3. Bowen

Igaze in confusion at the back of Sadie’s head as she leaves without speaking or looking at me, wondering what went wrong.

Amanda Amato, a local news reporter for a television channel that everyone around here seems to have heard of, arrived and suddenly Sadie’s mood changed.

The sexy smile my female had only for me left her face and she walked away and is now ensconced in the temporary jail cell, chatting with the other humans and pointedly ignoring my existence.

There’s a chill in the air because her warmth has left my side.

The reporter keeps talking but her voice grows distant as I continue to think only of Sadie Powell.

This morning, I caught one of my deputies trying to reorder the Fake Arrest List, so that he could be the one to personally arrest Sadie for the charity run, but I put a stop to that nonsense immediately. “No one is arresting Sadie Powell but me,” I growled.

Because she is mine.

Today I wanted to finally tell this female how I’ve felt and admit my attraction. At the end of today’s charity drive I planned on asking her out on a human style date and then hopefully I’d coax her into my bed tonight and forever. And now those plans appear in jeopardy, and I don’t even know why.

I’ve wanted this gorgeous female as my bride and the mother of my future sons since the moment I saw her on my first day on the job. I was striding down the street in Silver Lake, getting to know the area better and saw her from a distance and was struck with orc sense—the instant primitive knowledge that this female was a possible bride. The idea of her swollen with my son caused my shaft to thicken in my trousers.

The next day I patrolled main street at predawn and happened to witness the same female arrive to start her work shift at her bakery. I learned she is a hard worker and a morning person, like me. Sadie arrives first and is usually the last to leave. She works six days a week and only takes Sundays off because the entire business district also closes on Sundays as a day of rest. Otherwise, I assume she’d be there that day too.

She is slightly taller than most of the other females I’ve met, slender, with an athletic build. This means she would be strong enough to withstand my orc lust and carry my sons.

But the problem is that I arrived at the start of winter.

And orcs historically claim their brides in the dark of winter.

I couldn’t approach her then because I could lose my mind and drag Sadie off by her hair and keep her in my ‘cave’. In modern times there is no kidnapping of females. But the fact remains that there are no female orcs and we must impregnate humans, who will then give us sons. In primitive ages orcs used to give into their baser natures and kidnap females and take them to their tribes. This is why mobs of angry humans with pitchforks often arrived at our gates and was the main form of communication between the two species. Angry groups of males wanting back stolen girlfriends, sisters, daughters, aunts, cousins or friends, was very common.

And orcs refused to give up their mates.

But this is no longer the case. Orc culture has grown and evolved. Many orcs still live on communes, not wanting to live amongst humans, but we no longer kidnap females. Kidnapping and mating without consent is strictly forbidden amongst all our tribes, communes and across all the continents.

After a certain human female, living on a commune in Maine, wrote a bestselling book explaining her life and times while in a loving marriage with an orc, women worldwide seem to like us more. The temperature between orcs and humans has lowered overall and acceptance by all humans worldwide of orc culture has grown exponentially. Many females now want to live on communes with us, and orcs can be choosy. Kidnapping is no longer needed.

But I still have all my baser instincts, which are inbred. During the winter, if I were to get close to a female I scent as my mate, I might lose my mind and take her without consent. I didn’t want to take that chance with Sadie, so I kept my distance.

I was very surprised to have such a visceral reaction towards this female. At thirty-two years old I’d never once felt anything besides possible friendship for any female I’d ever met.

And yet when I saw Sadie Powell, I instantly wanted that long blonde hair wrapped around my fist as I fucked her from behind. A growl rumbled in my chest. The need was so strong I followed her down the street and watched as she went inside the bakery. I’ve been watching her ever since. Also, because she doesn’t seem concerned about her safety while she works alone at dawn, but I am.

I’ve waited for winter to turn into spring, which was physically very difficult, but I managed. Her scent was not actually in my lungs and I’d never touched her, so I was able to remain sane. But it’s now April and I am in her vicinity and I’m ready.

And I can scent her arousal for me in return.

I did notice her gaze on me often, so I assumed there was something there. We were once at the gas station at the same time and I caught her staring at me when I looked, she swiftly turned away. She seems to be unmated. I don”t know how this is possible that none of these human males have snapped her up but lucky for me they”re all stupid.

I”ve in essence become her bodyguard. Not that there is much in the way of criminality here, this is why I”m the first sheriff in Silver Lake because this is an easy job, there”s not much to do but I…

“Bowen, Bowen did you hear what I said?”

I look down in annoyance at the female who is again trying to insert herself in my space. This reporter often chats with me much more than necessary and about personal subjects that have nothing to do with my job. And this time she was talking to me and not including Sadie.

Is that why my female left? Was it because she didn’t feel included?

Ms. Amato puts her hand on my arm and I growl because I want only Sadie’s touch.

The female blinks and steps back. “Bowen, what’s wrong?”

I take a deep breath, forcing myself to remain calm and professional and…kind. I’ve never told her she could use my first name and I hate the sound of this informality on her lips. But I cannot frighten or upset this female from the media services. I want only Sadie, but this other female wants my attention in order to ask questions that will gain her information she can then communicate them to other humans. She provides a valuable service and this random touching on the fabric of my uniform might be a harmless expression of human nature and I’m here to prove to the world that orcs can live and work amongst humans.

I am the first orc to be in human law enforcement. Soon there will be orcs allowed in the military. My job is to simply to show that we can all get along. I represent not only myself in this job, but all orcs. If I can hold this position without any errors, like for instance going berserk and kidnapping a female off the street, then I am proving that orcs can enter a variety of other fields beyond law enforcement, like the military, firefighting and even other civilian positions.

I”m a test case and I fully understand that if I do something wrong, it reflects not just on me, but my whole species. The communes are filled with orcs who want to live in the ways of old and preserve our traditions, which is admirable, but nowadays many of us in the younger generation also want to live alongside humans, not separate and apart. Human civilizations are so vast, it”s not like it used to be where we could live more distant. There”s so many of them now and their technology and weaponry have grown to a point where it”s plain stupid for us to not live amongst humans in peace and let go of the past and build a future together with them.

“Bowen? What’s wrong? Did you hear what I said? I was asking if you wanted to go out to…”

She does not take no for an answer, always trying to get me to go out with her after work hours to ‘talk’, but I decline. This female has been too much. She has touched me before and it always felt uncomfortable but not as it did now where I literally jerked away and growled. The problem is that today I spent time in close quarters with my female and her pheromones have entered my lungs and I’m already bonding to her. I need my eyes on Sadie. In fact, I need to touch my female to get this other uncomfortable touch out of my system. I need to immediately replace it with Sadie’s scent immediately.

My heart is pounding and my muscles are twitching.

I march away from Ms. Amato toward Sadie.

“What are you doing?” Amato shouts from behind me. “Does anyone know where he’s going? I thought we were talking…”

I unlock the cell and crowd inside and gently push aside annoyed humans until I reach the one I need.

“Why is the Sheriff in here pushing his weight around?” someone grouses. “This is uncalled for.”

And this is how I end up with my nose in her hair.

“Bowen?” Her arms go around my waist. “Oh no. What is wrong? Are you okay? I’m worried about you. You seem upset. And um, why are you sniffing me again?”

I don’t respond, just pull her with me into a corner and inhale and put my arms around her soft form. Immediately, the irritation in my blood and muscles starts to melt away. A calmness enters my mind and the same warmth as before returns across my body. Her scent, the sound of her voice and the feel of her in my arms is all I need.

I’ve got it bad.

She is indeed my bride. I’m beginning to understand the berserker brain fog that must’ve hit orcs of old, causing them to do something so outrageous as to stalk and kidnap a female in the dark of winter.

But I’ve already done the hard work and waited. It’s now spring and that means I can wait for consent, so I loosen my hold.

Her brow furrows. “What are you doing in here with me? Shouldn’t you be busy holding Amanda like this?” She huffs and fully steps free from my embrace and steps away. “Why don”t you go back to your girlfriend and get hugs from her.”

“Girlfriend?” I ask with confusion.

She looks away and I see the other humans in the cell, boldly staring at us, listening to every word we say. I growl and they collectively take a step back and glance away.

Sadie lowers her voice. “You and Amanda are a couple, so why are you in here hugging me and acting like you are…I mean, that’s so rude. Of course I love hugging you too, but she’s right over there. Why would you do that?”

“Because I’m sexually attracted to you,” I admit, inhaling her reciprocal arousal for me that again fills the air. “And I’m tired of denying it. I want you in my bed, tonight, if you’ll accept.”

She swallows. “Um…what…what do you expect me to say to that? How… how can you say that when your girlfriend is standing in the lobby by the front doors? It”s not fair to her or to me.”

“It really isn’t fair,” the head Librarian charges. “Now you’re stringing along two different women,” he huffs.

“Our new Sheriff is a player,” someone else grouses.

“But I”m not dating Ms. Amato.”

“Yes, you are,” Sadie charges. “They told me you and she were…”

“Who told you?”

“Everyone. Everyone in town thinks that Amanda is your new girlfriend and for some reason you”re keeping it on the down low maybe because you think her dad won”t approve. We”re all trying to figure that part out.”

“Even I thought Amanda Amato was your girlfriend,” the town’s eighty-year-old female mayor agrees.

“No, no,” I tell her. “I don’t have a bride. Amanda Amato isn’t my human girlfriend. Orcs don’t have girlfriends, only mates.” I turn to face Sadie. “And anyway, I”ve only ever had eyes for you.”

Her lips thin. “That”s not true. You ignore me.”

“I don”t ignore you. It just looks that way. The problem was that I first met you it was the dark of winter and orcs can’t control themselves at that time. I’ve had to avoid you and wait until spring to be able to treat you as I do now—reasonably calm and able to wait for consent.”

“This is you, acting calm?”

I shrug.

She waves a hand toward the front doors. “But what about Amanda? If you’ve secretly been attracted to me this whole time but had to keep away from me because of your orc nature, does that mean you’ve been leading her on?”

“What does ‘leading on’ mean?”

“Have you told her explicitly that you”ve scented your bride and it is not her? You don”t have to say this in a mean way. It”s just that she”s got to know the truth because otherwise, you”re leaving her hanging. That”s not nice either.”

“Is that why she still continues to try and get me alone despite all the times I’ve declined?”

“Yes. You’ve let her think that there”s a possibility of something happening between the two of you.”

I glance towards Ms. Amato to discover her staring grimly at the two of us.

“She”s angry because she thinks that you’re basically cheating on her right now by hugging and talking to me.”

“How is it possible for this female to think this when I’ve never touched her and we have not spoken any vows? Why would she continue to push for this with a male not of her species?”

There are a few chuckles of disbelief from the cell mates.

Sadie gives me a rueful smile. “I think you”re forgetting what a catch you are and how handsome you are in that uniform. You must be in complete denial.”

I grimace, baring my tusks. “I”m an orc. Humans have always considered us monstrous.”

“Well, those were olden times because it”s not like that anymore. And you look really good in that uniform. You need to go over there and nicely tell her, with no way for her to misunderstand and don”t be mean, that there”s nothing between the two of you. And remember, it”s important that you scented me. And what does that even mean that you scented me? What are you talking about?”

“You are mine.”

“Yeah, what? For a date. You want to date me?”

“That”s what humans say. No orcs don”t date. I was initially planning on asking you on a human style date and trying to take this slow for you, but as you can tell I’m having difficulty.”

Her eyes widen. “What are you saying?”

“You”re my mate.”

“Mate. Like wife. Are you saying that you want to marry me?”

There are gasps of surprise and a twitter of excitement from the nearby humans.

“I have thought about it long and hard. I”ve waited to approach you till after winter. So I would not scare you away or possibly do something without your consent. But yes, this is what I want and I hope you want this too. You need to think about this. I”m going over there and I”m going to tell her what you said for me to tell her. Meanwhile you need to decide before we go on this first date. I say trying hard not to laugh at this ridiculous term that humans use but you need to know that if we were to…”

“Kiss?”

“Touch,” I say.

“Have sex,” she whispers.

I groan. “If we do any of those things, I will latch on to you for life. There is no cheating amongst orcs I physically cannot cheat. So you have to decide right now whether we want that type of commitment with me or not. As of now, we have not touched skin to skin or, kissed, or…”

“Had wild, hot nasty sex,” she repeats.

“Yes,” I grown again. She”s hurting me. “Because we have done none of those things. I could ask for a job transfer. I could remove myself from this situation. And you could just live your life like normal don”t be concerned about me. But if you do want to start something up with me it”s not something where we can go on a few dates and then decide it”s over.”

“Where we get married and then I divorce you?”

I wince because the word divorce literally causes me physical pain. “No, this human construct of this thing that you call divorce is not amongst my species. I cannot start a physical relationship with you if you do not understand that it will be for life.”

“I get it. Thank you. Amanda’s coming over. You better go talk to her.”

She turns away and stands with the group of humans in the cell.

I exit and walk towards Ms. Amato.

“Well, finally,” the reporter tosses her long hair over her shoulder and frowns. “What was that all about? I didn”t know that you are so friendly with Sadie Powell.”

She is trying her best to hide her irritation. Now I can tell that everything Sadie says true. I don”t understand human cues. I did of course scent this female’s arousal from the first, but I”ve scented hundreds of women over the last decade who have had this same reaction towards me and I ignore it and move on. And I think most females, if they knew that I could scent their arousal would be highly embarrassed and it is an odd thing because I think most of them still are scared of me. I never let on that I know. Only this once with Sadie has it actually mattered.

I”ve been ignoring it from Ms. Amato just like I do everyone else and we still continue to work together. She often requests for me to call her in private, which I don”t do, or for us to go places together alone, which I always managed to decline nicely.

Maybe while trying to be polite I’ve been accidentally encouraging this.

“I thought we were going to go out together after…?”

“No. I never said that. That was your idea that I never agreed to.”

“But I thought…”

“There’s something I need to tell you.”

She glances at the cell. “What did Sadie say about me? Is this because of her?”

“Sadie is my mate. And she said nothing negative about you and instead said that I was the one who was treating you badly. I apologize that I wasn’t clear before.”

“Clear about what?”

“I do not want to be your mate.”

“No,” she wails. “No… you do want to be with me. That’s why we’re always talking like this. You want to go out with me, you just haven’t had time to go out on a date yet, but soon. In fact, tonight is perfect.”

“It’s not happening. I do not want to be your mate.”

“Yes, you do.”

I shake my head at her persistence. “When have I ever initiated you and I being alone together? When have I ever spoken to you outside of a professional context?”

“Well…um…but I really thought you were just taking things slowly because you’re an orc. I thought I was basically your girlfriend, in your own orc-type version of girlfriend.”

“No.” I stare at her calmly. “There”s been a miscommunication between us due to the fact that we are different species with different communication styles. Maybe I forget that you can”t scent that I have no arousal for you.”

She winces.

“Maybe I forget that you don”t understand that I would know if a female was my Bride by her scent.”

She leans in, “but you smell me every day you can scent me now.”

“I”ve always known,” I try to tell her gently, “that you are not my bride.”

“Oh.”

“Since the moment I met you, we are only professional acquaintances. I do not want to take this work relationship with you any further.”

Her eyes begin to water.

“I consider you a valued member of the media. That is all. I do not like it when you call me Bowen, I prefer if you refer to me as Sheriff Underwood and I will continue to call you Ms. Amato.”

She bites her lip.

“I am sorry, Ms. Amato. I hope that we can continue to meet again in the future as if none of this happened and continue to work together.”

“I have to go…my team is waiting for me.” She rushes away out the front door and she”s gone.

And I let out a heavy sigh.

“You had to do it.” I look over and see Deputy Smith, my most trustworthy and professional human employee, standing nearby. “I heard her once brag that she was dating you,” he says. “That’s why the whole town thought she was your girlfriend, including me.”

I turn back to see Sadie looking at us from her cell. I nod and she nods back and gives me a thumbs up.

He grins. “Heh, now that you’re not actually dating her and out of the picture, maybe a guy like me can have a chance with Amanda Amato.”

“Good luck,” I respond and head straight for my female.

And then the tornado siren blares.