Page 7 of My Orc Package Deal

My knees went a little weak.

“This guy’s the mayor, right?” came Kesha’s hissed question from my side.

I shook myself and frowned down at her. “What?”

She was wearing a fixed smile, and for a moment, I was distracted by the realization I could tell that this expression was faked. Well, no surprise; orc senses were well-developed, and it’s not like I had to know her particularly well to smell her panic.

“The male who married us,” she murmured through clenched teeth. “He’s coming this way.”

I blinked and glanced around. Ah, sure enough, Sakkara was strolling toward us, his daughter carried high on his shoulder and his arm around his Mate. I didn’t have time to explain before he’d arrived, so I did my best to answer her with them present.

“Kesha, this is Sakkara, Eastshore’s mayor. He was sort of the leader of the first group of males to settle here, and has convinced the rest of the island he’s fair, open-minded, and honest.”

Since I said this last with a teasing tone as I offered him my free hand, Sakkara rolled his eyes, released his Mate, and grasped my forearm. “They haven’t caught on to the truth yet.”

The female at his side nudged him hard with her elbow. “Don’t listen to him, Kesha,” she assured my bride. “He’s an amazing mayor, and won fair and square.”

Grinning, Sakkara pulled her up against him once more. “This is my Mate, Nikki, and our daughter, Emmy. Nikki is a teacher at Eastshore Elementary.”

“Oh!” Kesha lit up. “Any chance you teach fifth grade? My son will be attending in the fall.”

“Nope, I teach second grade, but Mrs. Jerry has been our fifth-grade teacher for a few years, and he’ll do great with her.” Almost as if Nikki could guess my bride’s concerns, she assured Kesha, “She’s great with handling kids of all abilities and redirecting when necessary.”

At that, Emmy lifted her head from her father’s shoulder, her big dark eyes wide as she stared into the crowd milling around the hors d’oeuvres table. I’d never heard the little girl speak, but now she jabbed her father hard in the shoulder and pointed.

Nikki sighed. “You know what we said about pointing, honeybear. And using your words?”

The little girl just glared, and Sakkara’s sigh sounded defeated. “Just as stubborn as always. In order to mitigate the risk of an all-out battle, may I offer a compromise?” When his daughter shifted her glare to him, he smiled. “You seem to be after something, Emmy. One word, perhaps?”

The little one rolled her eyes, whispered, “Down, please,” and Sakkara immediately bent sideways so she could slide down to the sand. As soon as she did, the little one took off into the crowd, and Sakkara grunted slightly as he straightened.

“Aswan’s little Tova must be here.”

“She’s by the cupcake table, and Emmy just found her,” Nikki murmured before turning back to us with a little apologetic smile. “Sorry, we’re trying to get her more comfortable talking to us in front of other people.”

To my surprise, Kesha stepped toward the other woman, reaching slightly, as if offering her friendship. Since she had to drop my hand to do so, I was a little distracted, but still acknowledged my bride’s attempts.

“Girl, I know all about that. And you know they’re not doing it on purpose, it’s just part of who they are. But you have to teach them how to interact with the world⁠—”

“Because I can’t teach the world to interact with them!” Nikki finished. “Oh my god, yes.” She brushed a touch over Kesha’s forearm. “You get it.”

“I get it,” my bride agreed with a long-suffering smile. “Milo is ten, and I will say that having an actual diagnosis was helpful in the long run.”

“We decided we’re not going to have Emmy evaluated,” Sakkara cut in, “but the social anxiety is fairly obvious, as is the stubbornness.”

Kesha shrugged, her smile turning more natural. “That’s fair. Everything I’ve read about Eastshore Elementary and the community sounds like this is the right place for kids like Emmy and Milo. It was one of the reasons we moved⁠—”

Her mouth suddenly snapped shut, uncertainty flicking across her face as she tried to hide it by turning to me. I hadn’t told anyone but Brakkor our reasons for this marriage—he thought it was ridiculous, of course—and judging from the sudden scent of her panic, Kesha didn’t want to broadcast it either.

Huh.

But my Kteer wouldn’t allow me to ignore her alarm, so I reached for her, tucking her against my side the way Sakkara held Nikki. “Milo’s going to fit in well here,” I told the other couple smoothly, covering Kesha’s stumble. “He and Jay are already best friends, and the school will be perfect for him.”

Sakkara and Nikki made some more small talk, and I think I managed to answer when appropriate. But honestly, I was so distracted by the feel of Kesha pressed against me, I could barely focus on their words. For the wedding, my bride had chosen a strappy white sundress, and that meant there was far too much skin touching mine.

Or, one could argue, just the right amount of skin? That gorgeous, rich brown skin framed all in white cotton, making my mouth water…

The way my Kteer was purring, an argument could be made for not enough skin…