Page 79 of Bound to the Orc Guardian

I don’t give him the satisfaction. I’m not afraid. Sturrm won’t let anything happen to me. I know it in my soul.

An angry roar rips through the meadow, like a bear gone rabid. Then Sturrm stands over me, the snarl on his face ferocious. He moves like power made manifest, each strike beating back his larger opponent.

Coño! The berserker rage has him.

I lie completely still, stunned by him. He’s like some primal god come to life, nothing but muscle and wrath and power.

A ferocious strike, and the ogre bleeds from his shoulder, the same one Sturrm injured that very first day.

Another strike, and one of the ogre’s hands goes flying, his cry of pain sailing through the air with it. It’s the one he just used to throw me to the ground.

A third strike, and Sturrm slices into his enemy’s knee, sending the gray monster lurching sideways.

Sturrm isn’t simply fighting him. He’s fucking dismembering him, taking him apart piece by piece. It’s vicious and primal and the complete opposite of everything I tell myself I am as a healer.

But I can’t look away.

Sturrm fights, not only the ogre of today, but the ogre of his nightmares.

Then, with one last mighty swing, his sword slices through the ogre’s neck, cleaving his head from his shoulders.

Sturrm stands there for several stretched seconds, chest rising and falling as he gulps down huge breaths. The sword still clutched in his hands doesn’t waver, the tip up and ready.

But there are no more opponents. Dash and Bella finished any Sturrm didn’t get to.

“Sturrm,” I say, rolling up to sitting.

His head jerks sideways toward me just the tiniest bit, until one sharp eye can watch me from its corner.

“Sturrm, it’s me. Selena.” I get my feet under me and slowly stand.

He spins to face me, his expression empty, his sword now pointing straight at me. A stranger stares at me, wearing the body of the man I love.

“Uh, Selena,” Bella says from behind me, her wings rustling. “Why don’t you come over here with us?”

“Don’t turn your back on him,” Dash adds, his voice deadly serious for a change. “Just back away slowly.”

“I’ve read about the berserker rage,” Bella says. “He’s not himself. He’s lost the connection to his mind and soul. He not only doesn’t know you, he also lacks empathy.”

“I can’t leave him.” I shake my head. “I can’t leave him like this.”

“Yes, you can.” A hoof thumps against the ground. “If he were himself, he’d be the first person to tell you to get away from him.”

“Yeah, that’s exactly the problem,” I say. “Sturrm’s been pushing me away—pushing everyone away—for too long, thinking he’s not worthy enough for them to stay.” I meet his dark eyes. “But he’s wrong. He’s the best man I’ve ever known. He’s worth the risk.”

I point toward him. “You hear me? You’re worth it, Sturrm. You’re worth everything.”

I ignore the sword and step toward the man I love.

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

Sturrm

I stand in a clearing, victorious, the bodies of my enemies dead at my feet, felled by my hand. Yet my victory is a cold thing, distant, holding nothing of joy.

“You’re worth it, Sturrm,” a sweet voice says. “You’re worth everything.”

The icy cold rage that fills me sees everything in the world as nothing but threats to be conquered. I jerk toward her, sword at the ready, eager to defeat any foe.

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