Tusktaker's Secret Part 6

Thomas woke up to a pair of bright red eyes staring down at him. Lorka was pressed up against him, one of her hands fondling  his manhood.
“Good morning” she said with a grin.
“Good morning to you too.” Thomas said. “Lorka, why are you stroking my dick?”
She kissed him on the forehead. “Because you’re my boyfriend, and I feel like it.”
Lorka let out an eek as Thomas pushed her onto the bed and began to kiss her. He could be surprisingly forceful when was motivated. Granted he couldn’t have pushed her unless she allowed it. But she liked when he showed a more assertive side.
The two locked lips for a while before Lorka pulled back. “Not that I wasn’t enjoying that…but what time is it?”
Thomas looked over at his alarm clock. “11:05 AM. Wow, we slept for a while.”
Lorka kissed him again. “Well, I can understand that after last night.”
“It was a lot of fun, wasn’t it? Hey when do I need to have you home? I’m sure your parents are worried about you.”
Lorka’s eyes widened in terror. “Oh shit! I need to get home before my dad gets back from his hunting trip.”
“Why?”
“Because my dad is an Orcish hunter that doesn’t like humans very much. And he is very protective of his only daughter.”
 “He wouldn’t do anything to me…would he?”
Lorka looked at him with an uneasy expression. “Let’s not find out.”
Thomas gulped. “So…what do we do?”
 “Shower. Together. Now.” Lorka tossed Thomas over her shoulder in a fireman carry and took him to the bathroom.
They hopped into the shower and scrubbed each other clean. Lorka tried to be as thorough as possible; orcs had a notoriously powerful sense of smell. After the shower, the two got dressed and Thomas handed Lorka a jacket to cover herself in case her father was around.  Ready for the day, two hopped into Thomas’s car and sped off towards Lorka’s home.
Luckily, the area was relatively clear. In fact, Lorka found it someone odd her mother told her the area had been hit hard by the storm. There wasn’t a single tree uprooted or powerline tossed down. Maybe she had been exaggerating. They pulled into Lorka’s drive way and she gave Thomas a peck on the cheek. “Thanks for everything,” she told him. “Last night was amazing.”
Thomas smiled. “It was my pleasure. When are we gonna meet up next?”
“I’ll text you later. Maybe we can plan something for this weekend again?”
“Sounds great” Thomas agreed.Lorka got out of the car and gave him one last wave as he pulled out of the drive way and sped off down the road. She steeled herself before opening the door and going inside.
Radha was at the couch drinking a cup of orc blend black coffee when her daughter walked in.
“So how did it go?” her mother asked.
“Let me get changed and then we’ll talk. Don’t want dad seeing me in this.”
Lorka ran to her room and changed into a more appropriate set of blue jeans and t- shirt before coming back down to see her mother.
Radha smiled mischievously as she regarded her daughter. “I’m guessing the dress worked?”
Lorka’s face turned red but she couldn’t help grinning. “It worked very well. We…uh… we’re going out now.”
Radha set down her cup and let out a victory whoop.  She squeezed her daughter into a tight hug. “Oh I’m so proud of you dear! I can just imagine the look on his face when he saw you. I am so proud of my little nu’arda!”
“Mom stop, you’re embarrassing me!”
Radha gave her daughter a playful kiss on the cheek. “I’m sorry Dear, I’m just very happy for you. “
“I’m happy too…just one thing. What about dad?”
Radha’s smile vanished. “Now that is a good question. Your father can be very stubborn about certain things. I can’t imagine this being good news to him. But if you like this boy, we’ll figure out something to make this work.”
As if on cue, they heard the door rattled and then something massive moved into the house. The creature looked like some kind of swamp…thing. It was covered in head to toe with leaves, sticks, and mud and the only clear features that could be made out were the glimmering red eyes and large tusks jutting from its mouth.
Radha frowned. “Jor’ak!” she yelled “What have I told you about tracking mud and leaves into the house. I work hard to keep this place clean.”
The filthy orc let out an exasperated sigh. “Radha, I had a rough night. Can you please yell at me after I get this crap off me?”
Radha gave him sympathetic look. “I’m sorry dear, let’s get you hosed off outside and then we can get some lunch to make you feel better.”
Lorka tried not to laugh as her mother blasted the filthy layer of grim off her dad while he stood in a small iron tub. Radha tossed him a towel and he started wiping himself down.
“So what happened?” Radha asked her husband.
“We were hunting Nu, since the rainy season is the only time they come out of hiding. N’ord ran too far of the group and we ended up getting lost in the woods trying to find him. We were stuck in heavy rain for three hours until we could get back to shelter.”
Radha took the towel from her husband’s hands and finished wiping him down. “I’m so sorry dear.”
“Don’t be. We had a good haul.”
“So you caught some Nu?”
 “Five.” He told her.
“Five Nu! That’s amazing! How much can you make off of that?”
“Enough to get you that new sewing machine you needed . We’re gonna contact some alchemy guilds to see if they’re interested in buying their organs. The pelts will fetch a high price too.” He gave his wife a grin. “I was able to save one for you though.”
Radha brought her husband for a kiss while she wrapped her arms around him in a hug. “Oh, we are going to have fun tonight, my husband.”
Lorka shifted her feet awkwardly as her parents continue to shower each other in affection. “Guys, I’m right here…”
Jor’ak laughed as he turned to look at his embarrassed daughter. “How do you think you got here, my little Skull-splitter? I still remember the time your mother dropped that massive boar on my doorstep and told me I was her mate, like it or not.”
“She almost took me right there on the doorstep.” He said with a wistful sigh.
“Dad! Too much information!” Lorka yelled.
Jor’ak and Radha laughed as they walked back into the house with their daughter. Jor’ak got dressed while his wife and daughter set the table for lunch.
Radha had cooked Kro’mak, a hearty Orcish stew comprised of meats from several different animals along with seasoned herbs and vegetables. What made it Kro’mak instead of regular beef and vegetable stew was the Dire Lizard and Thorn Boar meat Orc palates couldn’t live without? It was one of Radha’s signature dishes, served with freshly cooked rolls and sweet tea. Radha considered sweet tea to be one of humanity’s greatest contributions to the culinary world.
The family said a quick prayer to give thanks for a successful hunt, and then dug into their food.
They made idle conversation. Nothing too serious. Mostly about various tailoring jobs Radha was undertaking, Lorka’s school life, how the hunting season was going, etc.
Jor’ak shifted his mouth into a grimace. “There is one thing that’s bothering me. Urk is talkin’ about getting married to a humie girl.”
“Oh?” Radha said, her face remaining as neutral as possible.
“Yeah. Not sure if I approve. Told him he might want to think about what he’s getting into.”
“There’s nothing wrong with loving someone other than an Orc, Jor’ak”
He shifted in his seat, clearly annoyed by Radha’s remark. “No, I think there is. Ever since the Exodus, when we got dumped here, everything has been different.  Whole tribes have just disappeared. We can’t afford to marry into other groups and lose what little culture we have left.”
Radha sighed. “So what does this have to do with Urk loving a human girl? We’ve had a lot of different monster species mixing with humans since we got here. How is that any different?  ”
Jor’ak got quiet for moment, obviously troubled by his wife’s words. Lorka stayed quiet. It was best to be silent when her parents argued.
After lunch, Jor’ak made himself comfortable on his recliner and turned on the TV while his wife and daughter put up the dishes.
“I hate when he gets like this Lorka. It’s not healthy. I know he misses his old home, but there’s nothing we can do about it.” She told her daughter.
Lorka placed a hand on her mom’s shoulder. “Do you ever miss the Homelands, Mom?”
She shrugged. “Sometimes. But I love Earth. We had you here for a reason. The Homelands were falling apart when we came here. You wouldn’t have been safe. We were barely safe and we were adults. I just want the best for you Lorka. And if that meant coming here, I’m fine with that.”
“Mom…”
Lorka gave her mother a hug and Radha laughed as she ruffled her daughter’s hair. “Got a little too sentimental there didn’t I? It’ll all be okay. Your dad just needs more time to adjust.”
“More time than seventeen years?”
Radha rolled her eyes. “Sometimes male orcs can be a little slower than most when it comes to new situations.”
“But enough of that depressing subject? How did things go with Thomas?” Radha asked.
Lorka told her mother about the date. The art gallery. Mrs. Reinhart and Vani. The talk at the deli. Thomas’s house. Lorka did leave out some of the more…inappropriate details, but Radha grinned when Lorka told her about their kiss.
“I’m so happy for you dear. I really am. I know you liked the boy a lot.”
“Mom, thanks for all your help…but I’m curious about something. Why have you tried so hard to get us together?”
“You just seemed so lonely dear. I know you have your friends, but you just seemed like you could use someone like Thomas in your life.”
Lorka gave her mother another hug. “Yeah. I did. Thanks for everything mom.”
Radha smiled. “Of course. You know I’d do anything to make you happy.”
The rest of the day passed by quickly. Thomas texted Lorka a couple times over some book choices and the two made plans to eat lunch together at school. Radha continued to flit about the house fixing things up or working on her sewing projects while her husband remained by the TV. Lorka spent the time finishing up assignments for school she had been neglecting. As the day wound to a close, Lorka sat in her bed and pulled out Thomas’s copy of Watership Down. She got through the first three chapters though she had to put in headphones after a couple of minutes because of the violent crashing sounds coming from her parents’ room.  Finally, Lorka’s eyes grew heavy and she sat the book on her nightstand and turned off the light. As she lay in bed, she thought about seeing Thomas at school. This time when she made sweet root, she’d make it soft enough for him to eat. Maybe she could even bring him some left over Kro’mak.  She was sure that would make him happy. She had yet to meet a person that hated Kro’mak. It just wasn’t possible. She gave herself a satisfied smile as she finally drifted off to sleep.