by Jenika Snow
“So you’re telling me you sent me to some kind of alternative universe?” Agata shook her head. “This is so damn crazy,” she said for the hundredth time since being dropped in the Twilight Zone.
“The In-Between, child.” The older woman pointed to Stian. “If he wasn’t who you truly belonged with, you wouldn’t have been given to him.”
Given to him?
“Enjoy the freedom of not having to pretend, child.”
“None of this makes sense.” She spoke to herself. “Are you a witch or something?” God, Agata sounded so ridiculous, felt stupid for even engaging in this conversation. But the truth was she was here, having this conversation with a woman in her dreams, knowing that she was no longer in her time, and so she had no option but to accept what was happening until it could be changed. The woman grabbed a small, coin-purse sized satchel from one of the pockets in her oversized cloak, and handed it to Agata.
“You are not a prisoner.”
“Try telling Stian that,” Agata said and grabbed the satchel.
“The warrior has had a bad life, one nobody should endure no matter what plane you live in.” The old woman nodded to the satchel. “If you truly want to leave, then all you have to do is dump those contents in water and drink it. Same as before, but, child, you must really want to leave, deep in your bones, in your very soul.”
Agata looked up, feeling her eyebrows knit in confusion. She was in an alternate dimension, but that wasn’t as unbelievable as it should have been. Before she could ask what that meant the old woman was gone. This chill raced along her body, more pronounced now then it had ever been.
She slowly opened her eyes, and shot up on the pallet, a small sound leaving her. Stian was up and alert, the small ax he held in his hand poised like he meant to do some serious damage. His eyes weren’t on her though, as if she might dart off, but scanning the hut. He rested back down beside her, pulled her close again, and whispered something in her hair.
Agata couldn’t relax, not even when she felt the heavy, deep breathing of Stian as he drifted back to sleep. She stared at the ceiling, counted the rows of logs that made the roof, and opened her hand. Lifting the satchel up her heart pounded. This was quite possibly the strangest thing she’d ever encountered, the weirdest thing she’d ever lived through. In her heart she knew that she couldn’t stay here.
This wasn’t her home, and even if her apartment in the city was lonely and cold, it was still where she found comfort on those empty nights. But even after being here for a week, or hell she didn’t even know how long since the days seemed to run together, she’d never felt the kind of desire as she had with Stian tonight.
Since seeing him when she’d first woken up she’d felt arousal for the big brute. He was dangerous, had kept her prisoner, still did if she thought on it hard enough and pushed her desire for him away. But the fact remained he’d protected her, saved her. She tucked the satchel under the thick hides, rolled over onto her side, away from Stian, and stared at the fire. She watched those flames dance until her eyes grew heavy and darkness took her away.
****
Agata watched as a flock of birds flew overhead. She was outside, Stian a few feet from her cutting wood, and the thick, fur lined jacket he’d made for her keeping the cold away. There were these little green berries that she was currently picking, and although it was cold as hell, these little berries were growing aplenty and were vibrant in color.
She felt the weight of the herb satchel in her shift pocket. She’d had it for days now, held it many times when Stian wasn’t looking, and thought about just taking it and being done with this In-Between world. She’d gotten over her initial confusion and shock that she was in a different dimension, because even if it sounded crazy as hell, it was the only thing that made sense.
And as much as this whole situation and experience were insane, her reality, her life back home in the States, didn’t make as much a sense as being with Stian. He made her feel wanted, made the loneliness she’d always felt vanish. He held her, whispered to her, and made her feel like there was no other woman for him. The latter might be true, seeing as he lived out in the middle of the woods and had initially taken her against her will, but things felt different with him now.
Since she’d first woken up in this very different world, she’d only listened to Stian’s language, as was common since that was all he spoke. He’d only heard her speak English and Norwegian, even if he didn’t understand either. She was a fast learner in general, and learning Norwegian had been easy for her.
During her time here with him she’d picked up on his language quickly, not anything to allow her to speak fluently with someone, but she understood bits and pieces, could even talk back to him when he asked her something simple. The thing was she felt comfortable in this world, in this life. Not conventional in any sense was an understatement given her situation, but with each passing day, and especially after she’d been with him, she realized that she felt something for this man. The old woman had mentioned something about Stian having a troubled life, but she’d been gone before Agata could ask what that meant.
Going back to her home in America, another dimension, as it seemed was the reality, wasn’t even that appealing after she’d started allowing herself to really be in this life. Here she was, picking berries in this strange world, with a man that saw her as a wife, and she wasn’t even jumping at the option to leave anymore, or at least not as strongly. She’d asked herself over and over again since seeing that old woman why she didn’t want to return home, and why she did. There were more pros to staying than leaving, and that scared the shit out of her. Was her life so dull, so lonely and sad that she’d rather stay here?
Looking at Stian as he cut wood, she could picture the fierceness in his body and expression, in the way he’d taken her like he owned her, like there was no other for her. That was a heady sensation, an intoxicating emotion to someone that had never felt an ounce of real love her entire life. He didn’t chain her up, didn’t make her feel like his prisoner any longer.
She stood, grabbed the small basket that held the berries, and moved over to him. He dropped the ax on the ground, grabbed the pieces of wood he’d chopped, and headed into the hut. She stood there, holding that basket, and felt the weight of that damn satchel. It was her lifeline home, she knew that, but she was hesitant. When he returned he held a net and a spear, and spoke in his language.
“We fish.”
She understood him through his thick accent, and nodded. “Okay.” Setting the basket down, she followed him through the trees, deeper into the woods and away from the hut until the sea came into view. He led her down the steep incline until they were on the sandy, yet very rocky beach. She sat on one of the rocks, and watched as he removed his coat and boots, and stepped into the shallow end of the water.
He was still for several minutes, but she saw his gaze moving back and forth along the water. Then he jabbed his spear into the water so fast she didn’t even have time to blink. He lifted the spear out of the water and held it up, showing the squirming fish on the other end. Tearing off the fish and tossing it to the shore, he went back and did this same action over and over again. The fish were piling up, but he didn’t stop.
For at least an hour she sat there, watching him, mesmerized by the fact this man was fluid and swift in his motions. He caught fish right off the shore with nothing but that spear. Once there seemed to be enough fish on the shore, he got out of the water and tossed them into the homemade net. He rinsed off his hands and put his boots and coat back on.
“Come, wife.” He smiled at her, and the act seemed so foreign on such a big, strong and ruthless man like Stian. He led them over to the side, around large outcroppings, and stopped. “In here, Agata,” he said and looked over his shoulder at her.
She looked at where he was talking about, and shook her head. He had his spear and net full of fish set off to the side now, and it was clear he wanted to take her into this creepy as hell
cave where the light didn’t even penetrate the darkness. The small cave was nearly invisible as two large, protruding outcroppings concealed it, but she saw it well enough. He pushed away a thick, thorny looking bush, and gestured for her to come forward.
Looking at Stian, then back at the cave, she gave him a “no fucking way” look and shook her head once more. She tried to form the right words in her head before she spoke in his language, but the words failed her and she didn’t bother. “No, I can’t go in there, Stian,” she said in English, but he was picking up on her language quickly, too.
It took him a moment to respond, and she wondered f he was trying to form the right words before he spoke in English. “Agata, wife, trust me.” He purposefully used smaller words, spoke slowly so she could understand, but still she didn’t know what he could possibly want to show her in there.
Did she trust him? As weird and fucked as it may seem, she did, with her life in fact. He’d saved her twice, mended her once, and gone after her to take out men that hated him. She still didn’t know why he’d lived a horrible life, and maybe she never would, but that clearly had something to do with why the villagers hated him so much. Her pulse started racing at the thought of being in such a tight, confined space.
“No fear, wife.” He continued to speak in English and held his hand out to her, and curled his fingers into his palm. “Come.”
When she moved closer to him he wrapped his arm around her shoulder as he led them into the cave.
“I trust you,” she said softly, and he stopped. They stared at each other for a moment.
“Good. I’d never hurt you.” He spoke in his language this time.
She tried to break up what he’d just said, and finally realized what he’d spoken. Smiling for the first time in what felt like forever, she allowed him to take her deeper and deeper into the cavern.
They descended, Stian obviously knowing where they were going despite the fact she couldn’t even see her hand in front of her face. Finally the space opened to show light coming in from various holes in the rock surrounding them and bouncing off clear crystals throughout the stone walls. The sound of dripping water echoed around them, and the scent of wet earth filled her nose the deeper they went. They stopped, and she stared in wonder at what was presented. A beautiful pool of crystalline water was right in front of them. She leaned forward, surprised to see steam coming up from the water.
“Earth heats water.” He crouched and scooped up a handful of the clear fluid.
“A natural hot spring,” she said and followed suit, squatting and touching the water. It was warm, so warm that she wondered why he heated water in the hut instead of coming here and bathing.
“Hot spring,” he repeated her words in English, his accent so thick it was almost hard to tell what he said.
She looked at him and smiled. “Yeah. This must be a volcanic area, or this water and the rocks must be deep enough that it’s all heated from within.” She was speaking to herself, because she knew she spoke too fast in English for him to understand.
She was no expert in all of this, and certainly didn’t know this world, or dimension, but that seemed like the most logical reasoning. Hell, for all she knew maybe there was some fire breathing dragon in the bowels of this world, its fire causing this water to be this temperature. That thought was enough to have her smiling in amusement. Then he stood and removed his coat, and she knew that he had brought her down here for more than one reason, and it wasn’t just to show her this incredible oasis.
Chapter Ten
The look on her face had made bringing her here better than Stian could have imagined. He’d lived a very solitary life after he was banished from the village as a young man, not even much older than a boy. They village had waited until he was at least old enough to survive out there alone, but he felt no gratitude toward them because of that.
After the incident with his parents, and the fact he’d killed them, he knew he’d never be able to find a woman that would be comfortable with him, especially not if she knew about his past. Yes, he was called The Beast, but he embraced that name, used it to his advantage, and didn’t care if the villagers feared him. It was better that way, even if they didn’t understand why he’d done what he did.
They had rules, ways of doing things in their small community, and Stian had broken the biggest one of all: he’d murdered. But he’d done what he had to. Maybe when Agata understood his language and culture fully she’d be able to realize that doing what he’d done meant he’d survived.
The villagers could have killed him for his crime, or what they saw as a crime. But because he’d been young, the elders had instead banished him from contact with all of them. One day he’d explain it all to Agata, but until then he’d lavish her with affection, and show her that he was a good provider, and would make sure she was always protected.
That gasp of pleasant surprise she made as she saw the pool-sized body of water had his chest swelling with pride. He’d found this treasure trove shortly after he’d been banished, and after he’d created a crudely erected shelter. It had barely allowed him to survive through that first winter, but he had, and it had made him stronger because of it. No one bothered him out here, probably didn’t even know about this place. Openings at the top allowed the sun to filter through.
“Peace,” he said, trying to use as few words as he could. Her language wasn’t one he was familiar with, but he’d grow to know it, as she would grow to learn his. Her full attention was on him, and he took a deep breath. “This makes me calm.”
She smiled and nodded, clearly understanding him.
“It would be peaceful and calming to come here.”
He tried to understand what she’d just said, but he only understood part of what she said.
She lifted her hand and placed it on his chest. “Let’s go swimming.”
What is this “swimming” she refers to? He didn’t know what she’d said at first, but when she started slipping off her boots and coat he knew what she wanted. Hell, he’d been thinking of the same thing, even was in the process of getting undressed. Bent over, she stopped mid-strip and looked over at him, one brow raised.
“Come on, Stian,” she said in his language. “I know where your thoughts are … mine are right there with you.”
It was strange to see her so open and bold, and even if he liked it, loved it even, he was more surprised that she was acclimating to this life given how she’d ended up with him in the first place. When she was nude, standing before him in all her delicious glory, his cock went even harder. He lifted a hand and ran it along her throat.
“Beautiful, wife.” He saw her cheeks turn red, and felt pleasure at the fact he’d caused that reaction. He moved closer, wrapped his arm around her waist, and pulled her fully against him. His cock pressed against his leathers, and before he got too wrapped up in loving her, he pulled away and got rid of the rest of his clothing. He went back to his woman, pulled her into an embrace, and kissed her like he’d never kissed her before.
How lucky he’d been to have this woman, and not only keep her as his, but have her start to accept her life. She had run, yes, but that was understandable. He’d have been worried if she hadn’t, because she definitely had a strong soul, and wasn’t going to back down easily. He moved back, took her hand, and led her into the warm body of water. The liquid was heated to the point that as soon as they stepped inside he felt his skin tighten.
The cavern was warmer, but because of the holes in the rock above them the chilled air managed to move around. The heat mixed with the coldness, and it was a startling, pleasuring effect. His dick was insistent, and although he’d like nothing more than being with her in every way, he just wanted to hold her and make her feel good.
“I will never let you go. If you run I’ll find you, but I will only show you pleasure.” He spoke fast, knowing she probably couldn’t understand him. “I don’t know why I deserved to find you, but I have you now, and no one will take that aw
ay from me.”
****
Stian pressed his wet, hard body against hers and made a slow sweep of his tongue up her throat. His arms were wrapped around her, cushioning her back as she leaned against the rocky ledge of the pool. Her arousal pounded through her like a stampede of horses, causing her breaths to puff in rapid succession. Looking to the side, she saw the satchel had fallen out of her pocket. Maybe the temptation to go back to her old life would never leave her, but the promise of what she could have beckoned her even harder.
There was no doubt that Stian could see how hard her nipples were, could feel them on his chest, too. They stabbed out, chilled from the sea air that trickled through, and hard enough to slice through glass. As if he read her mind he dragged his lips down her neck, over her collarbones, and sucked her achingly taut nipple into his mouth.
Head lolling back, she closed her eyes, moaned deeply, and speared her hands into his hair. The short strands felt smooth and wet at the tips under her touch, and she used her grip to pull him closer to her. Her lips parted when she felt his mouth open wider, sucking more of her breast into his eager, hot mouth.
“Oh, God,” she said, wrapping her legs around his waist, feeling the stiff outline of his cock pressing against her pussy.
“What is this God you speak of?” he asked, but he didn’t sound the least bit interested in anything but sucking on her.
“I am so wet for you.” She didn’t bother saying anything about the God comment, because he might not understand, or she was using that as an excuse so they could not talk about religion and just focus on this moment.
His groan vibrated against her nipple, causing a spike of electricity to travel right to her clit. The small bundle of nerves swelled even further, and she pressed her pussy against his shaft, needing to feel more of him.
“I want you inside of me so bad right now.” She had never been so wanton in what she said, but she felt like she could say anything and be whoever she wanted with Stian.