Page 72 of The Widow and the Orcs

Andshe should have been questioning it, should have been callingKillikout on his constant rubbish, on this absolute mess.Oron what they should do now, what this all meant, what they had left…

Butinstead,Louisawas looking atUlfarr.GrievingforUlfarr.Achingat the sight of him, the sadness crushing him beneath its weight.Maybehe was still a monster, maybe he still didn’t deserve forgiveness, but maybe…

Maybefor now it didn’t matter.MaybeLouisacould just… take a breath, and grope forKillik’shand, and tug him back across the room.Shecould face this.Provethis…

Andas they went, she could tug at her new chain belt.Letit fall open around her waist.Lether dress fall open, too, let it show her loincloth, let it show her breasts and her belly and her scars…

“Thankyou for telling me all this, sweetheart,” she whispered, towardUlfarr’sbowed head. “Andnow, will you come to bed with us?”

37

Willyou come to bed with us.

Itwas without question the most brazen, most ridiculous thingLouisahad ever said — or done — in her life.Undressinglike this, showing her body like this, and propositioning an orc.Anorc who was grieving, weeping, lost in his past and his sins, and surely not thinking about her in the slightest.

Butshe was facing it, and she was doing it.Standinghere and shaking and doing it, half naked, and clinging tightly toKillik’shand.Dragginghim into this too, but he’d damn well wanted it, he’d all but told her to do it, and…

AndthenUlfarr… raised his head.Openedhis sad wet eyes.Andthen he startled, and stared, his mouth slack, his gaze darting up and downLouisa’sfront.

Louisacouldn’t hide her grimace as she followed his eyes — gods, why hadn’t she chosen a more full-coverage loincloth, and had she really needed the knee-high boots?Shelooked like some kind of…seductress, especially with that chain and knife still hanging off her dress — and why wasUlfarrstill staring?Whatwas he thinking, was he going to refuse, or laugh…

Andcurse it, nowKillikhad stepped around to look at her properly, too.AndifLouisahadn’t been so mortified, she might have been gratified by the way his brows snapped up, his lips quirking with something like… approval?

“Ach, mark this,Wolf,”Killiksaid, his voice light, conversational, as his hand gently tugged at the dangling front ofLouisa’sloincloth. “Shehas gone and dressed for you.Looksjust as aSkaiwoman should, you ken.”

Ulfarr’sthroat convulsed, his arm wiping at his wet face, but now it was just confusion, flickering across his shadowed eyes. “Butshe — you wished — to leave,Louisa,” he said, between hitching breaths. “Youlearnt — my deep sins — my shame — so why —”

Louisa’sown breath shuddered, her eyes blinking hard, because gods, hadUlfarrnot even heard everythingKillikhad just told her?Hadhe not followed how little she’d known, how she hadn’t even asked for his side of the tale?Butno, maybe not, because beside herKillikshrugged, and reached to stroke his clawed fingers againstUlfarr’shair, still pulled back in his ever-present braid.

“No, for she has come to her senses,Iken,” he said smoothly. “Sheknows what a fool she should be, to walk away from theWolfof theSkai, and the promise of sharing his bed.”

Louisashould have countered that, somehow, butUlfarr’swide wet eyes snapped up to hers, looking skeptical, but almost painfully hopeful, too.Soshe swallowed down the lump in her throat, and smiled, and twitched her own hand toward him, caressed it at his pale, scarred cheek.

“Justso, sweetheart,” she murmured. “Andalso, todayIlearned you like chains in bed, too.”

Sheflinched even as she said it, because gods, why would she say something like that?Andeven if she had slowly been realizing how thoroughlyKittyhad set her up with this outfit — down to the chain still hanging from her open dress —Louisahadn’t needed to say it, to throw that out there too, had she?Evenif some fool part of her had hoped it might help, might drawUlfarr’sattention, might prove something toKillik, just like he’d asked…

Ulfarrwas still staring at her, his mouth fallen open, but beside her,Killikchuckled, and reached an easy hand to tug at her new belt. “Ifyou ken this flimsy trinket shall hold our wolf, woman, you are yet lacking your senses,” he said lightly. “Although” — he frowned, and yanked the chain up to his nose, inhaling deep — “didThrainforge this?”

Louisafelt nonplussed again, and far too hot and exposed — but yes,Kittyhad said something to that effect, hadn’t she?AndwhenLouisanodded atKillik, that was a slow, devious smile, drawing at his lips — and he casually began tugging the rest of the chain away from her dress, until it swung long and shimmering between them.

“Ach, then, woman, we might as well test this, and have another lesson,” he said. “BindWolf’swrists with it, shall you?”

What?Here?Now?Butthe glint inKillik’seyes was far too meaningful, especially when he glanced down atUlfarr’sface.AtwhereUlfarrstill looked stunned, blank, not at all sure of himself, and then he twitched, shook his head. “Youcannot —” he began, then took a heavy breath. “Cannotyet wish for — for —”

ButLouisawas already nodding, taking the chain fromKillik’shand with shaky fingers, as comprehension kept jostling through her thoughts.Draggingup the memories of the other times they’d done this, all the other timesKillikhad taken control.Perhaps… perhaps not becauseUlfarrwas fundamentally oriented toward submission, but perhaps because he didn’t think he deserved to be desired, or cared for.Andmaybe this was a way of showing him otherwise.Ofproving it.

Itached deep inLouisa’sbelly, resonated in her chest, and she dropped to kneel besideUlfarron the fur, clasping one of his big hands in hers. “Ifyou don’t mind it, sweetheart,” she murmured, “We’dreally like to have our way with you.Makesure you can’t escape us.”

Ulfarr’seyes widened, but his tongue brushed his lips — and then he twitched a curt, rapid nod.AndwhenLouisadrew out his hand, he willingly raised it higher, and watched with strange, shifting intensity as she carefully wrapped the chain around his wrist.

“Ach, not thus,” cameKillik’sclipped voice, as he knelt onUlfarr’sother side, grasping for his other hand. “Placehis wrists thus together, and then wrap around, and lock the chain.Nottoo tight.”

Louisafollowed his directions as well as she could, and after a momentKillikeven caught her hand in his, guiding her movements, his claws gently scraping against her skin. “Ach, thus,” he said. “Nowlock — thus.Good.Andlet us hope it may hold him for a spell, at least.”

He’dactually grinned at her, and atUlfarrtoo, and for a breath,Louisaalmost forgot the bizarre convoluted mess of this, and the ridiculous fact that she was wearing a loincloth, and chaining up a grieving, guilty monster of an orc so she could have her way with him.Andinstead, she found herself smiling back atKillik, caught in the strange crackling warmth, the glint in his eyes.

“Nowon your knees,Wolf,”Killikordered, with a gentle slap toUlfarr’ship. “Towardyour prettySkaiwoman, in her prettySkaigarb.”

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