The Dancer (Men of the North Book 7)

by Elin Peer

  “But I like making out with you. Maybe we can try again?”

  “Now?” My voice cracked. I hated when that happened. It was rare now that I was seventeen but Willow began to chuckle, her head still leaning against my chest.

  “Wow, Solo, your heart just began hammering. I could literally hear it.” She grabbed for my hand and brought it to the same spot her ear had been. “Do you feel it?”

  “Yes.”

  “Feel my heart.” Willow’s mesmerizing green eyes blinked as she steered my hand to her chest.

  “Yeah, your heart beats fast too.”

  She smiled and with her hand around my wrist she pulled my hand a bit to the right. I took her hint and cupped her breast. Eight days on the run had made it smaller, but Willow was a goddess in my eyes and my rock-hard erection, which began poking her belly, spoke volumes of my attraction to her.

  “Are you sad that we won’t have an official wedding ceremony?” Willow asked.

  I drew in a deep breath. “Yes. I would have liked that. We may not be old enough or ever get the official ceremony that others have, but we’re choosing each other and risking everything to be together. That should count for something.”

  She tilted her head. “We could make our own ceremony.”

  I laughed. “We’re not old enough to marry yet.”

  With a smile she raised an eyebrow. “I’m almost sixteen and since we’re not doing it the official way anyway, who says that we have to wait?” Willow took my hand and made her way through the water, looking over her shoulder. “Come on.”

  I helped her climb the rocks to get back to where we had left our backpacks. The place was full of wildflowers, ferns, and tall grass.

  “Here.” Willow led me ten steps to a large oak tree where the ground was covered by a soft layer of moss. “This spot is perfect.”

  I wasn’t sure what she was planning to do, so I followed her lead. When she turned to me and lifted her hands, I took them.

  “You start,” she said with a serious expression on her face.

  “Ehh… I’m not sure what to say.”

  “Something ceremonial.”

  “Okay.” I thought for a second. “Willow, I have loved you from the first time I saw you. I would live anywhere in the world and survive on maggots and water if it meant I could be with you.”

  She wrinkled her nose up. “Eww, that’s disgusting.”

  “Yeah. Let me try again.” I looked down, biting my lip. “Okay, how about this? I’m strong enough to win any tournament I chose to participate in, but I’d give up a million dollars and a Northlander bride in the blink of an eye to be with you. Even if it means giving up everything else in my life too. Willow, a life without you is the most depressing thought. I love you so much it physically hurts sometimes.”

  She smiled and squeezed my hands. “I liked that one better. Now it’s my turn.” With a thoughtful expression, she turned her face against the sky for a second before looking deep into my eyes. “There are two Willows. The one that exists and the one that lives. The second only truly comes out around you, Solo. I know because when you left the school, I felt like a piece of me was missing. I could be surrounded by people and never feel truly happy. You are my soulmate.”

  I was touched and moved in to kiss her. “You’re my soulmate too.”

  She laughed a little. “Of course I am, silly. You can’t be soulmates with someone if they don’t feel it too.”

  For a moment, we stood with our hands linked, big smiles on our faces, and eyes twinkling with endless love.

  “Willow, will you marry me?”

  She beamed a wide smile at me. “Yes, I will.”

  I walked a few steps and picked up a stalk of long grass. “Here, let this be a symbol of the commitment we’re making to each other today. From now on, we’ll be husband and wife.” I wrapped the grass around her finger and tied a knot. Butterflies were flying a victory round in my stomach.

  Willow held up her hand with the ring made of grass. “I love it, it’s my favorite color.”

  I laughed with her. “Good, I picked it out just for you.”

  Hugging me tight, Willow whispered into my ear, “Husband.”

  Goose bumps spread down my arms and my head exploded with euphoria as I squeezed her body and said the magical word, “Wife.”

  “Remember what you told me?”

  “About what?” I asked and kissed her along her jawline.

  “About a marriage not being valid until it’s been consummated.” Willow pulled back and looked at me. “I want our marriage to be real.”

  My Adam’s apple bobbed in my throat and I could hardly breathe. “You sure about that?”

  She wasn’t moving, just watching me with wide eyes as if expecting me to take the lead.

  With fumbling fingers and my heart racing, I pushed her hair back and kneeled down in front of her, kissing her belly and waist while my hands rested on her hips.

  Willow’s fingers weaved through my hair and when I looked up to meet her eyes she gave me a smile. The idea that we were about to have sex for the first time filled me with nervous excitement.

  My hand trailed up her waistline to the outline of her right breast and my mouth followed up to lick her skin. Pulling her top up over her head, I took a deep breath, enjoying the sight of Willow’s naked chest. “You’re so beautiful!”

  “You think so?”

  I swallowed hard, mesmerized by the two firm globes in front of my eyes, and especially the pink nipples that stood out straight like small light towers leading me home. “There’s no one as gorgeous as you, Willow.” My head leaned backward looking up at her. I guided her down on the moss underneath me. She followed my movements as I kissed just above the rim of her light blue panties.

  When I hooked my fingers around both sides of her soft panties, Willow lifted her behind a little to make it easier for me. I literally felt my mouth watering as I slowly slid them off her. We had made out before and these last few days we had gone from my only touching her on the outside of her clothes to her allowing me to put my hands down her pants. Yet, seeing her bared in front of me with the sweetest triangle of hair was beyond exhilarating. I bowed down and pressed my nose against her pelvis area, breathing in the scent of Willow.

  “I’m sorry about the hair.”

  I lifted my head. “What do you mean?”

  “It’s normal to have all your body hair permanently removed at the end of your teen years. I was just going to keep a tiny triangle like the women I know, but now that we’re here I guess that’ll be difficult.”

  “I’m happy you didn’t have it removed. You already have a cute triangle.” I planted a kiss on top of her sweet curls and pushed her legs open, continuing my kissing further down.

  “Are you going to do that thing?”

  I smiled at her. Willow and I had talked about sex for as long as I could remember. She had been curious and asked questions that I’d answered to the best of my knowledge, which in all fairness had been limited. After I turned fifteen and left for my current school, my access to sex-bots and porn had helped me get a better grasp on the nuances of sex. “You mean oral?”

  “Yes.”

  I lowered my head and using my fingers to spread her folds, I answered her question with my tongue sliding against her soft skin.

  Willow placed a hand across her eyes and made a sound of embarrassment.

  “I told you already. It turns me on.” I imitated what I’d seen in old porn movies and let my tongue tickle the little rose on top of her pretty pussy.

  Willow jerked and lifted her head with her eyes wide open.

  I did it again, enjoying the way her body arched up and she let out a moan every time my tongue drew her to a new level of pleasure.

  “Do you like it?” I asked and kept licking her.

  Her fingers had found my hair and she tightened her hold. “Yes. I didn’t know it would feel this good. It sounded so gross when you talked about it.”


  I laughed low and gently bit her inner thighs, which made her squeal.

  “I wouldn’t use my teeth if I were you. I have strong leg muscles and your head is in a fragile place.” She squeezed her legs around my head.

  “Oh yeah?” My hands pushed on the inner side of her knees, opening up her legs again. I gave her a victorious grin. “You didn’t think I was weak and defenseless, did you?”

  “No.” She reached for me, signaling for me to come higher. I moved up to be nose to nose with her. “I like that you’re strong.” Her hands slid across my shoulders and biceps.

  We were smiling at each other and then our smiles morphed into more serious expressions, both of us knowing what the next step would be.

  “You’re really sure about this?” I asked her again.

  Willow nodded, her breathing a bit shallow and fast when I quickly removed my briefs and she saw my cock.

  Her hands clasped around my neck when I rolled on top of her. “I’ll be careful,” I assured her.

  “Okay.” She sucked in her lips and a line formed between her eyebrows.

  “Open your legs wider,” I instructed and she raised them up and planted her heels on my behind.

  With my heart galloping in my chest, I pressed my cock against her opening and inside.

  Willow whimpered under me.

  “Relax, babe.” I tried again, eager to be inside her but she was too narrow and it hurt her. Pulling back a little I tried making small rocking movements while supporting myself on my forearms and kissing her. “You have to relax.”

  “I’m trying but it hurts.”

  Nuzzling my nose against hers, I whispered, “Willow, I love you so much. You are my wife now and I will protect you with my life.”

  Her hands moved down to my shoulders and she returned my kisses with passion.

  My small rocking movements became deeper, like I was working my way in. Yes. Yes. Yes. I chanted in my head. It’s happening. It’s happening!

  “Are you in?”

  “Almost. The tip is in.”

  “I don’t think you’ll fit. It already hurts.”

  “It’s going to be okay. Just take a deep breath and focus on our kissing.”

  Willow and I were in the middle of a deep kiss when a sudden sound made us both stop and turn our heads.

  She stiffened underneath me. “What was that?”

  I rose up on my hands, still connected with her from my midsection and down. “I don’t know.”

  Another rustling left no doubt that someone or something was in the area. I wanted it to be a deer passing by, but we couldn’t take any chances.

  “We have to go!”

  Like me, Willow got up and worked fast to put on her clothes.

  “Stay behind me,” I warned her, my eyes constantly looking in the direction of the movements and sounds that we’d heard.

  Within a minute we’d put on our clothes and were backing away from the direction the noise had come from. Moving silently down to the river, we placed our backpacks on the raft that I’d built and pushed it into the water.

  “Come on,” I whispered while holding back the raft in the strong current. Willow got up and the minute I jumped up to sit too, it took off carrying us down the river much faster than we could have run or walked on land.

  “This will make it hard for them to find us. Water leaves no trace.” It was my attempt at calming Willow down.

  Clipping the backpacks to the raft, I was happy that I’d chosen waterproof ones to bring with me.

  “Do you think it was an animal?” Willow was staring in the direction we’d come.

  I had no doubt the people chasing us would eventually find out where we’d begun our rafting journey, but where we ended it would be more difficult. This was our chance to escape the adults following us once and for all.

  “Yes. Tonight, we’re eating a hot meal,” I promised her with a smile. But then she gasped and I swung my head to see what she saw. In the place where we’d pushed the raft into the water three men were standing looking at us with mud-striped faces. Their uniforms were those of Huntsmen. I knew because for as long as I could remember I’d wanted to grow up and become one of them.

  I pulled Willow closer to me. “They don’t have a raft and it’ll take them time to build one. They won’t catch us, I promise.”

  She looked up at me just as the river took a curve and we were no longer visible to the Huntsmen. “Did you see the look on their faces? They’ll kill you, Solo, I know they will.”

  “Then we’d better not get caught.”

  The two paddles I’d brought helped us stay in the middle of the river. Last night’s heavy rain gave us the speed we needed to put distance between us and the three Huntsmen we’d seen. I kept looking up, expecting to see a drone any time now. They had our position and knew what direction we were going in. With the resources of the Huntsmen, it wouldn’t take them long to get soldiers in place waiting to pick us up further down the river, and I feared Magni’s large red drone would be hovering above our heads soon. Our only way to escape would be to get out of the water and find a place to hide until it was dark enough for us to not be seen from above. Traveling at night was dangerous. We would have to either run as quiet and fast as we could or get back on the raft and try making it past them. Both seemed to be risky options that I didn’t like now that I was responsible for Willow’s safety. If we did the night rafting, we’d have to hold on to the raft and stay in the water to be as invisible as possible when we snuck by their posts. It would be physically straining and cold as fuck. In my head I was going over ways to enclose Willow between my arms or maybe tie her to me. I would have to keep my knife in hand in case they spread out a net.

  “Solo, do you hear that?”

  I’d been deep in my own thoughts and tilted my head to hear better. “There’s a waterfall coming.”

  We had only been in the water for around twenty-five minutes and even with the high speed, we couldn’t be more than four miles from the place we’d spent the night.

  “That way.” I pointed with my chin in the direction where I wanted us to steer the raft. “We’ll have to get back on land, carry the raft, and hide it.”

  “No, Solo, I can’t carry it. It’s too heavy.”

  “We’ll do it together.”

  The current in the stream was powerful and although I paddled till my arms felt like falling off, we were getting closer and closer to the waterfall.

  “I’m scared,” Willow cried out.

  “Paddle.” I screamed to overpower the sound from the waterfall that grew in volume the closer we got.

  Willow was crying but she kept paddling. The raft started spinning from the undercurrent and a large log crashed into us making her scream in fear.

  “Come on, Willow, we got to jump and swim.” We were only five feet from the brink of the river but the water was deep and with the way the raft was spinning, there was no way we could win against the strong current. “Get up,” I shouted, unclipping my backpack and throwing it onto land.

  Willow got up, unsteady on her feet as the raft spun and tipped in both directions, her arms swinging in the air to keep balance. “My backpack,” she shouted over the noise from the waterfall.

  “There’s no time.” I grabbed her hand and counted. “3. 2. 1. Jump.” We propelled ourselves through the air and landed close to land. Still, the water was too deep for Willow to reach the bottom and the current was pulling her out.

  “Solo,” she cried with eyes full of fright, reaching out for me.

  “I’ve got you!” Grabbing on to some roots sticking out from the brink of the river, I used the full force of my six-foot-seven body to battle the current and pull Willow to safety. My muscles cramped from the paddling and pulling and I was panting to get oxygen into my lungs faster. Willow was going under, swallowing water and sputtering when she got back up. We were so close to safety! Digging deep, I used my last push to get her high enough that she could reach a tree branch hangin
g over the water. Pale as snow and coughing up water, Willow turned her head and watched the raft and her backpack disappear over the edge of the waterfall.

  “Are you okay?” I held on to a branch myself.

  “Yes.” She looked in to my eyes, her chest heaving for air as well. “That was scary.”

  “I know.” I pushed her in front of me; we made it out of the water and lay down on the ground huffing and puffing to get our breath back.

  “We lost my backpack.”

  I rolled to my side. “Maybe it’ll wash up a little further down the river.”

  She turned her head and looked at me. “But they’re going to search for us by the river. Don’t you think we should head away from here to avoid them?”

  “You’re getting good at this.” I smiled at her. “And we still have my backpack. That’s where most of the tools are anyway.”

  Willow got up on her feet and looked down at her wet clothes. “I wish they’d just leave us alone. It should be my choice who I want to be with. Even if I’m not twenty-one yet.”

  I agreed but now wasn’t the time to discuss how unfair our situation was. I got up too and walked upstream, searching for the backpack I’d thrown onshore with Willow right behind me.

  When I saw it, I froze to the spot so suddenly that Willow collided with my backside, making an “umph” sound.

  “Shhh,” I warned but it was too late. We had found my backpack but so had a large black bear and her two cubs.

  The cubs were investigating the green bag while the mother sniffed the air and turned toward us.

  “Oh shit, oh shit.” It was the first time I’d ever heard Willow curse.

  With my arms spread out to hide Willow behind me and make myself large and intimidating, I backed up.

  The bear rose to her hind legs making warning sounds to scare us off. Willow gave a short scream behind me when the bear made as if to attack but I kept my eyes on the mother bear.

  “Don’t be scared, we won’t hurt your cubs. We just need that backpack.”

  Again, she rose up on her hind legs and I damned myself for leaving every weapon I’d brought in my backpack. I needed them to scare the bears off right now.