Page 79 of Ogres Don't Play

“Where are we going?” I asked him, settling closer to his chest.

“Snuggling. I take my husbandly duties seriously.”

Chapter

Twenty-Five

Outside the hall, ogres were lined up in full battle regalia. Rook marched through his men, and women, naturally, because Lanise was right there in her terrifying war paint, grinning viciously. They all inhaled deeply as I went by, sniffing me the way ogres had always smelled me. It was still weird, but this time, I could smell them too, and what I smelled was a terrifying kind of devoted loyalty that I absolutely had no idea what to do with. I was their princess. Their fierce destroyer of Garnagth. I had captured Rook, and would keep him from running ever again.

Of course, that meant that I couldn’t run, either. I’d gotten pretty good at it. Although I’d married Rook the luthier. Only an idiot would run in any direction besides towards him.

Rook got into the backseat of a car and Driver took us to the music shop in Song, pulling up at the door while I curled up in the back with Rook, feeling like chicken noodle soup. Driver opened the door for us, then leaned down, studying me.

“Going in?” he asked.

“Eventually.” I was in Rook’s arms. What else was there?

“Harp inside.”

The idea of my custom harp ignited my will. I looked up at Rook, who had a slight smile on his beautiful mouth, and then I scrambled out of the car, over the sidewalk and through the door.

The bell jangled, and then Rook followed me inside. Yaga was roosting on the prettiest harp I’d ever seen. It was sacrilege for the chicken to treat such perfection like it was just another sturdy chair back.

The harp wasn’t too intricate, like the elven stuff, and it wasn’t too bright and bold, like the angelic instruments, it was just right, with a hint of simplicity that told me that she would play fifty million times better than she looked. She was about sound, about fitting precisely to my body, my hands, not about how good she would look while she performed. Not that she wasn’t pretty enough, but she was so much more.

I walked slowly towards my harp, and then when I got to the counter, I reached out and touched the most amazing thing in the world. He’d followed close behind me and his hand fit perfectly with mine.

“Do you like it?” he asked, leaning his chin on my head and sounding confident. Of course he had confidence. He knew exactly what I wanted in an instrument.

I turned around to look up at the most wonderful creation in the world. “To be honest, I like you more.”

He raised both brows before he broke into a broad smile that showed his pretty tusks. “You do?”

I nodded soberly, sliding my hands up his well-muscled forearms. “I’m crazy about you. Some people would say that I’m just crazy. But no. All of my madness is entirely focused on you. You have my heart and every other piece of me for the rest of my life.”

His slow smile grew as he brushed some of my still-wet hair behind my ears. “Did you really get the ogre king to wash your hair?”

I winced. “Let’s not dwell on the past.”

He picked me up and set me on the counter next to my glorious harp. “As long as I’ve been alive, I’ve been waiting for you. You are my heart song made flesh. The wonder, the glory, the beauty, the color…”

I cut him off with a quick kiss that filled me with aching fire. “You’re going to make me blush. How was the war? Were there a lot of casualties?” I braced myself for the worst news, but he only shook his head with a soft smile, brushing my nose with his.

“Hardly any at all. The troll uprising didn’t last long, not with your dad and his armies. Angels usually fight defense, so it’s easy to forget how terrifying they can be when their aim is annihilation. After that, we worked out the details of our alliance. He’s incredibly good at taking advantage of the weaknesses of his opponent.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “What is your weakness?”

He gave me the softest sweetest smile in the world. “You. You’re also my strength. My song. My…”

“You gave him whatever he wanted, didn’t you? What’s the worst of it?”

He gave me an amused look. “The largest item that will cause my father the greatest amount of indigestion is most likely an agreement not to take jobs for anyone fighting against your dad.”

I gasped, because mercenary work was the biggest part of their economy. “Seriously? You agreed to that? And the ogres? They’re okay with those kinds of limitations?”

He kissed the back of my hand and swept me into his arms. “Your dad isn’t going to live forever. As long as he does, mypeople will respect the deal.” He carried me towards the small bedroom.

“Where are we going?” I asked while my heart beat faster and my fingertips tingled. Also my left arm where I was still bandaged.

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