Page 13 of Orc's Pretend Mate

“Sex!”

It comes out as a scream as tears stream down my face. If I agree to it it’s not rape, maybe, but I still don’t have a choice. Choosing between this and death is no choice at all. Living at least I’ll have a chance to get even. At some point. A chance is better than no chance.

He jerks back, eyes wide, and mouth open.

“Sex?”

“It’s what you want, right? It’s all you care about. I know it. You just want to use me to pleasure yourself. Fine. If that’s what it takes for you to keep protecting me. I don’t want to fall into the hands of the Maulavi. I’ll do it.”

He leaps to his feet and I jerk back, protectively raising my hands out of reflex even knowing that it won’t do any good.

“No!” he shouts, tripping over the small table between the couch and table as he backs away.

He falls onto his ass but continues crawling away from me. His eyes wide and shaking his head. That and the shock clearly written on his face are all in direct contradiction to what I expect.

“No?” I echo, my voice trembling, caught between confusion and disbelief. He scrambles backward, hands splayed on the floor as if putting as much distance as possible between us.

“No!” he repeats, louder this time, his voice raw and almost frantic. His chest heaves with heavy breaths, and his gaze locks onto mine, filled with something I can’t quite name. Horror? Pain?

“I would never—” he chokes on the words, his hands clenching into fists before releasing. “Is that truly what you think of me?”

I blink, my tears flowing freely, my body trembling with the weight of what I’ve just accused him of—or offered.

“Isn’t it? Why else would you… why else would this be your solution?”

His face contorts as if I struck him. He slowly climbs to his feet but remains where he is, keeping a safe distance between us.

“You think I would force myself on you?” His voice drops, low and guttural, filled with a kind of anguish that slices through my fear.

“I… I don’t know!” I stammer, the words tumbling out in a rush. “What am I supposed to think? You said it’s the only way to protect me. What else could you mean?”

He presses a hand to his chest, like he’s trying to steady something inside and then exhales shakily.

“Not that,” he says firmly. “Never that.”

The sincerity in his voice is undeniable, but my heart is still racing, and my body refuses to relax. I cross my arms, hugging myself, trying to hold everything together.

“Then what did you mean?”

His gaze softens, but there’s still a flicker of pain in his eyes.

“I meant that we pretend to the bond,” he says quietly, almost reverently. “Pretend to the true bond of dragoste. It’s the only way I can see to protect you from the Maulavi.”

“Pretend?” The word feels foreign on my tongue, and my brow furrows. “Pretend how?”

His gaze holds mine, unwavering but cautious, like he’s afraid to break me further with his words.

“We would need to make them believe it’s real,” he says slowly. “I think… I hope that the Maulavi will still revere the bond of dragoste. If so, they would never risk violating it. If they think you are bound to me, they will leave you alone.”

I swallow hard, trying to process what he’s saying.

“But if it’s not real, won’t they see through it? Won’t they know?”

“Not if we are convincing,” he replies, his voice steady now, though his hands still twitch like he’s resisting the urge to reach for me. “The bond is more than words or gestures—it’s an energy, a connection. I think we can mimic it well enough for them to believe.”

Mimic it. The idea makes my stomach twist.

“And what does that mean, exactly?” I ask, the trembling in my voice giving way to something sharper, more defensive. “What would I have to do?”

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