Chapter 7

Korvak

The moment I'd tasted her, I'd known.

The truth had slammed into me, and I'd breathed in her essence, knowing my life had just changed in a way I hadn't imagined possible.

After Effie exploded in my arms, she spent a hundred heartbeats pressed against me, her breathing slowly returning to normal. I know, because I counted.

And when she slowly stiffened, I could feel her pulling away from me.

I loosened my hold reluctantly, and, for certes, she was blushing when she rolled to her knees and clambered to her feet. Was she embarrassed by what we just shared? It had been the single most remarkable thing to happen to me in my life, and she was embarrassed?

Mayhap she thinks she had to do it? Because she feels she owes ye? Does she still think ye her master?

I watched her thoughtfully as she scooped up her wet chemise and hurried to the croft, then threw myself back in the cold water to try to rid myself of my throbbing cockstand.

It didn't work.

There is a kenning. A deep understanding, and ye'll be at peace.

That's how Gelma—our clan's wise woman, and my grandmother—had described it to me as a lad. Finding his fated Mate was every orc's dream, but with my face, I'd long ago given up on it.

‘Twas one of the reasons I preferred to live alone, so I wouldn't be tempted by jealousy. Och, in the winters when I moved into the village, ‘twas bad enough to see all the blissfully happy Mated pairs; I preferred to spend the warmer months alone, training my horses as necessary.

But the impossible had happened .

I'd found my Mate.

I lay there in the stream, eyes wide open, staring up at the blue sky as the cold water swept around my head and along my body, marveling at this miracle.

One taste of Effie's sweet cunny, and that knowing had coursed through me. These last few days, I'd known something was wrong with my Kteer , something was off . But I hadn't imagined it could be this.

I'd found my Mate, and she was a tiny human who had no cause to like me, much less want to spend the rest of her life with me.

Or mayhap I was wrong…

With a sigh, I sat up, determined to do what was necessary to convince Effie this was real. Of course, I would let her go if that's what my chief decided, but I would spend the next sennight before the new moon and our return to the village trying to convince her of my suit.

If she'd have an ugly monster like myself.

Mayhap…

I propped my elbows on my knees, ignoring the river rocks digging into my arse, and studied the cottage. Was there something I could do to woo her?

Not flowers. Not gifts.

But what she deserved ?

She'd enjoyed what we'd just shared, I was certain of it. I'd felt it, I'd tasted it.

And the secret she'd been hiding from me, the secret I'd felt digging into my arse when I'd slept beside her…it proved that she was interested in sexual pleasure.

Her whispered confessions indicated she wasn't used to finding pleasure in the act, not like today. Could I woo her with more of that?

Only one way to find out.

I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning the stable and working with the horses. The smell of roasting meat and pottage drifted from the croft, and my stomach was rumbling by the time I joined her.

As she puttered about, putting the final touches on the preparations, I pulled up the mattress and slid the scroll from its home. Tucking it into the back of my belt, I turned back to Effie before she noticed aught amiss.

The meal was set out on the table with some ceremony, and I couldn't stop staring at her in wonder.

Wonder that this tiny female cared to make my eating experience pleasant. Wonder that she'd reacted in such a way to me. Wonder that she was my Mate .

Effie, meanwhile, still in only her chemise, was blushing as bright as sternka berries, likely because of my staring. Which just made me smile.

"This is delicious." I finally broke the silence after I took a bite of the pottage. "Ye can do things with carrots I hadnae imagined."

"Thank you." Her cheeks were bright pink as she poked at her bowl with her spoon, not looking up, not eating. "I was going to make stew, but I decided to roast the meat instead and use the root vegetables as a pottage."

"And the bread—biscuits." I slathered one with the butter I'd traded for earlier in our stay. "Delicious, as always."

"Thank you," she whispered again.

What else could I compliment her on? "These rags—"

"Serviettes." She risked a glance up at me, then dropped her gaze in a hurry back to her untasted meal. "We do not have to use them. Lord Tarbert prefers them, and I thought—"

"They're verra nice."

If possible, her blush darkened. "Thank you."

Fook .

This conversation wasn't going to woo her if all she was going to say in response was thank you. I took a big bite of the meat and considered her as I chewed.

She still wasn't eating, and I caught her flicking glances at me from the corner of her eyes.

"Effie," I finally asked, "What's wrong? Do ye want to talk about what we did?"

"I do not know what to say!" she burst out, dropping her spoon and clasping her hands in her lap. "I… Today…"

My lips twitched as I used the lovingly hemmed serviette to clean my fingers. "What we shared today was natural. Something perfectly natural between two adults. Consenting adults. Ye did want that to happen, aye, Effie?"

A peek of blue from beneath her lashes, then she slowly, mutely nodded.

And I exhaled in relief.

"I was afraid ye only allowed me to touch ye because ye felt somehow obligated to me."

Her chin gradually rose until she was studying me warily. "I…the wager…"

"Doesnae matter," I gently reminded her. "I explained I only made the wager to needle my cousin. And I only collected on it because of the way he treated ye. If I could be certain he'd treat ye well, I would've allowed ye to stay in his care."

And would have lost the most remarkable opportunity of my life .

Her little tongue darted out across her lower lip. "And…now that I am yours?"

Just the thought of calling her mine had my cock jumping against the inside of my kilt. "I'll no' ask ye to do aught ye're uncomfortable with, Effie."

Her gaze dropped back down to her linked hands. "I…I have never had such a thing happen to me. I did not know if I was supposed to react that way."

My lips twitched. "Ye didnae ken if ye were supposed to fall apart in my arms as ye reached yer climax?"

Her cheeks darkened again to accompany her silent nod.

Gods below .

"Come here," I commanded gruffly, pushing my chair away from the table and pivoting it. When she hesitated, I added a, "please."

The reminder that I didn't own her, and she had agency here, seemed to help.

When Effie stood and moved to my side, I snagged her hand and tugged her into my lap. She went willingly, curled up against my chest and tucked her head beneath my chin .

I stroked her arm through the thin linen of her chemise, almost wishing ‘twas wet again so I could see as well as feel her body.

I cleared my throat. "What we shared, lass… ‘Twas natural. What happened to ye was natural."

"I was supposed to…?"

I hid my proud smile.

"Ye were. Ye were perfect."

Her fingers curled around the wool over my chest. "Just as you said?"

She remembered my whispered praise? My Kteer crowed, and beneath her sweet arse, my cock pulsed, wanting more.

"Aye, Effie. Just as I said, and more. Ye were perfect. The only thing to have made it better was if ye screamed my name as ye came. We'll have to try that again next time, aye?"

She stiffened, and I held my breath, praying to the goddess that she'd agree. That there would be a next time.

Her breath slowly released and her shoulders seemed to loosen. "I…will have to remember that."

My arms tightened around her in relief. She wanted to try again!

After a moment I worked up the ballocks to ask. "Effie, I dinnae own ye. Ye dinnae owe me aught. So, I'm asking this as a male ye have nae obligation to: Would ye allow me to touch ye again?"

I saw the tips of her ears—about all I could see of her face from this angle—pinken, which shouldn't be possible, and she burrowed her face against my chest. After a long moment, she mumbled something, but ‘twas too muffled by my plaid to understand.

"What?" I prompted.

With a mighty huff, she pulled away just enough to stare at the base of my throat. "You are really going to make me say it?"

"Och, aye, lass." How could she doubt this? "I want to touch ye again more than I want to finish that fine meal, but I'll no' if ye dinnae want it too."

Her eyes squeezed shut. "I want it too." Her whisper was harsh. "I never thought…" She swallowed, and my tongue watered, imagining licking her throat there. "I never thought it possible a male would…"

My chest squeezed at the same moment my Kteer crowed, and I decided ‘twould be my life's work to prove to Effie that she was worth more than the arseholes in her life had taught her.

"Then can I ask ye something?" I prompted gently, shifting forward so I could pull the scroll from my belt. I leaned forward and swept my plate and bowl to one side and unrolled the colorful vellum. "'Tis about this."

She twisted, then sucked in a breath. "Where did you—oh." Her fingers hovered over the figures entwined in an extremely athletic position. "I am sorry I hid it. I just knew I had to keep it safe for Sorcha."

"'Tis yer cousin's?"

"She says…" Effie snuck a glance at me. "She says it belongs to all women. She says ‘tis important we study it to know what is possible in congress with a man."

I allowed my claw to slip free as I tapped a picture of a human man holding a female up against a wall, his very prominent cock thrusting upward into her. "Have ye tried these?"

"Nay," she whispered. "These are…" Her breathing hitched. "The descriptions speak of a woman's pleasure."

And she'd never experienced that with a man before. My lust was somewhat dampened by my rage at her past abuse.

In an effort to distract her, I tapped the upright pair again teasingly. "So, nay to this one?"

She seemed to understand the teasing and snorted delicately. " The Soldier and the Crucible ? I do not think ‘tis possible. I have never met a man who could lift a woman like that."

That was because she'd never been fooked by an orc , but I didn't say that. Instead, I latched onto her description. "They are named ? What is this one?" I tapped the next position.

"That is The Burning Bush ." Her fingers traced the words written below the illustration. " The female sits on a table or other flat surface even with the man's hips, while he stands between her spread legs. Named thusly because it is said it will make both occupants speak to God ."

My cock was back to throbbing painfully, pushing against her arse. I nearly groaned at the sensation. "'Tis a description ? Gods below."

She twisted in my lap so that one leg fell over the outside of my thigh, while the other rested along the junction of mine. "You cannot read?" she breathed in surprise.

I was rather more distracted by the sensation of her in my arms, covered only by billowy linen, but I managed a smirk.

"Effie, our languages are close enough we can speak to ye without issue, but reading yer language is beyond me."

"I am sorry." Her bright eyes studied me. "Would you like to learn? "

Of the things I wanted to do at that moment, learning to read wasn't in the top ten. I wanted to push her legs apart, to taste her again. I wanted to plunge into her wet heat. I wanted to claim her.

But I wouldn't. Because she didn't belong to me.

Yet .

"If I said aye, lass, would ye teach me?"

She was nodding. "All I would have to teach you with, however, is this scroll."

Gods below . I almost closed my eyes on a groan.

"That might be the death of me." Before she could answer, I tapped another illustration. "What is this one? Could we do that?"

She bent closer and read, " All Out of Carrots . But nay, we would need two other males and a saddle, see? This one is The Twin Mountains , and requires another female, but I think in a pinch—"

I interrupted by pointing to a position similar to the way we now sat. "And this one?"

I could hear her little catch of breath as she pushed the cleft of her arse against my cock. " The Backwards Donkey . With the man in a seated position, the woman straddles his thighs, her back to his chest and her feet upon the floor, and rides him as if he were a stallion, but facing away. Particularly effective if she likes her hair pulled, or her nipples and clitoris stimulated. "

Torvor's Hammer! I couldn't help the way I flexed my hips forward, sliding my trapped cock along her rear, torturing myself with what might be. Her leg shifted to one side of my thighs so she was straddling me, her back to my chest, just as in the illustration.

I groaned in need.

"We could do that," I panted, and closed my eyes, praying for control. "I mean, when ye're ready, we could try… Oh, gods…"