by Amy Star
“Oh, what are you going to put there?” she asked with genuine interest.
“Well, my dear, this will be our room. I would go into great detail of all the things I plan to do to you in that room, but if I do, then the men will all lose focus entirely, thinking of nothing but you, and I can't have that. I need them focused on guarding this place,” he said with a wicked smile.
“You're terrible,” she said with a laugh, pulling him close and feeling so happy at the thought of a future with him.
*
The weeks went on and Kalia could feel the baby growing inside of her. Every night, she and Luke crawled in to bed and he pressed his ear to her stomach, falling asleep to the sound of their baby within her. If she'd not loved him already, that would've been enough to be the root of a deep love. As it was, it just made her love for him grow. Indeed, it felt as though her love for him grew as the baby did. They were a family and each day the bond got stronger.
Their days were a bit of a comedy. Luke couldn't stand to leave her, knowing the threats that loomed, but he knew that he needed to train the young warriors now more than ever and, of course, he had a cottage to build. His solution had been as plain as it was unusual. He simply decided to hold the trainings in the clearing where they made their home. It met with objection, first from his father and then from Kalia. She didn't want to bring war and battle to their peaceful home, but in the end, she'd to admit that he was right.
In fact, it was a comfort to her to have him near her day and night. His attention was often pulled in different directions, between his warriors and the men helping him to build their home. Though he had gone over his plans with her in detail, he refused to let her cross the threshold until it was done.
"I just want to see it as you build it," she said coyly as she leaned against him while he inspected the progress from the outside. He smiled down at her and it warmed her heart, but she could tell from his expression he had no plan to give in to her request.
"I know, my dear, but I want the joy of carrying you over the threshold of our home when it's done. You wouldn't want to deprive me of that joy, would you?" he asked with a mischievous grin.
"That's not fair," she pouted. "You know I wouldn't take any joy from you, my dear. It's not a fair card to play. I want you to be the happiest man on earth, but I want to be a part of building our home. Won't you let me help?"
"You're pregnant," he said, shaking his head. "I'll not have you in the middle of a construction zone. What if one of the stones slipped and you or the baby inside of you were hurt? I couldn't live with myself if I allowed that to happen. Please, don't ask again and don't try to sneak in. Please, dear?"
"Well, how in the world can I fight you when you say sweet things like that?" she asked, trying to look annoyed but unable to keep the pure love from showing on her face. Just the thought of him loving her so deeply made her want to throw herself at him right then and there, even with the warriors surrounding them.
"That was my plan," he said with a smile.
He bent down and kissed her gently. The feeling of his warm lips against hers made her knees shake and she leaned against him to steady herself. He moaned in approval, deepening his kiss as he pulled her tight against him. To her embarrassment, a collective murmur of catcalls arose from the men surrounding them. While she blushed, Luke shot them all a murderous look before they both began to laugh a little at the absurdity of the situation.
"There's one thing I don't understand," she said with a look of genuine confusion on her face that amused him greatly.
"And what is that, my darling," he said as he wrapped his arm around her waist.
"If you're too nervous to allow my in our unfinished cottage, how on earth are you going to relax enough to let me learn to fight," she asked, savoring the warmth of his closeness. "It's been ages since you told me it was what we must do and you haven't even begun to teach me. I need to know so I can keep our baby safe," she said as she rested a protective hand upon her stomach.
He placed his hand on top of hers and looked at her stomach in awe. Though she was just barely showing in her pregnancy, he noticed the slight changes in her every day and each day it took his breath away. He loved to take in every inch of her changing frame, swelling ever so slightly with the life growing inside of her. He was so taken with his thoughts, that he didn't answer her right away. Instead, he savored the feeling of her close to him and enjoyed the sweetness of the moment.
"By the way you're staring at my stomach, I'm thinking you've decided that teaching me to fight is no longer the best plan," she said, knowing him well enough to read his facial expression.
"It's not that I don’t think you can do it. We already clearly know you're quite a ferocious fighter. Still, I don't want to give you more nightmares. I want to keep you from such darkness. I shouldn't have been rash enough as to suggest something like that. I think my new plan is a much better one," he answered, looking a bit smug as he spoke.
"And what new plan is that," she said, trying not to let her skepticism show on her face.
"I just simply will not let you out of my sight until we have all of this resolved. I couldn’t stand for you to be away from me anyway, with all of the danger lurking about. This way, you stay safe and I don't have to go out of my mind with worry when I’m away from you. I think it's been going well so far. You don’t seem to object to my constant presence by your side," he said with a chuckle.
"I'll never complain about having you near me. In fact, if I had my way, you would never be out of my sight. Still, we don't live in a world where I get to have all of my wishes come true, however much being mated to you might make it feel that way. There will come a day when you'll have to be away from me and that day will come soon.
"I need to be able to protect our child. I used nothing but my raw instincts before. What if those change when I've given birth? What if motherhood mellows me? What if I don't have that untapped rage within me once I've held my child in our arms? Even if I do, what's to say that it'll be enough? I need to have skills and experience so that I can do all that I can to keep him safe," she rambled, pulling away from him and pacing back and forth as she spoke.
"I'll not let that happen," he murmured with an indulgent smile. "You'll stay with me always. We set the terms of our life and we'll spend every minute of it together. If it's what I want and what you want, what is there that can stop us?"
"Life has a way of standing in the way of what we want. We can wish for and plan for anything that we want, but we can’t know for sure that's what will happen," she said, shaking her head.
"I think that won’t be a problem for us. After all, the fates have been with us so far," he pointed out, though she suspected he was only trying to pacify her.
"You're talking in circles. I need to be able to protect myself and the baby; It was your idea and it was a good one. Don’t change your mind now," she pushed, unwilling to let the subject drop.
"There's simply no need. I was a fool to ask it of you. Even suggesting it was crazy. Besides, it's unnecessary. You'll stay with me and I'll keep you safe," he said, the tone in his voice telling her that he was resolved to keep to his decision.
Still, she couldn't just let the subject go. "You'll not change your mind?" she asked, making no effort to keep the look of disappointment from her face. Usually, she did all she could to hide any displeasure from him because she hated to upset him, but in this case she knew it'd be an asset to her cause.
"No, my darling. Let's not talk about it anymore. Let's just be together and be happy. I know danger is coming, but there isn’t anything we can do about it at the moment. Don’t spend another moment worrying about it until we have to. I promise, when the time comes, I'll make sure we defeat all those who would harm us, but for now, don’t think of it. Just enjoy the feeling of our child growing within you and the knowledge that I love you. Just look at our lovely little cottage. It'll be done in a matter of weeks. We'll have the safest home anyone could imagine
and we'll grow old together there. We'll be so happy. I've always promised you that I'll make you happy and I've never broken that promise, have I?" he asked gently, taking her hand in his and holding it tight.
The warmth and comfort of his touch made her feel a bit bad about trying to manipulate him, but she needed him to train her and it was the only way.
"No, of course you haven't. I love you and I already love this baby so much that I can barely stand it. That's why I want to be able to keep you both safe," she said squeezing his hand and looking deep in to his eyes, through to his very soul.
"Just let me worry about that, dear," he said, looking away to avoid her gaze.
She knew then that he might just change his mind, but he wouldn't if she kept pushing the matter. "Alright, you know I trust you with my life and the life of our child. I'll do as you wish," she said passively, earning her a questioning gaze from her lover.
"That’s my girl! You know, it won’t be long now before the cottage is done. I've a dozen men coming to help me with it over the next few days. We'll have it done in no time and then you'll have your hand at making it a true home for us. You'll be too busy to worry for a moment about anything that might happen, or about learning to fight. Does that not sound wonderful?" he said, though she suspected he was trying to convince himself as much as he was trying to convince her.
"Yes, of course, my dear. I'll not ask you again about learning to fight. I promise," she said, with a mischievous look that he didn't quite trust.
"Why is it that I think you're up to something?" he said suspiciously as he held her tighter.
"What could I be up to?" she asked innocently, though the twinkle in her eyes kept him from fully believing her words. Still, he loved her too much to be harsh with her.
"I haven't the faintest idea, but I'm sure whatever you're calculating in that pretty head of yours will reveal itself in time," he said with a grin.
"Don't be silly," she laughed with a grin on her face, wrapping her arms around his waist. She looked up at him with such adoration that it took his breath away. He shook his head, trying to pull himself out of his daze. It was impossible to look at her without feeling his heart stop within his chest.
"I need to get back to the men. I fear I've neglected their training. Having you so close at hand is far too distracting," he teased, playfully kissing the tip of her nose. She giggled, going up on her tiptoes to kiss him more soundly. He returned her kiss gladly and she felt everything surrounding them melt away.
"I'll do my best to stay out of the way. I’ll tend our little garden and you get back to your men," she said, placing a light kiss on his cheek. She hugged him close before taking a step back and pulling away from his embrace.
"I'm fairly sure that knowing you're anywhere near me will be distracting because it's hard to be close to you and not have my hands on you. Still, discipline is part of a warrior’s training. I'll have to suffer through it," he said playfully, reaching out for her. She eluded his grasp and scampered away, much to his disappointment.
"My poor Luke. However will you manage it?" she called over her shoulder as she laughed, walking towards the garden.
"It'll be one of the greatest struggles of my life," he said, all trace of teasing gone from his voice.
He spent the rest of the day throwing himself into the training of the young warriors. They were a young bunch willing to learn. They'd just come of age, each one entering into manhood with the vigor and excitement of youth. They began by hauling rocks from the quarry. It was a standard training activity, building strength and stamina.
It also provided Luke with the raw materials necessary to finish building the cottage. He kept them at it well into the afternoon. He needed them to be exhausted before they entered the next phase of their training. Before they began working on their technique, they needed to be so physically exhausted that their muscles were able to accept the training best.
After hours at it, they began one of the earliest technique drills a young warrior was required to do. It was so old that no one remembered its origins. The new warriors were required to punch a tree as hard as they could, again and again. The drill was meant to teach them to fight through their pain. Luke paced back and forth, watching them as they struck the tree trunks again and again.
He corrected their form and offered words of encouragement. He was so lost in his work of training them that he didn't realize Kalia had strategically positioned herself in such a way as to observe and study every lesson he was giving the warriors. He also didn't see her moving her hands methodically, mimicking the techniques he was teaching his them.
When the day was done, they crawled into bed together. He kissed her passionately and made love to her sweetly. After, he murmured that he loved her and closed his eyes. In his exhaustion, he soon fell asleep beside her. She lay there for a time, completely still to make sure he was deeply asleep. Then she slowly and quietly rose from the bed and made her way outside the tent. He didn't flinch and she thanked her stars he was working hard enough to be so tired. Without that benefit, she was sure that her slightest movement would've woken him.
She made her way outside and surveyed her surroundings. She looked at the pile of rocks the trainees had spent hours carrying. Though she'd planned to do all Luke had instructed the young warriors to do, she didn't think she could hide the evidence of that from him. If she moved the stones they'd already carried, he would notice they'd moved, and he would also clearly notice if more stones appeared overnight. Besides, that was an activity that just might hurt the baby and she couldn't risk that. Instead, she walked around the edge of their clearing until she found the largest tree that she could find.
She braced her legs and she'd seen Luke tell the young warriors to do and took a deep breath to help her center herself before she began. Timidly, she jabbed her clenched fist into the tree's trunk and then froze, waiting for Luke to come running from the tent to investigate. When he didn't, she struck the tree again, this time as hard as she could. The pain that she felt was staggering, but she made herself continue. She struck the tree again and again, even as her skin tore and she began to bleed. She kept telling herself she was a warrior and warriors fight through pain. Each time she felt as though the pain was too much, she thought of the child inside of her and pressed on. She made herself continue to fight the pain. Though each strike was excruciating, she kept telling herself that she wasn't doing this for herself. It was for her family and there was nothing that she wouldn't do to keep them safe. She heard her knuckles and bones cracking as she pressed on.
She put the pain out of her mind and instead, thought of the terrifying moment when those bears had come to kill her. It wasn't just her who would've died. They would've killed her baby. They would've silenced the tiny heart beating inside of her forever. That was why she'd fought them then and it was why she needed to keep fighting now. It was emotionally draining to tap into that fear, but it was what she had to do to keep herself fighting on.
She kept hitting the tree for what felt like hours, until she was mentally and physically exhausted. She looked down at the damage she'd done to her hand and silently thanked her inner bear for her ability to heal quickly. She knew they would be as good as new before Luke ever saw them. If he had seen her mangled hands, he would've flown into a rage before she even had a moment to explain and she knew that would cause a mess of trouble for them both.
Slowly, she made her way back into the tent, careful not to make a sound. She crawled back to bed beside him and drifted slowly towards sleep, feeling confident that she'd taken the first step towards being able to protect their child. She cuddled close to him and drew from his strength and warmth. Though he had not actively trained her, it was his words that played over and over again in her head while she trained.
It made her feel even closer to him, though, if all went as planned, he would never know it. Without waking, he turned a bit in his sleep and pulled her close to him, stroking her back. She sighed in exhaus
tion and let sleep take her, ready to do the same thing the next day and every day that followed until every threat to her family was gone.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Luke seemed more anxious than ever to finish the cottage. Every night, after the warriors left and they ate their dinner, he would go back to the cottage to work. Though some of the higher ranking warriors helped him during the day, at night he would work alone. He never broke his promise to her and never left her truly alone, but she felt lonelier than ever. After all of their nights spent sleeping together, it felt wrong to fall asleep without him by her side. There in the cold, lonely bed, she wondered if he didn't want her physically anymore because her pregnancy had begun to truly show.
Still, it made her personal training easier to hide from him. Over the noise he was making constructing their home, he couldn't hear the softer sounds of her exercising her techniques, even the sounds of her striking the largest tree on the perimeter of their clearing. Because the tent stood between the cabin and the tree, the possibility of him seeing her was small.
She knew that if she screamed, he would hear and come running so she had no reason to be afraid of being out alone at night. It was a big part of why she'd chosen the nighttime for her training. If she'd tried to accomplish it during the day, any of the warriors or friends buzzing about might've mentioned it to him.
