Page 54 of Bound to the Orc Hunter

It’s all too much. I lean forward, trying to get a bit of distance, but there’s nowhere to go. “No, I need to get down. I need to use the bathroom.” God, I don’t even know what I need except a bit of space to clear my head.

The unicorn slides to a halt on the pine-needle covered ground, and Branikk hops off and lifts me down. He pulls out a waterskin and cleaning cloth for me.

I snatch them up and hurry around a large rhododendron bush until I’m hidden by the waxy, dark-green leaves and heavy white blooms.

Rune trots past me, looking for his own private spot.

Once he’s out of sight, I sink to the ground and sit, closing my eyes.

I wish I had something to work on, something to repair. No matter what else went wrong in my life, my job always gave me the satisfaction of being able to fix things.

My crystal warms on my chest, and a bubble blower pops into existence on my lap. It’s one of the ones we use at the carnival, a bright-pink plastic cat with a wide-open mouth that shoots soap bubbles when you pull back on its upright tail. I repaired one only last week, a really simple fix, where the lines from the fluid tank to the nozzles needed to be reconnected. I crack open the access panel in its stomach, and yep—that’s exactly what’s wrong with this one. I slide them back into place, shoving the rubber tubes up over the hard plastic ones as far as they’ll go, and shut the panel.

Then I raise the cat and shoot bubbles of all sizes into the air, their rainbow surfaces swirling with colors.

“That might be the best thing a feline has ever done in the entire history of Alarria,” Rune says, his tongue lolling from the side of his smiling mouth. “No, make that all of Faerie.”

I laugh.

“Having said that, I cannot discern its purpose.”

“It’s a toy.” I make a few more bubbles and reach out to pop one with a tiny splash of wetness on the end of my finger. “The bubbles are for fun. Kids like them.”

“Then the pups will love it.” He comes over to sniff at it, then licks my cheek in a doggie kiss. “Thank you.”

I stand and shoot some more bubbles as he continues back to the others. Yay. I fixed it. I snort and touch my crystal. “Thanks,” I whisper. It was a stupidly easy fix on something cute and pointless, but I do feel better.

My heart skips when Branikk’s face lights up upon seeing me with a new creation. Bad heart! Is it really so eager to be broken?

When it happens, I better hope there’s a fix there too.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Branikk

I stare at the place where my bride disappeared. Worry gnaws at me. She seemed upset. “Something’s wrong.”

“Clearly.” Aurora tosses her head.

“Please,” I say. “No teasing. Not about this.”

Aurora snuffles at the side of my head. “I’m sorry, my friend. I meant no harm.”

“I know you didn’t.” I pat her neck. She and I usually banter and poke fun with the long familiarity of years of companionship. But whatever’s happening with Grace is no laughing matter.

I step as close to the rhododendron as possible. It’s about six-feet tall and wide, and I can see over the top, but Grace remainsout of sight. Yet not out of hearing, and there’s no rustle of clothing that indicates she’s actually using the bathroom.

It’s quiet for so long I want to storm around the bush and demand to know what’s wrong. I take an impatient step forward.

Aurora’s horn swoops down and blocks me.

“Out of my way.”

“You want me to be serious? Here I am, being serious,” my friend whispers. “This isn’t about you and your usual impatience. This is about Grace.”

I bristle. “I’m a fine hunter.”

“Certainly, but that’s different. That’s not people. With people, you rush ahead, throwing your charm all over the damned place.”

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