Page 75 of My Orc Package Deal

I smiled, brushing my thumb across the back of his hand. The word Mate still sent a little thrill through me. “Just thinking about how lucky I am. How grateful I am that I took a chance to marry a complete stranger and move across the country.”

His dark eyes softened. “Grateful because it meant finding your Mate?”

I leaned over and brushed a kiss over his ear, then his jaw, then the corner of his mouth. “Because it meant finding you, silly.”

His breath hitched, his hand tightening on mine. “Kesha⁠—”

“And Milo’s school.” The words spilled out, my chest too full to keep them in. “And Jay’s hockey. And this home. And the way Milo’s thriving here in a way he never could’ve in Texas.”

Korrad’s expression turned tender. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” I swallowed, my throat suddenly tight. “He’s happy, Korrad. He’s not just getting by. He’s not drowning in a system that doesn’t know what to do with him. He’s learning and growing. And it’s because of you.”

“Hey.” Korrad cupped my face, his thumb brushing my cheekbone. “It’s because of us. You’re the one who fought for him every step of the way. Who found the right school, the right doctors, the right everything.”

“I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“And I wouldn’t have wanted to do it without you.”

I exhaled, my forehead resting against his. “We’re pretty good at this, huh?”

His chuckle was warm against my lips. “We’re great at this.”

I kissed him then, slow and deep, the kind of kiss that promised later. The kind that made my toes curl and my pulse jump.

When I pulled back, his eyes were dark, his voice rough. “Maybe later I could show you exactly how great we are together?”

“I’ll hold you to that.”

He brushed his lips over mine. “Love you, Kesha.”

And I settled back against the couch with a sigh and realized how very lucky I was. Lucky for the way Korrad’s hand fit in mine. For the way his laughter filled the house, and the way our sons bickered. For the way, when I looked at him, I didn’t just see my husband.

I saw my home.

“I love you too, Mate.”

Kesha

The house was quiet, the kind of quiet that only came when both boys were finally asleep—Milo with his music playing, and Jay passed out with the novel he was supposed to be reading over the break still clutched in his hands. The Christmas lights twinkled outside the frosted window, casting shifting patterns across the bedroom floor, and the scent of pine from the tree lingered in the air.

Korrad had been restless all evening, his hands finding me every time I passed—brushing my waist, squeezing my hip, his fingers lingering just a little too long. By the time we closed the bedroom door behind us, his patience had frayed to nothing.

I barely had time to turn before his arms were around me, his mouth crashing down on mine. His kiss was hungry, almost desperate, his tongue sweeping in to claim me. I melted against him, my hands fisting in his shirt, pulling him closer. His tusks scraped my cheek, his breath hot against my skin.

“Gods below, Kesha,” he growled, his voice rough. “I can’t—fuck, I need⁠—”

I laughed breathlessly against his lips, my body already throbbing with anticipation. “Since when are you so impatient?”

His eyes glowed faintly in the dim light, that eerie orcish luminescence that always sent a thrill through me.

“Since my Mate is standing here, smelling like this,” he rumbled, his hands sliding down to grip my ass, pulling me flush against him. I could feel how hard he was, his cock thick against my stomach. “I don’t think I’ve been this out of control since the Bond first snapped into place.”

A shiver ran through me. “Ravish me, then,” I whispered, grinning. “I’ve always wanted to be taken by a fearsome orc.”

Korrad’s growl was real this time, deep and possessive, triggering something primal in me… and then he was moving—shoving me back toward the bed, his hands tearing at my clothes. I giggled, dodging him, pretending I was trying to run from a primitive beast as he began to yank off his clothing. But he caught me easily, spinning me around and pinning me against the mattress. His weight pressed me down, his mouth finding the curve of my neck, his teeth grazing my pulse point.

“You’re mine, pretty little human,” he snarled, his fingers hooking into the waistband of my jeans, yanking them down my legs. My panties followed, torn away with a sharp tug. The cool air hit my bare skin, but I barely noticed—all I could focus on was the way his eyes burned as he looked at me, spread out beneath him.