Page 53 of Summoning the Orc

I was unable to get a word out as he continued layering apples and dough into the dish. When it was done, he moved to the oven and stuck it in, turning back to me with a wicked grin.

“We have some time to wait,” he told me, his lids going low with lust. I backed up to the counter before hopping up, knowing that this position would put me at the perfect height for my mate. I reached out for him and he joined me with eagerness, taking my lips in a crushing kiss.

“No sex,” I gasped against his lips, as he nodded in agreement before ravishing my mouth.

I was gasping for breath, sprawled on top of Rok, naked on the floor of the kitchen when the timer for the ziti sounded. I nuzzled against his chest with a sigh.

“We should get up before we burn the food,” I said, and he ran his palm over my back, a satisfied smile on his handsome face.

“Okay,” he murmured, but it was long moments before we were sturdy enough to stand up.

I peeked at the ziti, cursing as I noticed that the top was a little browner than I would have liked it. The crust of Rok’s turr also seemed a little well-done, but since I wasn’t familiar with it, I couldn’t be sure.

“Mine are definitely done,” I told him, as we stood bare-assed naked in front of the hot oven. “Is yours too?”

He peeked his head over my shoulder. “Yes. I’ll take them out,” he said, and I turned to grab mittens for him. When I turned back to him, he held the two dishes in his hands, withnoheat protection.

“Oh,” I gasped, rushing over to him, waving my hands in useless worry.

He quirked an eyebrow to me as he put the ziti down into the stovetop with gentle movements.

“Your hands,” I gasped, taking them into mine and blowing on them before cradling them against my bare breasts, staring up at him with concern. “You burned your hands!”

He looked from my face to his hands where they were against my breasts a couple times before he gave me a slow nod. “Yes.Veryburned,” he said, sounding out the words.

Flustered, I tugged him toward the sink, turning on the cold water before shoving his hands under them. “Oh, Rok,” I cried, hugging myself against his arm and pressing frantic kisses to his skin. “I’m so sorry!”

“You didn’t do anything,” he said, turning to face me, but I shoved his hands back under the cold water.

“I should have had the mittens ready!” I exclaimed, shaking my head as I hurried over to find the first aid kit in the bathroom. I hurried back, but Rok had already removed his hands from thecold water and was drying them with a towel.

“Wait, you might have burns,” I shrieked, grabbing his hands to inspect them. I frowned down at the perfect skin, tilting my head to the side. “But… these aren’t even swollen or anything.” I peered up at him, my brows knitted together with concern. “Is that normal?”

He looked away from me to his hand. “Uhhh… Yes, yes, very normal. Orc skin istough,” he said, slapping his hands together and making me wince at the thought of how much pain he must be in. “We don’t show injuries the way other species do.”

“My poor baby,” I cooed, hugging him around the waist. He gave a happy sigh as he swayed me from side to side.

Chapter Thirty-One

Becca

I walked into Pen’s apartment, my hand tucked inside Rok’s uninjured one, the other wrapped loosely in a gauze to prevent any infections. I wasn’t sure if there was anything different between our worlds in terms of germs.

Just to be safe, I’d tried to cover as much of the affected skin as possible. It was difficult toseethe affected skin since it all looked normal. Taking extra precautions couldn’t hurt him, though, so I’d pressed kisses to his lips as I’d taken care of him, ensuring that he was smothered in hugs and had full access to my breasts to distract him from the pain.

He’d had a happy smile on his face the entire time, only wincing once when I’d asked him if it hurt. The hard flinch had told me how much my strong mate was hiding the true brunt of the pain from me.

Pen met us in the entryway of the huge penthouse apartment she shared with her mate, her arms wide for a hug. I gave her a tight squeeze and she exclaimed over Rok’s hand, fussing in the way only a sister could.

“Oh no, Rok! Did you hurt yourself?” she asked, gasping, herfingers pressed to her mouth in shock.

“Helping me,” I explained, guilt washing over me. I peered up at my mate with an apologetic gaze, but he was avoiding my eyes. My heart ached at the thought of him being angry, but I knew he had a right to be. I’d been careless. “He took the ziti out of the oven, and I hadn’t had mittens ready for him,” I told her, pointing to the dishes stacked inside the bag that he was carrying on the pinky finger of his injured hand.

I’d asked him to let me take them instead, but he’d scoffed. And when I’d released his unburned hand so he could use that instead, he’d snatched it back up and given me a little pout.

That had earned him a big kiss in the elevator on the way up. Rok loved affection of any kind, and I was more than willing to give it to him.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Pen said with a frown. “It’s weird though, because Dristan takes stuff out of the oven all the time with bare hands and henevergets hurt.”

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