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“So you’ve said,” Ere muttered irritably.
Eir wondered why no one slapped him as she itched to do. The male was exceedingly annoying.
“One day, a hero will come,” the elder continued as if Ere hadn’t spoken.
“He will be big and strong, a warrior for the ages. He will wear the scars of past battles like badges of honor. His skin will be marked by words of wisdom and courage.”
Eir’s heart began to thump faster, each of the elder’s words like a hammer upon an invisible spike.
“And in his eyes, a firestorm brews, for this man will have the strength of unmovable mountains; the will of unyielding stone. He will liberate us from the Frost Giant once and for all. From the blood of his sacrifice the earth shall be renewed.”
At that point, everyone in the longhouse looked in one direction.
And so did Eir.
The sight that greeted her mirrored the sight she’d seen only two nights before at the Jarl’s festivities.
In a different world, it seemed. In another time.
Because, somehow, everything had changed.
A blonde perched on Kai’s left knee, while a redhead cuddled on his right thigh, tucked into his chest, arms wrapped around his neck.
For the most part, he paid them no mind, nor did he seem to hear any of the elder’s tale. With a single-minded concentration, he wolfed down his supper, ripping large hunks of bread to dip into his stew, slopping it up and swallowing it down, barely bothering to chew. He gulped jugs of mead—many jugs, in fact, by the number of earthenware stacked on the table at which he sat.
His cheeks were tinged with a strangely becoming pink, Eir noticed with an unconscious lick of her lips. His hooded eyes made him look as if he’d just rolled out of bed.
Perhaps after a long bout of rigorous exertion.
His wide-spread thighs looked so welcoming to her. That big, burly chest so warm and inviting.
He was wearing a new set of borrowed clothes as well. The dark blue of the tunic made his eyes glow. The opening at his throat gaped deeply, the strings untied despite the blistering cold outside and the occasional draft in the hall. She could see the thick mounds of muscles covered by satiny bronzed skin, dusted with dark, silky hair.
She knew what he felt like. Hard and soft at once. A study of enticing contrasts.
She knew what he tasted like. Every part of him delicious. The flavors uniquely his. Salty, sweet. Tangy and bitter.
She knew what he smelled like. Earthy and raw. Nature at its wildest. The fertile earth after a raging storm.
Full oflife.
If the blonde and redhead weren’t pint-sized girls in pigtails, giggling with innocent delight as they patted Kai’s cheek with sticky, chubby hands and rested against his chest with trusting contentment, Eir would be forced to do something about it.
As it was, she made an exception just this once. It wasn’t sportsman-like to challenge two little girls, blossoming flirts though they clearly were, for daring to maul the man she’d already claimed as exclusivelyhers.
Besides, by the look of Kai, he seemed to enjoy it. In a way that he didn’t enjoy the attentions of full-grown women.
He was relaxed with these little girls. Mostly ignoring them, but paying attention when they demanded it. Like a great big papa bear with his playful cubs. Indulgent. Affectionate.
Loving.
The blonde bounced on his knee and clapped her hands, trying to get his attention just then.
He looked her way with sleepy eyes, his lips curving in the sweetest smile.
She was saying something excitedly as she traced the tattoos on the side of his face with curious fingers.
He murmured something back in that low vibration, making his avid admirer erupt in helpless giggles.
