Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Louis
The scent of Eric’s sadness burned my nose. I hated it. I wanted to wrap my arms around the diminutive orc and hug him tightly, though perhaps diminutive was a sliding scale, because he might be small for an orc, but he was huge in comparison to a human.
As if his turmoil wasn’t enough, Hailey also smelled forlorn, and that was almost too much to bear. I had a suspicion that perhaps she’d embraced the mate bond, even if she didn’t realize it.
It would explain how she’d known something was wrong, when a normal human would have just dismissed it for a million possible reasons.
Other creatures would probably have realized, either because they’d be able to smell the sickness or sense the turmoil, but not humans.
Being blissfully unaware was basically their superpower.
Now came the real question. How much should we interfere in the mate bond? If she’d accepted it, it could have grown into something beautiful. By putting external pressure on it, forcefully ending the beginnings of the bond, we could be ruining something that was fated.
That wasn’t a question for me or anyone but Eric and Hailey.
I placed a plate of food in front of Eric. Unlike what I fed everyone else, I made this especially for the orc’s dietary needs, but bland. He probably hadn’t eaten in days, and anything too rich would definitely result in him throwing it all up.
He looked down at the plate and gave me a tight smile. “Thanks.”
I squeezed his shoulder. What could I say?
Touch was my love language. It was why I was always the first to offer connection in these kinds of cases.
He wasn’t our first packless runaway, but he was our first orc.
It didn’t matter what species they were, all pack creatures responded to touch.
Plus, I didn’t mind spooning. It soothed my beast too.
I sat down at the table to finish my own food.
Hailey was beautiful, so I could almost understand why Eric had fixated on her.
She had soft blond hair that bounced around her shoulders in waves and big blue eyes that should make her seem sweet and innocent, but somehow made her just look sad.
Her whole energy was off, and there was obviously more to Hailey Swoon than a cute little button nose and an unfortunately obsessed orc stalker.
Not that I’d ever get to unravel those layers.
Eric nibbled at the edges of his food, and I didn’t push. He’d need to build up to a full meal, but I’d pop this in the fridge, and he could snack on it as he felt better. Even now, he was looking shaky and weak.
“You should head back to bed,” Otis suggested softly, and Eric’s eyes slid back to Hailey. Oh man, at least Syke would be eating well with all the pining happening in the room.
Shaking his head softly, Eric forced his gaze to Otis’s.
“I think so. I still feel… off.” Yeah, he was definitely different from other orcs.
I’d met a fair few, and they’d chop off their hand before admitting a weakness in front of other creatures.
Some would say their massive egos were their weakness.
Syke rose to his feet. “I’ll take the hum… Hailey home.” Her big, wide eyes bounced between us but snagged on Eric. Getting to her feet, she moved toward him, wrapping his much larger body in her arms.
“Feel better soon, okay?”
I watched him close his eyes slowly, pain written all over his features. “I will. Be safe.”
She walked into the bedroom and returned with the oversized tote of her stuff. Standing awkwardly at the doorway, she lifted a hand. “Uh, thanks for having me and for answering the call. And dinner.” She directed the last bit to me, and I smiled. “Thanks for dinner.”
Rolling his eyes, Syke guided her out of the room and probably out of the building. He wouldn’t be my first choice for a driver, but he sealed her door, and there’s no way any of us could undo that.
Letting out a shaky breath, like just being in a different room from her was sapping his strength, Eric stood. “I should go lie down.”
Otis nodded, giving him a sympathetic expression. Minotaurs didn’t have mate bonds, but you didn’t need to have firsthand experience to know what Eric was feeling now was rough.
Standing too, I put an arm under his shoulder. “I’ll walk with you,” I told him softly, and he just nodded. His sadness was breaking my heart.
Back in the spare room, I helped him pull his shirt over his head. He was getting weaker by the second, which was worrying. Lifting the blankets, I held them up until he slid in, and then I climbed in beside him.
He looked so perturbed it was almost funny.
“Sorry, buddy. You can’t be alone until your clan sickness is under control.
The fact that you held out so long is an actual miracle.
” I slid toward his back. “So, it works best if we spoon, but please don’t feel obligated.
I can, like… hold your hand, or we can lie back to back.
Whatever makes you most comfortable as long as there’s a little skin-on-skin action. ”
Eric’s cheeks turned pink, and it was kind of adorable, given the guy could literally eat my face.
“Whatever you like,” he replied, and I almost laughed out loud.
“Let’s spoon. You can be the big spoon, so you feel more macho.
I know it’s a thing with you orcs.” He took me at my word and put his chest against my back.
“Not wolves. We don’t have any of those hang-ups.
You’ll find us in cuddle piles all the time.
Want to take a nap on the back lawn? Instant cuddle pile.
Don’t want to sleep alone? All your best friends, some in wolf form, some in human form, all pile on one bed.
I’ve felt more morning wood than a lumberjack. ”
He snorted a laugh, and I felt him relax. Despite how tired he was, I could almost hear him overthinking. The grinding of his teeth, his soft shifting, and the rapidness of his breathing all told me his mind was whirling.
May as well put all that overthinking to good use. “So, I understand your father’s clan are pricks, but what about your mother’s clan? Are they from around here?”
I felt him shake his head. “No, they are from Europe. It was a transactional thing. Though, if it were possible, I’m fairly sure my father would request a refund, but they signed an ironclad contract.
I can’t step foot in her clan territory, and they stay out of the US.
I guess they were worried about him using me as a tool for expansion into Europe.
” He scoffed like the idea was preposterous.
I knew enough cutthroat creatures to recognize that it wasn’t such an unusual concept. “No one else? Orc friends or other friends?”
The sound Eric made was like a stab in the chest. “No. All the acquaintances from my old clan dropped me as soon as Freddie turned up dead. Outside of people I know at work, there’s no one.”
“Except Hailey,” I said softly.
“Except Hailey,” he agreed.
I grabbed his palm and rested it on my chest over my heart.
Contact therapy was something they taught us in training, but the general principle was that if you could hit all five senses, the patient would be better off.
Not being alone at all was obviously the big one.
Even if we weren’t spooning, one of us would have to be in the room with him at all times.
Touching, especially a heartbeat and the soft rise and fall of breaths, was one of the fundamentals.
Listening to a heartbeat or talking like this was also very grounding.
Unfortunately, scent and taste were going to have to go on the back burner.
Maybe if it was Hailey, and Hailey was his mate, we could hit those last two, but he definitely wasn’t in the right headspace for that conversation.
Sighing heavily, I felt the moment Eric relaxed into his new normal for the next few days. His fingers curled against my chest. “Just because I’m bisexual doesn’t mean this isn’t weird,” he muttered, and I laughed.
“Duly noted. Tell me about Hailey. She seemed sweet.”
“She’s the best person I’ve ever met,” he murmured. “Kind of met.”
I laughed, because it was kind of funny in a morbid way. “Yeah, stalking isn’t really the way to a girl’s heart.”
“It didn’t start out like that. It just kind of… ended that way.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s what all stalkers say, Eric.”
“No, I mean it. When I was just watching her, going to the diner for lunch or whatever, she didn’t care that I was an orc.
Once there was a basilisk in her section, and she just asked him how he wanted his steak despite the fact that he could have swallowed her whole.
She wasn’t scared, disgusted, or wary. Nothing.
She treated everyone the same, and her coworkers love her.
Her boss is a prick, but he seems to like her well enough.
She’s universally adored, but she’s so fucking alone, and I don’t get it.
” His fist clenched on my chest. “You guys will watch her, right? That place isn’t safe.
I don’t like how some of the other tenants look at her.
” His voice was groggy, and I made a hushing noise.
“We’ll keep an eye on her. Rest now.”
His breathing evened out, but it was still raspy. I didn’t like it. I didn’t like any of it at all.