Page 3 of Horn in My Side
He snorted.“I came here to see the pet shop.”
She froze midway as she reached for the broken cement block.
He was a customer?
Deciding the cement block was not salvageable, she stood up straight and faced him, craning up to get a good look.About seven feet tall, he blocked most of the sun from her view, his massive shoulders and arms like boulders covered in red-and-black-checked flannel.
“You’re looking for a pet?For yourself or perhaps your offspring?”She cringed inwardly, thinking of how she had groped him.
He could be married.With kids.
But he didn’t seem that old, perhaps a few years older than herself, but certainly mature-looking enough to have a child or two running around.
“No.”
She ignored that tiny yelp of victory from her brain—and other parts of her body.
He could still be married.
Besides, he had been rude to her just two seconds ago, calling her foolish.
Silence stretched between them as she waited for him to follow up and tell her why he was here.Was she supposed to read his mind and figure out what he wanted?
Shrugging, she continued.“Well, sir, if you’re not in the market for a pet, perhaps you’re at the wrong place.”She pursed her lips and used them to point up at the sign, where, sadly, theTonce again swung down from its fixing.“We’re a pet shop, specializing in all creatures scaled, fanged, feathered, furred, and everything in between.”
“I am at the right place and I don’t want a pet.”
“You don’t?Then why—” An alarming thought popped into her brain.“Sir,” she began, her voice firm, but professional, “I don’t know what kind of place you think this is, but we strictly offer creatures aspets.And not for other purposes.”
“I know and—” His dark brows furrowed.“Wait, do you think I want toeatthem?”
“Or use them in spell-casting or experiments.”She crossed her arms over her chest.“You wouldn’t be the first to try.”She’d seen Vrig deal with such nefarious would-be customers, and while she probably couldn’t toss this orc out on his ass, she could scream really loud.
“I’m not here to—” He raked his clawed hands through his messy mane.“I’m Mal.”
“And?”Was she supposed to know who he was by name?
“Of the Urduk Horde.”
Now that sounded familiar.“Urduk ...as in—”
“Vrig’s horde.I’m his nephew.”
A heartbeat passed as she processed the information.
This orc was Vrig’s nephew.His relative.
Heat flooded her cheeks.“I ...I ...”Her tongue refused to follow what her brain wanted her to say.
He let out a huff.“And you’re Jasmine, right?If I promise not to eat any of the creatures, will you let me inside so we can talk?”
Oh, Mother Goddess, she not only fell into his arms and molested him, but also implied he was a savage creature who devoured adorable pets.
If you can hear me, she pleaded to her ancestor spirits,please strike me with a thunderbolt right now and erase my existence from this world.
“Well?”
Unfortunately, she remained earthbound.
