A Storm of Pleasure

by TERRI BRISBIN

  Katla could not argue with Harald’s logic or his knowledge of the situation or the earl. Her brother was important only to her. “Then why did you let me seek proof of his innocence?”

  A hint of a smile lightened his intense face.

  “Because I know you believe in it and I wanted you to be at peace in your life with me.”

  He was a good man beneath the bluster.

  A good man. An honorable man. A man who would take her once the Truthsayer wanted her no longer. She could do worse.

  The moment spun out between them until someone knocked on the door and Harald opened it. A slave entered, carrying a tray of food.

  “Do not try to leave, Katla,” he said as the slave put the tray down on the table in the corner. “I will speak to you on the morrow.”

  Harald followed the slave out and closed the door behind him. Katla walked to the door and opened it a crack. A guard stood there, ensuring that she would not leave. A glance at the window showed it to be too small for her to climb through, if she was intent on escape.

  The aroma of a hearty stew caught her attention, and her stomach growled in hunger. She laughed and decided that no matter what she faced, she would rather face it with a full stomach. After she’d eaten the stew and crusty bread without even pausing to drink any of the ale in the cup, her exhaustion roared up and she sought sleep on top of the bed.

  Though she thought Harald might return to sleep with her there, when Katla next awoke, the rising sun lit the room. The other side of the bed was cold and unused.

  Harald had slept elsewhere.

  Chapter Six

  The voices began as the night gave way to dawn.

  At first, he mistook them for real voices, and he awoke to answer their questions. But then, as the potions wore off, Gavin realized they were only phantoms. He recognized some of the voices, for they belonged to people he knew in the village. Others he did not know, though each one was as clear as if the speaker stood before him, awaiting his reply.

  The first days after the ritual were horribly confusing for him. With his own hearing gone and the voices so clear in his mind, it was difficult to know when he was really speaking to others and when he was talking to the air around him. Haakon did his best to guide him by gestures and expressions, but too many times he found himself receiving questioning looks from those nearby.

  On those days, before all the voices blended back together, he often appeared mad. Driven out of his mind by the pain and power.

  Gavin forced himself from bed and stood on the balcony now, watching the sea as the tide receded. A fisherman’s wife berated her husband about yesterday’s catch. The miller considered charging more to mill the grain of the baker. The guard at the gate was exhausted from too much drink and too much swiving. A child cried out for her mother. He heard them all.

  He thought that, sometimes, it was worse when he struggled against the voices, when he tried to block them out. Now, if he acknowledged them, even in his thoughts, they seemed to fade to something less threatening. But as the village and the earl’s household woke for the new day, hundreds and hundreds of voices joined the chorus in his mind and the true pain began, reminding him of how little power he really held. When one voice stood out from the rest, asking about his food, he shook his head and replied aloud.

  “Nay,” he said, turning to face the slave who’d asked, “I want no more porridge.”

  Instead of a kitchen slave checking on his morning meal, he found a young woman cleaning his bedchamber, who stared at him with a frightened expression in her wide blue eyes. When their gazes met, she quickly lowered hers. Since he could not hear his own voice, he suspected that he had yelled his inappropriate answer too loudly, scaring her into believing the stories told about him.

  He went mad during the days after the full moon.

  He screamed and ranted at people not present and at words not spoken.

  He ensorcelled women if they looked deeply into his eyes and then took their wills and bodies for his own evil purposes.

  Clearly, she believed the last one and it was partly the truth. But not this morn and not her. He had found the angel of his dreams and she would be his soon.

  “Go,” he said, watching as she quickly dropped the rags and bucket to the floor and scurried from the room.

  Too loud? Too angry? He could not control his voice because he could not hear it. Frustrated, he cursed, bringing Haakon running.

  “Take this away now,” he said to Haakon, pointing at the remnants of his morning meal.

  Haakon forgot about the deafness and began speaking. Gavin shook his head and waved him out. Completely exhausted from the ritual and the flow of power in his body, he needed rest more than anything. If not for that need, he would be buried up to his balls in the tightness of the woman he’d heard called Katla.

  He barely made it to the side of the bed before falling onto it. If his cock could stand, he would have her now, but he surrendered to his weakness and fell deeply asleep for hours, waking only for another meal and then more sleep. His sleep was disturbed by the din of the voices, so the only time he could get much rest was at night, when others were sleeping, too. Fortunately, he could not hear dreams.

  Gavin lived a foggy and blurry existence until the third day after the ritual. He’d demanded she be brought to him then only because his hearing usually began to return by the third day, but when he awoke that morning and could hear only the thoughts of others, he knew he’d made a mistake.

  Unaccustomed to becoming deaf for days at a time, he had not the skill of reading facial expressions or lips. So he avoided others until it passed. His excitement at finding her had caused him to make an error in judgment, yet he could not forget the thrill he’d felt when he’d caught sight of her.

  Though he wanted to ask Haakon for details—he had no doubt that his servant had learned all about her—there was not point until he could hear. Now, it was time to summon her and he only hoped he did not embarrass himself too badly in front of her.

  Haakon had a bath brought, and the steaming water soothed Gavin. He was so weak that he had to rest afterward, but he felt the excitement within him growing as the time for Katla’s arrival approached. He’d sent a message to Harald to present her after the evening meal, but his stomach was in knots and he could not eat a bite. Even the constant chatter in his head did not lessen his anticipation of seeing her again…of having her again…

  But most of all, of hearing only the sounds within her as they coupled.

  He laughed then, drawing the attention of the slaves in his chamber who were readying it for the night. Had he imagined that part of their encounter? Had it been the potion? Gavin dared to hope now that he knew she was real. Mayhap she could help him tame the pain and the voices? This time, his laughter was louder and even Haakon turned to him.

  Evening came, the sun set, and the lamps were lit. He paced the length and breadth of the chamber, waiting for her. His body was recovering and his cock hardened more with each passing minute. He did not hear the knock, but caught sight of Haakon opening the door. Taking a deep breath, he watched as she entered.

  As before, she stood there like a Valkyrie, tall and proud, with her hair in a long braid. Walking toward him, she would not meet his gaze, staring instead at the floor as Harald escorted her in. Although Gavin had no skills in reading faces, Harald’s glare told him much. Possession sat deep in his expression. And jealousy and anger. Though they never touched each other as they walked or stood waiting, even Gavin could feel the ties between them.

  Gavin looked from one to the other, and then Haakon said something to both of them. Harald glared at him but nodded and turned to leave. Then he paused and took Katla’s hand and spoke to her. Damn! Gavin could not hear the words, but she trembled when he finished and nodded. Now, she would not look up at him.

  “Katla,” he said.

  She startled and said something, but Haakon interrupted before he could make another mistake. When she did gl
ance up at him, he read the fear in her eyes and hated it.

  “Do you fear him or me?” he asked.

  She looked toward the door through which Harald had just left and shook her head in reply.

  “Do you fear me then?” he asked, hoping he was not the cause for the distraught expression on her face now.

  She glanced up for a moment and then down at her hands, which were clasped before her. Then she shook her head again.

  “Haakon, leave us,” he ordered. The servant did as he was told, and within a minute they were alone.

  “Do you fear what will happen between us? Did you dislike being with me?”

  He was not sure why he asked the question when he could not hear the answer, but he waited for something, a sign from her that it was not him or what they had shared that frightened her. He had heard the sounds of her body as it peaked with his and thought she had enjoyed it, but he could not be sure.

  It seemed like an eternity passed before she responded in any way. Then he saw a blush creep up her face and, with the tip of her tongue, she licked her lips. His erect cock throbbed in his trews as he stood and walked the few paces to where she waited.

  Her eyes met his and she smiled then, just a slight uplifting at the corners of her mouth, but it was enough for him. Gavin felt his whole body ready itself as he held his hand out to her. The musky scent of his arousal began to spread and he noticed that her eyes glazed over for a moment, then brightened once more.

  She would not be bent to his will like the others. He wanted it to be her choice. Anticipation sang through his veins and his heart raced in excitement.

  The voices in his head also surged then, too many at once for him to listen to, distracting him from her. Gavin forgot for a moment that only he heard them.

  “Leave me alone!” he shouted. “Give me some peace!”

  To his horror, Katla flinched and backed away from him. She was turning when he realized what he’d said. He reached for her, grasping her arm and tugging her back to face him. In what he hoped would be a whisper, he pleaded with her.

  “Katla, I did not mean you. Stay with me this night.”

  Then, two voices pushed forward, screaming out the same words at him: Do not hurt her! The voices were so clear, he was sure the speakers stood right behind him.

  Gavin clenched his head in his hands and turned to face those who would think him capable of doing so. “I will not hurt her! Now leave me be!”

  No one stood nearby.

  Gavin closed his eyes, mortified at the insane display she’d witnessed. How could he explain it to her? Should he even try?

  The touch of her hand on his back surprised him. He turned and found her close by. Her mouth moved but he heard nothing. Hel! But when she stroked his arm in a gesture that could only be described as comforting, his heart dared to hope that she could be trusted with the worst about him.

  “Are you unwell?” Katla asked.

  She noticed that he watched her mouth as she spoke but did not answer her. Mayhap he was still caught up in whatever had controlled him during the ceremony three days ago?

  She did what she felt she should, what she’d wanted to do when he looked so vulnerable as the power entered him that night. Katla continued to stroke his arm, trying to soothe the wildness she saw in his gaze. When he stared into her eyes, she noticed the scent in the air around them, as she had in the cave.

  “Stay with me,” he said in a low voice. “Lie with me.”

  Ripples of desire, unknown to her until the first time he’d touched her, made her skin tingle and the tips of her breasts tighten.

  “Stay with me,” he repeated, stepping closer and leaning down until their mouths nearly touched. The next words tickled her lips as he spoke, but with lust, not amusement.

  “Lie with me, Katla.” He tilted his head then and whispered once more against her mouth. “My angel.”

  The pause between asking and taking was gone before she could even reply, but her body had answered for her. At his plea, her body ached and throbbed deep inside, the blood pooling in her womb as her hips arched against his body. Her head spun as she breathed in the scent swirling around them and as his mouth finally, finally, claimed hers.

  Katla found herself gripping his arm as he took her mouth by storm. His tongue invaded and tasted and caressed. He suckled her tongue, drawing it into his own mouth, then guiding her to do the same with his. He laughed, a deep and wholly male sound of lust. When she grabbed hold of his other arm, pulling him against her, she felt his chuckle against her mouth and through her body.

  “Katla,” he whispered when he lifted his lips from hers. He licked and kissed his way down her neck, whispering her name over and over between each touch of his tongue or lips.

  “Katla.” A kiss.

  “Katla.” A caress by his hot tongue.

  “Katla.” He suckled the skin at the base of her neck.

  She thought he might be repeating it to remember her name among those of the countless other women he’d coupled with. Regardless of the reason, the sound of her name on his lips sent shivers of pleasure over her skin and waves of longing into her heart. Harald’s warning not to expect more than a tupping from the Truthsayer echoed in her thoughts as Gavin reached up and undid the leather ties holding her hair.

  She dropped her hands to her sides, enjoying the way he ran his hands through her hair and massaged her head. Closing her eyes and allowing him his way, she reveled in the decadent and pleasing sensations. He must have known, for he chuckled again, the sound rumbling deep in his chest. Katla smiled, for even though the bedplay between her and Harald had never been filled with laughter or touching, this pleased her.

  “I would see you garbed in nothing but your hair, angel.”

  The request and the way in which he said it made her body throb anew. Nakedness was not so strange a thing for her, but to play this way instead of simply joining was. She opened her eyes and saw the intensity of his gaze and knew she wanted to please him. Before she agreed, he spoke again.

  “I want you, Katla. I want you to return to the Southerlands with me until the next full moon.”

  Shocked that he wanted her in his bed for more than just this night, she began to back away. But he took her in his arms and held her close.

  “I will grant your every desire and pleasure you in ways you have not imagined if you will come with me.” He kissed her again, stealing her breath and her will to refuse. Her body ignited with lust at his words and his kiss. “Anything you ask shall be yours if I can grant it.”

  In that moment, the Truthsayer had revealed the one thing he wanted that only she could provide. She did not understand what drove his desire for her or his reasons for thinking she was any different from every other woman he’d taken to his bed…but he did.

  “Would you use your powers to hear my brother’s truth?”

  The words flowed out before she thought on them. But, if he agreed, then she would gladly whore herself to fulfill his desires.

  He never paused in replying either. “Whatever you ask, Katla.” He kissed her again and the scent increased around them. “Whatever will please you.”

  Chapter Seven

  Whatever the cost, he would pay it.

  Whatever her price, he would meet it.

  Gold mattered little to him. Power even less. But the value of the silence she brought to his mind was beyond measure and worth anything she would demand in return. And the fact that he could not hear what she asked of him bothered him not a bit.

  As soon as her body began to respond to his touch, he could push the voices from his mind. That respite was worth any price she might ask.

  When she raised her hands and unpinned the brooches from the apron-like tunic of her gown and then pulled the garment over her head, he had his answer and more. From the way in which she moved, hesitant and unsure, he suspected she’d not done something like this before. He wanted to reach over and rip everything else off, but he kept his desire under con
trol and stepped back so that he could watch her as she moved.

  Katla loosened the undergown and unlaced the ties down the front of it. He waited, aching to touch her flesh, to taste her essence and to feel the grip of her inner muscles as she rode him to pleasure. When she paused as though unsure, he directed her.

  “Open your gown, Katla. Let me see your breasts.”

  She tugged on the opening in her gown and spread it wide until he could see both of her full breasts. The nipples were tight buds of a pale, rosy shade, and his mouth watered to taste them. The sight of the bruise stopped him.

  “Who did that?” he asked. His voice must have been louder than he thought, for she flinched. She lifted her hand to cover the lovemark near her nipple, and the movement sent a new fire through his body.

  He read the name she spoke on her lips. Harald.

  Jealousy pierced him when he realized that Harald had been the man before him, the one who had taken the prize of her virginity and the one to whom she would return when they were finished. But she was his now and when she left, she would remember the things they did together; she would remember his touch and his kiss, and he would leave his mark on her for Harald to find and wonder about.

  Dangerous male jealousy fed his desire for her, and he decided to make this passion last between them. To stretch out their pleasure until they were weak with desire and then to quench it, over and over this night and for as many as she or the fates would grant him.

  Did she think of Harald’s touch when it was his hands caressing her? Well, he would pleasure her until she could think of only himself when she thought of coupling with a man. Until she wore his scent, his taste, his mark, and his seed on her and in her.

  “Hold your breasts out to me,” he ordered. She obeyed him, sliding her hands under her breasts and lifting them out of the gown to him. “Rub your thumbs over the tips.”

  Gavin could hear her every gasp in his mind, the blood rushing to her loins, the skin of her breasts tingling as she touched the sensitive buds and made them sing. He gasped as the pleasure of it poured over him. “Again.”