Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

Harper

The day after I jumped Giza's bones was election day, and the whole town of Eastshore had almost a celebratory vibe.

At breakfast, I had trouble meeting his eyes, but Giza didn't suffer the same awkwardness. In fact, every time I glanced up, he was watching me.

And his eyes? That green spark was shining in their depths. I'd seen Cairo look at Meli like that, and I wasn't certain how I felt about it.

When I was finished loading my dishes into the dishwasher, he took my hand, startling me.

" Dkaar ," he murmured, tucking his chin down so he could hold my gaze. "I want you to know there is nothing to regret about last night. I enjoyed myself immensely, and I believe you did as well."

Oh Lord, we were going to have that talk? I knew my cheeks were flushed, but I owed him the truth, so I nodded. "I…did. Yes. Four times. "

Was that a subtle little smirk under his beard? I felt my shoulders relaxing and surprised myself by smacking his arm, which made him chuckle, a rare and delightful sound.

He squeezed my hand affectionally. "Today is a holiday, so I have no appointments. But I promised Sakkara I would help at the polls. My brothers and I are planning on chatting with voters, just to make them more comfortable with the idea of an orcish mayor."

My nose scrunched. "Do you think Sakkara can win against that…what's his name? The asshole?"

Giza chuckled again and released my hand, turning to put away the breakfast food on the counter. "Geoffrey A. Harrison has been campaigning diligently for the last year, and no one has stood up to him. Do I think Eastshore is ready to elect Sakkara? I don't know. But…"

"But there are plenty of people who don't want Geoffrey?"

The small smile he sent me glowed with something like pride, and I'll admit it buoyed me out the door when we left, hand-in-hand. I couldn't help him at the polls, but Meli was giving away cookies at the library, and weeks ago, I told her I'd help, so it turned out Giza and I were heading to the same place.

And we did it holding hands.

Part of me was glancing around nervously, wondering what other people thought of this spectacle. Giza had claimed me—and our child—in a very public way, and I was certain anyone who looked at us now would think that we were together officially.

But the rest of me? That part was—for the first time in my life—not concerned with what other people thought. Because it did feel good to hold Giza's hand, to lean on him when stepping down from the curb so I didn't have to worry about my new body shape overbalancing me. It felt good to have him at my side, to share the occasional secret smile or joke about the shops we passed.

It was a new and rare feeling, to just…not care what other people thought of me.

Strange, but…nice.

When we reached the library, the line to vote snaked nearly to the street, but everyone seemed to be in cheerful moods. Maybe that was because Meli's Bake Shoppe had a big tent set up and was distributing free cookies and water bottles? I knew there were other voting locations on the island, but this one seemed to be popular.

Giza walked me to the tent, then hesitated. He seemed to be examining the interior.

"What?" I asked.

He started, then his cheeks darkened above his tattoos. It should be difficult to tell when an orc is blushing, but I'd caught Giza feeling guilty a few times in the last week.

"I was just…" He sighed, then jerked his chin toward the back section, where Meli's boxes were stacked. "I wanted to ensure you had a proper place to sit when you get tired. And I'll bring you something nutritious for lunch."

I frowned. "I can take care of myself, Giza."

"I know." Was he blushing even darker? He wasn't meeting my eyes, that was for sure. "I just…want to take care of you. And our kit."

Our kit .

That's why I was here, wasn't it? Because I'd given him the chance to take care of our baby—and by extension, me. He'd spent the last week fussing over the amount of protein I was eating, and if I was elevating my legs, and if my ankles were too swollen. I was barely out of the first trimester !

But…I was used to taking care of myself. I wasn't sure how I felt about him fussing like this.

Last night you didn't mind him taking care of you. You listened to his commands like a good girl, didn't you?

Oh Lord, yes, I did. I squeezed my thighs together, reveling in that spike of lust and just a twinge of soreness that came from taking Giza's thick cock.

His nostrils flared, and his gaze snapped to mine, and I guess he could smell my arousal.

"Fine," I sighed. "Fish tacos?"

The way his expression eased told me he understood my words as a peace offering. "I love fish tacos."

Then, to my surprise, he winked. Giza's humor was dry, so him making a naughty joke about the way he licked me until I screamed last night was delightfully unexpected, and my smile surprised me.

He smiled in return. "May…May I kiss you, Harper?"

"I think that would be acceptable."

It wasn't a deep kiss, or a possessive one. Just a brush of his lips, enough to make me sway closer, as my body betrayed me and begged for more more more . But he pulled back and, smiling, brushed a fingertip down my cheek before turning and heading toward the line of voters.

Behind me, my sister cleared her throat.

When I turned and glared at her, Meli made a sweeping gesture to one of the folding chairs she'd set up. "Your throne, Your Majesty. Because, contrary to what your Mate thinks, he's not the only one to worry about you. Sit your butt down and affix the stickers to the cookie bags, would you?"

Scowling at her, I stomped to the chair, and I'll admit I sighed a little gratefully when I sat, because yeah, the walk from Giza's apartment to the bakery had been a bit of a distance .

"Sooooo…." Meli finished handing a cookie to an older man and turned back to me. "Making you move into Giza's place wasn't the worst thing in the world, right? Please tell me you're not mad at me."

I'd texted her every day, but now I rolled my eyes at my little sister. "I'm not mad at you. It doesn't completely suck."

I must've blushed, or somehow indicated the direction of my thoughts—which, duh , was firmly in the direction of Giza's face between my thighs—because Meli burst into laughter.

"You look great," she hurried to explain when I scowled at her in between my sticker-affixation duties. "I can't believe how much bigger you look just since last week."

I glanced down at my growing stomach. "I guess half-orc babies grow faster. I have another prenatal appointment in two weeks at the hospital on the mainland."

"Are you going to have a bunch of curious med students at this one too?" she asked, even as she scooped up another two cookies and handed them to a mother and daughter.

"I guess so. Never thought my pregnancy would be a medical oddity, but I guess the doctors want as much data as possible for…"

My sister winked at me. "Future half-orc babies?"

I lowered the sticker roll to my lap. "Melinda O'Donnell, you're not—"

Her eyes widened and she slapped her hand over her mouth to hide her giggle. "Pregnant? Oh-em-gee no . I'm just saying, there's Mated pairs popping up all over, and I think we're going to see more half-orc kitlings like your son and Emmy."

Son. Mated pairs . My hand rested on my not-so-subtle baby bump. As if he could hear and understand me, I felt the tiniest flutter .

Maybe it was indigestion. But I'm pretty sure it was my baby moving. Our baby. This child was Giza's too, wasn't he? I guess…I guess I didn't have to do this alone.

My sister must've seen my thoughts. "Are you going to take Giza to the appointment with you?" she asked softly.

"I think so." I addressed my words to my stomach. "It's his baby, isn't it?"

"And as your Mate, he wants to be a part of his life, doesn't he?"

Mutely, I nodded.

Meli had accepted I was having a son. She accepted Giza was my Mate.

So why couldn't I?

He was kind and gentle and brilliant and thoughtful. He wanted nothing but the best for me and bent over backward to make sure I had it. He was the most amazing lover, and seemed to understand me in a way I didn't always understand myself.

So why was I holding back?

"Because I don't want to give him control," I whispered.

Melinda was chatting with a couple, who thanked her gratefully for the cold waters. But when she turned back to me, her expression eased into sympathy as she crossed to squat next to my chair.

"Harp." She rested one hand on my forearm. "Letting Giza into your life isn't giving up control. Having a Mate is…it's better than being married, honestly. It means you have a partner ."

I bit my lip. "But he's always…doing things for me. Like insisting on bringing me lunch."

Meli glanced out the back of the tent, where we could see Giza and Luxor speaking animatedly with voters. "Orcs…" She blew out a breath and lifted herself to her feet. "It's like they're hard-wired to take care of their Ma tes. They can't help fussing. Sometimes it's annoying, especially when I'm on my period and Cairo keeps asking if he can help, because hello no you can just fetch me cheese and then go away …Where was I?"

My lips twitched. "Cairo's love language is cheese-related."

She stuck out her tongue as she collected the cookies I'd already labeled. "I mean that they're protectors. They feel this need to take care of others. Cairo says—"

"Where is Cairo?" I interrupted.

My little sister, derailed for a moment, blinked, then looked around. "The man wears a perpetual scowl, even when he's eating my cupcakes."

"Is eating my cupcakes a euphemism?"

She rolled her eyes. "I just mean, he's not going to be great at the whole orcish goodwill campaign Karnak and Jess organized for Sakkara. He's over at the park, being very conspicuous about spreading the truckload of mulch Jess ordered, so town folk see him and think ‘Oh look at all the good work these guys are doing for the community, like when they helped rebuild Eastshore after the hurricane. ' It's all P.R."

I was nodding along. "Probably smart to give him a job where he doesn't have to actually talk to anyone."

"Yes, I—wait, what was I saying?"

I hid my smirk by bending to grab another batch of stickerless cookies. "Something about Cairo being a protector?"

Meli shook her head. "No, all orcs are protectors. Cairo says that's why Giza is planning the Kap'paral celebration this year, so we can all gather and celebrate being together for a change."

Oh yes, we'd talked about that. "It's going to be the weekend before Thanksgiving…"

"Yep, and Mom and Dad will be here for it, and won't that be exciting?" Meli winked. "But seriously, it's part of who they are. It's why Sakkara stepped up to run for mayor, although I don't think he actually wants the position. He just feels obligated to protect this town."

Is that what this is? This thing between me and Giza? "Obligation." He'd knocked me up and now he was obligated to—

"No!" Meli exploded, looking frustrated. "Harper, being Mated is a biological knowing , a connection. Not just sexual compatibility, but emotional and spiritual and physical and—and—and everything else!" She frowned at me as she arranged the cookies on the table in front of her. "Can you honestly tell me you don't feel that?"

A knowing .

I swallowed, my focus on the sticker I was carefully aligning on the cookie bag. "I…do feel something. With him. For him."

Meli exhaled. "Thank fuck."

It was so strange to hear her curse, I glanced up, and her grin slowly grew. "You don't have to let him take control of your life, Harper, I swear. Just…give him a chance, okay?"

A chance? I was afraid—terrified, delighted, hopeful?—that I was giving him more than a chance.

I was falling in love with my baby daddy, wasn't I? My orc silver fox.

Only issue was…I wasn't sure if I wanted that.

Giz a

"Sakkara?" I pushed open his front door, a little worried why it was unlocked if he hadn't answered. "Are you in here, T'mak? "

From the kitchen came a dull call. "In here."

I hurried in to find Sakkara sitting at the table, his elbows on the table and a bottle of what looked like warm beer between his palms. What was more chilling than the forgotten beer, however, was the blank expression on his face as he stared out the back window.

"Sakkara?" I prompted, hesitating to come closer. "What's wrong? Is it Emmy?" Gods below, don't let it be Emmy.

The fear in my voice—or perhaps his own fear for his daughter—made my friend blink and shake himself. "She's fine." He finally turned to me. "She's playing with her friend Tova, and her mother invited her to stay for dinner."

Oh thank the goddess. Exhaling, I plopped into the seat beside him. "Likely she did so that you could be out campaigning. And yet I find you sitting here in the dark."

The sun sets earlier these days, thanks to the infernal time changes our adopted country liked to use. But he glanced around, as if surprised to found the sun had set. "I have the lights on."

"You're being deliberately obtuse. No one could find you, so I escorted Harper home with her sister and came looking." I gestured around the kitchen. "Why are you hiding here?"

My friend dropped his gaze to his tea. "Because the polls are closing, and we still have to wait for the official numbers…"

Ah . "And you're afraid Geoffrey might win."

"No," he rasped. When he looked up, there was genuine fear in his eyes, something I hadn't seen since…well, ever. "I think there's a very real chance I'm going to win this. "

Ten years ago, our cohort had stepped through the veil, the natural pathway formed by boulders, to the human's world. Before we even made that journey, however, we'd looked to Sakkara.

He wasn't the eldest among us—that was me—or the most handsome—that was Karnak. But he was the smartest, the most understanding. It had been his decision to make ourselves known as publicly as possible, so the humans couldn't hide us away. He understood humans from the beginning in a way none of the rest of us had.

He'd always been our leader, and he'd always led us wisely.

I reached over and grasped his forearm in the old show of respect. "Then Eastshore will look to you, and trust you, the way we have trusted you all these years, D'malk ."

His brows rose. "I haven't heard that word in…"

D'malk meant Chief , the honorific of our people. Far more formal than T'mak , or Little Brother , which I found myself calling all the males in our cohort. But Sakkara…he was our d'malk .

I squeezed his forearm. "You will lead us into a bright future, and it'll give you something to do with your time."

His smile flashed ruefully, and he glanced down at his beer. "I guess I'm scared. What if I can't give Emmy the time she needs?"

In the last decade, I'd never seen my friend scared, much less admit to it. I was flattered and humbled he was confiding in me. "Emmy has a community now. So do you. You've said she's doing well in school?"

He nodded, distracted. "Her teacher—Ms. Rios—is a godsend. Emmy is really opening up."

"Well there you go." I sat back in my chair, studying him. "She will be fine, even if you have a real job for a change. "

He snorted, as I knew he would. He'd spent the last ten years learning the ins and outs of this country's stock market and made us all wealthy in the process.

"I think…" He took a deep breath and raised his gaze to mine. "Coming to Eastshore was such an easy decision. An easy change. But having so many people relying on me…"

I smiled. "You were meant for this role, D'malk . You always have been." I lowered my chin deferentially. "And you will have help."

"Yes, about that…" He cleared his throat. "What are the odds you and your Mate will be staying here on Eastshore Isle?"

My head jerked up so fast I think I pulled something in my neck. "What?" I croaked.

He shrugged. "I know she has her own life on the mainland. But I also know you are happy here."

I thought of Harper. I thought of our kit, and the possibility that she might return to her old home and her old job when her sabbatical was finished. I thought of never seeing her again.

"I am happy here," I whispered harshly, staring unseeing at the cabinets behind him. "But I will go where she goes, and if that means leaving…"

He sighed and nodded. "I was hoping…"

When I dragged my gaze to his, he smiled ruefully.

"The outgoing mayor has mentioned to me several times, when we worked together, that this town needs a dedicated lawyer. It'd be a full-time position, but I don't know yet. But if I do win this election, I would prefer to hire someone I know I can trust."

And my Mate would be the perfect choice.

But Harper…Harper didn't know she was my Mate, or didn't believe it. Or maybe she didn't fully understand it.

Suddenly, a possibility of a future opened up. I know she had her own life and job on the mainland, but would she consider staying here on Eastshore—where she already admitted she was happy—if she had a possibility of a job here?

Not just a job, but a home.

I needed to make her understand what it meant to be Mated. What this connection between us was.

Sakkara was still watching me with hope glowing faintly in his eyes. So I nodded once, firmly. "I will do my best to convince her, D'malk ."

"Thank you." He exhaled and slumped in his chair, staring down at his phone. "I guess all I can do now is wait."

As if on cue, the phone began to vibrate, and I recognized the name on the screen as the woman in charge of tallying the votes.

He and I exchanged anxious glances, and I saw him hesitate just a heartbeat before reaching over to press the accept button. "This is Sakkara."

The voice on the other end of the phone was cheerful. "The results are officially in. Congratulations, Mr. Mayor."