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I couldn’t seem to make my mind grab onto the world and keep me in it. When I shifted on the soft surface, a dull ache throbbed in my right thigh. I stilled; worried further movement would make my leg hurt even more.
The memory of the dresalods attacking us in the street rushed through me. While Jaus battled two, the third came after me. It kept trying to kill me. I’d dodge to the side as much as I could, but it hit me. My leg!
“When I first began my career,” the older voice said, “I tested everything. The enthusiasm for my chosen profession drove me to explore the world around me.” His clipped words came out with purpose. “As I aged, that feeling waned. I enjoyed my career, but I lost the wonder of discovery. I stopped testing, and I see now that I was wrong. I’m sorry I doubted you for even a moment.”
“I bear you no ill will,” Jaus said.
I remembered trying to press myself tighter into the nook between the buildings but being unable to sink deep enough to keep the creature from hurting me. It stabbed, hitting the wall around me over and over. I couldn’t hide.
“Thank you,” Jaus said. “I appreciate your help.”
Footsteps echoed in the room, followed by a door opening and closing.
“She’ll wake completely,” the other person said from farther away. “I trust the fates wouldn’t give her to you only to steal her not long after.”
“She’s incredibly smart,” Jaus said. “Resourceful. I don’t know what I’d do without her.”
No, that couldn’t be my grumpy mate speaking highly of me, his voice cratering with pain. If I could open my eyes, I would find out what was hurting him and make it go away. But I didn’t dare invite the pain to stab through me again.
“She’s . . . gorgeous,” someone else said. “You’re lucky, brother. Incredibly fortunate.”
“The fates gave me a wonderful gift.”
“Your clan is worthy.Youare worthy, brother.”
Brother? Jaus said he was an only child.
“My mother believed I was,” Jaus said in a wry voice. “You know what my father thinks.”
“He’s a fool who’ll never change his ways.”
“If only what he thought of me didn’t matter.”
Poor Jaus. He hadn’t mentioned his father, but it sounded like the guy scorned him. If I could get off this bed, I’d track his father down and smack him, tell him he should notice how wonderful—how loveable—Jaus was.
It had been so easy to fall deeply in love with him. His kind, gentle ways overrode his gruff, grumbly demeanor, showing me hewasa cinnamon roll on the inside. He was strong and brave. He’d give his life to save others.
I sucked in a breath and tried to move again, finding it easier this time. Even better, my eyelids responded to my command and opened.
Jaus stood at the end of the bed beside a male orc about his own age. I’d never seen him before. He was as handsome as my mate, and I could tell by the shape of his jaw and their similar build that they were brothers.
The darkness beyond the windows taking up the left wall told me it was night. One of the windows had been cracked open, and the rich tangy scent of the sea drifted through the room, mixing in with what smelled like a subtle perfume and liladek flowers. Liladek only bloomed at night, and their blossoms could be used as a sleeping potion.
How long hadIbeen asleep?
I had no idea where I was, but this wasn’t Jaus’s simple yet lovely home. How had I wound up in what looked like a bedroom fit for a queen?
They’d placed the magnificent bed I lay in—a grand four-poster draped with rich burgundy curtains that cascaded to the floor—in the center of the room. Its intricately carved wooden frame hinted at craftsmanship fit for royalty.
The plush mattress beneath me supported me like a cloud, and I was covered with layers of soft blankets in deep shades of gold and cream. Delicate lace pillows supported my head, and I couldn’t imagine owning a room like this nor spending my nights lying in such splendor.
The bureaus standing by the right wall were made of a dark polished wood and crafted with elegant details mirroring those seen on the rest of the furniture scattered around the space like precious jewels.
Wood flooring gleamed between thick rugs in muted cream—something I’d hate to have to keep clean. Portraits of stately orcs peppered the walls, their stern gazes looking my way.
When I caught his eye, utter relief filled Jaus’s face, making my pulse dance through my veins. He quickly rounded the side of the bed and crouched down beside it, taking my hand, his intent gaze remaining locked on mine. “How are you feeling, tiny mate? Better?”
The other male watched us with a smile twitching his lips upward.
