Page 4 of My Orc Contract Husband
MyKteerwas definitely interested, but this time, I could feel a tug in my chest. I wanted to solve Sami’s problems. Which was stupid, because a) she was a badass modern female who didn’t need no man, and b) I didn’t know what the shit her problems were in the first place.
“This is the place!”
Her tone was almost too cheerful, but I tightened my jaw and turned into the driveway, trying to focus on the property and the yard. There was a chain-link fence around the whole place, which I didn’t love, but I’d probably leave up for a bit before I made any decisions. Enough space in the backyard for a large shop, which is what I needed. The tree cover meant the lawn was mostly dirt, but I could put down some shade-resistant?—
“What do you think?” Sami asked as I put the truck in park. “Want to go inside?”
I blinked, then realized I hadn’t even looked at the house. “Yeah. Looks just like the pictures.”
“Well let’s go see if they match the interior.”
The truck was too tall for her—she had to jump down, and I winced at the way her cute sundress caught on the door. I should’ve been there to help her down, and I ought to fabricate some kind of step— What was I thinking? Today was a fluke; it’s not like my realtor made a habit of riding in my car.
“Let’s check it?—”
When Sami abruptly stopped speaking, I turned to see what had her frowning. A black car was driving slowly by, and it triggered a memory.
“Do you know them?”
She shook herself and turned toward the house. “No, let’s get inside.”
Strange wording. I kept my body between her and the car—now past—as she unlocked the door. “Sami, are you okay?”
I saw the muscles of her jaw tighten as she struggled with the key. “Yeah, of course. I just…I’ve had this weird feeling a few times lately, like someone was watching me.”
And that car triggered it. I turned to frown over my shoulder at the long-gone vehicle.
“Come on,” she muttered, pushing open the door.
Honestly, I couldn’t tell you what the place looked like. I knew it was the Eastshore standard two-bedroom, two-bathroom home, the layout familiar and comforting, but I was too focused on the woman at my side to pay attention to furnishings or color or decorations.
Until we got to the back porch.
“Thisis more like it,” I breathed, hopping down the back steps to admire the yard. “Look at all this space. The shade is nice too.”
“It means you wouldn’t be able to grow much,” Sami pointed out in a doubtful tone.
But I was bending over the only garden bed. “These coneflowers are doing okay. See?” I ran my thumb and forefinger up one stem. “Although?—”
“Wait!”
I froze, myKteerresponding to the panic in her tone. “What?”
“Don’t pick it.”
Slowly, I straightened, my lips curling in amusement. “I wasn’t going to pick it.” There was no reason to kill a flower in the prime of its beauty.
Sami was watching me doubtfully. “You weren’t?”
“What’s that line? If I plucked a rose, it wouldn’t smell as sweet? It’s better to smell it on the vine? Something like that?”
“Tarkhan, did you just quote Shakespeare at me?” She was picking her way carefully across the dirt toward me.
Grinning, I planted my hands on my hips. “Did I? I thought it was an orcish allegory.”
“Then Othello must have been part orc.”
“Maybe he was.” I waggled my eyebrows, having no idea who this Othello was, but leaning into it, just pleased to hear her teasing me. “We orcs have gotten around, you know.”
