Page 20 of My Orc Billionaire
“Nah, boss, we’ve been through enough shit with humans that they don’t bother us anymore.”
I felt my lips twitch at Garrak’s drawl. He was more easygoing than I was when it came to humans…or at least, he’d stopped trying to change the world. He’d accepted that humans had the power, and we were dirt to them, and it didn’t bother him.
Not all humans.
Well…yeah. Fuck.
I pinched the bridge of my nose, squeezing my eyes shut.
I’d been out here in Colorado for five days, and I’d had thoughts about Riven approximately forty-five times a day. And not just at mealtimes, when it was impossible not to compare whatever fare Sylvik had arranged to her dishes. I thought of her as I sat in my now-too-quiet office, vainly straining for sounds of her bustling around. Safety reports, output, sabotage? But all I heard was her voice in my head, humming off-key in my kitchen. It contaminated everything—just like humans always did. I kept expecting to catch a whiff of her scent, or taste her touch in the cheese platters or bolognaise I ate.
MyKteerwas going absolutely mad.
I felt like a tiger in a cage, pacing back and forth, not sure what I needed, but a ball of contained rage nonetheless.
No wonder Garrak thought I looked distracted.
“You headed home soon?” he asked out of the blue. “I could give you a ride past the protestors.”
I had no need to see them or their signs. No need to hear the chants and feel their anger—not when I agreed with them. So I forced myself to turn to Garrak, and clap him on his shoulder. “No, but thank you,T’mak. I’m taking the helicopter to the air strip.”
The other male’s brows rose. “You’re heading to the plant?”
Was that a good excuse? No, my friend deserved more. “To Eastshore. I can work from there as easily as anywhere else, and the food is better.”
Garrak chuckled and turned toward the door. “I’m glad you’ve found happiness there, boss, even if it’s just with a good chef. You deserve it.”
“Do I?” I murmured.
He limped past me. “Hells yes, you do. I know how you love your food.”
It was his way of teasing me, and I might have forced a chuckle for his sake. But my eyes flicked toward the window, taking in the mine, the deep open scar. My gaze lingered on the north side of the pit, where the rubble from that long-ago landslide had been cleared. There was no evidence of the pain, the fear that human had caused…no evidence of Garrak’s bravery or loss. He’d saved us all that day, and deserved the position of overseeing it now.
The protestors wanted the mine shut down. But how could I do that to Garrak, to my men? This was their livelihood.
From the doorway, Garrak said, “I’ll walk you to the helipad, and you can tell me about Eastshore. Or at least…” His face split into a grin. “Your new chef.”
There’s no way I was going to share Riven—even talking about her. She was ahuman. One I didn’t entirely mind.
So I just grunted and turned to follow him out the door. “Eastshore’s got good views,” I said, and Garrak laughed.
“High praise indeed! How about the people? There’s a bunch of orcs there, right? Maybe I could visit one day…”
We discussed the mine output, and Eastshore’s population, and a half-dozen other things on the way to the helipad. But once I was ensconced in my plane for the ride back to the East Coast, I found myself thinking about what he’d said. Had Garrak been angling for an invite? I had several guest suites in my new house—Riven was only in one of them. Would I be able to handle the other male in my space? He was my friend, and I owed him much.
Ifhewanted to visit Eastshore, would others? The rest of my guys? Considering so many of my brothers had found happiness and peace on Eastshore, could Garrak? Could the rest of my men?
Maybe you ought to wait untilyoufind that happiness and peace.
I snorted quietly to myself, startling the fae crewmember who was pouring me a coffee, and turned to stare sightlessly out the window. How was I supposed to find peace on Eastshore? My peace was found in the satisfaction of my quarterly reports, knowing that my companies were doing so well. Knowing I was beating the humans at their own game.
Right?
Deep in my chest, myKteerrumbled, and I felt uneasy, unsettled. Uncertain, which wasn’t like me.
I tried to focus on work—reading reports, going over shipping schedules…but I couldn’t concentrate. Interestingly, the farther I got from the mine, the worse I felt—disconcerted, itchy. Something was wrong, and myKteerknew it.
But the moment we set down at the little airstrip on Eastshore, it was as if everything calmed. I could breathe again, and my stomach and chest loosened their tight hold on me. As the fae crewmember—what was his name? Shadar? Shaden—drove me toward home, I found myself relaxing.
