Summoning the Orc (The Kingverse Orcs #2)

Chapter Twenty-Five

Becca

Waking up, surrounded by heat and the intoxicating scent of my mate, I sighed and snuggled my ass backward against his hard cock. He grunted, his arms tugging me tighter against him. I was the little spoon, and I was sweltering—this male threw off heat like a forge—but I’d never felt so comfortable in my life.

Other than the throbbing ache between my legs.

I winced, knowing that I’d need some time to get used to Rok’s size. I was certain I was up to the challenge, though, and I turned in his arms to look at his sleeping form.

He grumbled, his brow furrowing, but I smoothed it out with my finger, and he was soon back to sleep. The ache in my chest as I stared at his long lashes fanning over his cheeks and the perfectly etched notches in his tusks told me that I was falling hard.

Falling? Girl, you’re already flat on your face.

I tucked a lock of his long, lustrous hair behind his ear, my heart melting as he nuzzled against my touch. He stirred, bundling me closer and burying his face against my throat. His deep inhale followed by a contented sigh was all I needed to take that final tumble.

Damn it. I love him.

I stroked my fingers through his hair, feeling like a sticky mess, but knowing that he wouldn’t release me unless he was in a deeper sleep. When his breathing became steady, I carefully extricated myself from his arms.

His annoyed grumble had me smothering a giggle as I tiptoed my naked ass to the bathroom. A shower later, and I was still walking bowlegged as I made my way to the kitchen. I was just scrambling eggs in a pan when my phone rang. Answering, I grinned at who was calling.

“You hoochie,” my best friend told me, “you couldn’t even keep it in your pants for two nights.”

“First of all, who even uses the word hoochie anymore,” I scoffed and she giggled up a storm. “Second of all, how can anyone expect me to keep it in my pants when my mate is as sexy as he is?”

“No one expects it,” she cackled before switching to her serious voice, “but I know you, and I know what it has to mean if you’re sleeping with him. How bad is it?”

I sighed, shaking my head as I moved back to the pan, making sure my eggs weren’t burning. “The prognosis is critical,” I admitted.

“Well shit, you know what that means, right?” she demanded. “I have to buy two sets of baby clothes so our little ones can match.”

“I will murder you,” I told her and she started laughing again.

“Come on, Becks, this is everything I’ve ever dreamed of. Our babies will grow up together!” she insisted.

“I mean,” I said, biting my lip and allowing myself to dream. “That would be pretty great.”

“Now we just have to find Rudgar’s mate and our little clan will be complete,” she sighed happily.

“Alright, Miss Matchmaker, let’s not try to sell him on the open market,” I joked, rolling my eyes as I plated our eggs and then started with the bacon.

“Are you cooking right now?” she demanded, “because you know he’s going to be upset if you try to feed yourself after the first time you have sex, right?”

I froze, my eyes widening as I looked down at the meal I was making.

Oh shit.

I forgot that. It was part of the orc mating ritual. They needed to feed their mate after their first night together to prove that they could provide for them.

Shit, shit, shit.

I was about to put everything away when a tousled-looking Rok entered the kitchen, horror filling his eyes as he looked from the plate of eggs to me and back again.

“Gotta go,” I told Pen, hanging up the phone and then holding my hands out to Rok in a placating gesture. “Okay, this isn’t what it looks like,” I started, but his brow furrowed, as he hurried forward.

“I’m sorry, my Becca. So sorry. I should have woken—”

“No,” I gasped, grabbing him around his waist and tucking myself against him, fitting so perfectly, it eased some of the tension in my body. “It’s my fault. I forgot that you’d want to feed me and I thought I would make breakfast for you instead. It’s a human thing and—”

“Is this,” he asked, running his hand down my back, his voice slow and considering, “something you’d do for a mate?”

I nodded, nuzzling against his chest. “I guess. It’s a human thing. I just wanted to thank you for a wonderful night together.”

“So you aren’t upset that I didn’t hunt for you this morning?” he asked, his voice cautious.

I pulled away, my eyebrows sweeping up. “Hunt? I don’t expect you to hunt for me ever , Rok, much less the morning after giving me the best night of my life.”

His beaming grin was contagious. “The best night?”

“The best night ever ,” I insisted, biting my lower lip.

“Me too,” he told me, nuzzling his face into my hair. “I still can’t believe it really happened. I keep thinking I’m going to wake up back in my lonely cave without you.”

My heart broke for him, but I shook my head. “Never. You’re never going to be alone again. I’ll never allow it.”

His chuckle rumbled in his chest. “Thank you, my Becca,” he whispered, “and I’m so honored that you’re performing your mating ritual for me.”

My eyes widened and I pulled away, nodding. “Yes, this is definitely part of a mating ritual,” I said, my voice stiff since I was terrible at lying.

He beamed, looking over at our plates. “What do I need to do?”

“Eat,” I told him, pressing a quick kiss to his lips. I tried to pull away, but he tugged me back for a deeper kiss, and my knees went a little weak before he released me. I stumbled toward the stove, realizing that I’d burned the bacon.

I turned the heat off, almost singeing my fingers when pulling the toast out of the toaster before plating everything and giving the bigger portion to him. He accepted it with a level of reverence that I found charming. He watched me as I took the plates to the island before pulling me in front of him, feeding me first.

With every bite I took, his brow furrowed with concentration as he found the perfect portion of bacon, egg and toast that I enjoyed. He insisted that I eat more, his gaze dropping to my stomach until I felt heat sweep into my cheeks.

I was certain that it wasn’t a good time for me to conceive, but after last night and the conversation with Pen that morning, I needed to figure out if I was going to be okay with getting pregnant soon. As Rok nuzzled against my hair, his big palms dropping to cradle my stomach, though, the pang in my chest told me I was closer than I knew.

“I have to go to work,” I told him and the annoyed growl that left him almost made me laugh. “They should be done with the clean-up, but I want to make sure they don’t have any trail to find you. I should’ve checked yesterday, but I was too freaked out.” I cradled his face in my palms and he ducked his head so I could reach him. “I can’t lose you.”

His gaze softened, and he beamed at me, pressing a gentle kiss to my lips. “It’s the same for me, my mate. I can’t live without you,” he whispered.

I hummed, contended, but then I glanced at my watch and my eyes widened. “Oh no. I’ll be late if I don’t get ready now. Stay here and don’t distract me with your sexy body,” I squeaked, hurrying out of the room and watching him grin after me, flexing his muscular chest while I ogled him.

I only just made it in time for work, guilt swamping me since it was my third day of my dream job , but I couldn’t find it in me to regret the time I’d spent with my mate that morning. I skidded to a stop in front of the entrance to my section, and all their eyes turned to look at me.

It still looked like a crime scene, with people swarming around it, but at least it was less crowded. I spotted Jun, his eyes narrowed on me and his nose lowered to ensure that he was giving me his best glower, but I raised my hand in a friendly wave.

His scowl was huge as he turned away to focus on the female he was speaking to. She looked human, but I could tell based on the long black dress with golden embroidery that she was a witch. I’d tried to join a coven when I was younger, begging Pen to join with me, but it hadn’t taken more than one meeting for me to be kicked out as a “powerless, puny human.”

After that, I’d been wary of them, even though many of them were outgoing and friendly, welcoming to outsiders for all rituals except the most secret ones that only the coven members were invited to.

I walked over to Jun and the witch with my chin held high, a smile plastered on my face. “Good morning,” I told them both and received a nod from Jun and a questioning once-over from the witch.

Her dark eyes gleamed at me as she reached out her hand. Her nails were painted a brilliant blue and the bronze glow of her skin made me wish I was more outdoorsy than I was.

Maybe Rok can help me with that.

The thought made a grin spread across my face and her eyebrow quirked as she echoed my expression.

“I’m Tasia. It’s really nice to meet you. Becca, am I right?”

I nodded, shaking her hand before releasing it. “I wasn’t able to talk to you yesterday, but I was hoping we could have a chat today. You’re the one who summoned the orc, right?”

My grin stiffened into a grimace on my face and I squeaked out what I hoped was a good affectation of uh huh.

“Then I’ll have to do a magic swab on you, if that’s okay,” she told me, gesturing toward the table in front of my desk. I stiffened under her watchful gaze, but made my way over to where books and kits along with little black bags were spread out on the surface. The strong scent of herbs washed over me and I spotted a couple of crystals that I didn’t know the names of as well.

“This is fascinating,” I told Tasia as she came up behind me. “I’ve always been interested in witchcraft, but I wasn’t born with the gift.”

“You don’t have to be born with it,” she said with a shrug as she pulled a couple of the herb-bags toward her along with a large, crystal mortar and pestle. “A coven might have one or two witches who are born into the craft, but we accept everyone whose energy and intentions match our own,” she added with a smile to me. “We have a couple spots open if you wanted to check us out.”

“Really?” I asked, wondering if I could possibly get closer to this coven and find out what they knew about Rok’s location. “I didn’t know that was possible.”

She shrugged her shoulders, tucking a red-dyed curl behind her ear as she wrinkled her button-nose. “That’s the old generation and maybe some smaller covens that still stick to those prejudiced ways. Our coven isn’t like that. The earners—” she cut herself off, flicking her dark brown eyes up to mine, “—the witches who can use their gifts to make money, that is. We get called out to jobs like this one, but if it wasn’t for my daughter, I’d just do protection spells and energy circles all day.” She shook her head, giving a little laugh as she added herbs to the mortar.

I watched as she ground them into a dust, turning to face me with a handful and a nod. “Okay, now stay still.”

I froze as she circled me, sprinkling the dust onto the ground while she chanted words I didn’t understand. When she was standing in front of me again, she held her palms up in front of me.

“Take my hands,” she said, her voice low and soothing.

I hesitated for a long moment, studying her hands, wishing I had a way to get out of whatever was happening, but she stood there, as patient as a saint, just waiting. I lowered my shaking hands into hers and as soon as they touched, a light glow emanated from the circle around me.

Oh no.

She began chanting again, her tight curls moving slightly with a wind that I couldn’t feel. When it stopped, her head tilted at me and her eyes narrowed.

Shit, shit, shit!

“He’s your mate,” she said in a low voice, releasing a deep sigh. “And you’re hiding him.”

“N-no,” I stuttered, stepping backward, out of the circle. “That’s not true.”

“You’re a terrible liar, too,” she added, rolling her eyes. “But there’s nothing we can do about it, Becca. We signed a contract and we have to send him home.” She tugged an envelope out of the purse on the table, pulling out two sheets of paper and flipping to the last page where there were two signatures in scarlet red on the bottom. “This is a blood pact,” she told me, giving me a regretful smile. “I have to send him back.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I whispered, looking around with wild eyes before focusing on her once more. “But if I did, can’t we sign a contract instead? I can pay you everything I have—” Which isn’t much. “Whatever you ask for—” I’ll just take a loan from Pen. I’m sure she and Dristan won’t mind. “And then you can let him stay!”

She pressed the papers in my hand, pointing to the signatures again. “Blood pacts mean that I can’t break them. I’m so sorry, but I’m going to have to find him and send him back.” She shrugged, putting the contract back into the envelope and rubbing her arms as if she was cold. “If there was a way, trust me, I would have found a way to help you. But this one doesn’t have any wiggle room.”

Tasia bit her lower lip as her eyes lowered to the ground. “I don’t feel right about separating fated mates, though.” She turned to look at where Jun was barking orders at some more witches—their uniform the same as the one Tasia was wearing. “Why don’t we send him back and I can see if I can open a portal to where he is? It’s really advanced magic, but I know someone who might be able to help.”

“No, you’re not taking him,” I told her, swallowing hard, taking a step away. “And I don’t know what you’re talking about anyway,” I added, clearing my throat and tipping my chin up. “I don’t know where he is.”

Her gaze was sympathetic and she shrugged. “Okay. Well when you need me, here’s my contact information,” she said, holding out a card to me. “As I said, I’ll try to help bring him back.”

“He’s not going anywhere,” I hissed, turning away from her and hustling over to my bag and my phone. I tucked her card into my purse and tapped a message to Pen.

Becca: MAYDAY. They know where he is. It’s all my fault. Make sure he doesn’t leave the building.

Pen: Ok, don’t worry. I’ll head back home now.

I took a deep breath, relief filling me. If anyone could handle it, it would be Pen. She’d been slaying my dragons since we were kids.

Becca: Thank you. I love you.

Pen: Love you too. I let Rud know to keep an eye on him. He’s on his way too.

Of course. She’s a genius.

I felt the tension leaving my body. I’d almost forgotten that I had my family behind me. There was no way that Rok would be taken from me. Not now, not ever.