Chapter Nine #3
When they got to the house, she unbuckled and reached for the door. The door tingled under her fingers, and she couldn’t open it. “What the hell?”
Tam-or spoke as he opened his door. “When I am driving you, I open your door.”
He closed his door and walked around the vehicle to open her door. He opened it without a problem and gripped her waist to ease her to the pavement. She stood and stared up at him.
“You had a request?”
“Oh. Right. In the garden.” She took his hand and walked with him around the side of the house, to the gate, and into the back yard. She pulled him along the pathway to the round bench.
“Okay, dude. I need you official.”
He snorted, took a few steps, peeled his shirt off, and his tattoos lit up.
She looked at him and smiled. “Speaker...”
“Ah, ah. You know the criteria.”
“Oh. Right.” She twisted her fingers in a particular gesture, and her clothing vanished to be deposited inside the house.
He looked at her, and his throat flexed. She knelt in front of him. “Speaker. Would you hold me while I sleep tonight? And what would it cost me?”
He stared down at her. “That’s it?”
“Yes. I don’t normally sleep with someone else in the room, so I thought I should start before anything else happens.” She smiled. “So, what is the price?”
He paused. “Allow me to design all your tattoos.”
“Sure. Wait. All?”
“All. Every inked inch of you.”
“That’s a lot.”
“Yes, it will be.”
She frowned. “That seems like a steep price for a cuddle.”
He glowed bright. “Fine. I will design them all, but only the link to the speakers will be administered while I watch. Well, that and your Daring Claw tattoo, and your shaman tattoo and... okay, I will owe you about six boons, including asking me for membership in the Daring Claw.”
“I have to ask; it isn’t offered?”
“It is definitely offered, but you want to have a stated agreement before the first ink falls.”
“So, I am agreeing to membership?”
“Yes. You are very comfortable naked.”
She smiled. “Is that a problem?”
“No, it is a perk.”
“Well, then, Speaker Tam-or, do we have a deal?”
He smiled. “We do.” He took her hands and pulled her to her feet. “It is traditional to seal it with a kiss.”
“Is it?”
He pulled her against him. “In our case, definitely. Can you let your hair down?”
“I can, but you will owe me for it.”
He smiled. “What do you want?”
“You holding my hand when the marks go on if I need it.”
He smiled. “I can do that.”
“And after every tattoo, you have to take me out for ice cream.”
He snorted. “Sure.”
She looked at him and slowly blinked her eyes. “I am serious.”
His fingers wove with hers. “Then, yes. After every tattoo, I will take you for ice cream.”
“Or milkshakes.”
“Or milkshakes.”
She smiled brightly, and her hair unravelled until it hung around her ankles again.
“Now, we seal our arrangement with a kiss.”
She went up on her toes and kissed him. He wrapped her arms around him, freed his hands, and ran his hand down her back from neck to butt. She switched her grip to his shoulders and pulled herself up as she wrapped her legs around his hips.
His grip shifted to her thighs, and he rocked her against him.
She moaned into his mouth and changed her angle until the pressure was at a more enjoyable position.
She moved with his grip, and her voice got high and breathy until she jerked against him and shuddered.
He groaned and pressed his forehead to hers.
“That was not the way I have sealed any deal before.”
“Good because I keep remembering that troll speaker. He would definitely cause some balance issues.”
He groaned and chuckled. “You do love teasing.”
“Nope, dead serious. That is where my brain went. The mental image was disturbing.” She looped her arms around his neck. “I think I need a nap now.”
He stroked her back. “You should stop with the surprise exertions.”
“You are right. Jumping on you was a step too far. Put me down, and I will hike my butt into bed.”
He chuckled and started walking on the path through the garden. “I will bring you inside. I promised to hold you when you sleep, after all.”
“I am not sure you wanted to.” She flicked her fingers, and the door swung open.
“If there is one thing I am sure about, it is wanting as much time with you as I can get.”
“How odd.”
He closed and locked the door behind them then headed up the stairs. “What is the best way to approach your bed?”
“Respectfully, so it doesn’t buck you off.” She smiled. “If I am on it, it will behave.”
“I don’t want to let go of you.”
“Tough.”
He laughed. He set her on her feet, and she scrambled into bed. He looked at her sitting up and grinned. “I will be right back.”
“Why?”
“Because I had a flashback to high school before I orced out. I need to clean up.”
She frowned and then realized that while she could feel some residual slickness, she didn’t jettison anything.
Laughing quietly, she stretched out her legs and pulled the quilts over her.
She heard water running, and it was five minutes before he emerged from the bathroom wearing a towel around his hips and his tattoos.
Nothing else. She checked out his knees. “Wow. They do go all the way down.”
He snorted and tossed the towel onto a chair.
She started at his erection and covered her mouth with mirth. It had not escaped the needle. “You must really trust your tattoo artist.”
“I definitely do.” He peeled the bedding back and carefully sat, swinging his legs under the quilts. The bed swayed and shuddered, but it was stable.
She smiled and wiggled over to cuddle against him. He rolled to his side, and she pressed her nose against his tattoos. He growled. “There. I keep my word.”
She grabbed his arm, wrapped it around her, and wiggled closer. The scent in his skin made her breathe him in deep. He started stroking her hair, and it sent her to the edge of sleep. She flicked her fingers, and the lights in the house went out.
Toward dawn, she felt the twinge in her sister’s senses. She smiled. It was sticking. Cora was going to be so happy.
“Why are you smiling?”
“Cora’s pregnant. It stuck. Big day. Decades of trying, and it just took an orc to get the job done.” She smiled.
“How can you know so soon?”
“I felt it attach. Cora and I are muddled together in all kinds of ways. But if we know we are going to have sex, we can block it from the other. It’s just polite.”
He snorted. “We don’t have enough time for that.”
“Time? Oh, you have morning stuff. Right. My day job is on hiatus, so I guess I will go and check on Cora later.”
“I have school stuff to prepare. And the university launch stuff. I would ask you to be with me, but the school stuff is dull, and the university launch stuff is clan only.”
“And I don’t qualify. No problem.” She turned her back to him, and he pulled her in tight. “It isn’t as difficult as I imagined.”
“What?”
“Having someone in my bed to sleep with.” She smiled. “I am not holding you here. Leave when you are ready.”
His arms tightened. “You are dismissing me?”
“Well, you can stay here until your reno is done. Abel-ur’s place isn’t going to be safe for decent folks for a while.”
He chuckled. “Thank you.”
“Yup. There are guestrooms that should fit you if this feels like an obligation.” She yawned.
“No. This isn’t an obligation. This is a glimpse into a future that I very much want.”
She smiled. “Okay. Didn’t want to assume. When will I be authorized to wear the clan marking?”
“I have to go over it with Abel-ur, who will have to take it to the council. After that, whenever we can find an artist.”
“Amy mentioned an artist named Emily. I would like to find her and consult with her.”
“Sounds like a plan for the day.”
“I might just spend a day in bed. I rarely get a chance to be lazy.”
“Well, you have about five more hours before you need to consider your options.” He kissed her neck.
She smiled and snuggled in against him. “You know, if your erection lasts longer than four hours, you are supposed to seek a doctor.”
He made a weird chuffing noise that sent a shiver down her spine. “My erection is fine.”
“Okay. I will take your word for it.” She heard a growl and smiled as she fell asleep. Her last mumble was, “I will examine it at a later date.”
His entire body went rock hard, and she smirked as she went to sleep.
It was a fun way to spend a day.