Tansy of the Wilds

Chapter Thirty-Two

They managed to catch the miller's son on the way back and Tansy once again tucked herself against Xer'tal's side, letting him wrap a large arm around her as he pulled her tight against him. She was elated, beyond elated. He was her husband. She had never felt so happy in her entire life. Hearing his vows, being bound to him, she hadn't realized how much she had wanted just that.

She knew it was selfish, she knew that it would cause problems, but she didn't care. Her parents told her to marry someone she loved and who loved her and she had. She had married Xer'tal in all his brutally handsome and strong glory. He had told Archibald that she had seen him as a person before an orc and she wanted to spend the rest of her life telling him, showing him, that they were one in the same. She didn't need to look past the orc in him. He was an orc and she loved him, however he came to her.

She felt nervous but slightly excited as the three of them were dropped off at the lumberyard. It wasn't a surprise that none of her family were waiting, they had likely never noticed the three of them were gone. It wasn't a surprise to her, not really. Her family never really noticed her, not in the ways that were important.

Archibald smiled with a happy sigh, looking pleased with himself, his eyes shining. "I'm going to ensure none of the family bothers either of you for the evening, call it my wedding present." He patted Tansy's shoulder with a gnarled hand. "Xer'tal, you should move your things into Tansy's cabin. You are husband and wife, after all." With that last suggestion, he shuffled his way to the main house and she let out a sigh, leaning against Xer'tal and his large arm wrapped around her, once again tucking her into his side.

"Guess it's time to officially stop living out of a pack and put down some roots, hey, Amauk'awa?" His large hand gripped her hip and Tansy smiled to herself at the name. Amauk'awa. An orcish term, not an endearment because orc did not have soft endearments. It was a holy word, translated to 'breath of the sun'. She damn near melted at it, a holy word spoken with affection, an endearment he had made just for her however it did confuse her slightly.

"I guess so." She smiled up at him. "Why do you call me that? Amauk'awa? I'm not blonde." She watched as his lips twitched upwards, his eyes and tusks glinting in the light of the setting sun.

"It's not because of what ya look like, Tansy. It's because of who ya are." He started leading her towards the bunkhouse so he could gather his things more than likely. "Amauk'awa. Breath of the sun. It comes from the moment of the winter's biting cold receding and that first inhale of sun warmed air that chases the cold away from an orc's bones. It is a precious moment to us, it shows rebirth, renewal, of trials survived and won."

Tansy leaned her head against his side, looking up at him as she listened to him explain it. She loved him so much. She couldn't get over the fact that he was her husband. They would finally be one tonight. The thought of it sent butterflies and heated desire through her. When he glanced down at her she beamed up at him, unable to keep the happiness inside of her.

"Right there." He rumbled it out, reaching up and tracing her smile with a large finger tip. "Right there is my amauk'awa. My breath of the sun. My sunshine." His murmured words had a Tansy almost melting as she looked up at him. Her breathing hitched in her chest as she looked at him with all the love she felt overfilling her chest. She was his sunshine. She had never heard something so sweet and wonderful in her entire life. "Do not look at me like that, wife. Not if ya do not want me to respond in kind." His voice held a low warning filled with heat and his fiery gaze flashed and it sent a bolt of heat through her.

She blushed and another pleased and excited smile crept across her face. He chuckled, "Aye, ya smile, my Tansy. Teasin' me without end." He gave a huff of amusement as they reached the bunkhouse and he let his arm drop as he went inside. She nodded at a few of the workers that were coming back from the sawmill and the forests. They nodded in return, not questioning why she was outside the building. Xer'tal returned not very long afterwards, his pack slung over his large shoulder.