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Chapter 10

Ten

We settle in for the night in silence, and I almost bow out several times, feeling the awkwardness of the moment. We take turns in the small bathroom alcove where I use the toilet and splash cold water on my face. I step back around the wall tapestry to find that Torren has bolted the door for the night and extinguished all but one low-burning lantern, casting the room in shadow. The large bed looms at the other side of the space, waiting for us.

"I can take you back to Ritta's room," Torren says, placing his warm hand on my lower back, "if you'd be more comfortable there?"

I shake my head. Despite my nerves, I don't actually want to leave, and especially not after both orcs have agreed to stay here. This is what we need, I feel it deep in my body. But his suggestion does remind me of something.

"Will Ritta worry if I don't return to her room?" I ask.

Morg steps forward, smiling down at me. "I met her in the great hall when I went to fetch our dinner. She told me she'd cut our balls off if we hurt you, so she knows where you are." He tugs lightly on the ends of my unbound hair and adds, "She did say you're meeting Mara in the morning to talk about your work here at the Hill."

"That's good," I say, relieved. "I don't want anyone to worry."

Then there's nothing more to do but crawl into bed. For a long moment, we all stand in front of it, staring at the pillows and covers. The silence builds between us, and my palms sweat. I have no idea how to do this, and a lump forms in my throat, making it harder and harder to breathe.

I wanted this to feel effortless, not stilted, and now I'm in danger of ruining it all with my indecision.

At last, Morg clears his throat and asks, "Which side of the bed is yours?"

Torren frowns at him. "Both are mine."

Morg lets out a snort of laughter. "I know that. But where do you usually sleep?"

"Oh," Torren says. "On the left."

Morg nods, then toes off his leather boots and flops onto the right side of the bed. "There we go." He punches a pillow and sticks it behind his head. "Aye, not bad. Come on, you two, it's getting late."

I actually have no idea whether that's true because we're deep underground, but I tentatively climb on the bed, sit on the edge to remove my boots, then join Morg.

Torren stands very still at the foot of the bed, staring at us.

"What is it?" I ask, worrying that he might not want Morg to stay here after all.

But the older orc shakes his head and says, "I never thought I'd say this, but you two look good in my bed."

A flash of heat burns inside me, the feelings I experienced earlier with him flaring back to life. Beside me, Morg releases a long breath, and when I glance at him, his gaze is bright with want.

"Will you join us?" I ask Torren.

My hands tremble slightly as I dig my fingers into the blankets. It's scandalous to think what I'm suggesting, but it doesn't feel like it—I simply can't imagine wanting anything else anymore.

Slowly, Torren undoes the laces of his boots and sets them neatly by the wall, then walks back to the bed. "Do you want me to leave the lantern burning?"

I think of how dark Ritta's room was last night. "Is there a way to leave just the tiniest bit of light?"

Torren's lips twitch up in a smile, but he does as I asked, shuttering the lantern so only the narrowest shaft of light shines through. Then he sits on the bed beside me and finally stretches out on his back, one arm tucked under his head.

I'm caught between them, their delicious scents wafting at me from each side. I close my eyes, inhaling deeply, and my body relaxes with the knowledge that they're both here with me.

"If I snore, just nudge me so I stop," Torren says suddenly.

I pop my eyes open and grin at him. "All right."

On the other side of me, Morg hums. "I didn't even think of that. Aye, Jasmine, I hope you're not a light sleeper, or it might take you a while to get used to sleeping with orcs."

It's such an intimate thing to know that someone snores, and I find it adorable that Torren was worried about it. Or perhaps my mind is going soft, because a week ago, I would never have thought that talking about snoring could be considered adorable.

I try to settle in the space between them, but though the bed is wide enough for all of us, I can't seem to get comfortable. It takes me several minutes of tossing and turning to realize what's wrong.

"I have to take off my stays," I whisper, mortified. Quickly, I reach into my dress to loosen the laces at my sides, then shimmy around. I slip them off from under my dress, feeling much better already. Then I crawl to the end of the bed to drop the stays to the floor.

Morg groans beside me. "Gods, this is torture."

I turn to find him lying on his back, his hands covering his face.

"What's wrong?" I ask, scooting back.

I tug on his arm until he loosens up and lets me intertwine our fingers. Then he rolls to the side and props his head up with his hand.

"Knowing you're lying in bed with me and holding back is the sweetest kind of punishment," he rumbles. "You smell so good, Jasmine."

"Morg," Torren barks from behind me. "If you can't control yourself, you're welcome to leave."

"Oh, don't worry," Morg retorts. "You set the rules, our clothes stay on. But don't pretend you're not hard as a rock right now. I'm just better at telling the truth, is all."

I dart a glance toward Torren's groin, and sure enough, there's the straining length of his cock, visible even in the low light. Now that I know what to look for, I see the bulge in Morg's pants is similarly large—and just as intriguing.

"Go to sleep," Torren orders.

I giggle, unable to help myself. I'm hot all over, and I don't know if I'll be able to fall asleep now. I cover my face with my hands to stifle the snort of laughter trying to work its way out of me, but I can't stop it. My shoulders shake, and I roll in a ball on my side, gasping helplessly.

"What on earth is so funny?" Torren grumbles when Morg chuckles, too.

"It's just—" My words get cut off on another burst of giggles, so I make a valiant attempt at wiping my eyes and taking a big breath. "It's too much," I force out. "Do you know what my parents would say if they saw me right now? They'd lock me up and never let me see the light of day."

My words sober me better than being doused in cold water. The tears slipping out of my eyes are real now, no longer the product of hysterical laughter, and I bury my face in Torren's pillow, hiding from their inquisitive looks.

A warm hand lands on my waist, and Torren scoots closer to me, the warmth of his body spreading up against my back. "Do you want to be here, Jasmine?" he asks in his low, sensible voice.

I nod, then croak, "Yes! But I don't know why. I don't know if I'll be able to choose between you two either, because it would break my heart to leave one of you. I didn't want this when I came here. I didn't want to ruin your lives."

The bed creaks lightly as Morg shifts closer to me as well. His hand rests just below Torren's, right on my hip, and he presses a kiss to my hair, his exhale brushing my skin. "You didn't ruin my life, love."

"Nor mine," Torren adds.

They're silent for a long moment, so I move, peering up at them. It seems like they're having a silent conversation. Torren's mouth twists, then he gives Morg a curt nod.

Morg kisses my cheek now. "We will not make you choose, Jasmine."

I blink, confused. "What?"

"It would hurt all of us." Torren lets out a long sigh. "I told you about that story where one of the males killed the other. We don't know how either one of us would react if you chose only one. I'm not saying Morg would attempt to murder me, or I him, but losing a mate…" He shudders, then finishes, "It is not something I would wish upon my greatest enemy."

"Is that what I am?" Morg teases. "Your greatest enemy?"

Torren rolls his eyes good-naturedly. "No, Morg, you're not. If you repeat that to anyone, I will deny it, though."

I let out a laugh, which ends in another sob, only this time, I'm crying because I'm relieved. "I really won't have to reject one of you?"

Morg brushes my tears away with the sleeve of his tunic. "For better or for worse, you're stuck with both of us now."

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