Page 23 of Bidding on the Orc Outcast

“Great. We’ve got a cozy booth right here.” Rona gestured to an empty spot near the window. “Or there’s a table out back on the patio by the fireplace, right next to the river.”

He hadn’t realized how cold the evening was until they’d walked from Posy’s apartment. Even with the outdoor fireplace, she’d freeze out there. He opened his mouth to choose the booth, but Posy beat him to it.

“The patio sounds perfect. I love watching the river at night,” she added, smiling up at him.

His protest died on his lips. The patio would mean fewer people, more privacy. And the way she looked at him, like his comfort mattered more than the cold…

“Right this way then.” Rona led them through the cafe.

The weight of the stares lessened with each step toward the back door, and his shoulders slowly lowered from around his ears. The riverside patio was almost empty except for the crackling fireplace and the twinkling strings of lights overhead. The sound of rushing water mixed with the snap of burning wood.

“I’ll be back in a moment,” Rona said after she showed them to the cozy table next to the fire. The wooden benches on either side were topped with deep cushions and there was a blanket at each place.

The door clicked shut behind Rona and they were finally alone. He could breathe again. The river’s constant flow soothed his jangled nerves, and there were no judgmental stares, just Posy’s warm presence across the table, her pretty face glowing in the firelight.

“Why’d you pick outside?” he asked gruffly.

She shrugged, tracing the grain on the worn wooden table.

“It’s such a beautiful night. I can’t believe how many stars you can see, even in town.” She lifted her face to the sky, then met his gaze. “And I noticed how tense you were in there.”

The tips of his ears burned but the heat had nothing to do with the fire. “It’s fine.”

It wasn’t fine, but he didn’t want to talk about it. Unfortunately, she kept going.

“I also noticed that everyone looked at you, just as they did at the auction. Why do they do that?”

“Because they’re afraid of me,” he said bitterly, the truth escaping before he could call it back.

“Why?”

There was no judgement in those big brown eyes, just curiosity and something that looked like concern. It made his chest tight, but he owed her the truth, even if she rejected him afterwards.

“I had a reputation when I was a teenager - not a very good one.” He’d never been as bad as he was painted, but he hadn’t exactly been a saint either. “But then there was a terrible… incident. Ten years ago.”

“What happened?”

The memory of that night still burned in his mind - the screams, the accusations, the way the town had turned on him.

“I tried to help someone. It went wrong.”

“Wrong how?”

“A group of teenagers were harassing a girl, and I stepped in. I wasn’t as mindful of my strength as I should have been.” His fingers curled into fists under the table. “One of the teenagers claimed that I’d hurt him. Badly.”

The fire crackled, sending sparks into the night air. He watched them fade rather than meet her gaze.

“Did you? Hurt him?”

“All I did was pull him away from her, but when he tried to get away from me, he tripped and fell. He landed badly and broke his leg, plus his head was bleeding because he hit it when he fell. When other people showed up, he claimed that I’d beaten him and broken his leg,” The words came out as a growl, and he forced his voice level. “His little gang backed up his story and everyone believed him. It didn’t help that his family had a lot of influence in the town. Easier to blame the angry orc kid with a record of getting in trouble. And of course the story spread, making me more of a monster each time.”

“That’s awful. The girl didn’t even speak up for you?”

“She was too afraid of them to say anything. I can’t blame her for that. She might have changed her mind as she got older, but her family left town not long afterwards.” He shrugged, as if he didn’t care. “Anyway, the kid recovered, but I was permanently branded as the orc who attacked a defenseless teenager. I’ve done my best to avoid causing problems since then, which isn’t too hard when I keep to myself.”

“How old were you?” Her voice was soft, filled with an empathy that made him want to run.

“Seventeen.”

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