Page 61 of Bound to the Orc Warrior

“I meanmentallybeating yourself up.”

“Ah.” I drop my eyes. “That I cannot promise, for I would never want to lie to you, my bride.”

“Nope, not good enough.” She brushes her fingers over my cheek, making me look up at her. “I need you to be okay with this, to respect that I’m going to use my powers, even if it’s hard.”

“I do respect you.” I capture her hand and bring it to my lips for a kiss. “Yet I also feel a burning need to protect you that overwhelms me at times. It’s tied to the very heart of me, the primal beast lurking in my soul.”

“I kind of like that primal beast,” she says. “But not for this. I know you’ll protect me—look at the way you fought the kelpiesand soul stealers! But some things are going to be outside of your control, so you need to stop the self blame.”

“Thank you.” I press another kiss to her fingers. “I’ll try.”

Naomi offers me a soft smile, welling with tenderness. “Good. You should be kind to yourself, Wranth. You deserve kindness.”

She means it. She means it with everything she is, and it’s so full of care it makes my heart ache in the very best of ways.

I’ve been thinking about this all wrong. Naomi isn’t precious because she belongs to me. She’s precious because of who she is. This bright, beautiful woman who truly cares for others, who sees past my prickly edges to the man I am within.

Another realization strikes me—I love her.

I love her with every mote of my being. I love her with all I am or ever will be.

Goddess, I’ve never been good with words, and today is no different. So I let my touch speak for me.

I peel her clothes from her body with tender hands, kissing her lovely skin as it becomes visible. I wet a cleaning cloth and wash her softly, stroking the magical fabric over every inch of her body.

She giggles and kicks as I touch her feet. “Ticklish, remember?”

“How ticklish?” I grin up at her and pick up her other foot. Happiness fills me. I’ve never done this before, never played and taken my time. No one’s ever wanted me to—I was a quick roll in the furs, someone to scratch an itch, not someone to linger in bed with. It makes this time with Naomi all the more precious. I run the pad of my finger across the sole of her foot, making her laugh all over again, the sound ringing through my soul.

Naomi helps me with her hair, showing me how to be especially gentle as I run the cleaning cloth over it. As her fingers explore her curls after, she beams at me. “That’s the gentlestshampooever. My scalp feels so clean, but my hair isn’t dried out at all.”

“That’s part of their magic.” My mouth quirks in a grin. “The cleaning cloths do whatever is needed for each job.”

I strip and wash myself quickly, then carry her into the hot spring. My cock strains toward her—how could it not with my beautiful bride naked in my arms?—but I ignore it and focus on her.

My moon bound moans as we settle into the warm water. “Oh, this feels divine!”

We soak for several minutes. Then she teaches me how to work the conditioner into her hair and gently detangle it using my fingers. By the time I’m done, she lies boneless across my lap, muscles gone limp from pure relaxation. Her eyes flutter as she fights to stay awake.

I press a kiss to her forehead and murmur, “Rest. I’ve got you.”

She settles even closer against me with the softest of sighs and drifts into sleep.

My heart swells in my chest, full of the most bittersweet pleasure. I love how my bride trusts me.

But is any of this enough to make her stay?

AmIenough?

She doesn’t sleep for long before stirring and muttering a sleepy protest about being hot.

Continuing to hold her, I stand and climb out of the pool, the air of the room delightedly cool against my wet skin. I too had become a bit overheated but hadn’t wanted to disturb her.

“I can’t believe I went to sleep so soon after waking up,” she says as I place her on the bench.

“I’m not certain you can consider unconsciousness restful.” I frown. “Your body clearly needed quality sleep.”

“I think it’s that you running your fingers through my hair worked magic.” She grins and picks up a linen towel. Instead of rubbing it over her head, she squeezes it around sections of hair.

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