15. Mia

With his handsfolded across his chest and his feet shoulder width apart, Renowlf looks like he's ready for a fight. But I'm not in the mood to argue.

When he doesn't respond, I look away, pretending I'm not affected by his presence. "Don't you have an announcement to make?"

"Not without you there," he says.

"I'm busy." I pretend to wash my body, running my hands down my arms, across my chest and belly, over my breasts.

Another growl makes me glance his way. The look in his eyes is hot and hungry, and I feel it all the way to my core. I suck in a quick, shallow breath which makes my breasts bob just under the surface of the water.

The strip of leather hanging from the belt at Renowlf's waist shifts, and I immediately think of his spiked cock. Does seeing me naked in the bath make him hard?

Hmm. Yes. I think it does.

Wicked thoughts flit through my mind. I want him to want me, to know what he'll miss by taking Bayliss as his queen.

Boldly, I reach one hand between my legs, parting my thighs and gliding my fingers through the slick lubrication gathered there.

Renowlf watches, rapt, as I slowly circle my clit, around and around and around, occasionally dipping lower to gather more lubrication, until my hips pulse against my hand, and I ache for release.

Sexual tension arcs between us, and I startle when he drops to his knees beside the bath.

Without a word, he reaches into the water, closes his fist around my wrist, and pulls my hand from between my legs. While holding my gaze, he brings my fingers to his mouth, sucking them between his full lips, tasting my scent. It's the hottest thing a guy has ever done to me.

When my fingers are licked clean, he places my hand on his bare chest and rests his larger one on top of mine. I feel his heart thudding beneath my palm.

"If my people did not expect us in the town square soon, I would finish what you started," he says, his voice rough, sexy. "Now that I have tasted your sweet nectar, I want to bury my face between your thighs and devour your cunt until we are both sated."

I didn't even realize that I liked dirty talk until Renowlf's words make my nipples pebble and my clit hum with need. That's when I realize how much power he has over me. How much I want his spiked cock inside of me…how much I want him.

It's only been a day since we met. How is this even possible?

Angry tears sting my eyes, and I swallow hard. I'm angry at Renowlf for choosing Bayliss over me and angry with myself for wanting him. "I'm not going. I can't watch you…" I don't finish my thought. I can't.

Renowlf"s voice cuts through the tension. "I was told that Bayliss paid you a visit earlier," he says.

My laugh is bitter. "Yes, and what a fantastic visit that was. Fan-fucking-tastic." My sarcasm is laced with pain, the wound still fresh and stinging.

He furrows his brows. "Then you should know that things with her are not what they seem, that she tends to twist the truth to suit her needs."

Swallowing hard, I allow a biting coldness to creep into my words. "I'm not stupid, Renowlf. I've met women like her before, and I know just how far they'll twist things toward their favor. What I want to know is, are you sleeping with her? Because that"s the picture she painted. Vividly. Tell me that was Bayliss twisting the truth."

Renowlf shifts against the tub, the lines of his face hardening even as he presses my hand tighter against his chest. "My relationship with Bayliss is…complicated."

At his non-answer, a tear escapes from the corner of my eye and trickles down my hot cheek. "Yeah, sure. That's one way to describe it. Although she sounded pretty confident that the only complication in your relationship with her is…me. She even said you fucked her last night. Is that true?"

"It is not true. You have my word that I have not taken Bayliss to my bed in over a moons cycle." He leans in, his eyes searching mine. "Do you trust me, Mia?"

My heart races from his nearness—and from his adamant denial that he recently slept with Bayliss—even as a lump chokes my throat. Trust must be earned and Renowlf hadn't done that. Not yet.

"Let me see…an alien trader kept me in a cage, smacked me around, and gave me to a fierce orc king as a breeding slave. Then, the king's lying, unhinged lover interrupted my perfectly quiet lunch, bitch-slapped me across the face, and threatened to end my life." My voice sounds shrill, even to my own ears, although I take it up another octave. "And that's only a sampling of what I've endured since the traders or slavers or whoever they are ripped me away from my life on Earth. So, tell me, Renowlf. After all of this, why, exactly, should I trust you?"

Renowlf sighs, his expression solemn. "Have I hurt you in any way?"

"Not physically, no," I admit, before dropping my voice to a brittle whisper. "But the wounds that don"t show...those are the ones that cut deepest. You should have told me about Bayliss."

"I realize that now." He frees my hand from his chest and cups my face. "Yet I am asking you to place your faith in me and trust that I will not hurt or humiliate you in front of my people."

That's a pretty big ask, and I don't respond right away.

He brushes his finger across my cheek, wiping my tear away. "Can you do that, Mia?"