“You brought one back?” He frowned as he looked back at Karak. “I thought you didn’t like the wings?”
Karak grabbed one shoulder and whipped her around. A gasp escaped her as a hard hand yanked her jacket down off her shoulders, pinning her arms.
“Woah, no wings,” the new guy breathed. “I thought the sidhe nobles stayed well away from the front lines?”
“I don’t think she’s sidhe.”
“How many times! I’m not a fucking faery!” she hissed, pushing away from them both and yanking her jacket back up to cover her shoulders. Turning, she glared at them.
The new orc came around into Kelly’s line of sight again, eyeing her up and down. “She’s beautiful.”
Karak yanked her to his side, a murderous growl ripping from his chest as he wrapped his arm around her.
“She’s mine. Lay one finger on her and I’ll kill you.”
The breath was knocked from Kelly’s lungs as she collided with the solid muscle of Karak’s side. Hand on his abs to try and balance herself, she looked up at the two orcs. The air was thick with tension, a sense of blood-thirstiness wrapping around them as they stared at each other. The threat of violence drew a crowd, other orcs emerging from tents and the shadows around the trees, avid interest on their tusked faces.
For a moment she thought the two men… orcs were going to come to blows. She was looking around for somewhere to dive for cover when Graal grinned broadly and clapped Karak on the shoulder. “Well done, brother, you finally found a female who can stand your ugly mug.”
“Asshole.”
“Dickhead.”
She relaxed at the locker-room-type male banter as the tension dissipated from the air. The crowd around them dispersed, disappointment stark on their faces. She resisted the urge to flip them off. They were the usual type of two-legged sharks she saw in most bars late at night, ready for any kind of violence to satisfy their voracious appetites. Assholes.
“I’m gonna go grab some supplies,” Graal announced cheerfully, winking at her. “Try not to wear the poor thing out making her dance on your cock. Okay?”
Her cheeks flushed red as Karak dragged her the other way with a parting snarl at Graal. Since they’d gotten back to the camp, he’d become much less talkative. Perhaps that had something to do with the way everyone looked at them as they passed. It was like they’d never seen a human before.
“Why are they looking at us?” she whispered, trying to stay as close as possible to Karak. Not a hard task when he was practically hauling her along with a big hand wrapped around her upper arm. “Haven’t they seen a h… a faery before?”
He snorted as they reached two tents set together to one side of the others. He shoved her toward the larger one.
“Oh yeah, they’ve seen faeries before. Usually naked and being forced to ride orc cock. They’re probably wondering when they get a chance at that tight, faery pussy, so make sure you stay in the tent. Claw!” he barked, and the scaled dog appeared at his side, panting and whipping his spiked tail back and forth. “Guard.”
“Wait… you want me to stay here? Where are you going?” she called after him as he strode off, making to follow him. She hadn’t gotten more than a step before Claw growled at her, his teeth bared, the vicious snarl making her step backward.
“Nice doggy,” she wheedled, backing up into the tent. “Please don’t eat my face off.”
He didn’t follow her into the tent, though, flopping down at the entrance with a loud huff to lie across it and cut off her escape. She breathed a small sigh of relief. At least he wasn’t in here with her.
Keeping half an eye on the scaled behemoth in case he decided to join her, she looked around at Karak’s tent. At least it was an actual wood and canvas one, not like some of the others she’d seen on the walk through camp, made of bones and fur with blood still dripping from the hides. She had no idea what kind of creature had rib bones that large and she really didn’t want to find out. Not now or ever.
Sinking down to sit on the large pile of furs in the middle of the tent, she wrapped her arms around her knees and buried her face. She wanted to end this nightmare and just go home. Not back to Steve—that ship had definitely sailed—or her job, but somewhere new where she could start again. Where no one knew her and she could be anyone she wanted to be, but definitely not ditzy party girl Kelly without a care in the world or cautious Kelly who was apparently too boring for Steve. She would be someone new, someone dynamic… someone a guy like Karak would want to keep around.
Blinking, she lifted her head. That was it. This was a dream, the kind that gave warnings and hints of what she actually wanted out of life. She was obviously still asleep in her car and her subconscious was working through all the shit she’d been through. Why else would it give her a hot as fuck guy as the hero of her dream? Yeah, she couldn’t quite work out where the green skin and tusks came into things… she’d never really been into that kind of thing before and could barely remember playing that kind of roleplaying game as a teen, but yeah, here she was apparently with the hots for a green-skinned hottie. He must be a representation of everything she thought she deserved in a guy. And if that green skin came with an ability to give her soul-shattering orgasms, that was cool with her.
Just at the memory of his hands and mouth on her, she squirmed on the furs, heat surging through her blood. A growl outside made her catch her breath. She crept to the front of the tent and parted the flaps, careful to keep in the shadows. Claw had lifted his head, his lips curled back from his black teeth, but he wasn’t growling at her. Instead his yellow-eyed gaze was fixed on a group of orcs lurking a short distance from the two tents, lascivious expressions on their faces as they whispered between themselves, shoving each other toward where she hid.
Suddenly she realized Claw wasn’t there to keep her in but to keep others out. She scuttled backward into the safety of the tent and looked around for a weapon, or a stick… anything she could use to protect herself if they got past the dog.
But there was nothing. The inside of the tent was empty apart from a large mound of furs, and a small trunk with a large lock. Either Karak was the most civilized… orc she’d ever met, not that she’d met many, or he didn’t own much of anything. There wasn’t even a bone in here she could use as a club to fend of the lurkers outside.
“By the tusk, will you lot fuck off!” a voice growled outside. “Karak’ll fucking skin you fuckers alive if he finds the lot of you sniffing around his female.”
She peeked out of the tent to see Graal setting up a large pot over a campfire. It was out at the moment, but he muttered something and pointed at the blackened wood that was obviously left over from a previous fire. Her eyes widened as it burst into merry, green-tinged flames. Magic.
“Hey, Claw…” He crooned to the big dog in front of Karak’s tent, holding out a big hunk of meat. Claw huffed and lumbered to his feet, the lethal claws digging into the hard-packed earth.
He slunk over to Graal, his eyes on the meat as Graal held it above him.
“Who’s a handsome boy then? You are. Yes, you are… sit… no, you have to sit for the treat.”