I lay there listening to her breathe, acutely aware of every small movement she made. The rustle of sheets when she shifted position. The soft sigh she made as she settled into sleep. The warmth radiating from her side of the bed.
Every instinct I had wanted to reach for her, to pull her close and hold her while she slept. The mate bond might not be something she could feel, but it was driving me out of my mind with the need to touch her, to claim her properly.
But she’d said platonically, and Iwasa gentleorc. I’d respect her boundaries even if it killed me.
It took hours before I finally fell asleep, and even then my dreams were full of her.
I woke before dawn to find Allie still sleeping peacefully beside me, her hair spread across the pillow and one hand curled near her face. She looked younger in sleep, less guarded, and beautiful in a way that made my throat tighten.
Not wanting to wake her, I slipped out of bed and padded to the bathroom. She was waiting in the hall when I emerged, already dressed and looking alert despite the early hour.
“Morning,” she said, and there was something shy in her voice that made me think she was remembering our sleeping arrangement.
“Morning. We’ll eat and get something to drink in town.”
“I thought as much.” I caught her looking at me before quickly glancing away.
Had she watched me sleep the way I’d wanted to watch her? The thought made my body flame.
She looked up at me with those gorgeous brown eyes, and I found gratitude mixed with fear there.
I was falling harder despite every attempt to protect my heart. This sweet, brave female who’d been through so much was trusting me with her safety, her secrets, her every concern. How was I supposed to keep my distance when she looked at me like I was her everything?
“I’ll wait for you in the kitchen.” I stepped back before I did anything foolish.
“Alright.”
She didn’t take long.
Tressa followed us outside and over to the barn.
My whoop-whoop-whoop was followed by the thunder of Calli’s hooves. She rounded the barn and trotted over to us,snorting, smoke drifting from her nostrils in the misty morning air.
“I still can’t get over how big they are,” Allie said, staring at my sorhox.
“Much larger than your horses, but so are orcs. She won’t hurt you.”
I boosted Allie up onto Calli’s broad green-furred back and leaped up behind her, tugging Allie against my front while securing an arm around her waist. She felt good here. She’d felt good lying beside me in my bed. On my sofa. And sitting sharing a meal with me at my kitchen table.
If only she wanted to stay forever.
“This is incredible,” Allie said as Calli turned at my command and started toward the forest. We’d take a back trail, skirting around to approach Main Street from the side. “I can see for miles.”
“There’s something very freeing about riding.”
“There sure is.”
I guided Calli along the edge of the forest with birds calling to each other from deep inside the trees. Under other circumstances, this ride would’ve been perfect. As it was, having Allie pressed against my front, her fingers warm on my arm, was complete torture. My damn cock kept trying to rise.
We reached the back of the bakery as the sun was beginning to lighten the eastern sky. I helped Allie down and sent Calli off to find a pasture where she could graze.
Allie nodded toward the warm light spilling from the bakery windows. “People are already here.”
“My family doesn’t waste time when there’s a problem to solve.”
I led her to the back entrance, Tressa beside us. Inside, the scent of fresh bread and tea filled the air, along with the low murmur of voices.
The sight that greeted us in the front area of the bakery made my chest tighten with pride and affection. They’d dragged all the small tables in the front room together and lined the outside with chairs.
