Page 105 of The Widow and the Orcs

“Good,”Ulfarrmurmured now, with another brief kiss toKillik’slips, before he turned to faceLouisaagain.Gatheringher close into his arms, his strength, his peace. “Nowsleep, my pups.”

Sleep.Hispups.His.Hers.Andwith a breath and a shudder,Louisacurled up closer against his warm steady safety, and slept.

50

Whenmorning came, the whole world felt… changed.Feltbright, and shimmering, and new.

Maybeit was just waking up in a tree, with the cheerful birdsong all around, and the dappled sunlight peeking through the entwined branches of thekofi’s roof.Ormaybe it wasUlfarr’ssoft steady snores, and the relaxed contentment on his sleeping face.

Ormaybe it wasKillik.Lyingsprawled and sleepy onUlfarr’sother shoulder, squinting a bleary eye over atLouisa— and then shoving up onto his hands and knees, and prowling overUlfarrtoward her.FlickingatUlfarr’scheek on the way by, enough to stir him awake, and then turning his attention back toLouisa, rolling her onto her belly, settling his lean warm body over her.Andthen —Louisagasped — his slick prodding head slipped into her crease, and found the placeUlfarrhad filled the night before.Itwas still supple and soft, almost as if waiting for this, welcoming this — and in a smooth, single stroke,Killiksank himself deep inside.

Louisamoaned and writhed at the sudden shock of it, but there was no thought of protesting, not in the trees and the sunlight and the birdsong.Andnot withUlfarrnow lying on his side watching, his head propped on his hand, an approving smile curving on his mouth. “Gentle, pup,” he murmured, husky. “Shemay yet be tender from last eve.”

ButKillikonly snorted, and even gave a light slap toLouisa’sbare arse. “Sheis yet wide open and dripping wet from you,Wolf,” he said coolly. “Iken she can scarce feel this, ach, woman?”

Louisacould still most certainly feel it, and she shot a disdainful look over her shoulder towardKillik, even as she shuddered and groaned.Andoh, that wasUlfarr’shand on her cheek,Ulfarr’ssoft, searching gaze on her face.Stillmaking sure she was safe, even now, and she twitched a smile at him, between her sharp, shaky gasps.

“Yourpup is a — a tyrant,Wolf,” she breathed, asKillikpicked up speed, his bollocks slapping against her skin. “Aninfuriating, unfeeling tyrant — who can’t let anyone else — run his show — for one damned day!”

ButUlfarronly smiled back at her, so fond and approving, whileKillikgave her arse another stinging slap, followed by a snap of teeth near her ear. “Ach, just thus,” he purred. “Youare learning, woman.Nowbe good, and suck your freshSkaiseed deep, where it belongs.”

Oh, hell, he was already grinding, gouging, his claws pricking into her shoulders — and that was yet more flooding heat, pooling in fast and deep.Fillingher, yet again, and it should not have felt that good, that…right.AndUlfarrshould not be leaning over to kissKilliklike that as he poured out, slow and filthy with tangling tongue — and then drawing away and guiding upLouisa’sface, so he could kiss her, too.Sendingmore shivery rightness up her spine, especially whenKilliksagged heavy against her back, and then yawned, and gave a slow, luxurious stretch. “Better,” he murmured. “Nowbehave, woman, and mayhapIshall grant you more.”

More.ItcaughtLouisa’sbreath, because again, it really did mean — the ten nights were over.Andshe was still here, still in their bed.Asif she truly was proving this, and had almost — almost — earned it.

Louisa’sgrin was swift and genuine, the warmth simmering in her belly — and once they’d all washed and dressed, she eagerly joinedKillikandUlfarrin another busy morning at the camp.Firstprayers and breakfast, and then moreSummitpreparations withRosa, and then another session offlytingwithSuneandKillik, and now withKoriandFasti, too.Andnext,LouisaandKillikworked more on thekofiwithUlfarr, helping him build a large bed out of supple, springy boughs, covered with multiple thick furs.

Thebed was big enough for two — or even three — people, butKillikstill kept referring to it asUlfarr’s, soLouisafollowed suit, too.Andwhile she still wanted to push that further, to demand why in the name ofSkai-keshKillikcouldn’t just move in, she couldn’t bear to break the lightness that kept sparkling between them.Makingit easy to talk and laugh and sign with them, and then, beneath the early afternoon sunlight, to joinKillikin helpingUlfarrchristen his new bed.Thistime just makingUlfarrlie back between them on the furs, so they could both take turns touching and tasting him, spoiling him, adoring him.

Butthis, too, felt easy, and warm, and bright.LikeKillik’sthoughts,Killik’sdesires, were crackling intoLouisa’svery thoughts, and together they kept deepening that new awareness from the night before.Ulfarrwas afraid of hurting them, of failing them — and that meant they needed to prove him wrong.Theyneeded to praise him, to call him strong and safe, to show him how deeply they trusted him.Andas part of that, neither of them even looked at the chain, still hanging onUlfarr’strousers — and it was even better to haveUlfarr’sbig hands caressing them, guiding them, skittering into their hair, stroking their hot cheeks.

“Ach, my pups,” he gasped afterwards, once they were all sprawled on the new bed together. “WhathaveIdone to deserve this?”

LouisaandKillikexchanged a brief, satisfied look, as a hot thrill hurtled upLouisa’sspine.Mypups, he’d said again, to both of them, andLouisaimpulsively kissed his cheek, and gave a gentle, audacious pat to his soft, saliva-streaked prick. “You’rejust —you, sweetheart,” she said, a little helpless. “Howcan we not adore you?”

Killik’sflickering eyes again metLouisa’s, looking almost pleased, almost… approving.Andeven as they climbed back down to the camp, she could still feel the thrill of it, the rightness of it.Killikwas pleased with her.Shewas proving this to him.Shewas.

Thatcertainty kept shimmering for the rest of the day, even whenLouisaaccompaniedRosaon a trip to town, where they hand-delivered more invitations to theSummit.Aventure thatLouisaonly reluctantly agreed to, atRosa’srepeated urging — but she soon discovered, to her genuine surprise, that she almost enjoyed seeing her old friends and acquaintances again.Thatit didn’t seem to carry the same tinge of loss and loneliness it once had, back when she’d been trapped withLordScall, or crushed beneath his debts.LordScallwas dead.

Ofcourse,Rikard’sname still frequently came up in their conversations, especially since he’d apparently already begun spreading word in town of the trespassing orcs.ButLouisaandRosacountered his claims as firmly as they could, and reminded the townspeople of all the good the orcs had done throughout the province these past few years.Andby the end of the afternoon, they’d gained multiple expressions of interest in theSummit, and at least a few tentative promises to attend.

Louisawas still smiling when they returned to camp again, and didn’t even pretend to argue whenKillikordered her down into the common-room to write more letters.Theseones turned out to be updates to the variousSkaileaders on theSummit’sfinal schedule — which now included a few days only for theSkai, along with the publicOpenHouse.AndasLouisawrote out letter after letter, adding in all the bits of diplomatic flatteryKillikwas entirely incapable of, he didn’t once complain, and afterwards he even bent down to nibble lightly at her neck.

“Good, woman,” he murmured. “Justas pretty as aKa-esh, but without any of the torment.”

Itwas a true compliment, andLouisanearly floated through the rest of the evening, which culminated in another glorious session together inUlfarr’sbed.Andthough they again didn’t use the chain, it was stillKillikin charge, snapping heated orders asUlfarr’sbig body moved and groaned overLouisa— so afterwards, once they were all sprawled and sated together,Louisawaggled her brows towardKillik, and even gave a light pat to his cheek.

“Andmaybe next time, it’ll finally be your turn for some strongSkaiploughing,” she told him. “Youcan’t thinkI’veforgotten our deal, have you?”

Killiksputtered and scoffed, though an unmistakable flush was creeping up his neck, his eyes darting narrow towardUlfarr. “Therewas nodeal,” he snapped. “Thiswas only your wishful thinking, woman!”

Louisapouted back, but didn’t miss howUlfarrwas looking away now, too.Noteven hinting that he might want such a thing fromKillik, even thoughLouisaknew — sheknew— he did.AndKillikhad glanced away too, his mouth tight and thin, as if this was again something they couldn’t talk about, or couldn’t do.Justlike they couldn’t live together in thiskofi, either.But— why?Whythe hell couldn’t they?Whatthe hell was stopping them?

Butwhen morning came, with yet more dappled sun and birdsong, it was so easy to shove the questions away, and embrace another day of busy, intriguing work.Prayers, and a delightful hunting trip withKillikandSune, followed by a surprisingly enjoyable sparring lesson, during whichKilliksnapped out orders and praise from the sidelines, whileLouisaandSunefaced off against each other with fur-wrapped wooden daggers.Circlingand attacking again and again, until they were both sweaty and grinning at each other.

Afterwards, they practiced moreflytingtogether, first withKoriandFasti, and then withIgullandPollyandElgr, too.Workingthrough all the versesKillikcould remember, and then trying out a few of their own, too.Preparingfor what had somehow become an actual performance, written in black and white onRosa’sdraft schedule.

TheSummitwas now less than a week away, and it had begun to feel more momentous — and perhaps more intimidating — with every passing day.Andas much asLouisafought to forget, those threats ofRikard’skept hovering over it all, too.Iknow how to ruin you.Cancelit.Getrid of the orcs.Orsay your farewells, forever…

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