AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I mean, I’d never seen an orc wearing a pink banana hammock and carrying a Pomeranian in any fantasy shows or games, but the green skin, tusks and long black hair—not to mention the bulging muscles—made me think that was what he was cosplaying as.
“That’s right,” he purred, then cocked his hip and brought his free hand up to tap a finger against his lips as he looked me up and down. “Although this isn’t my full wrestling outfit. Now, let me try and guess what Holt requested for tonight…”
“Corey—” Holt grated.
“Man who knows he should’ve done laundry a week ago, but he’s been too busy playing a first-person-shooter for forty-eight hours straight?”
Ouch. That one kinda stung for some reason. I let out a weak chuckle and took a step back.
“God, Corey, don’t be so fucking rude,” Holt snapped, and Corey’s green eyes widened as he looked back at me.
“Oh, honey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—It was only because of the stain on your pants.”
“It’s okay,” I said with forced cheerfulness. Holt’s forehead was creased with a deep frown as he glanced at me, then stepped closer to Corey.
“Go and get ready, Corey,” he gritted out.
“Alright, I’m going.” Corey still looked upset at the thought of hurting my feelings, but he turned toward Larkin and held out his tiny Pomeranian. “Cora needs a walk. Make sure she goes peepee.”
Larkin let out a huge sigh, but this seemed to be a regular occurrence, because he took the little dog from Corey without a word. Corey and Cora. That was kind of sweet.
“Nice to meet you, Taylor.” Corey shot me a rueful smile. “I really am sorry. You look nice, darling. Holt has finally developed good taste.”
“Oh, um.” I flushed bright red, glancing at Holt and remembering Larkin’s advice to keep pretending I was his stripper for the night. “Th-thanks.”
“Enjoy the show, sweetie. Need to go warm up my voice.” He winked at me, then cleared his throat, lifted his chin and sucked in a deep lungful as he turned to leave. “Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.” Each word was enunciated crisply. “Betty bought a bit of butter. Betty bought a bit of butter. Betty bought a…”
His booming voice faded as he swept out of the room and closed the door behind him. We stood there in silence for a few awkward seconds, before Holt snapped, “Lark, go take Cora for her walk.”
“Uuuugh, fine.” Larkin heaved himself up from the couch with Cora tucked under his arm, panting happily. “She takes ages though. She has to sniff everything.”
“What a shame,” Holt said snippily. “And stay off your phone while you’re out there. Corey will literally start screaming bloody murder if you lose her again.”
“I didn’t lose her for that long,” Larkin was muttering as he left the room.
Once he was gone, Holt cleared his throat and turned to face me. He was still frowning, his hot pink eyes tense.
“I’m so sorry, Taylor,” he said huskily, tongue darting out to wet his lips. “Corey can be such a bitch.”
“It’s okay,” I said quickly with a chuckle. “The guy upstairs said I look like a sleep-deprived dad at the zoo, so…”
Holt’s frown deepened. My breath caught when he took a step closer.
“They’re both assholes. You don’t look like…” He stopped and licked his lips again, cheeks somehow staining that dark grey. “You look really nice. Do you really not see how handsome you are?”
What? My pulse sped up, stomach going all squirmy.
Holt thought I was handsome?
“I, um…” He was a couple of inches taller than me, and my throat bobbed in a nervous swallow as I stared up at him.
When his eyes darted down to my mouth, my breath hitched again. Oh my god. Was he… Had he actually meant that stuff he’d said last night, then? About banging me. About my nice mouth and pretty eyes and… fantastic ass.
My asshole was already practically puckering at the thought of Holt… Of me and Holt maybe…
Suddenly, the lights in the arena below dimmed as the music got quieter. The faint, muffled sound of conversations faded away, all the cosplaying attendants looking alert and ready in their seats.
Holt’s brows twitched into another frown as he glanced down at the ring, before he looked back at me with a tiny smile that almost seemed disappointed.
