Page 77 of The Orc's Captive Bride
“Your hand!”
“It’s nothing. It will heal.”
“It’s bleeding all over my floor.” She grabbed his arm and pulled him inside with a strength born from years of hauling artifact crates and moving furniture when budgets didn’t allow for proper help. “Sit down and let me look at it.”
“I’m fine.”
“No you’re not. You’re injured. Now stop being stubborn.”
She pulled him to the chair by the fire and pushed him into it. He didn’t resist, which worried her even more. He never just… gave in.
She hurried to the bathing room, and grabbed some thin linen towels, along with a basin of warm water, and carried them both back to where Khorrek sat staring at nothing.
“What happened?” She knelt in front of him and started carefully cleaning away the blood.
His knuckles were shredded, the bone showing through in places. He’d hit something. Hit it hard and many times.
“I hit a wall.”
“I can see that. Why?”
“It was there.”
Despite everything, warmth flickered through her chest. Even devastated, he still had that dry edge to his voice.
“Khorrek—”
“Leave it, Thea.”
She looked up at him and met those golden eyes, seeing the anguish he was trying so hard to hide.
“Something happened when you reported to Lasseran, something terrible.”
“It’s not your concern.”
“The hell it isn’t.” She went back to cleaning his hand gently but thoroughly. “You’re here in my rooms and you’re clearly devastated, which makes it my concern.”
“I shouldn’t have come.”
“But you did. Why?”
Silence. She kept working, cleaning away the blood and assessing the damage. She suspected he was right about it healing, but it was going to hurt for days.
“I don’t know,” he said quietly, his voice raw.
She set aside the bloody cloth and started wrapping his hand with the clean linen.
“Liar.” She kept her tone gentle and affectionate. It wasn’t an accusation, but an invitation.
His throat worked, his jaw clenching and unclenching.
“He’s going to kill them.”
The words were so quiet she almost missed them.
Her hands stilled. “What?”
And then it came out.
