Page 105 of Horn in My Side
In glorious victory,
Grok of Harvik Horde
Coordinator-in-charge
Orc Historical Society
Mal couldn’t breathe as he sat there, reading and re-reading the email.He tapped at the refresh button over and over again, waiting for a follow-up email with the subject “Re: Oops, sorry we made a mistake.”But the email confirming that he had, indeed, been chosen remained on top.
He’d done it.After all the work, all the waiting, this moment was finally here.
And now, he didn’t even know if he wanted it.
“Mal?”
His head jerked up.“Yes?”
Jasmine padded over to him.“Everything okay?You look like you’ve heard some bad news.”
“What?No.”He tossed his phone onto the bedside table like it had been made of hot coals.“Just tired.”
The corner of her mouth tugged up, then she straddled his lap, legs hanging off the side of his knees.“You just spoil me so much.Too much.”
“No such thing.”He cupped the side of her cheek.“You deserve it.”
Leaning down, she kissed him, then swung off his legs.“Why don’t you get changed and we can go to bed?Slip into something more comfortable, like I did.”She motioned down to her pajama shorts set.It was baby blue and had small prints of capybaras.“Not as sexy as the other one I was wearing, huh?”
“You look absolutely sexy and beautiful.”And she really was, just standing there, breathing and being her.
She threw her head back and laughed, as if they were sharing a joke.“Oh yeah, I’m sexy all right.”She rubbed at her belly.“And look at this food baby right here.I’m surprised you didn’t get turned off.”
I want to put real babies in there.
“Nothing about your body could turn me off.”He pulled her in for a kiss.“But you’re right.”He got to his feet.“I should get changed.”
“Bathroom’s all yours.”
Mal brushed past her, her perfume still tickling his nose.He closed the door behind him, buried his face in his hands and groaned.
Who knew shit sometimes came in the form of the universe giving you what you wanted?
Chapter Twenty-one
JASMINE
Post-vacation blues had always hit Jasmine hard, but never quite this way.It had been more than a week since she and Mal came back from Bayview City, and yet she couldn’t stop thinking about their mini-break.Overall, it had been amazing.She loved being in the city, seeing all the sights and going shopping and trying all the different kinds of food.However, she was also glad to be back in Dewberry Falls, to her own apartment, the shop and the animals, and of course, Clawdia.
However, there was something bothering Jasmine, a notion she just couldn’t quite ignore, nor could she put a name to it.A kind of disquiet, like something was not right.
Jasmine opened the drawer under the register and picked up the Clawdia figurine that Mal had carved on their camping trip.She’d gotten into the habit of rubbing it when she was feeling anxious or nervous.Jasmine guessed she’d probably wear the entire thing away within a week if she didn’t resolve that suspicion lurking in her mind.
Mal was acting weird.
He’d seemed distracted, distant even, since they came backfrom their staycation.Their last full day was busy and they went to more sights and ate all the food they wanted, yet she wasn’t entirely sure he was even there with her.And when they returned to Dewberry Falls, it seemed to have gotten worse.The sex was still off the charts, but out of the bedroom, there was a look behind his eyes, something that told her he wasn’t quite in the moment with her.This morning when she left, he didn’t even walk her to work.Sure, he had an early conference call, but usually he worked around it, whether that meant rescheduling or taking the call with his earphones on as they walked to the shop.He’d also been on his phone a lot, which was unusual for him.While Jasmine would have guessed that maybe he was texting with someone, she noticed that he would hold the device in his hand and tap at the same spot with his thumb, over and over again.
Maybe this was it.They were reaching the point where things were naturally fizzling out and Mal wanted to break up.Their six months was nearly up, and from the beginning, she’d always known that he’d be leaving in that time.
A weight pressed down on her chest, making it hard to breathe.Though she’d known this moment would come, it still hit her like a bucket of ice water to the face.
