Viking's Love (54 page)

He approached and was relieved she smiled,
and that her attitude wasn’t directed at him. His eyes met hers in
concern and he sat. He always knew when Allisande was bothered, and
she was definitely bothered by something. He was ravenous to deal
with another’s problems, given the nature of his own these
days.

“
I know that look, Sister,” he said
gently and sat back and eyed her knowingly. “You have no one else,
and I am here, and always your champion, so out with
it.”

“
You do not want to know,” Allisande
whispered and shuddered despite her best intentions to not react to
her dilemma. “It is the worst thing that could have
happened.”

“
Now you really must tell me,” Collin
said low, his violet eyes flaring in concern and his hand covered
hers. “What is troubling you?”

“
I am with child, and I cannot be
certain the father,” she said forlornly and met his horrified gaze
with a shudder of revulsion. “I do not want it!”

Collin’s face darkened with rage as he
thought of how pleased Robert Fitzhugh would be to know he had his
heir of Allisande. His lips tightened but he kept his expression
bland for her sake. Inwardly, he was disgusted that his sister had
to endure more pain after her time at Ulsted.

“
Have you told Joran of this?” He saw
her stiffen and he put his hand over hers and gripped her hand
tightly. “You must tell him, Allisande! I have moments where I
still hate the man, but I know he adores you. This isn’t fair of
you to keep this from him. He likely expected it knowing his
penchant for thinking the worst.”

“
I cannot! I won’t have him look at me
in disgust when I grow big with Robert’s child. I would just assume
he thought it was his.” She flinched from the look of distaste her
brother flung at her.

“
I have no right to throw judgment at
anyone, certainly,” Collin said harshly. “But it is wrong what you
think to do! He will understand, Allisande. He holds no blame
towards you for Ulsted’s actions! We discussed it on the road to
rescue you. He said he would have you back no matter what you
endured. This is all part of that! You lie to him after everything
we have all been through, and I will tell him myself!”

Allisande met his gaze and knew he meant what
he said. She grimaced and looked down at her hands and he could see
she was struggling with it.

“
I mean what I say, Allisande,” Collin
said tautly. “He deserves far better from you than this lie you
concoct! I saw the damn Berserker cry when he found you! I bet that
doesn’t happen often, mayhap I will ask Ivar.”

“
No, you are right,” Allisande said and
tears filled her eyes. “It is none of our faults, and even less the
child’s. I did not know what to do. I will tell him the truth, I
swear it!”

Joran returned from his mission in Oslo and
found his wife lecturing the serfs upon his return. They knew her
to not be crazed by now. She spoke to them about what she expected
and gave instructions on the meals. She knew them all by name. She
listened to their concerns and each one was given duties to be
performed each day, and they went about the tasks she assigned them
without argument. They had a sense of purpose now, and the house
was run far more efficiently with her management. She saw his
approach, and she smiled tentatively. He was relieved she wasn’t
sore about not being able to go with him into Oslo.

“
Was your business successful?” She
brought him a tankard of ale and a snack of bread and cheese to
tide him over until the meal.

Joran smiled and nodded, and she could see by
his look he had something of import to tell, so she sat eagerly and
awaited his words as he nibbled at the snack with relish. He eyed
her with a grin and a twinkle in his eye. “I discovered what our
Meghera may be,” Joran said and chuckled as he sipped his ale.

“
What is she?”

“
She is likely from a powerful tribe of
fairies that was in the way of human colonization, called
Embhides,” he said and grew thoughtful. “The mystic said they were
thought to be eradicated before Christ. A number of them went into
hiding as humans, and it is said that they grow more powerful over
time as they age. They are not evil, but peace-loving, and
protectors of nature. She is immortal, Allisande.”

“
Do we tell Collin?”Allisande said with
despair. “Will you tell her all you have learned?”

Joran gave her a look that said he did not
think Collin worthy of Meghera, and she bit her tongue. Whatever
their thoughts, she was still his wife.

“
He hasn’t stopped his whoring since we
arrived!” Joran snapped angrily. “The man hasn’t spent one night
here, and according to Terek, he is plowing his way through the
brothels with no thought of his wife at all. Nay, I will not tell
him. Meghera needs to learn to accept what she is first. My first
thoughts are for her.”

“
But she is his wife!”Allisande
whispered fiercely and shook her head. “I am not proud of how my
brother is handling his waiting for Meghera to grow up either, but
I do believe he cares for her. He has told me so, and I believe
him. I think the problem may be he doesn’t feel he is worthy of her
because she has these powers. He does care for her!”

“
He has an odd way of showing it,”
Joran said and shook his head. “I think if he comes back for her in
five years, I will tell him. I don’t think a marriage between them
possible in light of this, Wife. She is not human. He refuses to
see it, even now, knowing what he already does.”

“
Very well, I will not argue he brought
this about with his behavior, but I know my brother well, and he
will be here in five years, Joran. He will come back for her. He
doesn’t care what she is! She is his wife, and that will bring him
back here!”

“
We shall see,” Joran said and the look
in his eyes said he did not believe it. “In the meantime, we have a
very powerful force to contain in your sister-in-law, one who wants
to burn your brother’s man parts off.”

“
I will speak with Meghera about
restraint where Collin is concerned.” Allisande grew angry Collin
was being judged and found so lacking by Joran.

“
I already have spoken to her.”
Allisande looked at him in surprise. “She is upset, naturally, but
she knows she is too young to be his wife. She is content to wait,
and I am hoping she decides to find her own people once she is
grown.”

Allisande wasn't able to finish the
conversation because the rest of the Vikings spilled into the hall
and several more as well, by the looks of it. Ivar was used to his
home being a communal dwelling while he was in residence. She was
not.

Grogan introduced the other Vikings as the
ones who would be journeying back to Joran’s home to help safeguard
it. She felt like a waspish shrew as she made them welcome. The
news of the babe had made her more irritable than she normally was.
She bid them welcome, and returned to the kitchens to instruct the
serfs.

****

Collin returned to his room after the meal
and found Greta there. He smiled wolfishly as he entered. She was
one of Ivar’s favorite bedmates, and worked grudgingly alongside
the serfs in his absence.

Obviously that chore wasn’t to her liking.
She caught him in the stables one night and he took her lustily
against the stall door, and found her to be more than adequate. She
was tall as most Nordic women were, and he found he liked being
nose to nose with his partners.

Her body was made for sin and was impossibly
curvaceous, her breasts large and firm. Her hair was so pale it
appeared white and fell to her thighs in waves. Her eyes were
obsidian black, and glowed when she saw the lust flare in his eyes.
She let her gown fall to her feet, and he closed the door as he
divested himself of his clothes.

Greta murmured with appreciation when she saw
the size of his erect manhood. He felt a certain pride knowing the
Vikings had nothing on him. She got down on her knees, and took him
into her mouth and he gasped as he arched his hips back and forth
into her skilled mouth, thinking he had died and gone to heaven.
She readied him within minutes, and he grabbed her by the arm and
tossed her onto the bed.

He sucked upon her rose-hewed nipples, and
caressed her feverishly until she made carnal noises in the back of
her throat. He played with her, pulling at her nipples and nibbling
on the delicious orbs. Her lusty cries were smothered under his
kisses, and he delighted in her beautiful body as he rose above
her.

He pulled her long slender legs up around his
shoulders, and cupped her buttocks as he laved voraciously at her
womanhood, and delighted in the pale sparse curls there. His tongue
and teeth came into play, and her noises grew louder and more
insistent. She was making harsh impassioned noises in the back of
her throat as he readied her.

When he got on top of her and thrust inside
her she sobbed aloud, as his impossibly large maleness stretched
her to the hilt. He eased his full size into her and her eyes flew
wide, and her gasps of pleasure increased as he yanked up one leg
and pumped hard inside her. He closed his eyes and moved in her
demandingly.

Her cries were muffled into his neck and she
was gripping him fiercely, meeting his thrusts eagerly. They moved
up and down on the bed evenly matched. Collin closed his eyes and a
low growl escaped his parted lips as he plowed her, slamming her
into the mattress.

He was fleetingly aware the springs were
creaking violently, but the lust was surging inside of him, and he
gasped and reared up and drove into her one last time. He shuddered
and climaxed violently, groaning in delight as Greta found her
release. He leaned down to kiss her hungrily as the tremors ceased,
and he heard a noise and looked up.

Meghera stood in the doorway staring at them
in the throes of lust with horror. He sat up and covered them with
a fur but it was too late. Her lips quivered and she turned and
ran, slamming the door behind her.

Collin buried his head in his hands, and
ignored Greta who caressed his ribs and was still murmuring in her
delight. The look on Meghera’s face when she caught him bedding the
woman would be forever etched in his mind, and seeing the pain he
had caused her, no end of guilt. He rose and dressed grimly and
Greta was leaving his room as Allisande was entering hers. She
glared at the girl furiously and she scurried away adjusting her
clothing, before she met her brother’s apologetic look and slammed
her door too.

Joran eyed his wife’s temper as she slammed
the door and could see she was angry, but made no comment. He heard
the noises coming from Collin’s room for over an hour, and
suspected his sister discovered he was bedding one of Ivar’s lemans
now as well. He said nothing to her, knowing whatever criticism he
had of her brother would merit an argument.

Not this time, for she was obviously
disgusted with him and was muttering as she sat to feed and rock
their son by the fire. He watched her put her son to her breast,
enjoying the sight with relish. She waited until Storm was asleep
and put him in his cradle and stripped herself of her gown and
turned to wash from the pottery bowl, giving him an unparalleled
view of her trim backside and he was getting more than a little
heated, he realized, and was anxious for her to join him in
bed.

She turned and saw his look and glared at
him, making him sit up and eye her warily as she approached and
flounced upon the edge of the bed. He didn’t want to talk about her
brother, and parted her hair in the back and stroked her shoulders.
He kissed the scars between them, and she turned to him with a look
he hadn’t seen since he found her at Ulsted. He drew back with a
frown and sat up and gazed at her questioningly.

“
What is it? Are you ill?” He saw her
lips tremble and drew her down with him in concern, smoothing her
hair from her cheek. “You are upset, I can see it. Tell me what it
is, wife.”

“
I’m pregnant.” Allisande saw him
flinch visibly at her words, and her heart clenched in her chest
seeing his expression. “It is Robert’s, I think. I do not know for
sure.”

“
It could be mine.” Joran drew back the
covers and got up, all thoughts of passion gone with her words. He
mentally calculated the weeks since they had first made love aboard
his ship, and his shoulders sagged. He closed his eyes as the rage
filled him that Ulsted put his seed in her before he killed him. “I
expected the possibility, but not how I would feel of it,
Allisande.”

She closed her eyes and tears squeezed past
her eyes and ran down her face. A hoarse sob broke through Joran’s
thoughts. He turned to see her tear ravaged face and went to her.
He pulled her up into his arms and held her tightly, feeling the
shudders pass through her body and feeling incapable of comforting
her.

The thought of seeing her bear Ulsted’s child
made him ill, but he knew it was far worse for her. He forced
himself to compose his features and tilted up her chin, staring
into her turbulent gaze with a calm he was far from feeling. He
didn’t dare show her how he felt at that moment, knowing how
fragile she was, and smiled down at her.

“
I will welcome our child, Allisande,
for to me it will be ours, no matter the sire,” he whispered and
she wept in gratitude in his arms. Joran would accept the babe
unquestionably. She didn’t see the taut expression in his face, or
read the anger and disappointment in his eyes as he held her until
her sobs subsided and she slept against him.