AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘And your daughter is one of the reasons you are in Svear.’
‘I wish her to be brought up properly amongst my people.’ He tilted his head to one side. ‘Why else would I return here? It is no secret. Surely you must have asked about me.’
‘Obviously not.’
He shrugged. ‘You were the one who encouraged me to listen to gossip. I assumed you had found out everything there was to know about me.’
‘Is the mother…?’ Sayrid choked out.
‘She died while I was away on my last voyage to Constantinople. Inga was left to run wild.’ Hrolf stood up straighter. ‘Magda knows what is expected of her if she wishes to continue as her nurse.’
Sayrid shivered in the light breeze. She had married a complete stranger because her desire for glory had outshone common sense. ‘You should have said something earlier.’
‘Does it make a difference? You lost. I won. What has my daughter done to you?’
Sayrid gathered the tattered remnants of pride about her. ‘You never said anything about a child. I’m to be her stepmother. I wasn’t prepared. I frightened her. She thinks me a giantess.’
‘Inga has a vivid imagination and enjoys attention. But she has a loving heart.’ He lightly grasped her elbow. The impersonal touch sent a flame coursing through her body. ‘It is her nurse’s doing. I’ve warned her about stories that keep Inga awake at night, but she delights in telling them. When I returned to the village after her mother’s death, Inga thought I was a troll come to eat her up as I shouted so loudly.’
‘Indeed.’
Sayrid firmed her mouth and silently vowed that she’d find a way to explain about her lack of womanly skills before things became too complicated. Panic seldom solved anything. ‘You intend to leave your daughter with me when you depart? How soon are you planning to go east? I need to make plans.’
‘Shall we greet the well-wishers?’ Hrolf cupped her elbow and prised one of her arms away from her waist. ‘A smile wins more friends than a scowl—something my mother used to say and it has proved true more times than I can count.’
‘Save me from pithy wisdom.’ She forced her mouth up into a smile. ‘Is this better?’
‘It will have to do.’ His fingers tightened on her arm, sending a warm pulse throughout her body. To onlookers it had to appear that he was being the attentive bridegroom, but Sayrid knew he was just keeping her next to him. He thought she was going to run.
Sayrid moved as if she was in a waking dream, barely hearing anyone’s words of congratulations as everyone crowded around her and Hrolf, blocking and confining her.
A violent shiver rocked her. And another one. Her entire being felt as if she had been encased in ice. The world started to go black at the edges. She churned her arms, trying to keep her balance.
‘My lady is cold,’ Hrolf said, lifting his brow. He gathered her hands between his, but she pulled away.
‘Very.’ Sayrid wrapped her arms about her middle and seized the excuse. ‘The dress is far thinner than I’m used to. It will pass once we get to the hall. It is nothing really. I shall ignore it.’
‘I’d be a poor excuse for a husband if I allowed that.’ He undid his cloak and put it around her shoulders. ‘I need to make sure my wife is well looked after. I take my responsibilities seriously.’
‘Another lesson?’
‘A demonstration.’
‘You have such a way with words.’ Sayrid glared at him and somehow the anger kept the blackness at bay. ‘Is this how you treat your men? Like little children?’
‘I want to know if you are unwell or injured.’ Something glinted in his eyes. ‘I say the same to all my men when they start serving under me. A felag is only as good as its weakest member.’
‘And you consider our marriage a felag?’
He shrugged. ‘It works for me.’
She pinched the bridge of her nose and tried to concentrate. The lingering warmth from his body sunk into her bones, clouding her mind. She knew she should be grateful, but Hrolf wanted everyone to see that she now belonged to him. It was nothing to do with her personal discomfort. All for show, like her father had been. In public her father and stepmother had pretended to be concerned, but in private, she rapidly learnt not to talk about her own discomfort and to never ask for help.
Change a habit of a lifetime? That was something she refused to do.
She forced her lips to turn up in the imitation of a smile. ‘I will walk to the feast. Without assistance.’
He laughed.
She took a step and the ground seemed to wobble beneath her feet. Hrolf’s face went in and out of focus.
