Orc Boyfriend: Cupid & Hector 2 (special preview)

You were grateful you didn’t have much time to panic over the date. You got home, showered, dressed in something you knew you could rely on, and headed out the door again. You weren’t sure how this would go, you’d never been on a date with two at once before. It’d been a while since you had even had a one on one. But there was just something about Heck and Cue that made you feel comfortable.

You arrived at the shop to see the closed sign on the door. Walking up, you push to see if it’s locked, and it opens. The shop is quiet and dimly lit as you walk in, but Cue is behind the desk closing out the cash register.

“I’ll be with you in a moment,” he says quietly, not looking away from the monitor. “Still closing up.”

“It’s fine, take you time.” You take a moment to look around the shop. Several racks of leather chaps, pants, and the like. There was another rack of leather bikinis, followed by a rack of shirts with the shop logo. 

A door opens near the back room Cue showed you the day before and Heck comes walking out. He’s carrying a broom and dustpan which he sets down at the front counter. Cue whispers and points in your direction.

“Would you like to come up and help me start the meal?” Heck turns and smile down at you.

You nod, stepping back towards the front. Your heart is pounding in excitement. “I’m not a very good cook, but I wouldn’t mind helping out.”

“I won’t make you cook then,” Heck teases. “Up this way.” He motions to the stairs, placing his hand on your back for the faintest of moments. 

The stairwell is decorated with all sorts of pictures. Ones taken outside the shop, back when it had the name ‘Leather Boutique’. Photos of Cue and Heck in their youth, as well as some family photos. 

The top of the stairs leads into a long, narrow hallway, with one side that is the windows looking out over the street. The other side features a lot of doors.

“Don’t judge too much, we’re still renovating this place.” Heck opens one of the doors for you.

“I was just thinking how nice this hallway must look in the morning,” you say. “All the light that comes in, I bet a cat would-” Just as you say this a big gray cat comes screaming from the doorway. It races up to Heck, rubbing against his legs and screaming still.

“This is Fat Lip.” Heck picks the plump cat off the ground and it immediately stops screaming. The cat has a very pronounced underbite, making it look like he has tusks just like its owners.

“Aww, how cute.” You hold out your hand for Fat Lip to sniff but he stares hard at you, as if trying to see into your soul.

“He’s shy.” Heck sets the cat back down and walks into his home. 

Fat Lip continues to stare at you, even as you come into their house. Once heck setsa  bowl of food down, Fat Lip ignores you for it. 

Their home is open concept, with the walls being taken down from what must have been office spaces back in the day. There’s one door towards the back you assume must be their bedroom.

“So, if you can’t cook, what do you use our kitchen for?” Heck asks. He takes you into his kitchen where you stand at an island while he pulls steaks from the fridge.

“The microwave mostly,” you say with a shrug. “It’s just easier.”

“That sounds like no way to live.” Heck winks. “Okay then, come over here and prep the potatoes for me.”

He shows you how to slice the potatoes then coat them with melted butter and toss a few peppers, onions, and mushrooms into tinfoil, then coat the potato with seasoning before wrapping it up. He prepares a huge cast iron skillet with olive oil then takes a loaf of hearty bread. He slices it thick, slabs each side with butter then chops a whole garlic bulb that he tosses into the pan.