Chapter 8

Agor

B urul, the blacksmith, clicked his tongue in disappointment.

“You need a horseshoe puller, chief. But you’ve got a hoof nipper, which you’re supposed to use after.”

“Right.” I put the tool back on the bench, then stared at the rows of pliers of various sizes, my mind drifting away.

Working with my hands often brought me satisfaction. I liked tinkering with things that needed fixing. It grounded me and helped me get my mind straight. In the three days since I escaped the human village, however, nothing helped me get control of my thoughts. They seemed to remain there, with her .

Burul released the horse’s leg. The short, stout animal danced on its hooves briefly, then reached for the bag of hay Burul had hung on a post nearby.

Horses weren’t of much use for us in the wetlands. Most forest paths were unpassable on horseback. But we had a few horses at the keep to work the garden patches we planted on a higher ground.

The blacksmith placed a hand on my shoulder.

“With the trouble Farod is brewing, you’ve got a lot on your plate, chief. Why don’t you go get some rest? I’ll finish it here. A stein of ale might do you good. Maybe a good fuck to relax a little. You look stiff like my anvil.” He squeezed my shoulder before giving me a shove toward the path that led back to my house.

Grat caught up with me a few paces from Burul’s shop.

“Two more scouts were sighted on the Gooseberry Path today.”

I rubbed my chest against the feeling of unease that had been throbbing there for quite a few days now, but not on the account of Farod or his scouts.

“Sighted? Not killed?” I clarified.

Grat released a frustrated grunt. “They got away. Sadly. Probably came here looking for Urug, Irg, and the others.”

“Well, they can keep looking.”

“If they fail to find them, as you know they will, they’ll report to Farod that we killed them. There may be trouble coming our way, chief. Farod doesn’t know that the human girl killed Urug or that she had a hand in Irg’s death too—”

I stopped in my tracks. Grat shut his mouth, staring at me in question.

“No one is going to say a word about her killing Farod’s men.” I lifted a finger for emphasis. “Have I not made that clear?”

Grat straightened his back.

“Yes, chief. You have.”

“If anyone so much as whispers her name...”

Grat scratched the back of his bald head.

“Um...chief, no one knows her name, anyway.”

“Good. Let’s keep it that way.”

Becca. Her name echoed through my mind.

It was a strong name for a strong woman. I’d kept it to myself ever since I’d first learned it three days ago. If Farod knew a human woman bested one of his men, he’d make it his mission to hunt her down to save his face. Otherwise, he’d be the laughingstock of all the wetlands for generations to come. Becca was much safer if no one from his clan knew about her.

I moved my gaze over the rows of houses around us. Children played in the front yards. Their parents were getting ready for our weekly gathering by piling firewood for the bonfires and bringing out food and ale to share.

By a long-standing tradition, the keep got together like that about once a week, and I loved the sense of community it brought.

Would Becca fit into this life?

I imagine she would. I didn’t know if she liked dancing, but I could easily envision her making a loop around the main plaza in a fast dance with me. Her cheeks would be rosy from jumping and hopping to our music. And her smile would be as bright as the sun.

Every time she appeared in my thoughts, she was sweaty and out of breath. But also smiling and happy, which she wouldn’t be if I forced her. A woman like that could not be forced.

I stared at the packed dirt of the path under my feet. I had no desire to go home right now. Maybe Burul was right. A good fuck might be nice. Only no fuck was good enough anymore. I hadn’t even so much as stroked myself lately, afraid to erase the memory of Becca’s slick pussy hugging my cock ever so tightly.

Getting instantly hard at the thought, I cursed under my breath.

“You know what?” I said to Grat, turning toward the tavern. “Let’s go to Karut’s for some ale.”

Never the one to turn a drink down, Grat readily agreed.

After a few long gulps of ale at Karut’s place, my throat was no longer dry. However, the restless feeling never quieted.

“How do humans date? ” I asked, surprising both Grat and myself.

“Date?” He made a face. “Fuck if I know. But what do you care? You can have anyone you want, human or orc.”

So much was true. I was young, strong, and the High Chief. Fate gave me a lot, and if I wanted more, I took it. Except that the one I wanted more than anything, I couldn’t have.

It’d be easy enough to haul Becca to my house, lock her in, and never let her leave. I’d fuck her dusk to dawn every night, and I knew she’d match me stroke for stroke, moan for moan, and thrust for thrust.

But then what?

Once the fog of lust had cleared, she’d hate me.

I wanted much more than just her delectable tits and her hot, wet pussy. When it came to Becca, I’d grown far too greedy to be satisfied with just her body. I wanted her proud soul, her fearless spirit, and I had to have her untamed heart too—none of which I would get if I seized her by force.

Grat leaned closer, looking at me as if I lost my mind, which was probably true.

“Is it about that girl from the human village? The one who got away?”

Grat got that right. She did get away. More than once.

Claiming Becca had proven more challenging than dealing with any woman I’d ever met before. Her refusing me, over and over, infuriated me. But if I thought hard about it, without being blinded by unfulfilled need or bruised pride, I understood her reasons.

I’d seen how she spoke to her people, convincing them not to kill me on the spot. They listened to her with a respect that few men enjoyed, not to mention women. She held an esteemed position among her people that she undoubtedly worked hard to achieve. She’d carved a place for herself in this world. And if I were to misplace her now, I had to offer her something in return. Something that she’d deem at least of equal value.

Clearly, my cock alone was not enough to entice her to spend the rest of her life with me. In order to win Becca, I had to win her over. She couldn’t be just my fuck mate. She had to be more.

“How do you win a woman’s heart?” I mused, after guzzling my second stein of ale. “Especially if she isn’t particularly smitten by your position as the High Chief? And wouldn’t submit by force?”

Grat looked genuinely puzzled, blinking at me, speechless. It was a good thing I never told him or anyone else at the keep that the humans had attacked me and plotted to kill. Upon returning from the human village, I’d just said that I’d accidentally dropped my mace when hunting a wild boar, and the boar was the one responsible for all my injuries because I had to wrestle him with my bare hands.

If Grat knew the truth, he’d probably chain me to the keep’s wall while he organized a raid on the humans in revenge.

Instead of Grat’s, a chipped, raspy voice answered me from behind. “You do what your grandfather did when he courted me, my sweet boy.”

“Granny Magra?” I turned to face my grandmother. “What are you doing here?”

As she got older, my granny had slowed down, yet the old shrew still managed somehow to be everywhere at once.

“I came here to enjoy a stein of ale, just like you.” She narrowed her duckweed-green eyes at me. “Except that you don’t look like you can even taste the ale when you’re chugging it the way you are. What ails you, chief? Women troubles?”

I smirked, rolling my shoulders back. The last thing I needed was for my people to think I was turning into some love-sick puppy, especially now when my right to wield the High Chief’s mace was being challenged.

On the other hand, Granny Magra might have some solutions to my very real “women troubles.” She’d been around for a very long time, and they said wisdom came with age.

“What did my grandfather do?” I asked.

“Ahhh,” she chuckled, tossing her head back with a dreamy smile. “First, he gave me everything that I needed. Then, he gave me all the things that I wanted. And finally, he offered me something I didn’t even know I needed, but it made my heart full.”