by Denise Lynn
Samuel stuck an arm through the flap and handed him a lit lantern. He’d been gone much longer than expected, the sun had set hours ago. But it had taken time to find something for his wife to wear—more time than it had to make arrangements for Matthew, the man’s wife, their recently born son and the two trusted, well known to him, Roul guards he’d left with them. He’d made certain to leave them enough coin to cover everything. Once the woman and babe were able to travel, they would all make their way to Roul.
He set the light on the table and stared down at his wife. The woman sleeping in his bed was far more desirable and lovely than the woman he’d envisioned in his dreams.
No matter how lovely she appeared, she’d still wilfully ignored an order. But, dear Lord help him, right now he wanted nothing more than to make her his wife in so much more than name only.
Her hair was tousled, her cheeks pinkened from hours spent beneath the sun, her features were softened with sleep. She’d kicked off the covers and her chemise had caught beneath her body, exposing the length of her legs. He wanted to stroke that length. He wanted to kiss her lips until they were pouty with desire. He wanted to see her eyes flash with all-consuming desire.
And he would.
But not just this moment.
Right now, they needed to talk. Wasn’t that why she was here in the first place? She had been the one to claim they needed to talk—in private. Now was as good a time as any.
Quietly undressing, he wondered if she would awaken when he climbed beneath the covers and, if she did, how would she react?
He hung the lantern from a hook on the beam closest to the pallet. Since they weren’t at sea, the danger of fire from the lantern falling was not as great. Besides, he wanted to see her face. They hadn’t spent enough time together for him to know all that her body was seeking to convey—or hide. But she wasn’t skilled enough to hide the expressions of her face and he hoped she never would become adept enough to do so. Maybe if that did happen, by then he would know every inch of her body as well as he knew every line and scar on his own hand.
Elrik slid beneath the covers. She made room for him and when he rolled on to his side to face her, she spooned against him instinctively as if they had been sleeping together like this for years.
With one arm bent beneath his head, he draped his other arm over her waist. He’d almost forgotten what it was like to share a bed with a woman—the warmth of soft curves, a gentle sigh as she eased against him, the silkiness of long untamed tresses tickling his face, her scent invading his senses with each inhale of breath.
He closed his eyes and relaxed against her, savouring the long-forgotten feelings, one part of his mind longing for this moment to last for ever, while another part chided him for such idle whimsy. He’d been fooled once by a woman’s gentleness. It wasn’t going to happen again.
She curled tighter against him, her soft skin pressing against his groin. His heart thudded hard, he opened his eyes and swallowed a groan.
She tensed, alerting him that she’d awakened. ‘Elrik?’
‘Are you seeking to ask me a question, or asking if I’m the one in this bed with you?’
‘The latter.’
She squirmed against him in her effort to pull her chemise from beneath her. Her innocent movements were making it nearly impossible to control the urge to make her his—now. When she wiggled again, he didn’t hold back his groan. He tightened the arm he’d slung over her waist, splayed his fingers across her belly and pressed his groin against her. ‘You must stop.’
‘But...’ She froze, apparently just now noticing that he was naked and ready for much more than talking or sleep. She whispered, ‘Oh.’
‘Just be still.’
She nodded vigorously in response.
Elrik unbent the arm beneath his head and toyed with a lock of her hair. ‘Why are you here?’
When she did nothing but sigh before falling silent, he tugged her hair. ‘Are you awake?’
‘Yes.’
‘Then answer me. Why are you here?’
‘Because my husband is here and I need to discuss something with him.’
‘Ah, but this husband of yours told you to stay with King David until your brothers by marriage arrived to take you to Roul Isle.’
‘It could not wait.’
‘What could be of such importance that you deemed it necessary to disobey an order?’
When she didn’t answer, he pulled her tighter against his chest. With his hand on her forehead, he tipped her head back and whispered against her ear, ‘There’s a price to be paid for disobeying an order.’ He lightly grazed his teeth along her neck. ‘Especially one meant to have kept you safe.’
She trembled against him, asking, ‘Safe? How could I not be safe with the Wolf and his men?’
Frustrated that he couldn’t see her face, he released her long enough to adjust the pillows against the side of the ship to use for padding and sat up against them. When she turned over to see what he was doing, he said, ‘Come here.’
Avelyn hesitated a heartbeat too long for his liking, so Elrik pulled her up to straddle his legs, facing him.
The candle in the lantern cast a soft glow over them, just enough light to see her wide-eyed stare at his chest. ‘You are naked.’
He stroked his thumb along her jawline before threading his fingers through the silkiness of her hair to pull her closer. Against her lips, he whispered, ‘Get used to it. Before this night is over you will be as naked as I.’
The sound of her gasp filled the cabin. Her exhaled breath brushed against his face. She parted her lips. To keep her from commenting, Elrik leaned forward to draw her into a kiss.
She moaned softly. Placing her palms against his chest, she leaned closer.
Thankfully, his kiss distracted her enough that she didn’t notice, or perhaps didn’t care, when he tugged her chemise free from beneath her knee and slowly slid his palm up the softness of her thigh.
He wanted to go further, do more, but not until this discussion was over. For now, it was enough to know she would gladly accept his touch.
Elrik broke their kiss and fought back a laugh at her groan.
She pushed herself away and looked at him to ask, ‘Are you seeking to distract me from my purpose?’
‘Yes.’
The light shimmered in her eyes, the line of her mouth was soft from their kiss and he couldn’t resist running a fingertip along her lips before lowering his arm.
Still lightly stroking the tender skin beneath his touch, he asked, ‘How did you evade King David?’
‘I didn’t.’
Her near-breathless answer let him know his tactic was working. ‘He let you leave?’
‘Let me leave? He thought my suggestion was an excellent solution.’
‘What needed a solution?’
She started to sway towards him and he grasped one of her shoulders to keep her upright. ‘Perhaps you should start at the beginning.’
Avelyn looked away and worried her lower lip between her teeth. Elrik frowned. Something was troubling her greatly.
‘Avelyn?’
Her brow furrowed, she stared at him. Ice-blue eyes peered into his with an intensity that took his breath away.
He withdrew his hand from her thigh, to rest his palm against her neck. ‘Talk to me, Avelyn. I will carry your troubles willingly, but I cannot do so if I don’t know what they are.’
‘Do you blame me for anything my father has done to you? Will I be the one who pays the price my father never did? How could you have married me?’ Her words came out in a whispered rush.
‘Avelyn, what is this? Why would you ask such things?’
She lowered her head, her chin nearly touching her chest. ‘My half-brother Osbert has followed you and I trust him not.’
Now he understood why she
was so upset and hesitant. ‘Did you send him after me?’
‘No!’ She vigorously shook her head. ‘Never. I would never betray you like that.’
He couldn’t be certain that would never happen in the future. But he was positive she hadn’t done so now. ‘Then why this needless worry about paying for your father’s wrongdoing?’
‘You said if I betrayed you that I would wish we’d never met.’
‘And I meant that. But I know without a single doubt that you haven’t done so.’
‘How? How can you be so certain?’
‘Since the day I found you, the few moments you have been out of my sight, Samuel and Fulke have watched you. When would you have conspired with your family? Not after I departed from Carlisle. You were in your chamber when the men and I left the courtyard. Shortly thereafter you were racing down the wharf. I assume you talked with King David before leaving?’
‘Yes. He doesn’t trust Osbert either and thought the idea of me coming to you with the warning was the best option.’
‘Of course he did.’ This was likely David’s way of ensuring this marriage he had arranged became validated quickly. ‘So, there wasn’t time for you to have planned anything with your brother, talk to the King and get to the dock before the last ship left.’
She visibly relaxed. Her body melted against him. ‘I was so worried.’
‘Needlessly.’ Elrik wrapped his arms about her. ‘What did you think I was going to do?’
‘Become angry. Shout at me. Set me aside.’
‘I was angry—most of that has vanished.’
‘Most?’
‘I told you to stay at Carlisle until my brothers arrived and you didn’t. So, yes, I was angry.’
Her cheek brushed against his chest as she nodded. ‘I know.’
‘Shouting at you would be a waste of my breath, since it only upsets you to the point of not listening.’
He kissed the top of her head. ‘And setting you aside is not what I have in mind for you this night, or any other. But first, we need to discover if your brother is on one of these ships.’
‘He isn’t on the one with the women.’
‘No, he wouldn’t be. I made sure I knew every crew member on the ship came from Roul.’
‘And I didn’t see him on this one either.’
‘Ah, that’s what you were looking for so intently yesterday when you studied the men on the ship before telling me what you wanted.’
‘Yes.’
‘So, he could be on one of the other four.’
A shiver rippled down her spine. He chased it with his hand, soothing it away. ‘Avelyn, you are out of his reach for now.’
‘I am not worried about me.’
Elrik laughed. ‘You worry about me?’
‘You don’t know him.’ She pushed herself up away from his chest. ‘He is evil.’
‘So is his father.’
‘True, but Osbert is sly and without any honour.’
And she thought her father had any honour? Not wanting to discuss Brandr, he didn’t make any comment. Instead, he asked, ‘Was he travelling alone?’
‘No. There were five other men with him in the courtyard.’
‘He’s on the original third or fourth ship.’
‘How do you know that?’
‘Because six men claiming to be from King David arrived late. Since I didn’t know them and neither did any of the men on my ship, I split them up, assigning half of them to each of those two ships.’
‘You don’t think they will try to sway your crews like my father did yours?’
‘Ah, more of the bits and pieces you’ve been told.’
‘Yes.’
‘No, I doubt they have your father’s ability to rouse men to go along with what scheme your brother has planned. Besides, the captains of those ships are King David’s men and will keep them in line.’
She folded her hands in front of her and looked down at them. ‘So, if they disobey an order, they’ll be punished.’
He frowned at the nervousness once again evident in her trembling voice. ‘Yes.’
‘Do I need to be punished for disobeying you by leaving Carlisle?’
Punish her? Did she think him that vile? He reached out to touch her chin, tipping her head up, he asked, ‘Where is this coming from?’
Her eyes filled with tears. ‘Elrik, I am sorry for what my father had done to you.’
What her father had done to him... They were no longer talking about his father’s act of treason. And he had the awful feeling someone had opened their mouth about something that had horribly frightened his wife.
Chapter Twelve
‘Avelyn, we need to put a few things to rest.’ He patted the spot next to him. ‘Come here.’
She moved off his lap to sit next to him and he slung his arm across her shoulders to pull her closer. ‘There isn’t anything you can’t tell me, nothing you can’t ask me.’
Her strange sound of disbelief—something between a huff and a snort—made him laugh, but he waited for her to respond.
‘What if it angers you?’
‘Then I get angry. I am not a saint, but I have never harmed a woman and I am not going to start doing so with my own wife. What do you fear I’ll do?’
‘My father—’
‘I am nothing like your father.’ If she feared setting off his rage, this was a good way to do so. This act of talking was not going to be easy. He had attacked fortified keeps with more ease than this. He took a breath to steady his temper. ‘No, I am not like your father. In the time you have known me, what have I done to make you think such a thing?’
She leaned away to look up at him, one brow arched high.
He had lost his temper and threatened to kill her father in King David’s chamber, but that was different. That was man to man. He reworded his question. ‘To you, Avelyn. What have I done to you?’
‘Nothing.’
‘What do you think I’ll do?’
She shrugged.
Elrik closed his eyes a moment, then looked down at her. ‘If we are to make any kind of peace between us, you need to talk to me. I can’t guess at your thoughts. I swear to you, nothing you say is going to change the fact that we are wed, nor will your words make me strike out at you. Talk to me, tell me what weighs so heavily on your mind.’
‘Did my father talk yours into going against King David?’
‘Yes, he did. Brandr managed to convince many of the older men to band together in an act of treason that had no chance of success.’
‘And you became caught up in it, too?’
‘My plan had been to make my father see reason. I failed miserably.’
‘So, when their attempt was thwarted, you paid the price.’
He’d already told her this. She had to be bringing it up again for a reason. ‘Yes, Gregor and I offered ourselves in our father’s place. King David required all four of us—Edan and Rory included when they came of age—to serve him exclusively in exchange for our father’s life.’
‘How could you have done so mere days after your father had been so...so cruel to you?’
Elrik knew two men who were going to pay heavily for having told her of this. ‘Do you think that’s what I’m going to do to you for not staying at Carlisle?’
He glanced down at her, but she was staring at her lap. Elrik wondered for a heartbeat if what he was about to do would help or hurt her worries. Never before had there been a reason to put on such a display, especially for a woman, but right now, she needed something. Since his words weren’t working, the only thing he could think of was to show her.
He leaned forward so she could see his back. ‘Avelyn, look at me.’
Her gasp seemed to echo in the confines of the makeshift chamber. Glancing over his shoulder, he sa
w horror and pain etched on her face. Her hand paused inches from his back. ‘They are just scars, that is all.’
A shiver rippled down his spine at her tentative light touch. ‘I am so sorry.’
The choked tone of her hushed voice fell against his heart. The feathery brush made him long to gather her close and chase away the guilt she bore for something not her fault.
‘You have nothing for which to be sorry.’
‘I am sorry for the part my father played in this mistreatment.’
Elrik leaned back against the pillows, admitting, ‘In all honesty, it had been a long time coming.’
‘How...?’ Her voice caught, but she swallowed and then tried again. ‘How did you bear it?’
‘Little dove, my father and I were at odds from the time I learned to walk. The older I got, the more I tested his patience. I was able to bear it, because I knew doing so would serve to enrage him more. I wasn’t about to let him break me. I’d not give him, or Brandr, that satisfaction.’
She pulled free of the arm he’d slung over her shoulders and threw herself against his chest. ‘Oh, Elrik, I am so sorry. I would never hurt you in so horrible a manner. I swear I will never betray you. I will never seek to harm you or your heart in any way. Never. I swear it.’
What the hell had those two said to her? Of course, she wouldn’t ever harm him like that...he narrowed his eyes. She would never seek to harm him or his heart in any way. His heart. Now why would she have said that? They wouldn’t have... No. He felt as if someone had just punched him in the stomach. He knew two high-ranking guards who were going to find themselves at the working end of an oar come morning.
Whether he wanted to or not, he needed to put a stop to this before it went any further. ‘Just what exactly did Samuel and Fulke tell you?’
Avelyn sat up slowly and looked into his eyes. He didn’t appear angry, at least she didn’t think so. Impatient? No, it was something else. Something she’d not seen before and couldn’t yet define.
Ask whatever she wanted... Did she want to know about his first wife? She’d got the impression that he’d cared deeply for her. What if the woman had hurt him so badly that he could never let himself care for her in the same way? Would she be able to live with his answer? Or would it be harder not to know?
