Page 55 of Falling for the Grumpy Orc
I glance toward the bonfire where Cassidy stands, her face lit with laughter as she sips from a steaming mug of mulled wine. My heart beats faster inside my chest as I watch her.
Bernice squeezes my hand. "That girl over there? She needs you just as much as you need her. After all, orcs mate for life and you and Cassidy have a whole lot of life left to live."
A lump forms in my throat. I don’t know how to put into words the fear curling in my gut, the fear of wanting, of having, of losing again.
I sit there, watching Cassidy laugh, my heart a battlefield of longing and fear.
The words land like a punch to the ribs.
The guilt, the grief I’ve carried so long feel like part of me. Like I need them to make sense of anything else.
“But…” I falter.
Bernice shakes her head, reaching for my hand. “They would’ve wanted you tolive.”
The silence stretches, heavy. I don’t know what to say. I don’t knowhowto say it.
So I just squeeze Bernice's hand before getting to my feet and walking toward the smiling figure of Cassidy by the bonfire.
With each step, I feel more and more alive.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Cassidy
Thehalf-moonhangslowin the sky, casting everything in a silvery wash as Gerralt and I make our way up the gravel driveway to the lodge. Despite the crisp night air, warmth curls low in my stomach, spreading through me like slow-burning embers. The events of the festival still buzz pleasantly in my mind. The laughter, the closeness, the way Gerralt slowly let down his walls, piece by piece, until I saw glimpses of the man beneath all that gruffness. And now, it’s just thetwo of us again.
We get out of the truck and walk up the gravel driveway, hand in hand. I feel giddy, like a teenage girl sneaking out to meet her first love. Only I'm not sneaking out, but sneaking.
And not with my first love, but perhaps my last.
The thought makes my lips curl into a smile. Do I love Gerralt?
I cast a sideways glance at his towering figure, so handsome, so strong. Yes. I do. I'm desperately, hopelessly in love with him.
Gerralt’s body radiates heat beside me, his solid presence grounding, steady, yet igniting something almost unbearably electric in my veins.
"You sure you didn't want to stay for the fireworks?" Gerralt asks, his deep voice a low rumble that sends an aching pulse between my legs. His arm brushes against mine as we walk, and the small, fleeting contact nearly has me losing my breath.
I cast him a sidelong glance, my lips curving into a deliberate, knowing smile. My skin feels too tight, my pulse hammering with anticipation.
"The only fireworks I'm interested in are back in the bedroom."
His steps falter, just for a fraction of a second, then his amber eyes widen before darkening, molten heat simmering in their depths. The sheer hunger in his gaze sends a jolt of arousal straight through me, pooling deep, making my thighs press together instinctively.
I swallow, my breath uneven, heart racing with the knowledge that we are only moments away from being alone again. That his hands, his mouth, will be on me soon.
My steps quicken toward the porch, my hands fumbling slightly as I fish my keys from my pocket. My fingers tremble just enough to makeslipping the key into the lock more of a struggle than it should be, and every nerve in my body is on high alert, aware of him just behind me.
So close. So warm. So big.
I can feel his presence, the heat of his body like a physical pull, and my mind is already racing ahead to the moment we step inside.
The faint, rhythmic sound of pattering reaches my ears, cutting through my spiraling thoughts. It’s so soft at first, I almost don’t register it. Then it intensifies. It's a muted, relentless splatter, like rain against a rooftop.
But the sky above us is crystal clear.
I freeze, my breath catching in my throat. A strange, creeping unease replaces the warmth building inside me. Something is wrong. Frowning, I push open the door, and the sound swells into a full-on rush, a chaotic splashing that sends a spike of unease through my gut. Cold water surges out over my shoes, soaking through the supple leather instantly.
