind cooking at all.
I assume all of the orcs and the women who have chosen to live here mainly have home cooked meals considering it’s hard to get takeout or kinda far to go to a restaurant.
If I lived here, it would be very different from what I was used to, living in cities my whole life.
I thought Truckee was small, but this commune is very rustic compared to life back in California.
Not rustic in a bad way, in fact maybe just quieter in a nice way.
Keric pauses to serve me a full plate of food. Crispy bacon, perfectly scrambled eggs and buttered toast.
I clap with delight. “Thank you so much.”
Keric sits down across from me with his own plate that’s piled twice as high.
We eat in comfortable silence for a while.
I compliment his cooking and I swear a blush spreads across his cheeks.
He eats with gusto, those white teeth and tusks flashing.
I learn that this is a “human-style breakfast” he’s made in my honor, when in fact he’d normally eat just seasoned, dried elk meat and drink “orc brew”. Interesting.
I love the fact that he’s not mentioning our conversation last night.
Of course we need to talk about all of it again, but I’m perfectly happy taking a break and thinking of something else.
I’m also loving how he listened to me and was immediately on my side.
This is why I slept so good last night and why I’m reasonably stress-free this morning.
Keric has my back and so do all his friends and family. It’s a lovely feeling.
“Did you sleep okay on the couch?” I question as I spread strawberry jam on my toast.
“Yes.”
I don’t believe him for a second. That couch is way too small for his seven-foot frame.
I saw how cramped he looked last night before I fell asleep.
He must’ve been miserable. Guilt churns in my stomach.
“Thank you for breakfast,” I say. “And for everything. For listening to me and being there for me. I know this isn’t easy, taking on my problems, having me here, disrupting your life. ”
“You’re not disrupting anything.” His dark eyes hold mine. “I’m glad you’re here. You moving here with me is basically the best moment of my life.”
The sincerity in his voice makes my throat tight. I don’t know how to respond so I just quietly finish my meal.
Afterwards, I get up and clear the dishes.
He insists on helping with the whole cleaning up process, even though I’d already told him if he cooked, I’d clean.
He did this last night too, not letting me do any of the cleaning alone.
He has an oven and cooktop, but no dishwasher so we wash all the dishes by hand.
The two of us fall into an easy rhythm. I wash and he dries and our arms brush occasionally, each time I’m very aware of the heated contact.
I’m noticing everything about him now. The way his jaw clenches when he’s thinking deep.
The slight furrow between his brows when he concentrates.
The rumble in his chest when he speaks. We chat about the layout of the commune, because I’m super interested about the place where Keric was born and raised.
Finally, we finish the dishes and sit back down at the table with fresh coffee. The morning light is brighter now, warming the cabin. Everything feels peaceful, which means it’s the exact time for me to ask him something important.
I wrap my fingers around my mug. “You said you’d fully explain about the mating bond. What it means.”
Keric sets down his coffee and gives me his full attention.
“Yes,” he agrees. “I did. And now is as good a time as any.” He takes a breath, choosing his words carefully.
“Orcs find their brides when they scent compatibility. It is truly confirmed when reciprocal arousal is scented by the bride. The moment I caught your scent at the school, when Garlen lost control, I knew that you could possibly be mine, but I stayed back and didn’t move forward until the wedding.
My body became fully heated, for you. This was the first time this had ever happened. ”
I bite my lip and shift in my seat, loving the idea that his body became ‘heated’ for me.
His voice is low, serious. “But you have to know that orcs mate for life. There’s no divorce, no separation.”
I nod. “I know. I’ve heard about this and Ellie told me all about it too. But it’s still...” I trail off, not sure what to say.
“A lot,” he finishes. “I know. Which is why I’m explaining everything now. Before anything happens between us, you need to understand what you’d be agreeing to.”
I stare at my coffee, my mind racing.
“I understand that humans are biologically different and don’t have the same instincts as an orc,” he continues to patiently explain. “I know you won’t feel the instant pull the way I do and I will remain patient and give you time to catch up.”
“And if I never do?”
“Then you never do.” His expression is open, honest. “This is always your choice.”
“So living together—”
“That is the only part that is non-negotiable. For your safety you must remain in the cabin with me while on the commune. You are living with me and will stay under my protection because it’s commune custom.” His voice is firm on this.
I take a sip of coffee, trying to sort through everything he’s saying. “I’m attracted to you,” I admit quietly. “I have always been, since that first moment we truly met and then for reals when we sat together for dinner at the wedding and had time to talk.”
His nostrils flare slightly but he doesn’t move. Just watches me with that intense dark gaze.
“I gave you my number because I wanted to get to know you better,” I continue. “To maybe... see where it could go.”
“I know.”
I blink. “You know?”
“I could scent your reciprocal arousal at the wedding.”
My face flames. Oh my god. He could smell how I felt about him?
“That’s one of the reasons I got your number,” he continues, his voice gentle.
“Why I texted. Why I rushed to the bus station when I sensed something was wrong. I knew you felt something too. The attraction isn’t one-sided.
If I hadn’t know that I wouldn’t have responded the way I did, so certain that you needed to be with me, instead of on that bus. ”
I want to melt into the floor and die of embarrassment. “So orcs can just... smell when humans are attracted to them?”
“Yes. It’s part of how we recognize our future brides.”
“That’s incredibly embarrassing.”