Page 19 of Bound to the Orc Hunter

I grunt. “You are one of the people in the machine?”

“I’m not in the video. I’m the person who makes the machine work.”

I listen to her, not understanding most of the words—pistons? lever arms? hexagonal wrenches?—but not needing to. What’s clear is how much she loves her work and that she’s good at it.

When she winds down, I ask, “Do you have moving pictures of you doing some of these things?”

“No.” She leans forward, her back muscles going rigid.

My arm tightens around her, keeping her from going too far as Aurora continues to race through the forest.

“Why not?” I wish I could see my bride’s face.

“I don’t look good on camera.”

Another new word, but I don’t need a definition. Her tone tells me everything I need to know. “You are strong and beautiful.”

She snorts in amusement, but the tension in her muscles relaxes a bit.

“I do not lie.”

Grace twists enough to see me out of the side of one eye. “How about you? What do you do as anorc?”

My knees grip the unicorn’s sides as I pat the bow slung over my back. “I am one of my clan’s hunters. I provide meat, furs, and leather for our village.” Pride fills me to tell her this. It’s an important job.

“So the bow’s real?”

“It’s fully functional.” I unsling it and lay it in her arms so she can inspect it. If she has a love of mechanical things, she should be able to see the craftsmanship that went into my bow. “I made it myself. I have a bit of woodworking magic.”

“You made this? It’s well done.” Her hand glides over the smooth yew wood, and I suppress a groan, wishing she stroked me with such obvious admiration. “I’ve shot little crossbow games before. But nothing like this.”

“I’ll teach you to shoot, if you like.”

“Okay.”

Perfect. I settle my bow on my back and pull her to me again, glad when she comes easily this time. The exotic scent of hersummer hair teases my nose, and I breathe it in. “What is this scent you wear?”

“You mean perfume? I’m not exactly a perfume kind of gal.”

So it’s her scent that beguiles me so. I should have known.

“I knowIalways smell delightful!” Aurora says, tossing her head so her silver mane flashes through the air.

Grace laughs for the first time, and the sound pierces my heart.

She carries a sadness I don’t like. I would have my bride laugh more.

“Show me more of your videos,” I say, pronouncing the word carefully. “Show me more of the things you like.”

CHAPTER NINE

Grace

God, it’s heady to have a guy’s full attention. It’s a little easier that I can’t see his face and how gorgeous he is. I kind of forget and talk to Branikk like he’s a normal guy instead of a movie star.

He certainly talks to me like I’m worth talking to instead of someone to ignore.

By the time we stop for the evening on the edge of a wide meadow, I’ve shown him three more of my favoriteBridgertonseason two clips, trying to explain all the things that built up to the kiss I first showed him.

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