CHAPTER 9
Krusk
Ipaced inside my brother’s apartment, ignoring the half-carved wood that sat everywhere while I stewed internally.
When we’d parted ways at the restaurant, I’d waited for my mate to come out, hoping that I would be able to drive her home.
I’d stood there for almost an hour before I opened the door a little, lifting my head to scent the air.
Gone.
She’d left and she’d taken another way out so that I wouldn’t be able to follow her. While I appreciated that she was concerned for her safety, I also wished she’d been able to allow me to escort her so that no one would try to touch what was mine. If another male so much as looked at her…
My thought trailed out, but I heard the terrible growl leaving my chest and there wasn’t a way for me to suppress it.
I didn’t know how she got around. If she had a car, she’d have to start getting comfortable with me walking her to and from it.
And if she didn’t have a car, then she was either going to let me drive her everywhere she needed to go or buy her a car.
Not knowing was going to drive me insane, but my brother had talked me out of tracking her down by her scent and instead waiting for him to dig up the information on her that I would need. Enka had slapped me on the back with pride while Tasia had narrowed her eyes at me.
“No stalking,” she’d insisted, tapping my chest with a firm finger. “If you do that, she’s just going to get angry with you.”
“I’m not stalking,” I muttered, scuffing my shoe on the floor, admonished. “And Enka followed you!”
“But she ran away,” Enka insisted, holding his hands up as though he was completely innocent. “I needed to stalk her.”
Tasia pursed her lips and rolled her eyes as Gabbi yawned hugely, lifting her head from where she’d been consistently gnawing on Enka’s shoulder, smacking her lips together and blinking at everyone.
She held her hands out to her mother who took her for a quick cuddle and kiss, before returning her glare to Enka.
I grinned as I realized that her ire was now focused on him. “You never need to stalk anyone,” she huffed.
“But—” Enka started, trailing after her as she headed for their SUV.
I had only just learned to drive the bigger vehicle as well—in preparation for when I met my mate and she birthed our ten younglings.
I was nowhere near that goal yet, but I still held the hope strong in my chest. She hadn’t appeared to be repulsed by my brothers at the table, so I was fairly certain that she didn’t have anything against orcs the way some humans did. It was more likely that she didn’t like me.
Since we’d only just met, I wasn’t sure what I’d done, but whatever it was, I was sure that with time and perseverance, she’d recognize that I wasn’t as bad as she thought I was. She’d give me a chance and then I’d be able to get her to fall in love with me.
“Don’t touch that,” Savla called from where he was sitting with a laptop—a portable magic box—on his legs. I hadn’t even noticed that I’d lifted one of his carvings—this one was barely taking shape so I wasn’t sure what it was—and tossed it between my hands.
“Sorry,” I said, contrite. I hadn’t meant to. Back on Hellplane, when he’d had less time for his craft, I would find pieces like this all over the cave. Now that he was here, it was unusual for him to not finish his work.
Confused, I looked around the room for what felt like the first time. Unfinished pieces littered almost every surface.
“Lost your muse?” I asked, and he gave me a sharp look, searching my face, before shaking his head.
“I just haven’t…” he trailed off, staring into the distance for a long moment and then going back to typing on the laptop.
I was used to that from him. If he didn’t want to explain further, or wasn’t sure how to, he’d stop talking. I hid a smile, rubbing my palm against the back of my neck before making my way to a seat.
“You can tell me,” I said with a small shrug. “Maybe I can help.”
He kept typing, but I knew he heard me, because he nodded. That was the most that I was going to get from him, so I ran my palms over my knees, trying to be patient while the muscles in my leg twitched with the need to return to Emma.