“Finnie,” he called and I rolled my eyes back to him and glared. He pressed his lips together and I’d never seen him do that so I didn’t know what that meant but I didn’t care about that either.
Then he spoke again.
“You enjoyed my kiss at the Dwelling of the Gods?”
“Uh… yeah,” I said like I’d say, “uh… duh”. “Frey, I’d wrapped my arms around you. You’re a jerk but you can kiss.”
Another lip press and then, “Explain what you mean about me helping you with us having what we have tonight just the two of us for awhile. It is my understanding, unless you are unusually broad-minded, what I have planned for tonight is always just the two of us.”
Yeesh. Men. Their minds, no matter what world they live in, always wandered down the same paths.
“I’m not talking about a threesome, Frey, I’m talking about children. As in, I don’t know you but I was thinking that I was really liking getting to know you and that when that extra component was added, you were giving all the signs I would really like that too. So, I thought, if I did really like all of that, I’d like to have all of that with you for awhile, just the two of us before we start thinking of daughters and sons and who’s going to teach who swordplay and all that jazz.”
I felt the pads of his fingers dig into my hip and noticed his eyes had gone weird but I didn’t pay much attention to that either.
Then he asked, “You wish to delay providing your father with an heir?”
“Not forever. Not even for very long. A few months, enough time I could learn about you, you could learn about me, we could learn about… uh… how we are together and maybe I could ride on your ship.”
Another slow blink then, “Ride on my ship?”
“Or, take a trip on it or whatever you call it. I mean, you know, go voyaging with you. That might not be so much fun pregnant and if I have a kid, I’d have to stay home while off you go on your adventures and that would suck. I was thinking maybe we can squeeze in an adventure or two and then we can have sons and daughters and provide heirs to the kingdom and all that stuff. It’s not like I’ll be this age forever and it won’t be as much fun when I’m old and decrepit and struggling along with my cane only to slip on a deck one of your men are swabbing and break a hip.”
He did yet another slow blink.
Then he threw back his head and burst out laughing.
I stared because, first, I didn’t know the man could laugh. Second, I was staring at his throat which I’d already noted was a nice view. And third, he had a great laugh.
I, however, did not laugh with him. I was still too pissed.
He eventually stopped laughing (though, I will note, he took his sweet time doing it) and returned his attention to me.
And when he did, his eyes roamed my face before he said quietly, “When my wife gets vexed, her cheeks get pink.”
I fought the urge to struggle out of his lap and the urge to cover my cheeks. Instead, I simply continued to glare.
“I like it,” he went on talking quietly.
“Can I get up now?” I asked snappishly.
He didn’t answer nor did he let me up. Instead he remarked, still quietly, “I’m intrigued about these wedding undergarments I missed.”
“Sorry, Frey, that was a onetime deal. I was all decked out in my wedding finery and you took off. You missed that boat, totally.”
He grinned again then whispered, “More fool me.”
“Uh… hello?” I called then requested, “Can I get up now?”
One of his big hands drifted up my back and he said softly, “I must tell you, Finnie, I like you here. You fit well in my lap.”
Uh-oh.
“Does it matter that I don’t like being here?” I asked.
“Indeed it does, wife, let’s get you somewhere where you’re more comfortable. I’m thinking the loft.”
Uh-oh again.
“Frey, I think I told you, the deal is off.”
He grinned and shook his head. “You know, my Winter Princess, you never renege on a deal with a Raider.”
I blinked.
Oh shit. I’d read that in both of those books. You made a deal with a Raider, you went back on it, you regretted it.
Big time.
Shit!
His hand was now wrapped around the back of my neck and he held me still while he leaned into me.
Once there and he had captured my gaze, he said quietly, “You have ten minutes to prepare yourself and meet me up there. We will see how it goes as to whether we guard against conceiving or, perhaps, forget.”
Ho boy. I knew what that meant because I figured that meant the same thing on both worlds.
“You haven’t had pie,” I pointed out in an attempt to stall.
“We’ll have it later…” he paused and grinned. “Maybe. We might be too busy; we might need sustenance to keep going.”
Ho boy!
“Frey –” I whispered.
He cut me off. “You now have nine minutes, Finnie.”
Shit! Shit! Shit!
“That wasn’t a minute,” I argued.
He pressed his lips together but I knew what it meant this time because his eyes were so close, I saw them dancing.
Then he warned softly and effectively with one word, “Finnie.”
I stared into his eyes.
Then I saw there a clear indication that there was no way I could delay.
This was happening and it was my choice whether it happened in the loft or on the farm table. Since that was my only choice, I definitely needed the loft.
So that was why I muttered, “Oh, all right.”
That got me another grin. It also loosened his arms. And this meant I scrambled off his lap and hurried out of the room trying not to look like I was hurrying. I hit the trunks, found what I was looking for and went to the bathroom space not bothering with the lock on the door because he could easily break it down if he had a mind to.
Only then did I start hyperventilating.
Chapter Eight
Elves
I stood in the bathroom space thinking that I really needed fifteen meals.
Maybe twenty-one.
Or, perhaps ninety.
I was so not ready for this.
And I had been in the bathroom way longer than nine minutes. I was pretty certain Frey was going to bust down the door any second.
I totally shouldn’t have lost it at dinner and thus made Frey skip pie.
I needed pie.
I needed to think!
How to get out of this?
I stared at myself in the mirror.
For reasons unknown to me, probably nervous energy, I had decided to arrange my hair loosely at the top of my head with one of the scads of ice blue ribbons that had been packed in my beautification trunk. I didn’t know what I was going for, sultry vixen or innocent virgin (probably the latter in hopes that Frey would take it slow and be gentle) and to get this to look even slightly good, it took what had to be nineteen minutes, not nine.
I had also changed into the nightgown I was pretty sure Sjofn was supposed to wear on her wedding night. This was because you didn’t sleep in this nightie. This nightie was an occasion nightie, it was meant to be seen and it was way too delicate to sleep in.
It was beautiful, elaborate winter white lace over ice blue satin. The thin straps were ice blue satin too. It had an empire waist and showed serious cleavage and leg. This last was because the skirt only fell low enough to cover my rear…barely. It was mostly simple but that made it elegant, the lace made it extraordinary and the ice blue satin made it beautiful (not to mention it felt great against my skin).
But I thought, at that moment, it was too short, too suggestive and way too sexy.
Not that I had to suggest anything and everything was sexy when you were essentially a sure thing.