Page 21 of Bound to the Orc Renegade

“No,” Mist says. “I will. Get some sleep. The clearing’s not big enough for a unicorn, a tent, and an orc.” She backs into the trees, her body disappearing from sight until only her smile lingers for a few seconds before winking out.

“Come on.” I pat the furs beside me, my fingers lingering on their softness. “There’s room.”

Or maybe I’m wrong, because the reality of Krivoth in the tent with me turns my words into an unintentional lie. He’s so big, sopresent. Even though we don’t touch, I feel him all down my near side like a pressure. His scent, pine and leather and male, fills the air.

An owl hoots and something rustles leaves outside, making me jump. It’s quiet in Alarria, almost too quiet after the constanthubbub of a city, and that quiet amplifies every noise. The steady rhythm of Krivoth’s breaths becomes the sound I focus on as I tumble down into sleep.

Wakefulness creeps in with a feeling of delicious warmth and strength. I effing suck as a morning person, and my alarm hasn’t gone off yet, so I don’t force it, letting myself drift slowly to awareness. I had the most amazing dream, filled with a sexy green orc and quests and magic and—

A body moves against mine, and I jolt the rest of the way awake. The tan leather overhead tints the morning light to a rich gold that makes Krivoth’s skin look greener than ever. The pointed tip of one ear pokes out of his long, loose hair, and deep breaths sigh from between lips slightly parted by his tusks. He’s not a dream.

Soverynot a dream.

He moved—or I moved—closer in the night. He’s on his back with me on my side, plastered against him. His shoulder pillows my head, and my arm hugs his chest. Hell, I’ve even thrown a thigh over his!

It’s as if in sleep my body decided to crawl right back on top of him, where it had spent so much of yesterday.

And let’s just say my body’s not wrong. Lying on Krivoth isn’t exactly what anyone would call a hardship.

I must have tensed or something, because he comes awake instantly, his dark eyes snapping open and meeting mine. His arm curls around me, his hand finding my butt, and I suck in a sharp breath as a tingling awareness of his closeness washes over me.

I feel like I could happily fall into his gaze to wander forever, trapped in this sleepy, sexy moment of half-wakefulness where anything can happen.

“Taylor,” he rumbles, “my br—”

“You should get out here,” Mist says from right outside the tent. “I think the unicorn’s about to wake.”

“What?” Krivoth sits upright, pulling me with him.

“I saw a leg twitch,” Mist says.

I push aside any disappointment I feel at what almost happened. Excitement over Storm skitters through me, washing away the last of my fatigue as I crawl out of the tent after Krivoth.

He crouches beside Storm, pressing his fingers to the unicorn’s jaw.

Storm gives a muffled grumble, “Stop pawing at me.”

“Stop sleeping,” Krivoth growls back, but there’s no true heat in it.

“Storm!” I throw my arms around the unicorn’s neck as best I can with him on the ground. “I’m so glad you’re okay!”

His skin twitches in that way horses have, and his legs churn. “Let me up, the both of you. This is undignified.”

I back away, but Krivoth puts a hand on Storm’s neck and holds him down. “Take it easy. There’s no shame in any of this. You fought off deathsleep.”

The unicorn stills, then snorts. “You’re right. I’m clearly a superior fae.”

Krivoth laughs, and I love the sound. “First the cat sith, now you. I’m surrounded by the best.”

“Cat sith?” Storm asks, straining upward again.

Mist walks around until he can see her, her steps almost a prance. “You have the honor of being in my presence, unicorn. I am Mist, and I have watched over you all through the night.”

“I did not consent to such a debt!” Storm barks, surprising me with his anger.

“Hey, now!” I hold up both hands. “We’re all friends here.”

Storm glares at me, and Mist’s eyes glitter with amusement, as if I’ve said something incredibly stupid.

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