Page 41 of The Orc Outcast's Mate

Miranda tucked her head into his shoulder, relaxing.

She wasn’t going to move. She wouldn’t leave him.

And that support forced him to drop the walls he’d built around his sorrow.

For what felt like an eternity, Govek grappled with the dark weight pressing down on him. Pulling him under. Burying him in the heat of rage and the icy grip of grief.

And eventually, that grip eased, and Miranda’s gentle touch took its place.

He regained his senses. The fire in him ebbed to embers. His twisting guts settled. His claws slunk back into his fingers.

Miranda sat up, her face no longer blurred, her smile too sweet. And his heart skipped.

“Feel better?” she asked, and he could only blink and nod.

Fuck, he did. He actually did.

“Is there anything else you need right now?” she asked and fuck, his throat grew tight. He shook his head.

He just needed her to stay right here with him.

Forever.

She gave him another sweet smile before looking around.

“Your house is so pretty. Viravia’s house didn’t have all these carvings.” She reached out and touched the leaf detailing he’d etched into the wooden arm of the couch.

His chest swelled with an unusual sensation he couldn’t name. “I did them.”

“What?”

The warmth in his chest bloomed, and he focused on it, using the sensation to drown out what remained of his rage and sorrow. He didn’t want these first few moments in his home to be ruined by his own vile, uncontrolled nature. “I carved these. Took many years and a lot of patience.” Working with the grain and the life of the tree was difficult. It required the use of magic to sense the tree’s life and ensure it remained hale as the wood was chipped away.

“Govek, that’s amazing. Wow, just... you did the walls too? And the detailing on the cabinets? And that coffee table?”

“Coffee?” Govek asked as Miranda moved from his lap to look closer at the detailing on the low ovular table in front of the couch.

Her head snapped up. “Oh no. You guys don’t have coffee?”

“No.”

“Oh, I’m gonna be in trouble in the morning. You must have something that helps you wake up?”

His brows furrowed. “There are many herbs that can aid with rousing when one is unconscious. Hovget, our healer, grows and stores them.”

“That’s not...oh gosh. We’ll figure that out later. Is that your bedroom?”

“Our bedroom,” he said without thinking.

She shot him a smile. “Our bedroom.”

He followed her in, lighting the candles along the wall so she could examine the space.

She wasted no time flopping down on the bed with a huff.

“Oh, my god. A real bed! With a mattress and everything. I never thought I would be so happy to see a bed. Wow, this bed frame is incredible. Did you carve it too?”

“Yes.” Her fingers traced the mountain scene he’d carved into the headboard. He felt guilty at how much he was enjoying her compliments. After everything he had confessed to her, he had yet to admit he deserved them.

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