Page 11 of One Night with Her Mountain Orc

“A different brother.” His groan matches the slump of his face as he rolls off of me. “I have to get it. If I don’t, he’ll never quit.” Sighing, he gets up and saunters down the hall, and I snuggle back into my blankets.

Fatigue washes over me. I must fall asleep, because I jump when I hear Bjorn banging around. Getting up, keeping the blanket wrapped around me, I ask him what’s wrong. A flash catches my eye on the counter. My phone’s been charged, and it’s flashing that I have messages.

“Hey. You’re awake! I didn’t want to wake you. My other brother, Koru, called. He has a stick up his ass about some brewing competition. I have to help him at the brewery.” He sighs, angry. I know he isn’t angry at me; I would hate to be on the wrong side of his anger.

“You’re welcome to stay here and rest, or come with.” Undecided as to where to go today, I contemplate if tagging along to Bjorn’s brother’s brewery is a good idea, I look at the messages from May. Uh-oh.

“I think I need to get dressed and go. My cousin, May, is really worried about me. I guess she thinks I’ve been abducted.”

Bjorn’s nostrils flare—whether in anger or amusement, I’m not sure, but then he growls, and I understand. “Call her and tell her you’re safe.” He mutters something under his breath that I don’t quite catch. I don’t dare ask. His frustration is understandable; lots of misinformation spreads about orcs, but I don’t know how May knows who I’m with.

“I think I should go talk to her and set her straight. Yesterday was so stressful. I don’t think I called her once I was safe.” My fingers twist, unsure that I want to do this.

He catches my gaze. So steady and true. I am calmer, surer of myself with his dark eyes on me. “Brann called her. Part of the process with the rescue. My guess is he told her we were together.”

“Orcs are more gossipy than I imagined,” I say, teasing him. He huffs and rolls his eyes.

“My brothers are the worst. But just wait until you start hanging with the gargoyles—their need for gossip is insatiable. Alright, dinner together tonight?” His eyes glint with desire. I nod, embracing the butterflies coming to life in my stomach, knowing who I want for dinner.

Chapter 7

August

“Oh my God, August!I was so afraid! So worried about you!” May wraps her arms tightly around me, causing me to gasp for breath. I pat her back to get her to release me. Then harder when she doesn’t get the hint. Now she does.

“I was fine the whole time,” I say as I walk gingerly through the small living room to the kitchen, where all important conversations happen. Her kitchen table was my aunt’s, her mom, and when I sit there, I feel both my aunt’s and my mom’s presence. It’s comforting, even if my heart aches a little at missing them, especially mom.

“Fine? You didn’t come home. Didn’t call or text. I had to call Search and Rescue, and be told by the orc captain that you are hanging out with an ORC. An ORC, August! Can you imagine my surprise and disgust? What would our moms say?” She pauses long enough to take a deep breath and gulp some water. Shuddering, as if the thought that I would hang out with the person whorescuedme is physically repulsive to her, her eyes bug at me before she starts again.

“You would never believe what Chad said about you and the orc!” She laughs that awful laugh she only makes when Chad says something she’s pretending is funny and not at all offensive or stupid (when, in fact, many times it’s both).

“Stop.” I hold my hands up. “I don’t want to hear what Chad said. I can’t believe you’re upset. I was shook up, almost hypothermic, and I strained my ankle. So yeah, I forgot to call you. It was a shitty day. But I wouldn’t have been up there if it weren’t for Chad’s taunting about not being independent.”

“It was your choice.” Now her voice is quiet, almost meek. She runs her hand through her hair and I see the crease between her eyebrows that wasn’t there a few months ago. The dullness in her eyes. She looks ragged, which I hadn’t noticed before. An exhaustion that has nothing to do with being worried for her cousin yesterday, and has everything to do with something or someone stealing her happiness and energy from her.

Carefully standing, I limp to her and wrap her in my arms, gentle but steady. “I love you, May. Thank you for calling Search and Rescue. They took excellent care of me, even though I insisted I could do it myself.” She snorts into my shoulder. We continue to stand like that until I realize her body is bouncing a little. May is crying. “What’s wrong?” I whisper.

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