Page 19 of The Orc's Oath

"It is unacceptable to pleasure yourself to a person without their consent."

Heat flooded through me. It was my turn to give him a wicked grin.

"Well, you can't have permission. Not until after the mating fight."

"Uk'lah, please?"

"Nope."

I pulled his furs off him and leaned down. It was the first time I had gotten a really good look at his cock. It was frighteningly large. Small curved fleshy barbs ran up it in a line from the base to the tip. Front and back. I traced my tongue along the huge green cock. Zesh groaned. I pulled away and walked back to the door.

"UK'LAH!"

"Tomorrow."

I blew him a kiss and left the room. As the door closed, I heard a roar of frustration. Billy glanced back at the noise.

"He's doing well at expressing his emotions."

"Errr, if you say so."

Chapter 13

Orzesh

The rest of the day and night were a torment. I heal quickly, so the pain from the fight didn't bother me. My bruises had already nearly faded. The unquenched lust that my mate had left me with was harder to distract from. The feel of her tongue had driven me almost out of my mind. And soon we would fight.

I wasn't sure how hard to push with a human in a mating fight. I would win. That much was sure. I didn't want to hurt her or frighten her. I would hold back, as hard as it would be. Although I wouldn't be able to hold back during the claiming. If she was my mate, then I knew she was built to withstand me. To take me in her small body. She would wrap around me so snugly. I stayed in my cell with a near permanent erection. She had forbidden me from touching myself. Fire raged through my body. This was a true battle. I would pay her back in kind once she was fully mine. I would torment her endlessly with need until she begged for me, and then I would remind her of this day.

A high-pitched whine sounded through the intercom system briefly. It was piercing, and I jumped up off my bed. I'd been here for years and had never heard it make such a sound. My senses focused and my body tingled. Something wasn't right. I didn't know what, but my gut always knew. Memories flashed through my mind like lightning on a dark night. The brief lockdown and broken alarms. Hyena and bald guard acting shifty. The shadow demon acting even more strangely than normal. An attack of some sort was coming. I cursed myself for not spotting it sooner. My mate had distracted me, and now I had to hope that she didn't suffer for it.

I stood quietly and listened. I could hear a kerfuffle, voices rich with excitement and menace. I strode out. A group gathered around the minotaur's cell. Had something happened to him?

"Away," I whispered to Bloodletter, who had been napping in my sash. I felt his little body moving as he crept out and flew off to his high corner.

I moved to the minotaur's cell and started shoving people out of the way, getting a few insults in return. Before I reached the door, the lich stepped in front of me. My eyes immediately moved to the familiar object in his hand. My body swelled with emotion.

"Descaris said to give you this."

I took the axe from him. My axe. Excitement flowed through me at the feel of the cold, heavy metal. That sneaky little shadow demon was always one step ahead of what was going on. He'd be an excellent ally if there was time for that.

"He said that you'd probably do okay without it, but a promise is a promise."

I grinned and placed a hand on the lich's shoulder. Cold ran up my arm, but I didn't move away.

"Thank you, friend."

"The guards dumped the minotaur's mate here. They are up to something."

I didn't need to ask which guards.

"Well, then. Let's pay 'em back for whatever it is."

The lich nodded at me. I turned back to the cell and barged in. Monsters surrounded the human that had shouted at me in the medical wing. She looked terrified and was stabbing ineffectually at a snake monster. He'd been the first one to come for Bloodletter, and he'd tried to get at him numerous times since, calling him a bite-size snack. As he picked up the therapist, I gripped my axe. My beloved axe. I felt nearly whole again. I just needed my mate by my side now.

I moved my axe with a quick, efficient swing, taking the snake's head clean off, but missing the woman. Gasps echoed all around me and I knew I'd made some enemies. I grabbed the little therapist and dragged her out of the cell where she stood a chance of getting out of the cell block if the opportunity arose. A slight vibration rang through the walls, followed by a roar in the distance. I swung the woman behind a table. There was no time to be gentle. I could hear the other monsters behind me getting riled up.

"Stay in here, out of the way. There's about to be a ruckus."

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