A cry in the distance interrupted my words. Shit, it sounded like an alarm.
“Come down!” I yelled.
The woods echoed with Fenris’s laugh. I felt like I’d just been dropped into the freezing waters of the Körmt river and set adrift. I wasn’t supposed to be here. Fenris wasn’t supposed to be here. Of all the stupid ideas I’d ever had—
A swirl of golden sparks filled the clearing, and another chorus of cries rose from the direction of Evenful.
“Who goes there!” someone shouted.
Fenris laughed again, but this time the laugh was softer. The sparks drifted upward, fading against the springtime sky’s bright constellations, and Fenris reappeared in his human form. I grabbed the sack of bread and Fenris’s wrinkled mess of clothes.
“Damn it,” I whispered. “That was fucking stupid of me.”
Cries rose from the woods behind me, followed by stamping feet along the road.
“Halt!’ the same voice called. “No fires allowed!”
Fenris snorted another laugh. I grabbed his arm.
“Come on!” I whispered. “We’ve got to hide!”
The sound of snapping twigs and harsh voices followed us as I tugged Fenris into the shadows. As silently as I could, I pulled him beneath the drifting branches of a willow tree. Fenris was still trying to control his laughter as I pressed him against the trunk of the tree.
“Who’s there!” the voice barked behind us.
“Ah, come off it,” slurred a second voice. “It’s the Strawberry Festival.”
There was a loud smack, and a flurry of voices raised all at once. Fenris’s chest shook against my arm.
“Shhhh!” I hissed.
“Why are we hiding?” he whispered.
“Quiet!”
I pressed myself into the shadow under the willow tree. Fenris’s body felt warm against my chest. We were so close I could feel the soft rush of his breath against my cheek. The awareness that he was completely naked rose inside me with an undeniable surge of heat.
The orange glimmer of firelight emerged from the far side of the clearing and a tall, older man appeared carrying a torch. He wore the helmet and sword of an Evenfel guard. Several moments later, two more guards staggered out of the woods, their torches wavering. The one on the left looked so drunk I worried he’d catch the trees on fire.
“Who’s here!” the older guard barked, holding his torch high.
I glanced at Fenris in the flickering torchlight. His pale eyes danced with laughter, and the corners of his lips twitched up. Without thinking, I raised my hand to cover his mouth. His lips were soft against my palm. Stars help me, all the blood in my brain started to drain downward. I shifted against Fenris’s leg, hoping to hide my growing arousal. A twig snapped under my heel.
“What’s that?” the guard cried, pointing the torch at our tree.
Fuck me! I sank my teeth into my bottom lip, trying to ignore the entirely inappropriate ache of desire pooling between my legs.
“Probably just some couple fucking,” the drunk guard said.
“Or squirrels,” the third guard added, with a snort of laughter. “Squirrels fuckin’.”
The older guard scowled and spat on the ground. At that moment, he looked just like Óðinn. My brief flicker of arousal vanished as though it had been doused with ice water.
“You are the most worthless, incompetent bastards I’ve ever had the misfortune of serving with,” the older guard cursed.
He sounded like my father, too.
The two drunk guards just laughed. “Strawberry Festival, boss,” one snorted.
With their torches wavering, the guards staggered back toward Evenfel. The older man swept his torch in one more wide circle before spitting again and then vanishing into the darkness.
Slowly, I removed my hand from Fenris’s lips. He laughed, tried to swallow it, then laughed again.
“Squirrels?” he whispered.
My own laughter rose without my volition, slipping from between my lips to spill across the glade. We laughed for a long time, our bodies still pressed together as the willow tree’s branches swept across our hair and backs.
“Seriously, though,” Fenris finally said, wiping his eyes. “Why’d we hide? I mean, you’re an Æsir, and I’m the fucking Fenris wolf. I think we could have taken them.”
I opened my mouth to respond and was struck by the sudden realization of how close he was. My arm was still wrapped around his chest. I could almost touch his lips. All I would have to do was lean forward, tilt my head—
I yanked myself back and smacked my head on a thick branch.
“Ah, fuck!” I yelled.
“You okay?” Fenris leaned forward.
I staggered out of the mess of tree branches and into the clearing, raising my hand to pat the back of my head. It stung, but I didn’t feel any blood seeping through my hair.
“I’m fine,” I said. “And we didn’t come here to fight. We came here for the—”
“Women?” Fenris said, with more than a touch of skepticism.
“Strawberry Festival,” I finished. “But, yeah. The women, too.”
Fenris gave me an odd sort of smile as he picked up the clothes I’d brought.
“They fill the fountain in the center of town with wine,” I said, babbling to distract myself from the way Fenris looked as he pulled the tight pants over his hips. “And everyone just goes crazy. The women, the men. You’ll see. Then, all the Evenfel babies born in late winter are called the strawberry babies.”
Fenris straightened and raised an eyebrow at me. Damn, the clothes looked good on him. Of course, just about anything would have looked good on him. Or nothing at all. I bit my lip again, trying to focus.
“You can’t honestly tell me you’ve lived in the Ironwood for this long, and you’ve never heard of the Strawberry Festival,” I finished.
“I guess my education’s been sadly incomplete,” he said, pulling on the front of his shirt as if it didn’t fit quite right. “That must be why I have you.”
I clapped him on the shoulder and returned his warm smile. Seeing Fenris in those tight pants was making it hard to concentrate on anything but the growing urgency between my legs. Damn it all, Fenris wasn’t the only one who needed to get laid. By the Nine Realms, I was going to fuck the stars out of the first willing woman I met tonight.
TEMPTING FENRIS WOLF: CHAPTER FOUR
Evenfel was well into the throes of the Strawberry Festival by the time Fenris and I walked through the gates. Two drunk soldiers waved us in, and the streets echoed with songs and cheers. Occasionally, we heard the softer, sweeter sounds of couples making love, their grunts and groans filling the night air.
The moon had risen in glory over the town, and its burnished silver outshone the torches flickering along the streets. There was still a band playing in the center of town, although by this hour they were admittedly rather out of tune, and several crowds of dancers spun in the moonlight. The gleaming white fountain in the square gurgled and sputtered with dark, fragrant liquid. I grabbed a wooden goblet from the cobblestones, wiped it out with the corner of my shirt, and handed it to Fenris.
“You first,” I said.
Fenris raised an eyebrow at me, took the goblet, and bent to fill it in the fountain’s base.
“Is it going to kill me?” he asked.
“Absolutely,” I answered.
He smiled at me as he raised the goblet to his lips. Fenris drank deeply, then pushed the goblet into my hands with a wince.
“Ugh!” he spat. “I’ve had some nasty wine in my life, but damn! That’s truly terrible!”
I raised the goblet to my own lips and drank deeply. The wine stung my lips and tongue, and it burned going down. I could already taste the stars-damned hangover this swill would cause.
“It’s the last of the year’s wine,” I said, with a cough. “This is how they get rid of it.”
I dunked the goblet in the fountain again and raised it toward Fe
nris.
“To your health,” I toasted.
“Drink too much of that, you’re going to need more than toasts to save your health,” he said.
I raised the goblet to my lips and drained it before I could think better of my poor life choices. Fenris watched me with a little half smile on his full lips. A surge of warmth filled my body, and my fingers felt strangely numb. The wooden goblet wobbled as I set it down on the edge of the fountain. The wine might taste like shit, but it did the job.
“Hey, boys!”
I turned to see a buxom blonde woman approaching us. Her cheeks and chest were flushed, and her wide eyes were glassy. Behind her, three other women stood in a tight knot, whispering and giggling. She’d said boys, but her gaze was fixed solely on Fenris. Not that I blamed her.
“Hello, my lady,” I said, giving her a sweeping bow which made my head buzz.
“Haven’t seen you here before,” she said, walking directly up to Fenris. She ran her fingers over the laces of his shirt.
Well. This was going to be easier than I’d thought.
I decided to leave Fenris to his fate, and I approached the other three women. Their eyes widened as I stepped closer. Two of them were visibly swaying. They all smelled like wine and rosewater, a heady combination.
“Hello, ladies,” I said, with another bow that left my head spinning. Apparently, the wine was a bit more potent than I’d expected.
They giggled as if I’d said something hilarious.
“This is my friend’s first time at the Strawberry Festival,” I said, glancing backward at Fenris.
The blonde had already grabbed his hand, and it looked like she was trying to pull him toward the band.
“His first time!” one of the drunker women gushed.
She grabbed the arm of her friend, a lanky brunette, and pulled her toward Fenris. I caught a brief glimpse of Fenris’s frown before the knot of women surrounded him.
“What’s your friend’s name?”
The last woman, a rather pleasant looking girl with very dark hair and a creamy complexion, was looking over my shoulder toward Fenris. She’s stepped close enough to run her fingers down my arm.
“Fenri—Fen,” I stammered.
“Fen?” She tilted her head to the side as if she’d misheard.
“He had strange parents.”
Her hand crept up to my shoulder. “And what about you?”
Stars, that touch felt good. I let myself inch closer to her, as if we were about to dance to the drunken twanging of the band.
“Me? Oh, very strange parents,” I muttered.
“No!” Fenris snapped from behind me.
I jumped and turned to see Fenris backing away from the women. The blonde was still gripping one of his arms, and the brunette had the other. They were smiling and giggling, but Fenris’s face had turned hard as stone. As I watched, he yanked his arm out of the blonde’s hand.
“No, thank you,” he said, firmly.
“Awwww, come on,” the brunette pleaded.
Shit. I turned to the woman standing in front of me, took her hand from my shoulder, and pressed it back against her side.
“Excuse me,” I said. “I have to see to my friend.”
She pouted, but I didn’t give her a chance to respond. I took a step toward Fenris just as the two women surged toward him again. Fenris raised his hands in front of his chest as if he were trying to protect himself, took a step backward, and hit the edge of the fountain. His arm wheeled out wildly as one of the women shrieked.
For a moment, I thought he might save himself. But then, slowly and almost elegantly, Fenris fell backward into the wine-filled fountain. The brunette came crashing down on top of him, and the courtyard echoed with a tremendous splash.
Fenris came up sputtering with wine streaking down his face. The brunette laughed so hard she gasped for air as her arm sagged around Fenris’s shoulders. She glanced up at me and reached out her hand, beckoning me closer. I touched her outstretched fingers. She grabbed my arm, looked at me with a wild gleam in her dark eyes, and pulled.
Normally, I’d like to think I could fend off an attack like that. But the cobblestones were slick with wine, and I had a fairly good buzz on. Besides, I wasn’t expecting to get pulled into the fountain.
I went over with a yelp and crashed directly into Fenris’s chest, knocking both of us back. Greasy wine sloshed over my head and filled my open mouth. Fenris’s lean body shifted beneath me, pushing me over as we both surfaced.
The courtyard was absolutely howling with laughter. The brunette who’d pulled me in was hanging onto the side of the fountain, her sides heaving as she laughed. The knot of women who’d first approached Fenris was almost doubled over, and the blonde was laughing so hard tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Great idea, this Strawberry Festival,” Fenris said from behind me.
I turned to apologize. Fenris had his back to the central fount and wine poured from the top over his hair and face. But he was smiling. At least until the brunette in the fountain lurched forward, reaching for him.
“Come on,” she slurred. “You gotta dance!”
Fenris’s smile wavered, and I took his hand.
“This way,” I said.
Together, we staggered out of the far side of the fountain and fled. The group of girls was still laughing too hard to follow us, and the brunette in the fountain couldn’t seem to figure out how to stand. Fenris and I slipped down a dark alley, our feet squelching across the cobblestones. I stopped as soon as the peals of laughter faded to wipe bad wine out of my eyes.
“Shit,” I said. “That’s not at all what I’d planned.”
Fenris’s smile had returned. “Really? Falling into the fountain of wine isn’t a traditional part of the Strawberry Festival?”
I peeled the sticky, wet fabric of my shirt from my chest, balled it up, and tossed it into the darkness. The fewer reminders of that fiasco, the better. When I turned back to Fenris, he was watching my movements with a strange, hungry fascination. The air between us suddenly felt heavy, as if there were a thunderstorm approaching.
“So, you didn’t like them?” I asked. “The girls? You didn’t want to dance?”
Fenris shook his head. Droplets of wine flicked to the stones beneath our feet. “No. I don’t dance.”
“Huh.” I tried to shake wine out of my ear. “But you do like girls?”
Fenris’s eyes flickered over me with that strange, hungry expression, then returned to stare at the cobblestones. His lean body rocked back and forth in the moonlight. “Yeah. Just...I didn’t like the way they smelled.”
“The way they smelled?”
Fenris pressed his lips together, then continued. “Look, if I’m going to be with a woman, I want her to smell like a woman. I don’t want it to smell like I’m sticking my tongue down a flower.”
That made me laugh so hard I worried I’d wake the town if there was anyone still sober enough to be woken by loud noises. I watched Fenris’s gaze shift to me, then away, then back to me again. Suddenly, another explanation for his odd behavior surfaced in my mind.
“Have you ever been with a woman?” I asked.
“Yeah.” Fenris shrugged. “I’ve been trained.”
Of course. It was so easy to forget Fenris had been raised by a royal family. Angrboða of all people would have made sure to hire madams to train her son in the arts of seduction.
Fenris looked up, and the moonlight caught in his eyes. A dark bead of wine worked its way down his temple to streak across his cheek. He looked wild, and lovely, and suddenly very lonely.
“Have you ever been with a man?” I asked. My voice sounded odd, as if I’d just run the length of the city.
Fenris nodded again. This time, his eyes didn’t leave mine. Óðinn’s words surfaced in my mind again, don’t scare him away, but the desperate echo of that warning wasn’t nearly enough to rein in my body.
I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his.
/> Fenris’s body stiffened. Immediately, I yanked myself away.
“Shit,” I stammered. “I’m sorry. I didn’t—I mean, if you don’t want—”
Fenris blinked in the moonlight. Another droplet of wine began to trace its way down his forehead.
“I’ll go.” I took a step backward. “I’ll just...go.”
“Wait.” Fenris looked at me with wide eyes. “Please.”
I froze. In the stillness between us, the drop of wine tracked across Fenris’s brow and began to drop toward his temple. Stars, I wanted to brush it away. My hand twitched; I forced myself to hold still. To breathe.
Fenris’s expression softened. He stepped forward, closing the distance between our bodies. I could smell his wine-soaked clothes. I could almost feel the heat rising off his body. He leaned toward me, closed his eyes, and brushed his lips against mine.
My heart hammered against my breastbone, but I didn’t dare respond. I let his lips caress mine so gently it felt like a dream. He inhaled, pulling breath from the spaces between us, and rocked backward. His pale eyes opened.
“Týr.” He made my name sound like an invocation.
I let myself take a shaky breath. He was so close that, as my ribcage rose, I brushed against his chest.
“I’ve been wanting that for months,” Fenris said.
Stars help me, I laughed. It wasn’t the right response, and I knew it, but I couldn’t stop myself. The surge of relief flooding my body was so sudden, so powerful, I felt like my legs might collapse.
I laughed, and I reached for Fenris’s shoulders, and I laughed again. He laughed with me. Then his arms wrapped around me, and my hands were in his wet hair, and our lips found each other again.
This time, I didn’t hold back. I met his kiss with my own ferocity, with all the longing I’d felt for months, all the nights I laid awake in my bed, trying not to think of him as I caressed myself. All the times I’d told myself it was impossible, he wasn’t interested, I’d just fuck things up between us if I tried.
His mouth opened for me, and I sank into him, exploring him, tasting him. Fenris pushed back, and I staggered on the slick cobblestones until my shoulder blades met the solid wood of the building behind me. His hips shoved against mine. I moaned into his mouth as I felt, for the first time, the hard length of his manhood against my skin.
The Complete Fenris Series Page 3
