Page 66 of The Orc's Thief
I gasp in mock outrage, even as heat pools between my legs. “Are you really propositioning me to chase off your sleeplessness?”
Arlon’s voice is a low growl as he replies, “I’m propositioning you because I can’t fuckingthinkwhen you’re near me, let alone sleep.”
Oh.
I wish I could tell him I don’t feel the same. But for some reason, the thought of lying to him is too uncomfortable to contemplate right now.
“All right.”
The words are out of my mouth before I can stop myself, yet I don’t try to take them back. Arlon freezes beside me, as if trying to judge whether he heard me correctly.
So I pluck at his shirt. “Well, you wanted to take this off.”
He moves so fast, I’m disoriented for a moment, but he’s only taking off his shirt. He shoves his pants off next, judging by the sounds coming from his side of the cot. I unlace the waistband of my riding pants and hook my thumbs in the fabric, but Arlon bats my hands away.
“No, I’ll do that.” His fingers are warm against the skin of my legs as he draws down my pants in one slow movement. “I’ve been wanting to for days, Tessa. Don’t deprive me of this pleasure.”
With a sigh, I lean back on my elbows and lift my ass for him.
“Thank you,” he murmurs. “Now help me with your shirt.”
I push into a seated position and raise my arms for him. I’m still blinded by the darkness, and I wish I’d gotten up to light a lantern, because I want toseeArlon. I want to watch him watch me.
If I can’t do that, I’ll have to rely on my other senses.
Reaching out, I put my hand on his arm and slide my palm up to the bulging muscles of his shoulder. “You were lying,” I protest. “You’re not sweating at all.”
He chuckles. “I will be in a moment, I promise.”
I pause with my hand on his chest. “We can’t fuck tonight. I-I haven’t taken the tea.”
My stomach drops at the realization. In my rush to leave Ultrup, I didn’t even consider stopping by an apothecary for the special blend of herbs that would prevent pregnancy. But then, I hadn’t planned on sleeping in the same bed with the man I robbed.
“I’ll find a healer tomorrow,” Arlon says. “This village is big enough to have one, aye?”
I raise my eyebrows at him. “You’d do that for me?”
His fingers find the laces of my stays. “Why not? I want to fuck you, so I need to make sure you’re protected.”
My heart melts a little more at his declaration. In the past, I’d always been the one to take care of this. Hugo hadn’t even known I was taking the tea, and we never talked about it. I’d simply been grateful my mother pressed a jar of it into my hand as I packed to leave home forever, warning me to take it regularly. It was the last thing she did for me, and it saved me from bringing a child into a union that fell apart months later and left me shattered.
But Arlon, this stranger I met only days ago, looks ready to run out right now and find the tea I need.
“We’ll go together,” I tell him. “I want this, too.”
It’s the darkness that lets me confess this. The moment is so intimate, so private, that I’m comfortable sharing my thoughts with him.
His hum of approval makes me squirm underneath him.
“That’s fantastic news,” he growls. “Now help me figure out this gods-forsaken contraption so I can touch all of you.”
I feel for the laces of my stays and tug on the bow tying the two halves together. “This contraption is necessary so my tits don’t hurt after bouncing around on a horse all day.”
Arlon pauses, his hands stilling on me. “Do they hurt now?”
I shake my head. “No, but I should probably have taken this off earlier. I didn’t want to undress in front of you.”
“You can undress anytime you?—”
