The Goblin Bride (Beneath Sands Book 1) by Emma Hamm (good short books TXT) 📕

even. They did not want to change, they did not see the need for it.

Ruric was a hard man. He had to be as the leader of this goblin tribe’s army. Yet for her, he was soft and kind. She had seen him angry before. She had seen him fight and nearly kill one of her own kind. Yet she could not justify his actions towards her in the same light.

It made little sense the way he was quick to take care of her. It made little sense that he even desired to do so. But he did. He wanted to make her happy and comfortable even though he could not send her home.

To Jane that made all the difference.

She watched as he dressed quickly then leaned forward to link their hands once more. Together they journeyed back to the city of goblins. No one commented that things looked different between the new couple. They didn’t mention that the lingering gazes and soft touches betrayed what had happened.

He took her to the common area, not his own cave for them to eat. It seemed that he wanted to show her off. Perhaps he wanted the others to see the changes, or maybe he was simply proud enough to eat among many. Either way, he was quick to settle her on a stone that had not been taken by any goblin in front of the slabs that they used as tables.

“I’ll get us something to eat. Rest.” He leaned down to press a kiss to her hair.

“I don’t need rest!”

“You will need your strength for tonight.” The mischievous look in his eyes as he walked away had her laughing.

There were worse things than to be tied to a man that was insatiable. She watched the loose hipped walk of the goblin as he strode away from her. In her experience, he was most definitely walking like a man that had enjoyed the company of a woman not long ago.

He was likely making sure that everyone knew what they had done. Somehow, this didn’t make her uncomfortable. There was a part of her that was embarrassed. Humans were meant to be with humans and the usual prejudice was hard to ignore.

But there was another part of her that had turned soft. Delicate as a feather floating on the wind, it sprung to life inside of her. It competed with that dark part of her that resented being here. That light could not be dimmed. Especially not in this moment when she remembered the caring way he had touched her.

She had never been touched like that in her life. The men she had slept with before were satisfying a bodily need. Sex was just a way to scratch an itch. She had learned that the hard way after she had fallen completely in love with the first man that had shown her attention.

Days later when he had not spoken to her, she learned what it felt like to have a bleeding heart. After that, she refused to allow herself to feel the same way again.

Jane had stepped back from the world of love. It was a dangerous thing to give someone else access to the most sacred part of yourself. To love hurt. She knew what it meant to mourn and to grieve. Her parents death that shown her that.

Never again had she wanted to feel that way about someone who was still alive.

And so she had spent much of her life avoiding love. Her siblings had all of her attention that they needed. Perhaps more than they wanted. But everyone else was simply physical. They could disappear from her life without a word and she was not affected.

But Ruric? As Jane looked at the strong spine and confident air about him, she didn’t think she could let him go as easily. He was different. He pushed her for more without asking for it. He gave her all of himself without worry or thought. There was nothing that stopped him from loving her, or at least she thought it was some kind of love.

The words he had said to her in the cave echoed in her head. Bound together for eternity. Those were words she could stand by. Somehow in such a short amount of time, he had wiggled his way into her heart. She did not want to admit that there was a piece of her that she had given to him and in return she had replaced it with the memory of his sharp toothed smile and bottomless eyes.

“Am I interrupting?”

The words startled her, causing her to flinch backwards until she realized that they were said in her own language.

Micah stood before her, the aged man smiling.

“No of course not!” She made to stand before he waved her back down. “You’ve made yourself scarce old man. I have not seen you in a while.”

“I have been busy with the Queen.” He smiled at her and settled himself across from her on the slab. “You seem to have settled nicely without me.”

“There is always use for a friend. Ruric has been very kind in making certain that I am comfortable.”

“I had no question of it. He is a good man.”

She nodded, looking past Micah’s shoulder to watch Ruric as he laughed with a few of the other goblins.

“Aye he is.”

She did not see the look on Micah’s face nor the amused expression that followed afterwards. The old man was very good at piecing together the reactions of people. It was why he had managed to stay alive here for so long. As a man, he should have been working in the mines with the others. However, he was useful in other ways.

“I recognize that expression, my dear.”

“What expression?” Her eyebrows raised.

“Doe eyed and in love I would say.”

“I am not in love with him.” She was quick to say. If she shook her head any harder it would fall off of her shoulders. “I have been here for a month Micah, I