Underneath that, I was a hollow shell. I had no power. I had no role in my kingdom. I provided nothing of worth to mysubjects or my family. The one task I’d been given was to marry and produce offspring. A lowly animal could do that.
Inside, I had nothing of value to offer. Nothing.
“So I guess I’ve lowered my standards,” she confessed.
“Lowering your standards does not seem to have helped you,” I pointed out, “You are still unmarried at a fairly advanced human age.”
The moment I said it, I wished I could take it back. The words were mean, biting, meant to hurt. I’d been shocked and injured by her innocent comments about prior males she’d encountered, and had lashed out.
The shrew blinked at me then barked out a laugh. “Oh my God! Humor! And a sick burn as well. Color me surprised. No, I have yet to find a man I’m interested in marrying, even with the lowering of my already dragging-on-the-ground standards. I’ll keep trying, but right now I might have to face the prospect of spending the rest of my life as a spinster.”
I didn’t understand some of what she’d said, but clearly she wasn’t offended. Which was good. I’d blurted out the insults without thought, then had been panicked at the thought that she might get up and stomp away.
Panicked at the thought that I might never see her again.
The shrew drained the rest of the wine in her glass, put some currency on the bar, then turned to look at me. “Is your place nearby?”
I frowned, wondering why she wanted to know that. “The paltry, insulting hovel I use as a den is a short walk away.”
She stepped into me, pressing her firm stomach into my thigh, crushing her small, firm breasts against my arm as she leaned close to my ear. “Good. Let’s go back to your paltry, insulting hovel and fuck.”
7
WILLA
Ihadn’t meant to spend the night. It just somehow happened during a crazy cycle of sex, nap, sex, nap. When I rolled over, sleepy and pleasurably sore, and saw the alarm clock, I nearly had a heart attack. It was four in the morning, and I had a client I was meeting at five.
Scooting out from under the heavy weight of green limbs, I slid off the bed and frantically tried to find my clothes in the dark while not waking up Eng. I shouldn’t have worried. The orc was clearly a heavy sleeper. Either that, or I’d worn him out.
I’d like to think it was the latter. Hehe.
Late as I was, I’d paused to take a long look at him before leaving. The orc was flat out gorgeous. They were all jacked, but Eng’s huge muscles curved and connected like a symphony. He didn’t have bulging veins or the sort of bulk that would hinder flexibility and movement. His powerful body just…flowed together. Each section was defined, but clearly in service to the whole man. Was it genetics? A different workout routine than the others? I couldn’t see Eng having leg days or arm days like so many of the guys at the gym who had their entire month mapped out in rep-by-rep detail. Whatever his fitness practices, I wasabsolutely captivated by the results. Just staring at him made me want to cancel my appointments, pull off my clothes, and pounce on the guy.
Eventually I forced myself to leave, quietly shutting the door since there was no reason for Eng to be up at this insane hour just because my job tended to include the before-work amateur athletes.
I was at the gym just as Omar was unlocking the doors.
“You look a mess,” he informed me.
I did. Without the benefit of a mirror I knew that my makeup was smeared, dark circles of mascara ringing my eyes. And my hair… I hadn’t brought my bonnet with me, so my curls were a tangled mess. Thankfully Eng had silk pillowcases or I’d be walking around with a rat’s nest instead of hair. Clearly I needed to throw a spare bonnet into my purse, just in case. Although I wasn’t sure I should ever repeat the events of last night.
He isn’t right for me. I’m falling back into the same old patterns, and I need to end this before my heart gets involved.
A quick shower and change left me with enough time for a fast warm-up run on the treadmill before my client arrived at five. The morning was a whirl of activity. An hour working with my private client. Two hours assisting gym patrons who needed spotting on the weights or help with a machine setup. Omar grabbed me at nine just as I was ready to begin my own workout to ask if I could cover the nine-thirty spin class for Elaine who was home with a sick kid.
Spin was not my strength, but I was always up for a challenge so half an hour later I found myself with legs screaming and sweat blinding me, rising out of the saddle and shouting for the others to do the same. When the hour was done,Iwas done as well. Note to self: A night of sex and a maximum of three broken hours of sleep does not prepare a woman for spin.
“Good class. Thought you were gonna have bodies on the floor a few times there.”
I turned and grinned to see Stephanie beside me, wiping sweat from her forehead.
“Bullshit.” I laughed. “You all nearly killed me. I hope Elaine’s kid gets well soon because I don’t think I can manage this class more than once a year.”
“You held your own,” she assured me.
“Thank you,” I replied.
It was high praise indeed. Stephanie was a werewolf, so she definitely had the genetic advantage when it came to strength, speed, and endurance, but she also did home remodeling. And never missed a morning at the gym. I took my physical fitness seriously, but Stephanie was a beast.
