Page 9 of The Billionaire Orc

Her eyes widened again until she realized he was joking and her features relaxed.

“Do you know Motham well, Tor?”

He shrugged. “I grew up here. Left twelve years ago, to go seek my fortune.”

She smiled beatifically. “Well, clearly you found it.”

He perked up at that. “You’ve heard of Arquin Enterprises?”

“I checked out your company after your assistant contacted me.”

“I see.” He felt oddly disappointed that his name hadn’t been on her radar before that. Sure, his name wasn’t big this side of the ranges, and mostly he preferred it that way, but he’d kind of hoped this sophisticated human might have heard of him.

She continued, “I was very impressed to read how you’ve built up the company, and now with striking Plutark…”

Ahhh, her admiring tone, that amazing smile, stroked his ego. He couldn’t help smirking, rubbed at a tusk. He saw her gaze dart there, then linger briefly on his mouth.

A little arrow of amusement forged through him.

Wondering how I’d go down on you, pet? How I’d keep these tusks out of the way when I gobbled you all up? Don’t worry, sweetheart, I’d go sweet and slow.

A moment of silence followed while Tor cursed his filthy orcish mind. Snapping her eyes back to the page, she asked, her tone a little husky, “So, um, why are you wanting to buy in Motham, Tor?”

He came back to reality with a blink. “My parents live here, they’re getting old. My father’s just had a bad fall, and my mother’s frail too. I need to be here more often.”

She nodded, making notes. He watched the way her hair fell over one shoulder, catching in the sunlight from the window like fine spun gold. His eyes traced the curve of her long neck, the delicate line of her jaw. Something stirred in his chest this time. Emotions he wasn’t used to feeling, achingly sweet.

He frowned, surprised. He preferred it when only his dick was interested. That was something he knew how to deal with.

“What part of Motham do your parents live in?”

He hesitated. Was he ashamed? “The East Quarter.”

“You don’t want to buy nearer to them?”

“No, Ma’am, I have no wish to live anywhere near East Motham.” She was watching him intently now, as if trying to read him. It was a little unnerving. “My sister lives close to them and she does a lot to help out, but she and her partner are trying for a baby and being same sex, they have to go through the insemination process. I want to make that easier on her.”

“That’s considerate.”

“You sound surprised.”

“No. Not at all.”

“Do you know many orcs, Shona?”

She looked slightly flustered for the first time. “Not many, but my close friend, she’s married to a minotaur and their neighbor is an orc, very nice guy.”

Tor’s lip curled. Yet another human who was surprised when orcs turned out to be regular decent folks. “We can be surprisingly nice.”

“Oh, of course, I didn’t mean…”

“Don’t worry, we orcs are used to it, believe me.” He laughed, a little harshly. “One of the reasons I left Motham.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.”

“Really. I wasn’t implying…” She still looked a little flushed and awkward. It suited her, disarmed her perfection. “So, um. Partners, kids, pets you need to accommodate?” she hurried on.

---