Page 6 of The Orc's Sweetheart
I’m not jealous. I’m a strong, capable woman. A human woman. With other skills. Maybe extra strength wouldn’t be too bad, though. Nope, I’m not starting my first day with species envy. Good for him.
Audrey and I unload the car as Beck carries the bags down the dock. When the car is clear, we join him at the boat with the final pieces of luggage. I take in the size of the boat and how he’s stacked everything neatly in the hull with some kind of distribution strategy it seems. Then I take a step back to assess the sailboat—the hull, the mast, the boom, and other parts I don’t know the names of—and my anxiety activates,slowly clawing up my throat. I did not mentally prepare to be on a sailboat today. I thought it would be some kind of larger engine-driven vessel perhaps.
I’m a curvy girl and I’m acutely aware of my weight in situations like this. The boat is on the smaller side and I’ll need to consider where to sit so I don’t upset the balance somehow. Plus, it’s a sailboat, so it’ll probably lean to one side at some stage—a thought that makes me shudder.
My heart drums an unsteady beat and I swallow against the lump in my throat.
Beck appears in front of me, eyes full of concern. “I sense something is wrong. Stress?”
“I’m okay,” I give him a wobbly smile and tuck my hair behind my ear with shaky fingers. “Just… nervous.”
“Your heart is beating awfully fast, and your scent is… off.”
“You can’t just call her out like that, Beck. Not a cool move, dude,” Audrey admonishes, and rubs my back in soothing circles.
“I apologize,” Beck says with a bow of his head. “I find it hard to read creatures sometimes and know which remarks are inappropriate. How can I fix the situation?”
I think I understand where Beck is coming from, and I make a mental note to be more gracious with his unfiltered honesty and directness. “Maybe tell me where I can sit? I don’t want to upset the balance of the boat.”
“Oh, I usually sit close to the stern on the port side. So you can sit on the starboard side. That means on the right. Or if you don’t feel like being close to the edge, you can sit in the center?”
“Um,” I start, then clear my throat in the hopes that my voice comes out steadier. “Won’t weight distribution factor into where I should sit?” Even asking the question makes my cheeks burn with embarrassment.
“For other skippers it would. But I control the boat with my power, so it’s not a problem for me. You can sit where you feel most happy and I’ll balance it out.”
My anxiety melts away at those words. I love my body… on most days, but there are moments where I’m a little shy about it too. Creatures, both human and other species, can be mean sometimes. Let’s hope the rest of my interactions on the island will be as positive as this one.
“Thank you, Beck. Let me just say goodbye to Audrey, then I’ll be ready.”
Beck nods and I turn to Audrey, just as her mask slips into place and all the emotion that was pulling the corners of her mouth down disappears.
She pushes her sunglasses up her nose. “Let’s not get too soppy right now. We’ll see each other soon enough.”
I smile, because I knew we wouldn’t have a super emotional goodbye. We said all we had to say this morning. “I’ll call when I can. Signal might be spotty,” I remind Audrey.
“I’ll wait for my invitation once you’re settled in your first official home.”
“I’m going to spruce it the fuck up for you.”
“No. Do it foryou.”
I lean forward to hug her and we allow ourselves a three-second squeeze before we step back.
“I left a stash of blood-sugar friendly snacks in the pantry. Make sure you pop some in your bag before you leave the house. Every. Day,” I add in a stern voice and a pointed finger for emphasis.
Mouth twitching into a smile, Audrey’s voice comes out thicker than she most likely intended, “Yes, Nurse Tilly. I promise.”
Beck helps me into the boat and I bravely settle onto the bench on the starboard side.
“See you soon!” Audrey calls as Beck unties the rope from the cleats. I wave back and slip my sunglasses on to distract myself from the nerves trickling through my body.
To our right, boats of all types and sizes neatly line the harbor. A few have humans on them getting ready for a day out on the water, but they don’t pay us much attention as Beck navigates our boat around them, away from Cape Easton, and into the waters of Indigo Bay.
It’s a calm, windless day and I thank whatever power is responsible for the ocean’s glassy surface that I don’t have to worry about motion sickness symptoms. Despite living in a coastal city, I’ve never been on a boat like Beck’s.
I take one last look back at Cape Easton and prepare myself to not see it for a very long time. I’m prepared to fully embrace my life on Starry Hill, and don’t expect to be taking many trips back to the mainland.
Once we reach open water, I take a deep breath of fresh sea air and relax into the ride, enjoying the sight of the late-morning sun sparkling across the navy blue surface and the smooth motion of the sailboat.
