Page 189 of Monsters in Love

“Yes, she is beautiful. I already know this.”

“You are not on Orc mountain, you dumb ass. Capri is practicallyhumanwith human sensibilities.”

It was my turn to growl. “She is more than human. My dhar has told me.”

She snorted. “And oh, the great orc prince would dare be with a common halfling? A hybrid?”

I raged at her accusation. How dare she question my commitment? Those things did not matter. “My dhar would not have activated with a mere human, but if it did, I would still claim her. As it is, I know she is more. I have tasted it.”

Boudica sneered. “Everyone saw that, didn’t they?” she said. “Anyway, she’s mortified, and now disrespected.”

“How so? We have displayed her pleasure and shown how well she can take my—”

Bo held her hand up. “Stop talking. Remember. Human. And don’t give me that not-human crap, because even if I believed you, for all intents and purposes, she is human. Remember, human sensibilities. Not fae. Not witch. And especially not orc. Human. Like, if someone called you a cheater...or back stabber—”

Jalen snarled. “Never. We slaughter from the front.”

“Yes, that. That same energy is what Capri is feeling. She’s feeling like she can’t show her face in public because she feels like a whore or slut or whatever. I don’t pretend to understand, but what I know is that you have made her feel shame.Thatpart I understand.”

Shame? For what? That she can experience pleasure? There are females in the mountain who cannot.

“Well, that was a mistake, and I will let her know.”

“She is practically human, despite her hybrid upbringing. She is basically a human and knows more about those cultures than she does about any other races. I don’t even know your culture and we grew up hunting your kind up to a mere few hundred years ago. Some of my house’s relics are still wrapped in orc skin.”

I snarled. “As we have fae skin and elvish runes.”I reined in the anger that coated my tongue. “Do you know where she is? Can you at least confirm that she is alive? Safe?”

Boudica narrowed her eyes at me. “Of course she’s safe.”

That news tempered my rage. Somewhat. “First, we will fix this and we will find her and we will figure out how to win her over.”

“Good luck with that, since she has basically sworn off all of you. Besides, she is currently entering an intensive right now and can’t be bothered by dumb ass orcs who think with their cocks first.”

“An intensive. What does that mean?” I asked.

“At the academy?” Jalen asked at the same time. “Is she on campus, then?”

“You figure it out. I’m done educating your asses.”

And the wretched female closed the door in my face.

Capricorn Jade

Iknew when Declan, Rothgar, and Jalen arrived back in town. I knew when they set foot on campus.

The knowledge troubled me, because this intuition went beyond the spell craft that I wove around me to keep me hidden. No, it was a deep knowledge, one that tugged at my heart and was as basic to me as breathing. It was the same inner knowing that told me when I was allergic to something or physically off.

I craved them. Their touch, their words, their looks…hell, even their presence. I wanted to feel them wrapped around me.

And I hated myself for that bit of weakness.

This need for them should go away in a few days. It needed to. It had been so hard to concentrate, and I rarely needed help in that department. In fact, I tend to hyper focus and spend hours consumed in work. The entire world could implode and I wouldn’t notice when I was in my work-flow mode.

I stood, taking a break from yet another hour of wrestling my concentration to no avail. I paced Professor Snowden’s office, willing my flagging brain and body to wake up. This was the home stretch. This term would be the culmination of the previous years’ work. I just needed to power through and finish what I started.

A whole new field of research was waiting for me, but I wouldn’t be able to get to it until I could understand the ancient scrolls that hinted at an ancient labyrinth and its hidden wealth of magic.

Instead of making any scholarly progress, all the plants were happily watered and dead-headed. The filing cabinets have new labels and a color-coded system. I cleaned, polished, alphabetized, or trashed every inch of this office. I left Snowden’s desk last.

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