Page 8 of The Princess and the Orc

“Obligations?” Her voice rose despite her effort to keep quiet. “I always fulfill my duty to my people. I have done everything my father has asked, as I prepare to follow him leading the kingdom. But this is not how things are done. You can't just declare that I am your mate.”

“First off, I didn’t declare you my mate. You did. Second, you are no longer bound only by the laws of your people.” He leaned closer. “When you accepted my bargain, you became subject to orc law. And by our laws, you are my mate. My responsibility.” His dark eyes gleamed. “Including the responsibility to punish you when you misbehave.”

Horror and something far more dangerous curled in her belly. “Punish? You mean to beat me?”

His laugh was dark, honeyed, rich and dangerous. “Beat you? No, little princess. I'm going to spank you.” He reached for her, massive hands surprisingly gentle as they caught her wrists, drawing her close. “And I think you might even enjoy it.”

“That's barbaric!” Amalia protested even as her body betrayed her, heat flooding her core at his words. She tried to twist away, but he simply gathered both her wrists in one hand, using his other to tip her chin up.

“Your pulse is racing,” he observed, thumb stroking over her throat. “Your pupils are dilated. You're aroused by the idea, aren't you? My proper little princess, excited by the thought of being turned over my knee and spanked like a naughty child.”

“I am not!” The words emerged breathy, unconvincing even to her own ears.

“More lies.” He pulled her closer until she had to tip her head back to maintain eye contact. “Tell me, mate, do you know what happens to liars in orc culture?”

She shook her head mutely, mesmerized by the heat in his gaze.

“They get extra strokes. But I’ll go easy on you for your first time.” His hand slid from her chin down her back, coming to rest possessively on her bottom. “One for running away. One for barring my entry. And now two more for lying about your motivations. That's four spanks you've earned yourself, princess. Shall we make it five?”

Amalia's breath came in quick gasps. She should scream for the guards. Should fight, should protest this barbaric treatment. Instead, she found herself swaying toward him, her body yearning for his touch even as her mind rebelled.

“Please,” she whispered, though she wasn't sure if she was begging him to stop or continue.

“Please what?” His hand squeezed gently, making her gasp. “Please punish you? Please claim you properly, as I should have done in the forest?” He leaned down, his breath hot against her ear. “Please make you admit how much you want this?”

“I don't know,” she almost wailed, her body yearning for something she didn’t understand.

“Five it is, then.” In one smooth motion, he sat on the edge of her bed and pulled her between his thighs. “Remember, princess, you earned every one of these. And if you scream,” his hand stroked over her robe. “Well, then everyone will know exactly what's happening in here, won't they?”

* * *

Amalia eyed him carefully, as if trying to figure out how to handle the situation. He could almost hear her thoughts, and he could certainly smell her arousal, so she wasn’t terrified. But the robe had to go.

She bent over, and he stopped her. “First rule of punishment, you must be naked. However, since this is your first time, I’ll settle for you removing your robe.”

Her eyes widened even as her arousal scent spiked. She clutched the edges of the robe together in a show of modesty. “Absolutely not. You can’t see me naked.”

“Why not? I’m your mate, am I not? Make it quick or you will be naked for this and I will add to the count.”

She hesitated for a moment, then carefully shrugged out of the robe. Before she could drop it to the floor, he gestured to the bed. With a mulish set to her jaw, she laid the robe across the foot of the bed and turned back to him, leaving her clad in a silk nightgown barely skimming her curvy body, revealing the lush curves he was dying to explore as her mate.

He patted his thigh, and she narrowed her eyes, but she slowly settled over Drogath’s lap, her lush ass in the air. He savored the weight of Amalia across his lap; her scent a heady mixture of fear, arousal, and anticipation. The silk of her nightgown was whisper-thin beneath his palm as he caressed her bottom, letting her anticipation build. Her breath came in quick pants, and he could feel the tension in her slender body. He was going to enjoy his mate.

“Count them,” he commanded, then brought his hand down in a measured strike.

She gasped but managed a breathy “One.”

He alternated cheeks, careful to moderate his strength. He had no wish to truly hurt her. This was about claiming, about teaching her that actions had consequences. Each strike drew a desperate little sound from her throat, followed by the count in an increasingly strained voice.

By the fifth strike, she was squirming in his lap, her arousal evident in both her scent and the way she pressed her thighs together. He smoothed his hand over her warmed flesh, enjoying how she arched into his touch despite herself.

“Good girl,” he rumbled, and she shivered at the praise. “Now, shall we see how wet this punishment made you?”

She whimpered, wriggling against his rock hard cock, but didn’t say anything. He suspected she didn't know exactly what she was silently begging for. That was okay. He could guide her. Normally he would have done this with her bent over, but he suspected she was untouched and he wanted to see her expression as he brought her to climax the first time.

He gathered her up, turning her to straddle his lap. Her face was flushed, pupils blown wide with desire as she looked up at him, tears glistening in her eyes. When he captured her mouth in a searing kiss, she melted against him immediately, arms wrapping around his neck.

His hand slid between them, finding her center through the thin silk. She was soaked, her body more honest than her words had been. When he stroked her core, his fingers splitting her soaking wet folds before finding her soft nub at the top, she jerked against his hold and broke the kiss with a desperate cry.

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