Chapter 29 Rychell
Rychell
My heart is beating a mile a minute. Halvard reaches out to pick a leaf from my hair.
“I’ve made a mess of this evening,” he says. “I’m sorry.”
I look at my hands. Dirt is smeared over the back of my knuckles from the rough landing. Halvard’s hair holds a chunk of moss and mud covers his right forearm.
I meet his eyes, and a wall of ice splinters inside me.
Warmth spreads through me and I’m as light as a Nocturne moth.
A smile stretches my lips. Ivydowns is paid for.
I can arrange a trade of sorts with Osric to ease myself with the gift.
Nate loves Halvard, and honestly, I do, too.
I know this handsome orc won’t leave us.
He’s good, through and through. Steady, but also exhilarating.
He won’t yell or shout, and even if we do end things at some point, Halvard wouldn’t be cruel.
My heart knows that, and finally, my head is able to hear that truth.
As my smart, sweet son told me, love is messy.
Without that risk of heartbreak, I can’t offer Nate a father.
I can’t love a male that my heart and soul has so obviously chosen.
I’ve been ridiculous to think I can live fully without some potential hurt.
That’s not how life is. Nate is a mess, and I wouldn’t change a thing about him.
Halvard is worth the risk of pain for both of us.
I smile at Halvard now and drink in his patient, devoted presence.
A tingling erupts over my chest, and I know exactly what that feeling means. Somehow, I know. It’s magic.
Love is magic.
A chuckle escapes me, and Halvard tilts his head, confused.
“I think messes might be my favorite, actually.”
Halvard’s eyes go wide, the copper bright in his orc eyes, eyes that see well in the dark.
“Rychell, are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
He stands so still while I reach for his hand. I lace my fingers in his.
“I want you, Halvard. Not just for a pleasurable moment or two, but for life. I’ve been an idiot. Can you forgive me?”
He’s on his knees before I have a chance to utter another word.
“Rychell,” he whispers my name like a spell. Taking both of my hands in his, he kisses my fingertips and touches his tusks to each palm. “There is nothing to forgive. This is my wildest dream come true.”
I lean forward and kiss him. He moans and slides his tongue over mine. He draws his chilly tusks down my neck and over my collarbone, his eyes shut and his expression delightfully erotic. He pauses and looks at his chest. Lifting his chin, he smiles, tusks and all.
“Love has marked me for you, Rychell.”
I ease the edge of his tunic away so I can see his mate mark. It’s a heart in double, a smaller version of the poetic shape inside a larger one.
“One for me and one for Nate?” I ask, feeling more giddy than I ever have in my entire life.
Halvard nods, and his focus trains on my chest. “Do you…”
I pull my dress top lower so we can see my mate mark. It’s a heart shape surrounded by a stylized oak tree.
“Perfect for an orc’s mate,” Halvard says approvingly.
I ease my head back to eye the tree lording over us.
Oak leaves drift down around us, crisp and brown.
And then Halvard is standing suddenly and kissing me roughly.
I melt to him, absolutely shaken with my desire for this male.
His strength isn’t masked by his costume.
The muscular contours of chest and arms send heat blazing through me.
I slide my hands into his hair, and he shivers.
He angles his chin to fit his mouth more securely on mine, tusks pressing into my jaw here and there.
I pull his clothing, tugging him closer.
It’s not enough. I want more. I want it all.
With a soft snarl, he presses his hips to mine, and his cock is hot against me, the slight friction unbearable but perfect, but also not quite enough.
Sparks light up low inside me. My legs quiver, but I know what I want.
“Chase me,” I whisper.
Halvard lifts his head and eyes me. “You’re certain?”
“Fully.”
His hands close around my upper arms. He’s frightening in all the best ways. “You want me to claim you. You want to be my mate.”
I can’t believe I ever thought shoving this orc out of my life was the best choice. It seems insane now.
“Yes, Halvard. I want you to chase me, bed me, and claim me as yours.”
A wicked but somehow still sweet grin passes over his lips, and his eyes sparkle.
“Then run, my lovely lady, and know I will claim you firmly on this forest floor before the night is over.”
My knees wobble, and I fight to breathe normally. I am completely melting for this orc.
With a deep breath, I push away from the oak and sprint into the dark woods. There’s a growl behind me. The snap and crack of something big chasing me has my blood racing.
It’s thrilling.
I jump over a large tree root and barely dodge a low-hanging limb.
A dip in the earth catches the toe of my boot, and I slap a hand on a small maple to keep from falling before heading off again.
A snarl sounds behind me. He’s close. He must be running at half the speed he’s capable of because he could overtake me easily.
I guess it’s all part of the ritual. I wish now that I’d listened to Aila about orc mating habits.
A thousand questions buzz in my head, but I attempt to stop worrying and enjoy the thrill of the chase.
Halvard will take care of me in every way. I know that.
Running as quickly as I can in a forest lit only by starlight, I veer around a mossy boulder. I dash through a cluster of chest-high ferns. There’s a puddle ahead, possibly from a spring. I bend my legs, ready to jump. The second I leap, arms wrap around my middle and pull me back.
I gasp, and Halvard growls low in his chest. The vibration echoes from his chest through my back, and my body simmers, my heart pounding.
He spins me around, and we are on the mossy ground in one quick but graceful maneuver.
I set my hands on his shoulders, and he growls again, surveying my face, my chest, and then all the way to the toes of my muddy boots.
I’ve lost my crystal crown somewhere along the way, but I still feel royal with the way he looks at me.
His gaze is sharp, irises glowing and slitted.
He is very much a creature of the forest now, every line and angle of him made for overpowering an opponent and claiming a mate.
I’m light-headed and my heart hammers even harder against my ribs.
Halvard cups my jaw, and he kisses me roughly, taking what little breath I had.
Pleasure surges upward through my body like he is casting a love spell.
I’ve never once felt like this, completely swept away, lost to my desire.
He sets his tusks against my throat and presses them into my skin. It’s such a feral act that I should be frightened, but the almost-bite only fans the fire in me.
Leaning away, he studies the corset ties on the front of my dress.
“Do whatever you want,” I whisper, shocked at myself, but meaning it wholeheartedly just the same.
Halvard tears his tunic at the front and tosses the ruined garb to the side.
He grabs my laces and rips the corset off in one wild motion.
His lip curls as he snarls, and then he tugs the shoulder of my dress down so far that I’m exposed to his hungry gaze.
My breasts peak in the autumn air. His body is scarred from past battles, his flesh hard from years of training.
He covers one nipple with his mouth, and I let out a moan.
His tongue swirls and sucks as he rubs his cock over my skirts.
With a frustrated grunt, he pulls my skirts up.
Rising onto his knees, he releases himself, and I marvel at how large and well-built he is.
At the ridges along his cock and the deep leaf green of his skin.
He has to be the most handsome monster ever born.
Potent, male, and at ease with brazenly showing off his form.
Hand slipping between my legs, he nibbles and kisses his way over my chest and over my earlobe.
His fingers find my heat and stroke insistently.
He’s less gentle with his kneading and stroking in this form, but I had guessed he would be this way, and I love every moment of it.
My body throbs, and I feel self-conscious about how wet I am for him.
With a purring sort of growl, Halvard sets the head of his erection against me and pushes slowly. I bite my lip and curl my fingers into his shoulders. I want more. More. He enters me with one rough push, and I call out. Freezing, he locks his gaze on me.
“Yes, Halvard. Keep going, please.” I want to say something more meaningful, but I can’t find the words.
He takes my wrists and pins my hands above my head.
The silken pressure of him against me makes it impossible to take a full breath.
His eyes focus on my face, and his hips drive forward, once, twice, and then faster and harder.
His tusks and his pierced lip reflect the starlight streaming through the trees, and his male scent is strong enough that even I, a human, can scent it.
Every flex and pulse of his cock has me almost coming undone already.
The unending rocking and the fact that his ridged length is sheathed to the hilt has my insides clenching and fluttering.
Pleasure courses through me like the stars have fallen and lit me up with sensation.
The most exhilarating heat pours over me, from head to toe.
Halvard’s cock jerks deep within me, and he growls loud enough to wake the world.
My release rushes wildly from me, and I can’t help but mumble incoherently until I’m limp in his arms. I begin to ease my legs down, but he snags my thigh.
“Mate, you will take more of me. I know you want it.”
A thrill of joy shoots through my blood at the word Mate. I swallow and start to protest, but he’s right. I do.