He seemed so proud and determined and unlike any man she’d ever met. The cloud of bitterness and anger that had hung over Kadlin began to fade. She glanced up at the Viking, and it was as if she was only now able to see him clearly. She studied the sharp angles of his face and realized how truly handsome he was. His eyes were as green as the pines, and when she looked into them she felt bared.
Kadlin drew in a deep breath and his blazing stare dropped to her breasts. His biceps flexed as his angry grip loosened and he began to massage her flesh. The feel of his big hands on her was exhilarating, and the fire in his eyes was even more so. Something deep inside Kadlin stirred. The place between her trail-sore thighs throbbed with a much sweeter ache. She looked over his bare chest and flat belly. The taut skin was cut through with sharp valleys between the muscles. She could not stop herself. She reached out and touched him. She swept her palm over one side of his chest, and the tiny nipple puckered and hardened beneath her hand. She looked up at him. He was staring into her but made no move to stop her. His expression remained stone-like, but his breaths came quicker and she felt his heartbeat galloping in his chest.
She was emboldened by the knowledge that she had sway over the giant. She glanced down and saw that his manhood had grown hard and pushed out the front of his trousers. The corner of her mouth jerked upward, and she met his gaze again.
The Viking’s eyes narrowed. His hands still rested on her shoulders. She touched the tip of her finger to his breastbone and began trailing downward. Breaking his resolve became her sole focus.
When she’d nearly reached the center of his belly, he said, “Stop.”
Kadlin knew that she was playing a dangerous game and the stakes excited her. She blinked up at him with mock innocence while she circled his navel with her finger. He grabbed her wrist and dragged her to the fire circle. He sat down on a saddle and pulled her downward until she knelt beside him. He untied the belt that held her leather pouch and tossed it aside. The place between her legs pulsed and grew wet when she thought that she’d soon be straddling him, sliding up and down on his hard rod.
Instead, the Viking pulled her across his lap, face-down with her stomach on his thighs and Kadlin realized that he meant to discipline her for baiting him. Her heartbeat thundered and heat gathered between her legs at the thought of it. She felt his erection against her side and understood that he would enjoy the task. He laid one forearm across her shoulder blades then yanked her tunic up and her trousers down until her bare backside was covered only by sky. With no preamble at all, he brought down his hand on one round cheek, and the loud slap stirred the birds from the trees. The sting was immediate and exquisite. She looked over her shoulder at him. Desire blazed through her body and must have shown on her face because his hand came down again and again.
“Gods, yes!” she cried.
His hand remained on her hot skin for a moment.
“More?” he asked in a near whisper. He was breathless, and she couldn’t tell if it was from the effort of the spanking or the lust it fueled.
“More,” she begged and turned her face toward the ground.
His palm came down three more times, and with each blow, the contact inched closer to her tingling sex. Heat spread across her buttocks and into her most tender place. She didn’t think she could bear another stroke. He raised his arm again.
“Please stop, Bjorn,” she whimpered and realized she was crying.
He gently laid his palm on her and petted the hot flesh with a feather-light touch. He leaned over and blew on the punished skin. He lifted his arm from her back and reached into her tunic. He fondled her breast as the hand on her backside dropped to the hot, wet place between her thighs. He cupped and massaged the tingling mound while he pinched her nipple into a tight peak. When she moaned, he jerked her to her feet and stood her up in front of him, facing away. He pushed the hem of her tunic into her hands and she held the fabric up around her waist. He blew again, and she shivered. He kissed one burning cheek then the other.
“Turn,” he commanded.
Kadlin turned around, and her dewy sex was inches from his face. He ran his hands down her thighs, pushing her trousers to the ground. They puddled at her ankles, and she let go of her hem to steady herself on his bare shoulders. As soon as she’d stepped free of her shoes and trousers, he eased her closer. This time when he breathed out a stream of air, it ruffled her curls and caused her hardening little bud to press through the glistening lips.
“Bjorn,” she breathed.
He planted a kiss at the center of the curls and moved one hand between her quivering thighs. He slid a calloused fingertip back and forth over the divide of her throbbing lips, all the while kissing the soft mound.
He parted her flesh and slowly pushed his finger into her at the same moment drawing her hardened jewel into his mouth. He licked at her juices and probed her hot canal. Kadlin’s legs trembled, but she was afraid to move, afraid that he would stop his glorious exploration.
“So wet, so sweet,” he muttered against her sex.
Kadlin cried out at the vibration of his words. He slid his finger from her and pulled her to her knees before him, her hands resting on his parted thighs. The Viking guided her fingers to the top of his trousers, and she tugged at the worn fabric, eager to see what lay beneath.
He held her eyes with his until he was free of his clothing then she looked down. His huge rod stood hard, nearly brushing his flat belly. Kadlin licked her lips. She wanted to touch and taste the rigid flesh. She was greedy for it. She reached out and brushed her thumb over the velvety head, smearing it with the bead of excitement that had escaped the tip. She wrapped one hand around the hard shaft, and when she saw that her fingers could barely enclose its girth, fresh juices flowed from her in anticipation. She was enchanted and lovingly traced each ridge and vein. The Viking’s breath came faster now, and the head swelled, blushing to the loveliest shade of purple.
Leaning forward, Kadlin took the hot plum in her mouth, and the Viking growled. He laced his fingers into her hair and massaged her scalp has she licked and sucked and stroked him. His obvious pleasure fed her, and she took him deeper into her throat. The Viking moaned, hooked his hands under her arms and lifted her mouth to his.
The kiss was all-consuming. Kadlin was lost in the sensation of his full lips pressing hard against hers and of the scent and taste of her juices. He crushed her against him and pulled her up so he could maneuver his legs between hers. He slid off of the saddle and leaned back against it, lowering her onto his lap so his steely rod stood upright between them, its underside grazing her curls.
Kadlin ground into him, and their expectant moans mingled on their lips. The place where their bodies touched was now slick with her cream. Kadlin was the first to pull away. Panting, she looked into his eyes and begged, “Please Bjorn. Please!”
The Viking needed no more provocation. He dug his fingers into her still-stinging buttocks and lifted her to her knees. She reached between them and positioned his rock-hard member at her opening. A momentary doubt flashed through her mind as she measured his girth in her hand. Her need and his command obliterated her hesitation. He forcefully pulled down her hips and impaled her onto him, filling her to the limit and causing her to cry out in pleasure and pain. She steadied herself on his shoulders as he guided her up and down in a manic dance. His thickness stretched her opening so that her nub was teased with every stroke. He turned over the reins to her, and she used her knees and aching thighs to continue the feverish pace.
With his hands now free, the Viking yanked her tunic over her head. Her breasts bounced with each stroke. He grabbed them and roughly kneaded the yielding flesh. He sucked one nipple into his mouth while he pinched the other. Kadlin’s attention was torn between the sharp pleasure-pain radiating from her breasts to the aching ecstasy between her legs. She dug her nails into his shoulders, and he sucked harder, causing a white flash of desire to explode in her brain. She moved one hand to the back of his head, grasped his braids and yanked hard. His lips left her breast, and he roared in frustration. She kissed him hard then pressed his face back to her chest, and he slurped in the pink bud again.
Now, Kadlin’s breathing was frantic, and each exhalation was an audible moan. Her hips moved faster, and Bjorn sucked harder. He removed his hand from her breast and brought it down on her tender behind with a sharp slap. The wave of sensations crashed over her, and Kadlin cried out in release, her body clamping down over Bjorn’s. She squeezed down around him, and felt his wet heat pump into her.
Spasms rocked her as her focus drifted outward from the place where their bodies met. She slumped against his sweat-slicked chest and nuzzled his neck. He lovingly stroked her back, and she melted under his touch. He pulled her to him then slid his body until he was flat on his back and she was lying against his chest, her legs intertwined with his.
She was beginning to drift off when he spoke. “I cannot deliver you to the jarl now.”
“Why? Because we have lain together? You said the jarl would not want me in his bed. He need never know.”
Bjorn stroked her hair and planted a kiss on her forehead. “No, dear one, I cannot deliver you to the jarl because now you are mine.”
“Is that so?” she whispered against his chest.
“It is so. And I am yours.”
The sound of his voice fell over her like a soft blanket. She would no longer be an unwanted responsibility or an unwelcomed stranger. Her life did not have to be reduced to payment for someone else’s bad decision. In the Viking’s embrace and in his words, she found the promise of a better future. She would belong to him and he would belong to her.
Kadlin played her fingertips over his body. “And what of your debt?”
“I will have to tell the jarl that you escaped, and that will make me responsible for your uncle’s debt, as well. I’ll be at least another year in the old man’s service and will have to sail again as he commands. When I return, I can start my life as a free man. You will wait for me.”
“Oh, will I?” she teased.
Bjorn flipped her onto her back and pinned her arms above her head, catching her wrists in one enormous hand. He kissed her hard then invaded her mouth with his tongue. He pushed open her legs with his own then reached down to massage her bruised sex. She struggled against him, glad that she could not free herself. His rod stiffened again against the soft flesh of her inner thigh.
Oh gods, yes,
she thought. His power over her was exhilarating. He pushed his fingers inside of her and ground her hard little pearl beneath his thumb. She moaned against his mouth, and her hips began to buck against his hand. Her body raced again towards sweet release. He read her movements and quickened the pace of his marauding fingers. She jerked her head to the side and called out his name. In a moment, he was inside her, plunging deep into her wet, aching sex. She wrapped her legs around his thick thighs and was consumed in a fury of grinding hips and desperate cries.
He let go of her hands, and she reached down to grab his glorious haunches. Kadlin was a bundle of shuddering nerves, and she thought she couldn’t bear another thrust, but he pushed into her over and over. Impossibly, her body began to climb again.
She felt wild and wicked and completely without shame as she demanded, “More, Viking! More—”
He quieted her with another possessive kiss, and they exploded together.
He rolled on his back and pulled her to his chest. When she had caught her breath and his heartbeat had slowed beneath her cheek, he spoke. “You will wait for me.”
“Yes, Viking, I will wait for you.” She closed her eyes and slid into a fathomless sleep.
* * * *
Her stomach woke her, and it, no doubt, had been roused by the scent of roasting meat. She rolled up on one elbow and watched Bjorn as he crouched naked by the fire, turning the skewered rabbits over the flames. There were four roasting, and she thought she could eat them all herself. It wasn’t until she sat up that she realized she’d been covered by his cloak. She stood and wrapped it around her shoulders. Their clothes were draped over a branch, smoothed out and drying. She smiled when she understood that he’d washed them while she’d slept.
He laughed at her as she walked toward the fire.
“What’s so funny, you big bear?” she asked.
“You look as though you’ve been well laid, imp.”
“Well laid and starving,” she replied.
He stood and a shiver traveled up her spine at the beauty of him. He peeled the cloak from her shoulders, shook off the dust and draped it on the branch near the drying clothes. He looked her over then took her hand.
“And you’re in need of a bath,” he said, leading her toward the stream. She looked down at her body. Every inch of skin was covered with sweat-streaked dirt. She reached up and touched her hair, it was a disheveled nest of snarls. He led her into the cool water, and when it reached her breasts, he stopped. He lovingly washed her neck and shoulders, massaging away the soreness in her muscles as he worked.
“Wash your face,” he said softly. She leaned forward and scrubbed. When she stood again, he washed each arm from fingertips upward, then he turned her and rubbed the grime from her back and hips. He reached around and ran his fingers over her collarbones and down over her bobbing breasts. She leaned back into him, sighing at his touch. She’d never felt more adored. He slid his hands under her arms and walked backward. “Lie back,” he said, and while she floated, he stroked her legs and feet clean. He turned her slowly in the water until the top of her head was against his chest. He massaged her scalp and worked the tangles from her hair with his fingers. Her ears were under the surface of the water, and her satisfied moans sounded far off. She looked up at the bright blue sky and the pure white clouds. When he bent to kiss her, she felt as though she’d tasted Valhalla.