Chapter 38 Eng
ENG
Idid not invite Willa back to my furs after lunch.
I hadn’t lied when I’d said I was far too tired to provide her with the attention I wanted, and I didn’t think it was the ideal way to start what I planned to be the beginning of our life together.
It was important for me to get this right.
I wanted to make sure Willa knew that I was serious about us, that I wanted this to be forever.
And I was willing to take whatever steps I needed, take whatever time I needed to win her over.
Which also meant I needed to win her family over. And her friends.
After an afternoon nap and a hot shower, I texted my beloved shrew.
Eng: I would like to join you and your family for Sunday dinner, but I don’t know human protocol for this. Is it too soon to meet them? Should I invite them to dinner with the two of us? I cannot cook, but I could make reservations at a restaurant.
Willa: You can totally invite my family out to dinner on your dime, but not Sunday. Sunday family dinner is sacred and it’s always at Mom and Dad’s house. I’ll let them know to expect you, and we can arrive together.
I’ll admit I was sweating at the thought of having to impress Willa’s huge family. I’d faced hostile emissaries, fae lords, angry troll merchants, but this would be the most terrifying meeting of my life.
Eng: Is it customary to bring a food offering? Flowers? Starbucks gift cards? A tooth in a box?
Willa: Do NOT bring body parts, whether in a box or not. Food is welcome. How about a pie or cake or something like that?
Eng: I will bring pie.
Eng: Are you available for dinner tonight? I have some shopping to do this afternoon, but I wanted to bring you a pizza.
Willa: That sounds great! We can pizza and chill.
Three hours later I was at the shrew’s door with a large pizza in hand.
I had expected her to answer the door naked, like the women in the magazine, but Willa must not have read those particular stories.
It was just as well since I would not be able to resist if she were naked and I was trying to take things slow.
We curled up on the sofa, ate pizza, and watched a movie on her television about a male in a musical group who falls in love with a female with brightly colored hair and must defeat her seven former lovers in order to win her heart.
“Do I need to kill your former lovers as part of our courtship?” I asked as we finished off the last of the pizza. “That is a custom in some orc tribes, and I am willing to do it if it is your custom as well.”
Willa laughed. “That would land you in jail. I’m not sure even diplomatic immunity would save you from incarceration if you go on a killing spree of my ex-boyfriends.
” She scooted closer against me and put her head on my shoulder.
“Stay the night? We’re both going to the same place in the morning.
I can drive you over to your apartment to grab your workout clothes, and drive you to the arena. ”
I’d envisioned us doing this, arriving together with coffee and our arms around each other, letting the whole world know that she was mine and I was hers.
“I want to stay with you tonight and every night, but I don’t want us to move too fast,” I told her.
Her chuckle was low and throaty. “Oh, honey, fast is my middle name.”
The next morning we arrived together, hand-in-hand with our coffees just as I’d envisioned.
Half the team was already in the gym warming up, and all activity abruptly ceased as I arrived with my shrew.
Ugwyll shook his head and turned to look at Ozar who was scowling and clenching his fists.
I jutted my chin upward and let go of the shrew’s hand so she could hold my coffee.
“Oh, knock it off. Both of you,” Willa said before turning to face the other orcs.
“Listen up! Eng and I are dating. That means I’m going to make him work twice as hard as anyone else to prove he is worthy of me.
Anyone who gives me shit about my personal life is going to have to run six miles through the city in his tighty-whiteys. Understood?”
“Yes ma’am!” the orcs shouted.
Bwat’s hand went up. “Ms. Willa, what are tighty-whiteys?”
I felt as if I were floating. The workout was strenuous, but my energy was renewed every time Willa smiled at me.
The same with training. The coach had us focus on communication with our teammates.
The two orcs playing defense were to be my eyes, arms, and legs.
I was to keep my eyes on what was happening down the ice, telling them where I needed them to be.
They were to do their best to keep the puck from coming near me, blocking shots and keeping the other team from finding an opening.
If my view was blocked by the human team, they were to call out and keep me informed of where the puck was and where an attack would likely come.
My primary job was to keep the puck out of the net. And if I was given the chance, to return the puck to a teammate in a manner that would set them up for success in scoring against the human team.
It reminded me of the defensive strategies in the Hnefatafl game.
If I played the attacker, my goal was not just to capture the king, but keep him from arriving safely to a corner of the playing board—the “net.” If I played the defender, my goal was to protect the king and keep the attackers from capturing him before he could arrive to safety.
I loved that game, and I was beginning to see the appeal of this one.
I didn’t need to skate well. My primary duty involved fast reflexes, bold action, and a strong sense of teamwork.
The last would be a struggle, but I was trying.
Willa watched from the stands, this time not attempting to hide behind a support column.
I tried to focus on the coach, but just knowing she was there improved my game enormously.
When we finally took our cool-down laps and the coach released us to the locker room, he took me aside to tell me how well I was doing and that I was going to make a huge difference in the team’s ability to win games.
I shouldn’t care. But I did, and the “thank you, Coach” I said in reply was heartfelt.