But Beth had insisted, and when Beth insisted, Uthar couldn’t say no. She’d never been to the fair, and she was curious. All he wanted was for her to be happy. He knew it wasn’t easy to carry his baby, to go through all the physical changes that being pregnant with an orc entailed. Her fragile, human body wasn’t made to grow a life inside it at such a fast pace. Human babies grew inside their mothers’ bellies in nine months. Orc babies grew in five months or less. That took a huge toll on the mother. He was ready to do anything to keep his mate happy and comfortable.
The fair was in another abandoned town that no horde had claimed and occupied. The buildings here truly were run down, and no one took care of the streets, the lawns, or backyards. The facades were in a sorry condition, and some of the houses were in ruins. Orcs and humans installed their stalls in the small town square. The same humans and orcs showed up every time, and everyone knew everyone.
This time, however, there was a tension in the air, and as Uthar helped Beth and Abby out of the car, he looked around and noticed some unfamiliar faces.
“What?” Beth asked, sensing his distress.
“Nothing.”
“Oh, don’t give me that.” She pressed herself against his side. “What is it? Tell me.”
“I don’t know. Orcs I haven’t seen before. Maybe there’s a new horde in the area.”
Beth looked up at him, and he met her gaze. She frowned. “If there’s a new horde in the area, we know who the captain is.” It was obvious to her, and she couldn’t understand why Uthar was being avoidant. “Morok.”
He nodded. “I don’t want you to worry.”
“I’m not worried.” She smiled brightly. “I’m here to enjoy the fair. And I’m here with my mate. My captain.” She traced her fingers over the tattoo on his arm.
He relaxed a little and returned her smile. “Let’s enjoy the fair together.”
He leaned in, and she rose on her tiptoes. Their lips met in a gentle kiss. Beth loved the way he held her, close to him, his huge arm around her waist, cradling her protectively against his rock-hard body.
“Come on, you two,” Abby complained. “You’re making me feel weird here.”
Beth chuckled and pushed away from Uthar.
“How about we girls check out what’s good for sale, and you go take care of business with the boys?”
Uthar was not amused. He furrowed his brows and looked at her like she’d just said the silliest thing ever, and it wasn’t even deserving of an answer.
She laughed and pecked his cheek, then wound her arm around Abby’s, and pulled her in the direction of a food stall. A human food stall. They had hot dogs and cotton candy, and she found she was craving both. Kinna followed them, her expression almost as gloomy as Uthar’s, who watched them go without even having asked for his permission. Not that Beth ever needed permission to do anything. Since she’d entered his life, she’d been the one to make the rules at home, while he was captain only over his horde. The power dynamic worked for him, he realized. At least there was one place where he could relax and let someone else make the important decisions – their bedroom.
Beth got two hot dogs, while Abby scrunched up her nose at her choice of food, and Kinna inspected the cotton candy with interest.
“You haven’t been to the fair before?” Beth asked.
“I have. But I was never interested in the humans’ food.”
“You should get one. You’ll like it.”
The mage shot her a wary look, but then shrugged and got one. The captain had given them plenty of money to spend. She hadn’t gotten out in a while, and she figured she might as well try to have fun since she was stuck with the two human females. She was friendly with Beth, but she liked her sister more. Abby was genuine, sarcastic, and never tried to impress anyone. Not that Kinna thought Beth had had a hidden agenda or anything, but she still felt like there were things she kept to herself, that she didn’t wear her heart on her sleeve, like her sister did.
They moved away from the food stall and checked the other stalls. Beth and Abby were interested in what their people had to sell and didn’t even look at the orcs who had their stalls on the other side of the square. There were no baby clothes, though, and in terms of toys, the offering wasn’t great, either. Just plushies, so Beth chose a polar bear, thinking it was going to be fun to tell her kid about polar bears when they practically lived in the desert.
There were a few more human brides there, and Beth and Abby nodded at them when they happened to pass each other by or meet in front of a stall. They were with their orc mates, though, and the fact that Beth, Abby, and Kinna were alone, with not a male in sight, earned them more than a few curious looks.
“They all think I’m an orc bride, don’t they?” Abby asked.
“Does it bother you?”
“I don’t know. I don’t think so? Because it’s not like I am one.”
“There’s nothing wrong with being an orc bride,” Kinna said. “Look at your sister. She’s thriving.”
They walked around some more, and Beth bought a few books and a colorful scarf that caught her eye. Abby didn’t want anything, and Kinna regarded the humans’ goods with an air of superiority. She declared the cotton candy had not impressed her, and it had just made her fingers sticky.
Beth saw Uthar up ahead, and rushed to him, pulling Abby with her. She wanted to show him the polar bear. She was a few feet away when she realized that he was engaged in conversation with another orc captain. She couldn’t yet see who he was talking to. Lonar was there, and she thought they were just doing business with another horde. But then she reached Uthar’s side and saw the orc was none other than Morok the Unhinged. Next to him, his mate, Hula the Relentless, scowled at Lonar the Beast. When she saw Beth, her scowl turned to her. And when she saw Beth’s round, heavy belly, the scowl turned into a full-on murderous look.