Page 42 of The Orc's Captive Bride
“You skipped dinner. You need?—”
“I know my nutritional requirements, thank you.” She turned, startling at how near he was. Close enough to see the fatigue in his eyes. The tightness around his mouth. “Did you eat? Or were you too busy standing guard to bother?”
His face went blank. “I am fine.”
“Liar.”
The word hung between them—truth and accusation both.
“Eat,” he repeated roughly. “Then we will go to the library. Those are the High King’s orders.”
“Is that all you care about? His orders?”
She knew she shouldn’t have asked, but the dream was still vivid in her mind. She needed to know if last night had meant anything to him at all.
His hands clenched, and for a heartbeat she thought his mask would break, but then his expression went stone-cold again.
“Yes,” he said. “That is all I care about.”
The lie was painfully obvious, but it didn’t make her feel any better.
“Fine.” She picked up a piece of bread and bit into it. It tasted like nothing. “I’m eating. Satisfied?”
Silence.
“I will wait outside.”
He left before she could respond. The door closed with careful precision. Not a slam, just a quiet, controlled click.
She stood there, bread in hand, staring at the closed door.
I’m an idiot.
She knew that. She knew that getting involved with him was stupid and pushing him was dangerous.
But it didn’t matter because she was falling for him anyway. Falling for the male who looked at her as if she mattered. Even if he’d never admit it.
She forced down the rest of the bread, her appetite nonexistent but her stubbornness intact. If he wanted to pretend last night didn’t happen, fine. She could play that game.
She’d spent a good part of her career being underestimated and dismissed. She knew how to smile and nod and prove them wrong. This was no different.
Except it hurts more.
Focus on the translation, she told herself. The impossible task. The ancient text. The knowledge that failure meant death.
It was still simpler than dealing with an orc who made her heart ache.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Thea finished choking down the piece of bread, then sighed and opened the door. Khorrek stood exactly where he’d been the first time she opened the door, every inch the disciplined guard.
“Ready?” he asked, not looking at her.
“Ready.”
They walked in silence through corridors that were already starting to feel familiar. Servants pressed themselves against the walls as they passed. Guards nodded to Khorrek with wary respect.
No one met her eyes.
