Page 88 of Bound to the Orc King

“The best of mornings.” I take a sip and give a happy sigh.

His eyes heat. “Noises like that make me wish we could linger, but the others are waiting.”

“Got it. I’ll get ready.” He starts to turn away, and I pull him back to me for one last kiss.

Then we move. He packs away the furs while I get dressed, pulling on the heavier cold-weather clothes Naomi brought. The orcs don’t seem to notice the cold, but my cloak was seriously notenough yesterday evening. In less than ten minutes, we join the others outside at one of the cook fires. Frigid wind whistles past, and I’m so freaking glad I didn’t get my hair wet in the bath.

He wasn’t kidding about the others waiting. Everyone’s here, including Naomi, Wranth, and Sheevora. The inner council sits around the fire, while the orc guards stand watch.

“Eat.” Aldronn presses a mug of steaming porridge into my gloved hands.

“So bossy,” I tease him, right before I take a big bite. It’s sweeter now that Naomi brought honey from the village, and I lick the spoon clean, loving the way his intense gaze latches onto my mouth.

“At this rate, we’ll never get anything done,” Starfall grumps, batting Aldronn’s shoulder with her horn, then mine. “Didn’t you work it out of your system yet?”

“Nope.” I pop the p and shoot Aldronn a knowing grin.

His lips twitch.

“Don’t expect it to stop anytime soon,” Zephyr says, gesturing with her horn to Naomi and Wranth. “Mine are still going at it like rabbits.”

“I’m ready to find myself a human,” Shadow purrs in werepanther form, flashing his wide smile.

“Do you think they’ll want someone who looks like us?” Rune gestures at his heavily furred werewolf body.

“Of course they will. Or at least they’ll want me.” Shadow’s green eyes dance with delight. “I’mirresistible no matter how I look.”

“Can we focus and stop talking about mating with humans?” Luke snaps.

“I must agree with Lukendevener,” Sheevora says, her wings curled forward around her body like a built-in cloak. “The sooner we’re on our way, the sooner I can take my proper form.”

“Thank you for joining us.” Aldronn tips his head to her, his tone formal.

“What’s this all about?” I take my last bite of breakfast, crunching into a hazelnut. I probably set some new kind of speed-eating record, but all of last night’s activities made me hungry.

“You tell us,” Luke says. When I shoot him a puzzled glance, he continues. “You said you had information about the Dark God.”

“Oh, yeah.” Heat burns my cheeks with embarrassment. Aldronn fucked all the common sense out of me last night, not that I have a lot of it to begin with. But screw worrying about a few hours delay—that’s old May, always thinking she’s messed up. New May is pretty awesome, and when I asked yesterday evening if they wanted to hear my news, Aldronn said it could wait. I lift my chin. “I learned how to use my powers.”

“Good job.” Starfall nuzzles the top of my head as Naomi beams at me and several of the others gasp and lean forward, expressions expectant.

“You will tell me how later so that I might record it.” Luke frowns like someone pissed in his cornflakes, but I’m pretty sure that’s his factory setting, and I’m not going to let it get to me.

“I went into the dark fae leader’s mind yesterday. He’s actually King Severin,” I say. “And I saw the Dark God.”

“What?” Rune barks.

Sheevora’s eyes go shrewd. “What does he look like?”

“Kind of like the Moon Goddess, actually. Only he’s this black ball of swirling energy, and the lightning that flickers over him is a deep blue.” I wince and rub my temple in remembered pain. “He sure as shit yells just as loudly as her.”

“Are you carrying extra red crystals?” Naomi asks.

I pat my pockets. “I’ve got six of them now.”

“I will carry even more in case you need them,” Aldronn says.

I smile in thanks, then turn back to the others. “The shadow fae aren’t working with the Dark God willingly. From what I saw, the Dark God has them chained to him.”

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