Page 48 of Obeying the Orc
In the days following my punishment, he’d been nothing but gentle when he claimed me. But tonight, I needed more. I wanted him as untamed and rough as he’d been when he’d captured me in the forest.
He got on the bed and situated himself between my spread thighs, holding my cheeks spread wide as he pushed his shaft halfway inside me. I bucked in place and tried to entice him to impale me fully. He swatted my bottom.
“Settle down, human female. I will set the pace. Not you.”
I groaned and fisted the covers in my hands.
He teased me at first, shoving inside me halfway only to withdraw completely, then drove part way inside me again. It was maddening, and I struggled to remain still and endure his torment. In between thrusts, he occasionally allowed the tip of his shaft to brush over my clit, and I soon felt the moisture from my core escaping onto my inner thighs.
Suddenly, without warning, he grasped my hips and surged inside, driving to the hilt in one gloriously hard thrust.
Then the frenzied pounding began. That was the only way I could describe it. The sound of flesh hitting flesh filled the room as he slammed into my pussy again and again. It didn’t take long for a quaking release to descend on me, and I cried out as my inner muscles contracted around his plunging cock during the waves of pleasure.
He paused only once to lean down and kiss the mating bite, which prompted another climax almost immediately following the first. Breathless and lightheaded, I gasped through the intense release as he resumed pounding me hard.
He came with a feral roar that vibrated through me as he pumped his seed deep in my core.
After withdrawing from my center, he gathered me in his arms and held me tight. His eyes met mine and a moment of tenderness passed between us. He nuzzled my nose and then kissed my forehead, and Gods how his sweetness made me melt.
“I love you, Natalee,” he said. “With all my heart.”
My throat burned. “I love you too, Knot.”
“Tomorrow morning, I’ll take you to visit Logan’s grave,” he said, taking me by surprise. “You should be able to ride a horse comfortably.”
“Oh, Knot, thank you.” I hugged him tight.
Exhausted from our vigorous lovemaking, we soon drifted to sleep in one another’s arms.
CHAPTER29
NATALEE
I walkedout of The Sweet Siren, leaving from the kitchen exit, so as to not be seen publicly at the tavern. Knot had granted my request to visit my friends, but I still wished to salvage what was left of both our reputations, if it were possible. I strolled toward the main street and headed for the mercantile, where Knot was checking on the status of some mining equipment he’d ordered.
A commotion near the bank caught my attention. People were gathered around someone sprawled on the ground. I hurried toward the crowd and spotted Knot kneeling near a middle-aged man who was clutching his chest and gasping for breath. The town healer, a young half-fae male, knelt on the other side of the man. I stood on my tiptoes and realized the unwell male was Mr. Meadows, the owner of the mill.
The healer motioned two burly human males out of the crowd. They helped Mr. Meadows to his feet and carried him in the direction of the clinic, with the healer leading the way. Meanwhile, Knot had moved to console a crying woman and child. I felt saddened when I realized they were Mr. Meadows’s wife and daughter.
I observed as Knot spoke gently to the woman and child, and though I couldn’t discern his words from this distance, I sensed he was comforting them and promising the gods would be watching over Mr. Meadows. When he knelt to peer into the frightened little girl’s face as he offered comfort, I put a hand on the slight swell of my stomach—our little gift from the gods that Knot already insisted must be a girl—and my heart went out to the woman and child. Eventually, an older lady approached from the crowd and led the child away by the hand, and Mrs. Meadows said something to Knot, before she hurried down the street after her ill husband.
Most of those who’d gathered around were staring at Knot, as if for guidance. He stood in the middle of the crowd for a moment, looking as if he wanted to say something, though he remained quiet for a while. When, finally, he seemed to summon his courage, he called out for anyone who wanted to join him in a prayer for Mr. Meadows and his family to close their eyes and bow their heads. Almost everyone in the crowd did.
I took a few more steps in my husband’s direction, and then I also closed my eyes and bowed my head. Part of me had always suspected this was coming. Though Knot had shut himself off from the gods for the last two years, he had admitted to me that he’d recently started speaking to the gods again. Why shouldn’t he offer spiritual guidance to the people of Faircross? If he felt called to serve the gods again, I would hold my head high and stand by his side. It wasn’t a secret that Knot had met me at The Sweet Siren, and if the townspeople could look to him for guidance despite his past, then maybe this was meant to be.
“Yurombis, God of Healing, we ask that you look over our brother, Gregory Meadows, and help him during his crisis of health. We ask that you guide the healer’s hands as he tends to Gregory, and we ask that you bring comfort and peace to his wife and daughter. Blessings and peace.”
A chorus ofblessings and peacefloated from those who’d joined Knot in prayer. After a few seconds, the crowd started to disperse, and finally I was left standing in front of my husband. He moved toward me slowly, his expression wary.
“I know I promised you I wouldn’t become the priest in Faircross.”
I smiled. “Yes, but perhaps it’s a promise that you aren’t meant to keep. Perhaps the gods are calling upon you again.”
“I-I have often wondered it myself, but I would never wish to cause you to feel uncomfortable. I can’t guarantee that all of Faircross will accept both of us, but there’s a big part of me that believes we should at least try.” He stared down the street at the temple steeple.
I realized it might not go smoothly at first, but I didn’t want to hold him back from his calling. Besides, I wasn’t weak. I could endure the ugly looks and the snickers that might come from some of the townspeople. If it became too much and it didn’t appear to be working out for either of us, I trusted Knot to realize it and make the best decision for our marriage.
As if reading my thoughts, he said, “You come first, Natalee. Don’t you ever forget that. You’re my wife. I promise you, if we try and the gossip is too much for you, we can pack up and head back to the cabin, or somewhere far from Faircross altogether.”
