“He is,” I chuckled and petted the little blue dragon’s head. “Let’s get your plate fixed.”
I started to pull the food off the fire, and Eira watched me curiously.
“You made the dragons the same food you made us?” she asked.
“Yes.” I nodded. “They eat just as much as an adult, and they’ve grown accustomed to my cooking. They wouldn’t eat anything else if I tried.”
“And why should they.” The redhead smiled. “Not when your cooking smells so delicious. I thought the girls here were giving you too much credit, but it really does smell wonderful.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I’ve had a long time to perfect a few recipes.”
Eira watched me closely as I prepared everyone’s plates, and I couldn’t help but feel nervous under her gaze. Every move I made seemed clumsy as my sweaty hands tried to work as quickly as they usually did.
She didn’t seem to notice, though, and I made sure to give her a plate before anyone else. She was our guest, after all.
Once everyone had their food, we all grew quiet. Blar and Inger ate quickly and messily as usual while Uffe carefully and methodically ate his dinner.
I poured myself and each of the girls a pint of mead to go with dinner, and then we all dug in.
The flavors hit my mouth, and my eyes closed with satisfaction. Then I realized why everyone was so quiet. The herbs the woman at the market had sold me really had added a nice flavor to the meal, and the Kingsbird meat melted in my mouth like the delicacy it was.
Inger and Blar were finished eating first, and after they were done the two of them stretched and laid down by the fire. Their little bellies were plump and full from them stuffing their faces, and Eira laughed when she noticed them.
“Is that how they always eat?” she asked. “Do you ever feed them, Rath? They must have been starving.”
I smiled at Eira’s joke and reached down to poke Blar’s round little belly.
“They’re absolutely starved all the time,” I assured her in a teasing tone.
“Perhaps they need to play to burn off some of their supper,” Eira suggested. “I seem to recall Blar being a little fighter.”
“He is.” I nodded and smiled. “Blar, what do you say?”
The little blue dragon opened one eye, looked at Eira, and then closed it again.
“Oh,” the redhead said with a condescending nod. “I didn’t figure you for a coward, but I suppose since you’re so small and all…”
Blar shot up and narrowed his eyes at the redhead, and I tried to stifle a smirk.
Eira knew exactly what she was doing. Unlike a lot of people, she seemed to understand just how smart dragons were, and her plan to get under Blar’s skin had worked.
“How about a sparring match?” Eira asked with a smile.
Blar nodded and flew out into the yard.
It was quite dark out at that point, but the light of the fire was enough to see by. Eira was always so serious, I was honestly surprised she was acting so playful with the dragons, but I didn’t dare say a word.
“Try and get me,” the redhead said as she held up her hands and smiled at the little blue lizard.
Blar narrowed his eyes and dove down at Eira, but the redhead was quick, and she dodged him and rolled out of the way only to land on her feet a few meters away.
Blar turned around and shook his head as if he were trying to clear it to focus. I could tell he wasn’t actually angry at all, he was happy to play and be able to prove his skills. Neither of them were trying to harm each other, but it was fun to watch as they dove and dodged one another.
The little dragon hadn’t realized what a great warrior Eira was, but she countered him well, and he was very clearly enjoying himself.
Inger flew over to join in as well. The red dragon immediately teamed up with Blar, and the two of them tried to capture Eira.
After a few moments, Uffe ran over and joined Eira’s team. He pulled up small, soft balls of dirt from the ground and tossed them at Blar and his twin playfully.
Eira’s muscles tensed as she dove and ran, and her skirt spun around her legs and revealed even more of her muscular thighs. It was a beautiful sight to watch, and I couldn’t peel my eyes off her.
“She’s quite the warrior, isn’t she,” Kas murmured as she cast me a knowing smirk.
“She is.” I nodded.
The four of them played like that for a while until finally they all collapsed on the grass and panted. I laughed at their antics and walked over to retrieve them.
“Come on,” I chuckled. “I think you’ve burned off your dinner. It’s probably time for a nap.”
“I hope I didn’t tire them out too much,” Eira said as she grabbed my hand so I could pull her up.
“Not at all,” I said, but as she stood up, her body brushed against mine for a split second, and a fire lit up on every inch she’d touched.
Eira’s green eyes held mine as she squeezed my palm, and we stayed there for a moment and just stared at each other.
The redhead’s lips parted slightly, and I heard her breathing grow shallower.
I wanted to lean in and kiss her right then, but I was extremely aware of the dragons around us and the girls by the fire. Kas and Asta had been watching us all night, and I knew that right then wouldn’t be any different. I could feel their eyes on me, so I slowly let go of Eira’s hand and took a step back.
“We should get back to the fire,” I said. “Dessert is ready.”
“Oooh.” Eira smiled. “Dinner and dessert. You went all out for me, didn’t you?”
“What’s a meal without dessert?” I chuckled.
“I couldn’t agree more,” the redhead purred, and she looked me up and down.
I swallowed under her gaze, but then Blar’s feet hit my thigh, and I looked down to see his blue eyes staring at me. He’d heard me say the word dessert, and he wasn’t about to wait any longer for it.
“Alright,” I said. “Let’s go get you some dessert, too.”
Blar, Inger, and Uffe ran over to the fire, but Eira and I walked slowly and took our time.
“It’s interesting how different they are,” the redhead said as we watched the little dragons run.
“Yeah.” I nodded. “Asta’s homeworld has dragons that look like Inger and Uffe, but I haven’t seen one that looks like Blar yet.”
“Perhaps he is the only one of his kind.” She shrugged.
“How is that possible?” I asked. “He has to at least have a mother and a father.”
“Dragon eggs can lay dormant for many years,” she told me. “He could very well be the last of his kind.”
I frowned at the thought of it, but I also knew the warband leader could be right. Nidhug had a similar body shape to Blar’s, but he was an ancient creature. Ramir had said he was alive before the nine realms were created.
Even if that was the case, though, I would do whatever I could to bring dragons back to Asgard and find Blar’s original homeland. I wanted him to be able to see other dragons like himself one day.
“I hope I didn’t upset you,” Eira said, and she bit her lip slightly. It was the most emotional I’d ever seen her, and I couldn’t help but smile in return.
“No, you’re right,” I said. “It just wasn’t something I’d considered until now.”
“I see.” The warband leader pursed her lips. “Even if he is the last of his kind, he still has family, and that is all anyone can ask for.”
Eira’s green eyes twinkled in the firelight as she smiled softly at me, and I knew she meant I was Blar’s family, and she was right, but I didn’t think she knew just how much her words meant to me.
I’d never had a family of my own, so to have one now was a dream come true. I had three adorable and fierce little dragons and two beautiful and talented sorceresses who depended on me, and it was a feeling I never wanted to let go of.
And now, here I was with the woman I’d pined after for so long. I wasn’t the b
est at picking up on subtleties, but right then Eira was being anything but subtle. It was clear she desired me, and I reflected that desire right back at her.
The warband leader was intelligent, fierce, and absolutely breathtaking. Even before tonight, I’d always found her attractive, but the dress she wore and the way her hair was done, everything about her was perfection. I wanted so badly to reach out and brush my thumb across her full bottom lip, but I contained myself. There were too many eyes on us, and while the girls had given me their blessing, I didn’t exactly want to put on a show for them.
Eira and I made our way over to the fire, and I dished up dessert plates for everyone while Asta asked the warband leader more and more silly questions. My favorite was “What’s it like being in charge of a group of men?” to which Eira had responded, “Filthy and smelling of body odor, next question.”
Her reply made me laugh out loud because I knew it to be incredibly true. All the men in our warband had never seemed to care about personal hygiene, and I couldn’t imagine that had changed much in my absence.
I never understood how they could so carelessly run around smelling of feet and sweat, especially not with Eira as our leader. I could understand more if we’d had a male leader, but Eira was so beautiful, I always wanted to do my best and look my best around her. And that included my smell.
We had a few more glasses of mead while Asta asked Eira questions, and after a while I looked down to see Uffe curled up near the redhead’s feet.
It took me by surprise at first. Uffe was so shy, and Eira was usually so standoffish, but the little dragon had run to her aid when Blar and Inger had teamed up against her. It seemed he really liked her.
I suspected he could sense her great respect and admiration for him. I’d said before Eira was difficult to impress, but the dragons didn’t seem to have a problem with that at all.
The redhead was absolutely taken with the little lizards. She rubbed their heads and scratched their backs whenever they came close enough for her to reach them. Even then, her foot absentmindedly stroked Uffe’s stomach as he slept.
The stars were out, and I realized at some point we’d been talking for hours. Eira was a lot of fun outside of battle, and I’d found her to be quite humorous and playful, which was something I hadn’t expected.
“It’s late,” Eira said when she caught me staring at the sky. “I should get going.”
“Oh, do you have to?” Asta pleaded. “Can’t you stay for one more glass of mead?”
“I’m afraid not,” the redhead chuckled. “We are off to battle early tomorrow, I really should get some rest.”
“It was lovely spending time with you,” Kas told her with a warm smile.
“Likewise.” Eira locked eyes with me. “We’ll have to do this again soon.”
“I’d like that,” I told her.
“Good.” She smiled in the sexiest way and then stood up. “But right now I really should get going.”
“Let me at least walk you to the road,” I offered.
“I insist you do.” The redhead flashed me a toothy grin, and I heard Asta and Kas giggle behind me.
I ignored the girls as I walked with Eira toward the tree line that led to the road, and once we hit the cobblestone street a half a mile or so away, we both paused and looked at each other. Her green eyes bored into mine, and my heart rate spiked for the hundredth time that evening.
Her plump pink lips parted slightly as her eyelids grew heavy, and I reached my hands out tentatively and placed them on her waist.
The redhead wrapped her hand around the back of my neck and pulled me down to her so my mouth was mere inches away from her own.
I inched closer to her, and I could feel her breath against my lips. Her body was tense under my touch, and even though I wasn’t bonded with her, I could sense the intensity of her desire.
I closed my eyes and leaned forward.
My lips had barely touched Eira’s when a shock of electricity ran through my body, and my desire spiked. She opened her mouth for me, but then the sound of swords clashing cut through the air, and my eyes shot open as my hand went toward my blade.
So much for a goodnight kiss.
Chapter 19
Eira was alert now, too, and before I knew it, the redhead had a dagger in her right hand.
We both glanced around to try and find the source of the noise, but just then a loud eruption of laughter came from around the corner.
Eira glanced over at me with her red eyebrows pulled together, but I just shook my head. That wasn’t typical for the area around my home, but we’d walked close enough to the city to be within an hour or so of walking from downtown. I had absolutely no idea what was going on around the corner.
It seemed we were about to find out, though.
The laughter grew louder, and another loud clank sounded. A few seconds later, a large dark-haired man with a long beard stumbled around the grove corner with a leather pouch in one hand and his sword in the other.
The man put the drink pouch to his mouth and took a long, messy pull so the alcohol spilled down his beard. After he finished, he laughed loudly and slammed his sword on the ground, which only made him laugh louder.
“Irmen, you fucker,” another man slurred through his laughter as he and four others came around the corner.
The men were clearly drunk and had wandered out this way mistakenly. I wasn’t sure where they were headed, but nobody lived close to me except my one older woman neighbor, and I doubted they were here to see her.
Whatever they were doing out here, they needed to leave. I didn’t want some drunken arseholes running around my neighborhood all hours of the night.
Upon closer inspection of the men, I knew I’d seen a couple of them before. They were in another warband. I didn’t know them well, but I’d seen them around a few times.
“It’s just some drunken arseholes,” I muttered, and I relaxed my stance a little bit.
“I see that.” Eira’s nose wrinkled as the men continued to clank their swords against each other and on the ground.
My nose wrinkled, too. That really wasn’t good for the blades.
“I think you should stay for a while longer,” I said. “At least until they’re out of the area.”
“I really should get home,” the redhead countered.
“Then I’ll walk you,” I told her.
Before she could respond, one of the guys yelled at us, and my hand instinctively tightened around my sword handle.
“Heeeey,” the lean blond man slurred. “You’re fuckin’ sexy, you know that?”
Eira’s eyebrow twitched with slight amusement. She clearly didn’t find this man to be a threat, but her face showed irritation as well, and she obviously wasn’t used to being talked to in such a way.
I realized the men didn’t recognize the redhead without her warband clothes and armor on. Most men in warbands knew the leaders of the other groups, but Eira was dressed well and looked nothing like she usually did.
If these guys knew who she was, there was no way they’d talk to her like that. I knew Eira was more than capable of taking these guys out all on her own.
Still, when he said that I felt my blood boil. My jaw tensed, and I fought the urge to stab my blade through the man’s chest.
“And you’re being quite an arsehole,” Eira said, and she put her hand on her hip. “You know that?”
“Whoaaaa,” the man laughed. “She’s feisty. The redheaded ones always are. I like that.”
“You all should leave,” I said through gritted teeth as I took a step in front of Eira.
“Who the fuck are you?” a short brown-haired man with the group asked.
I growled and moved to step forward again, but Eira put her hand on my chest to stop me.
“You all are lucky you are in my friend’s warband,” the redhead said seriously. “Now, run on home, boys, and perhaps I won’t tell your leader about this.”
“Who does this bikkja thin
k she is?” the blond man laughed.
His use of the derogatory term only flamed my desire to make him bleed, but I respected Eira enough to allow her to decide how we would handle the situation. She was right, these men were in another warband, and I knew there was more at play here than just my emotions. Her job and title could depend on how she behaved under the circumstances.
She could choose to ignore the men and report them to their leader later, or she could choose to deal with them right then. Either way, I was ready for whatever she chose.
“I said run along, boys,” Eira repeated, clearly annoyed, but not bothered by the term as much as I was. “I really don’t want to have to get blood on my dress.”
“Oooh, we’re so scared,” the blond man snickered, and he waltzed up to us.
I took another small step in front of Eira and raised my chin at the man.
His eyes were half closed with drunkenness, but I didn’t like the way he was eyeing Eira.
“Get out of my way, boy,” he scoffed. “I’m speaking to the lady, here.”
“The lady,” I growled through gritted teeth. “Told you to move along. I suggest you listen.”
“Pshh,” the guy blew me off and tried to push past me.
I wanted to respect Eira’s wishes in the situation, but if it came down to it, then I would take the fall for taking down these arseholes.
Before I could even think about it, I swung my leg out and took the guy’s legs out from under him at the same time that I used my arm to push his body down.
He hit the cobblestone street hard, and his fellow men shouted angrily about my abuse of their friend.
Eira’s green eyes caught mine. It didn’t appear these guys were going to let this go, so at the moment we had no choice but to fight. The redhead didn’t seem too disappointed about it, though. She nodded to me before she flipped her knife in her hand so the blade was pointed downward and could be used for slicing.
“Ready?” she asked with a smile.
“Ready.” I smiled back.
“Oh, one more thing,” the redhead said so only I could hear. “Try not to kill them, will ya? We’re already running low on soldiers.”
“You got it,” I laughed.
Dragons of Asgard 2 Page 29
