Then he turned her, wedged fur beneath her knees, pressed her against the rock again and thrust deep from behind. She gripped the roots tightly as he took her more aggressively.
While she knew it was the darkness in him surfacing, he had full control over it now. So much control that he toyed with it and allowed it to pull the warrior in her to the surface. Spreading her legs further, she arched her back, took him deeper, growled and urged him on.
Immensely pleased and unable to control himself any longer, he gripped her hips, slammed against her hard and roared his release.
She liked the way he held her tightly and kept her locked in place until he had spent himself. More than that, she liked the feel of his throbbing hot release deep within. There was a primal feel to it that appealed to her in a way men before him never had.
What was the word he used at the beginning?
Claimed?
She nearly purred as the heat and scent of their lovemaking filled her senses. Oh yes, taking her like he had, filling her like he had, she could think of no better word than claimed.
When he eventually sunk back on his haunches, he brought her with him then swung her and laid her down on the furs. The birds had long since turned to charcoal, but neither noticed or cared as he removed her boots and the remaining shreds of her pants then removed his as well.
Neither said a word as he came over her and their eyes locked. Again and again whispered through her mind as he took his time and began to thoroughly explore her body. Every dip and curve and the varying sounds she made when he touched her a certain way.
Hours later and after more orgasms than they could count, he spooned her from behind, and they dozed, still murmuring to each other about random things. Tidbits of their lives that they could never share with another.
Those words shared after hours of intimacy were more profound than any before. The snippets of his life and how she could relate in some small part to them despite their different cultures. The endless need to steer their families in the right direction. His family may have been raised knowing what they were, and hers repressed, but it didn’t change their desire to protect them.
“You have two sisters who keep their distance,” he said softly, reading her thoughts. “It is hard on you.”
While she might have been opposed to him knowing as much mere days ago, now it felt perfectly natural to share. “Yeah, Shannon keeps her distance but still comes around on occasion. Erica, forget it.”
“I understand the difficulty of such.” He brushed hair back from her face. A tender gesture. “Yet I sense you do not deserve it as I do.”
“You don’t deserve it, Heidrek.” She kept her voice gentle. “I’ve heard about the raid and I’ve seen your memories from that day. You think you made mistakes, but you didn’t.” She shook her head. “And your family wanted to be there. They were proud to fight alongside you. Both your sister and your sister-in-law. Matthew’s still grieving. Just give him time.”
His gaze remained troubled. “I fear there is not enough time to heal his wounds.”
“There is.” Cybil squeezed his hand. “Just keep doing what you’re doing. Never push him away. He’ll come around.” She sighed. “Trust me, I pushed Erica away, and it didn’t go well. Now I might never see my baby sister again.”
“Why did you push her away?” he murmured as he sifted his hands through her hair.
“Because I thought it would help her,” she whispered. “It was tough love. But it backfired. Hopefully, in time, she’ll understand that.”
“So we both long for reconnection with our siblings,” he said.
“We do.” Her eyes met his. “Who knows, maybe they’ll meet someday, and that will help us all heal.”
“I would like that.”
“Me too.”
And she sensed they would…that things might just work out. But then it was easy to feel optimistic in Heidrek’s arms. Easy to feel hopeful.
“I am sorry about your mother, Cybil,” Heidrek said so softly she barely caught it. “I know you have been suffering in silence.”
“It’s all right,” she murmured. “We don’t need to be blood-related for me to always think of her as Mom. She was every inch my mother and a wonderful one at that. I was lucky to have known her.”
Heidrek nodded. “As I am lucky to call Veronica my mother.”
“Yes, you are,” she agreed. “She seems great.”
Cybil ran the back of her knuckle along his jaw when he remained concerned about her. “You don’t have to worry about me, Heidrek. I bounce back pretty quick. The sad part was losing my mom years ago not discovering we aren’t related.”
“Understandable.” He brushed his lips across the back of her hand. “But I will always worry about you, Cybil. It can be no other way now.”
Cybil nodded. She knew. And felt the same way.
After that, they spoke of other things.
Mainly their mutual ability to foresee the future.
“I knew the minute the guy picked me up for our first date he was determined to take my virginity,” she said as they chatted about their previous relationships. “And I still let him.” She shook her head. “I think some part of me hoped sex might be the trigger to shut off my gift of prophecy.”
“I can relate in some small way.” His hand lingered on her stomach as the other stroked her leg. “Except in my case, I knew she wanted to bear my child so that she might someday hold a higher ranking with our people.”
“And what came of that?”
“She did not realize that though not a dragon-shifter, I could control my seed taking root.” His hand slowed over her belly. “More so that when I did plant my seed, it would be with a woman who meant far more than her.”
Something about the change in his tone made her put her hand over his.
He wanted her to have his child…someday. Of that she was positive. Yet she heard the surprise in his voice and soon realized why. Suddenly caught in an all-too-familiar place, the future flashed before her eyes.
Or some version of it.
No, a certain version with a definite outcome.
Her eyes drifted down to her swollen stomach and his hand resting on it. Then she saw further to the beating heart and its heated core…
To the piercing black eyes staring back at her from their unborn dragon-shifter baby.
Chapter Thirteen
HEIDREK AND CYBIL said little after he saw the vision of her swollen stomach and felt the soul eager to make its way into the world. Neither admitted to having seen it…him…but allowed sleep to take them when it did.
Yet he knew neither really slept as they tried to understand the vision. Should they have spoken of it? Probably. But he sensed she felt as he did. Were they truly seeing their future child or was it a trick of fate or even the evil they faced? He could sense nothing of his future son save his eyes were dark as night and his need to be amongst his kin fierce.
He was something different.
New.
More advanced.
So perhaps at the root of it, they were already overprotective.
After they awoke, he decided they should discuss what had happened before traveling. They needed to understand what it meant. Because one thing was certain…she was not yet pregnant.
He figured that fact was a good one to lead with.
“I know I’m not pregnant, Heidrek,” she replied softly as she pulled her cloak around her shoulders and met his eyes. “And I’m glad you said something because I don’t think…” She swallowed and shook her head, her emotions heavy but veiled. “This is hard.”
“It is.” He tilted her chin so that their eyes stayed connected. “But we will figure it out.”
There were words on her tongue, things she wanted to say, but she bit them back and nodded.
That’s when he realized.
She wanted the child.
Cybil wanted that future with him, for him…for all three of them. He pulled her into his
arms and kissed the top of her head, trying to comfort her any way he could.
“Brother,” came Matthew’s voice from outside. “The seer calls for you. We must go.”
Heidrek knew. He had sensed Vigdis for several minutes now. But Cybil meant more. He pulled back and met her eyes again. “Know that my strength is yours.” His eyes searched hers. “Whatever happens, you no longer travel your life’s path alone. I will always be there.”
“I know,” she whispered without hesitation. “And I appreciate it.”
Yet as they departed and started traveling he knew that her life path would always follow her kin. For a brief moment, she had glimpsed another family. Theirs. But that wasn’t enough. Not right now. And he did not blame her. There was too much at stake.
With the use of Thor’s sword, he dispelled the storm at nightfall and kept the moon free of clouds as they traveled to another part of the Place of Seers. Unforgiving, it was a sheer, treeless plain of driving wind and slate gray rock that slanted upward. Mountains rose jagged all around them but offered no barrier, no relief. Weapons at the ready, his men traveled with their eyes to the sky.
“This is a horrible place,” Cybil said into his mind because the wind was too strong for normal conversation.
“The seers chose this as their destined path so that they might know hardship before the worship and mating,” he said and kept her close.
“It’s hard all right.” She squinted at the moon. “Is it me or is that cloudbank getting closer? Are you doing that?”
“It is and no, I am not doing it.” He willed Vigdis to return to his side. When she did, he pointed it out knowing full well she must have seen it.
“The gods of winter are strong up here, Viking.” Her eyes went to his pocket where her stones and bones were. “Perhaps if you hand those over, I might be able to convince them to let us pass in peace.”
In a place where the air grew thin and frigid, and the seers held sway, Vigdis would be more likely to test just how strong his powers were. After all, Thor’s strength was harnessed from hot and cold air coming together. And up here warm air was hard to come by.
What the seer forgot was that Heidrek had long depended on his wits before his inherited powers. He would not allow her room for trickery but try to get them off this rock as quickly as possible.
Kjar might not like what he was about to do, but his uncle knew that Cybil was important and that their journey’s positive outcome dire.
“I demand you to call on your mentor, Vigdis,” Heidrek said. “Now.”
The seer hissed at him before she strode forward, raised her arms to the sky and cried out.
“Was that the best move?” Cybil murmured. “Kjar doesn’t look too happy.”
Heidrek gave no response as snow started spitting and a light layer of clouds rushed past the moon. Within seconds, Matthew fell in beside him and Bjorn beside Cybil. Tait and Svala took up positions behind and in front of them. Though he detested it, he knew it was their duty to protect him, their future king.
“Something comes,” Bjorn said. “And it is not good.”
Vigdis spun several times, her arms still in the air and eyes to the sky.
“I do not know why you trust that woman, Brother,” Matthew growled. “Can you not feel her draw to darkness?”
While Heidrek understood his brother’s aversion, he had no choice but to adhere to the laws of their people. First and foremost, trust the seers. If they started doubting those they held most sacred, their society would soon fall apart. It was no different than what Christianity could do.
“Now is not the time to focus on how you want me to handle things, Matthew,” Heidrek said. “But how you intend to see my orders through.”
With no more time to spend reprimanding his brother, he focused on summoning Thor’s powers. Most specifically, warm air.
He could see Galdhøpiggen’s peak.
They were drawing close.
“Let me try to help,” Cybil said and redirected her focus to the last place he expected.
Their moments at the waterfall after lovemaking.
More so, her Fianna warriors.
He wasn’t sure that was the best move so close to Norse gods but appreciated her effort. And as it turned out, the wraiths came in the nick of time because as soon as the moon vanished, a loud roar ripped across the sky.
Heidrek didn’t need to say a word to his brethren. Bjorn tossed Cybil over his shoulder and started running as Matthew and Tait raced after them, determined to protect. Meanwhile, Kjar, Svala and his warriors kept a close circle around Heidrek as he pursued.
“Whatever happens, neither of you are to shift,” he said into Bjorn and Matthew’s minds. “If you do, you forfeit your tribe and kin because I will not let you live long enough to return home.”
Both agreed, but he knew they would do whatever it took to protect him and Cybil. Even if it meant the loss of their dragons or their lives. Svala, as always, was a vicious little thing as she snarled at the sky, her eyes wild and her sword ready for whatever might come.
And it was coming fast and furious.
Long, black and serpentine, the enemy dragon was built like Naðr with a will to match. Regrettably, that will was evil and had a motive.
“So you will not come to me, Son of Yrsa,” whispered through his mind. “Then I will take my Celt instead.”
Heidrek started at the reference to his birth mother but swiftly set aside all emotion as he held up his sword and focused on pulling forth warmth. A crack of thunder echoed as air masses met.
The dragon flapped its wings against the wind currents but wasn’t slowed down as its sole focus became Cybil.
“Run faster!” he roared into Bjorn’s mind as the dragon swooped down. Thankfully, Cybil’s Fianna warriors managed to drive the beast back.
But not for long.
The closer they got to the peak, the more furious and determined the dragon became. And clearly, more adaptive. Whatever magic he employed had the ghostly warriors tripping over themselves then vanishing, their swords still swinging in defiance. Moments later, the dragon roared flames down on Bjorn knowing full well how he would respond.
His cousin flung Cybil to the ground, covered her and took the full force of fire. Once Bjorn was weakened enough, the enemy flung him aside, eager to get to his prey. Cybil coughed, rolled onto her back and blinked against the smoke.
Terrified, trying to get closer to her, Heidrek met an unseen barrier made of godliness and dragon power far different than his.
Stronger.
Even his sword seemed powerless.
Cybil remained perfectly still as the dragon landed over her and leaned down. Heidrek was furious when he realized she had broken off their communication, and he couldn’t hear their exchange. She was protecting him from the enemy’s mind and any adverse effect it could have on him. It didn’t matter in the least that the dragon had just spoken telepathically to him.
She was taking no chances.
Whatever she said to him soon sparked the dragon’s interest, and he went to scoop her up only to meet sparks. He leapt back in pain and roared with rage before he stood over her again and eyed her with confusion.
Nobody moved as the massive dragon continued to sniff and study her until he cocked his head and narrowed an eye on her chest. Heidrek had no idea what he was doing until the dragon lowered one tentative talon, grunted in pain then pulled it back sharply.
That’s when Heidrek realized what was happening.
The necklace he had given Cybil was protecting her.
The bear.
“She is not yours until I know if she is mine,” came a soft voice that echoed powerfully across the Place of Seers. “Do you hear me, Dragon?”
Aunt Aella.
Hood lowered over her face, she was a silent sentinel that ruled her land with an iron fist. Or a simple walking stick it seemed. But he knew better. It was carved with so many runic symbols that it could likely split Midgard in
two.
The dragon eyed her, his voice a raspy threat. “It has been too long, Unnamed One.” He brought his snout to within inches of her. “Do you remember me, then?”
“She is not yours until I know if she is mine,” Aella repeated before she flung her hand up violently. “Now be gone!”
The dragon staggered back, roared with rage then took flight.
Though unharmed by the dragon’s fire, Bjorn was slow to get to Cybil. But not Heidrek, who was desperate to protect her. Free from the enemy’s binds, he utilized speed he didn’t know he possessed, scooped her up and was at the mouth of Mt. Galdhøpiggen’s peak a few moments later. She was safely within its main cave within a blink.
Shaking with both rage that she had been in such peril and relief that she was safe, he sank onto a rock with her still in his arms. “Are you all right,” he managed, eying her over, his hands skimming everywhere, convinced that she must be ripped apart though she appeared whole.
“I am,” she murmured, her words barely getting through before she seized his wrist then dragged his chin until their eyes met. “I’m okay, Heidrek. I’m alive.” She pressed his hand to her racing heart. “See?”
Even though it took several moments for his mind to catch up with reality, he pressed his palm against the welcoming thud in her chest. Unable to control his overwhelming emotions, he offered a simple nod.
“This protected me.” She wrapped his other hand around the bear pendant. “Guardian protected me.”
He had no idea what to make of that…of what she meant.
“I’ll explain later.” She wrapped her arms around him. “Until then, know that I’m safe, and everything’s okay for now.”
Heidrek might still be in shock, but the feel of her arms around him got through, and he held her tightly. How would he ever let her go if she chose to leave him? Because he would. He realized that more now than ever. The love he felt for her would allow for nothing else. He would give her anything…even the choice to leave him.
“Who is he, Aella?” Kjar said as he strode after his wife into the massive cave. For the first time in his life, Heidrek heard his even-tempered uncle roar. “He knows the name you went by long ago, and I do not like it!”
Rise of a Viking (The MacLomain Series: Viking Ancestors' Kin Book 1) Page 19