Page 4 of Summoning the Orc

Pen:No gratitude needed. Do you love it?

Becca:So much! I’m obsessed.

Pen:Perfect. Now I’m going to make out with my mate.

Becca:My offer stands on babysitting those babies that you’re about to conceive.

Pen:laughing emoji

A breeze blew onto my face, the scent of the forest and something wild and tantalizing teasing my nose. I turned to look at the window, but I didn’t see even a crack open. Confused, I sat up, looking around.

There wasn’t anything that would have caused that gust of wind. My eyebrows swept up in confusion, but I couldn’t stop myself from closing my eyes and savoring that scent. It made my chest pang with longing, but that couldn’t be right. I’d never smelled anything like it before.

Shaking my head, wondering if I was losing my mind, I fell back onto the bed and made some more blanket-angels.

Chapter Three

Becca

I tugged at the hem of the gorgeous purple blouse that my best friend had bought for me, eyeing the humongous library that stood tall and intimidating in front of me. This was a whole new ballpark.

I swallowed hard, straightening my shoulders and walking forward toward the entrance. The security guard—a towering gargoyle—narrowed his eyes at me, but I raised my new employee badge with a shaking hand.

“Hi,” I squeaked. “My name’s Becca. This is my first day, and I’m not sure where I’m supposed to go.”

The suspicion melted into a big smile. “Hi, I’m Gideon,” he said, holding out a huge, clawed hand. I took it, grateful for his kind welcome. “The Talent Acquisition Department’s on the third floor,” he added, pointing to the bank of elevators through the glass doors behind him. “Trixy works there. The pretty arachne with the red hair.” He froze when he realized what he’d said, his eyes going wide as he stuttered to correct himself. “W-what I mean is—”

“I’ll keep an eye out for her,” I said with a wink. “And I won’tbreathe a word about how pretty you think she is.”

He rubbed the back of his neck, his huge arms bulging as he opened the door for me. I walked inside, hiding a smile. The library that I’d worked in before had been tiny. We’d only had three employees including myself and the other two had been older and married with children. I’d never been able to get my nosy, matchmaking fingers into anything before, but I was already rubbing my hands together with glee. Even though I hadn’t found it for myself, I had fun finding love for others.

I stepped into the sacred space of the library that I’d been admiring in pictures since I was a child. It had been modernized since then, but I’d kept up to date with all the construction work that had been done on it.

I sighed with joy, spinning in a circle as I made my way to the bank of elevators. I looked up at the mural painted on the ceiling with a grin. The floating books and blue sky was the prettiest thing I’d ever seen.

The doors to the right stood open and I could see all of the shelves that I couldn’t wait to touch. My interview had been remote and they’d hired me with a swiftness that I’d come to realize was because of a sizable donation made by my best friend’s mate. I’d spent an hour and a half both admonishing and thanking the male in equal parts while he’d ignored me and played with his mate’s hair, nuzzling into her curls as if I didn’t exist.

I clasped my hands under my chin as I kept walking, excitement brimming inside of me. At the elevators, I tapped on the button to go up, shaking with the need to scream for joy.

When the doors parted, I stepped out. I saw the signs on the left for the administrative offices while the entryway to the right held another array of bookshelves. I squealed on the inside, but tried to keep my cool as I made my way toward the offices. I’d never dare to make that kind of noise out loud inside a library.It’d be like screaming inside a church. This was hallowed ground for me and it deserved respect.

The protruding tabs at the top of the doors down the corridor guided my way until I was standing in front of one that said “Talent Acquisition.” With a beaming smile, I knocked, trying to keep it gentle.

The door opened and I blinked up at the towering female in front of me. She had bright red hair that fell in a gorgeous mane down her back, but she had to be well over eight feet, her top half human, but the bottom half that of a spider. I’d never met an arachne in person and I tried not to stare, but it was hard.

Shewasbeautiful, the gargoyle was right, her main eyes a gorgeous lilac color while the others—above and below—were pitch black. Her top half was clothed with a tasteful blouse and blazer, but her bottom half was covered with what seemed to be thick black hair. Her eight legs held her aloft, but the ends looked to be sharp and pointed. My curious nature was trying to take over, but I didn’t want to be disrespectful. I had so many questions—most of which I’m sure would be considered inappropriate—so I kept a lock on my lips.

Donotask this perfect specimen of a female if she’s ever stabbed anyone to death with her legs.

I fought to keep my gaze focused on her eyes as I smiled. “Hi. I’m Becca. I was told to come to this floor–”

“Becca, of course,” the arachne beamed as she held out her hand to me. I took it, her grip gentle. “I’m Trixy. I have all of your paperwork set up. Come inside and we can get started.”

I walked inside, looking around and seeing a group of cubicles set up—with varying sizes and partition levels. She led me to the one closest to me, settling herself on a soft mat on the floor and gesturing for me to take a seat in the chair next to her. I did, trying to keep my nerves to a minimum.

This was the exact kind of social situation that I avoided. One-on-ones with a stranger. Fidgeting in my seat, I watched her gather the papers on her desk, rummaging around in a drawer and extracting a clipboard before handing it to me.

I thanked her, swallowing hard as I read through the papers. She was patient, typing away at her computer and not rushing me in any way. Still, my palms were sweaty and I barely gleaned the meaning of the first page, having to re-read it.

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