I snuggle deeper into my pillow, which smells of Whelan Overlook, and try to remain asleep, despite the disturbance. For once the babies sleep soundly and I’m trying to take advantage of this magical occurrence before I need to awake and feed them again. Also, this bed is so freaking comfortable. “Leave me alone,” I mutter.
Something shakes me awake.
My eyes flutter open.
A huge, menacing Orc growls from above and bares his tusks.
I squeal with fright and reach over to click on the bedside light.
“You are here to return my sons?” he growls.
I sit up straight because I’d know that deep voice anywhere. My body instantly heats up in response to his nearness. I push my hair back from my face, wishing I’d had the foresight to pull it back into a ponytail. “Oh my gosh, it’s you? Whelan? You’re back?” My eyes roam from that familiar face down his chest. I haven’t seen him in a whole year. His wide, green, bare chest is smeared with dirt. He smells like soil, leaves and leather. The long black hair I remember is tied up in some sort of man bun, which I find sexy as hell. And of course, my gaze drops down his amazing muscular chest, past the belt buckle to the bulge of the package down below, that looks just as intimidating as I remember.
A whimper escapes my lips. I’ve missed him so much. I had real, tortured reasons for leaving and then staying away for so long, but right this instant, as I sit in his bed and gaze up at all that is him, those reasons seem silly. Why didn’t I just stay?
A snarl rumbles in his chest. “You’ve learned my name? This is more than I know of you,” he accuses. “And I have two sons?”
Oops. My eyes dart back up to his harsh face and the tusks that erupt past his lower lip and my cheeks burst into flame. “Oh sorry, my name is Drew, Drew Reilly. And yes, I’ve…” I swallow against the lump in my throat, “You have two sons who are identical twins and I’ve brought both babies back to you.”
He gives a curt nod and turns to exit the bedroom. I fly off the bed and race after him down the hall. Whelan enters the nursery and stands next to Owen’s crib. The curtains are still open, allowing a bit of moonlight. He reaches out a hand, like he’s going to try and lift the sleeping baby into his arms.
I let out a squeak of dismay. “How about you take a shower first,” I whisper, “and wash off all that dirt, before you touch the babies.”
He gives a curt nod and points to the sitting room. “Wait for me until I return.”
“I will.”
I stumble into the front room and sit on the couch, grateful that Whelan hasn’t yet attacked like the others said he would. His voice sounds harsh and rough, which is new and different since I’d only ever seen the sweet, sexy side of him. Mainly I’m stunned because I haven’t seen my orc in over a year. And I think he’s more focused on his twins than on me.
The shower starts and I glance out the dark window, knowing the orc guards are out there somewhere but I can’t see them. I’m assuming they saw him arrive and moved in closer than before.
The shower shuts down and minutes later Whelan stomps into the front room.
I look up and catch my breath because the male I remember has returned, even more spectacular than before because now he’s barefoot with only black pajama pants. I love his twisty horns that burst out from either side of his forehead. And I remember how easy it was to still kiss him despite his tusks and how I loved holding onto those horns when he gave me the most amazing oral sex. His hair is long and damp down to his shoulders. And I want to climb him like a tree.
My body is enflamed, exactly as before.
And this time I’m sober.
He holds up a hand and shakes his head. “Don’t.”
“What?” I question.
“I can scent your arousal filling the air, just like the last time at the hotel bar. Despite the havoc your pheromones play on my body, I will not again be tricked into sharing your bed. If this is your intention before you leave, it is wrong.” He reaches down to adjust his thick cock through the black fabric which I can tell is growing in his pants. He points out the window. “They are out there to protect me from you, but I assume they are also protecting you from me.”
My face heats up because it’s true that images of our last encounter continue to fly through my head and that space between my thighs that only he fills the best is heating up too. Plus, it breaks my heart that he thinks I tricked him. “You think I tricked you?”
He crooks an eye ridge. “You are the one who suggested we go to my room. Then you left the very next morning after I’d pleasured you many times. What else would I think?”
“I was drunk. I didn’t know…”
“Don’t… I don’t want to hear the excuses. I only want to know why you finally decided to return.”
His words land like sandbags, but I lift my chin and manage to carry on. “I am here to bring the boys because you need to meet them. Their names are Bran and Owen.”
“You named them without me?”
“Yes, your father said that too, like it’s weird. Of course I named them. What else was I supposed to do, just say ‘hey you’ for the first three months of their lives?”
“You were supposed to remain at my side so that I could be there for my sons’ growth and birth and name them.”
“Orc fathers always name their sons?”
“Yes, this is the custom since ancient times. You named them without me but I do approve of their names so we will not change them.” He crosses his massive green arms. “Why did you give birth to my sons without me in attendance?”
I twirl my hair. “Um, I couldn’t find you.”
“You found me now. Why couldn’t you find me a few months ago? What has changed?”
I wince and decide to tell him the truth. “I…I thought I could raise them by myself. But then I learned they weren’t thriving without you there, so I hired a private investigator to find you and now I’m here.”
He takes a step closer, his face clouded with anger. “You could have remained with me here at the commune during your pregnancy and I would have been with the twins from day one and neither of them would have known a moment’s distress.” He pauses and backs away and runs his thick fingers through his hair. “Where were you living this whole time when you hid from me? I went to the lobby trying to find you after you left, but I didn’t even know your name.” He looks out the windows again. “I could not go after you. Modern law dictates that orcs cannot search for Brides or sons who’ve rejected them and live in human communities. If you’ve wondered why I didn’t track you down, this is why. I had to wait for you to return on your own.”
“I never go into bars by myself and pick up guys but…it just seemed necessary that night. I had two drinks and realized I was a total lightweight. Then you arrived and I was bolder than ever before because of those drinks. I don’t know what happened to me, but yes, I did pretty much attack you and asked you to have sex with me. This is true. The next morning, I left you snoring in your bed and went back to mine to clean up and finish packing. Then I caught a prearranged flight back home to California. I was on that airplane probably three hours after I left your bed. That was why you couldn’t find me. I wasn’t even in the state any longer. I live on the other side of the country.”
“Why did you leave? I did my best to make sure you were pleasured. Why didn’t you decide to change your plans after meeting me and choose to stay?”
I wring my hands. “Whelan, you were scary. And you were coming on too strong. You called me your Bride. And you said you were going to kidnap me and take me to your cabin and keep me there.”
“I didn’t say that. It wasn’t even the dark of winter. I was acting reasonable. I did not kidnap you and instead gave you pleasure and filled you with my seed. It was a perfect orc mating. I treated you with respect and made you my Bride.”