Page 53 of Romancing the Orc

Elton holds her from behind, his pale face purple with indignation. “This isn’t how any of this was supposed to go! I’m supposed to be famous! I’m supposed to find Faeries!”

He’s miscalculated my reach, thinking in human terms instead of that of a seven-foot orc. My hand snaps out and latches onto his shoulder, yanking him toward me. Lara comes with him, and I catch her to my chest with my other arm.

Gripping his shoulder, I bare my tusks and smirk down at the gaping Englishman. “You wanted to find Faeries? Well, you did.”

“Not those little things.” He flaps a dismissive hand toward the sprites, which is quite stupid, because they’ve just incapacitated four of his people.

“Not the sprites,” I growl. “Me.”

“You? You’re acover model!”

“I am. I’m also an orc, and you dared to touch my mate.” My hand tightens until he winces. “You say you want Faerie, but youhave no idea what that means. May the reality be nothing you imagine.”

Anger fuels my muscles as I toss him out the opening. With any luck, he’ll go straight to Avalon, and the dark fae will show him why so many of the stories of fae highlight their cruelty.

Lara gives me an approving nod, then calls out, “Grey, sprites, this is the Door of Dreams. Think of where you most want to go and jump… or fly!”

“You have been true friends to the sprites,” the leader says as the rest of the flock streaks past us. “Find us, and we will make you all the Faerie Fruit you could ever want. We’ll have an orgy!”

“Sounds great,” Lara lies, but the smile she gives them is real.

The cat sith materializes beside us in his werepanther form, and Vito mutters a shocked curse and scrabbles backward across the floor like a frightened crab.

“Thank you, my friends.” Grey hugs Lara. “I don’t know how I would have gotten back to my pack without you.”

“You can lead them home, now,” she says.

“Indeed. They will all laud how magnificent I am, which is nothing more than the truth, and make me alpha.” He grins as wide as ever and clasps forearms with me. “May we meet again.”

“I will fight by your side any day,” I growl.

Grey leaps outward, dropping for several feet before disappearing from sight.

“It’s just us.” Lara steps into my waiting arms. “Are we going to—”

A gun cocks, cutting over the sounds of sex that fill the room.

Fuck. Vito got hold of one of the dropped weapons. His hand trembles, his eyes full of fear and confusion, but I do not doubt his ability to kill.

“You must jump.” I pull Lara in front of me and shield her with my body, the feel of the gun behind me making my back itch.

She looks up at me, worry in her beautiful brown eyes. Goddess, I long to tell her I love her, but what if it unsettles her emotions so much that it confuses where the door sends her? Getting her to safety is more important.

Then she shocks me yet again.

“Brokk, I love you.” Her heart’s in her eyes as they meet mine, her face showing everything she feels.

My heart skips with joy. This beautiful and amazing woman loves me!

“Lara, I—”

A shot rings out.

Agony sets my nerves on fire as I shove my mate out the opening.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Lara

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