All the Adaryn once cheering stood in near shock to see Freya delight in the arms of the massive wolf man. She had no doubt rumor had spread from the last Adaryn visit, but it would taint their sensibilities to actually witness that Freya was glad to be with Cain. But she was more than glad.
"Cain, I love you," she admitted easily, letting the words tumble past her lips with wild abandon. Her words were met with a low and passionate growl as Cain took Freya's mouth in a world dominating kiss.
"Oh, by the moon, Freya I love you too," Cain stated into Freya's ear as he kissed his way around her neck and chin. She only giggled in response as he carried her back in the direction of their tent. Soon, they would be going home.
Chapter 15
Cain didn’t have the patience to be slow or gentle with Freya her admission of love. He sat her on the edge of their bed and took her quickly, only managing to shove up the layers of tulle skirts around her legs.
All that mattered to them now was being connected as one physically and revel in their newly realized feelings for one another.
The Bird and the Wolf.
No one in all of history could have seen this moment coming. Lifelong enemies finding fulfillment in each other’s embrace. And although it was quick, there was much their bodies said that took the place of the words they couldn’t find. All they needed was their pleasure of one another and this unbridled joy for what the future held.
“Little Bird, would you like to join the others or are you going to fall asleep?” Cain questioned looking down at the petite woman who was nearly asleep against his chest. Freya fluttered her eyelashes briefly before squinting her blue eyes shut once more.
“The Adaryn, if they’re still here, will want to see us together. To sit at the head of the table and be seen rejoicing in a successful Union. The Blue Winter Moon lasts all night and the celebration should endure throughout the night as well. For them, it’s tradition,” but she didn’t move as though she was going to get up and go see the rest of her people. Instead Freya wriggled closer to Cain’s chin and he places a tender kiss atop her head.
“Your father is here. I think you should speak to him before we leave for the mountains.” Cain said. At that Freya lifted her head and rested her chin on Cain’s chest to look at him.
“Why ever should I do that? He tossed me away so easily. All it took was a fancy new house and he was washing his hands of the filth he took me for,” she spat.
“Can you be so sure that’s how he saw it? You never spoke on the subject to him.”
“I don’t need to. They value their society and opinions on what each other thinks too much. Surely, getting rid of his disgrace for a title was like a dream coming true.” Freya grumbled against Cain’s chest while enjoying the soothing feeling of his fingers sliding over the feathers at her shoulder.
“And family is important to my people. It would ease my mind to have you speak to your father before we go. I bet if we leave the tent he’ll still be out there, waiting for you.” Cain sounded so sure of himself speaking on a man he didn’t know that Freya started to doubt her own feelings. Her father had broken her heart letting her go when their family was already falling apart. What could he say to make things better?
It was apparent the Adaryn Council had been plotting to promote her family just to have her, but that didn’t necessarily mean her father knew their plan from the start. Even if he had his own reasons for giving her away it was still like a knife to the back.
“I’m not sure if I can face him, Cain.” Freya whimpered, gripping the blankets under Cain in her fist.
“You know if we go out there, I’ll be by your side the entire time.” Freya didn’t doubt that he would be.
“Well, the weather out there is dreadful. I’m sure there will be rain soon, terrible rain at that,” Cain looked unfazed by Freya’s excuses to not leave the tent. As happy and warm as he was to have her in the bed with him Cain could see the importance of making an appearance. Being the Wolfmother’s heir he had to take responsibility for the path he would be paving for peace once it was his turn to lead.
Just ensuring the alliance with a marriage and continuing to search for Ivar wouldn’t be enough. There had to be a mutual understanding and reciprocated work put in on both sides. Generations of bloodshed didn’t wash away with one union.
“Little bird, we’re going to go out there. I’d appreciate if you talk to your father when we do,” Cain had a tone that suggested his word was law. Although they both knew it wouldn’t take Freya too much push back to convince him to stay in bed. She rolled her eyes at him but with a huff Freya sat up.
“I know we need to; I just don’t want to. Plus, I mean it really was starting to get cold out there,” She started again but before she could finish her sentence Cain bolted upright and swept Freya in his arms. Freya squealed excitedly as Cain lifted her and carried her to the stool by the low brazier.
He sat her down gently in the seat and began to unravel the braid in her hair that had become messed up. Freya sighed happily as she felt Cain’s fingers brush through her hair and over her scalp. His attention to her in this spot reminded her of how not so long ago she had tended to Cain’s wounds in this very spot.
That awkward beginning between them had washed away so quickly. Even though it had only started with a mutual attraction it quickly became more. Their feelings had progressed as quick as a shooting star, blazing a fiery path in its wake.
Even after Cain finished running his fingers through Freya’s hair and loosening the braids into long platinum waves, he continued to run his fingers down her neck and revealed back to feel the soft feathers on her skin. He wouldn’t have cared even if she had come with wings, all he knew was that she was the most beautiful creature in existence.
It pained him to know her wings had been severed when she was an infant, but if it hadn’t been done, she might not have survived up until this point. And what the birds saw as a flaw was the defining factor that ensured she was the one he’d be bound to in this alliance. Cain was disgusted to think that their council of birds had plotted behind Freya’s back to take advantage of her.
Perhaps one day they would see the error of their ways when Freya was ruling at his side.
“Here, we can cover up and fight the cold,” Cain helped Freya to straighten out the skirts of her dress he’d bunched up in his rush to have her. When his hands raked over her hips Freya let slip a pleasant hum. He looked up to see a wicked smile on her lips and when she bit her lower lip all he wanted was to take her right back to bed.
“Little bird, you have to stop looking at me in such a way. It’s hard for me to resist you,” his voice was a low growl and his intent was clear. “We have responsibilities to attend to.”
Freya’s eyes went wide and her mouth opened in mock shock as though she had no idea Cain was talking about. Despite being so much smaller than he was and having an innocent face, Cain knew there was a wicked side to her. A side he’d make sure no one but him ever saw. At that moment he bent over and took Freya’s lips in a passionate kiss.
She was losing her breath quickly as Cain devoured her mouth with his own and she felt warm all over. A furious blush took over her face and by the time Cain pulled away from her she was completely breathless and looked thoroughly dazed.
“Don’t ever try to resist me, Cain. If you do, I’ll have to make an enemy of you once again,” Freya was giggling, and it was Cain’s turn to roll his eyes. He grabbed a thick cloak lined with pale fur and wrapped it securely around his mate with a content smile on his face.
Freya reached up and rubbed her hand along Cain’s cheek and down to the short beard along his chin. She scratched the scruff for a moment before meeting his dark red eyes with her light blue ones. They stood still for a moment just looking into each other’s eyes and enjoying their comfort.
“Come on, little bird, let’s make an appearance and then we can come right back here. After I’ve had enough of you, we need to prepare for g
oing home,” Cain threw a black coat with white and grey fur over his own shoulders before heading to the tent entrance.
“I surely hope you never will have enough of me,” Freya giggled but the sound stopped short as Cain wrapped one muscled arm around her waist and pulled her tight against his side.
“Wouldn’t dream of it, my love,” and after he placed a gentle kiss atop her head Cain ushered them both out into the cold of the night and the light of the Blue Winter Moon.
Freya scrunched her face as they left the tent, showing she was disgruntled and unhappy with the cold assaulting them. Cain told her it could become even colder in the mountains and snow fell often throughout winter. She'd have to adjust to living in this weather.
At her side Cain looked perfectly adapted to the chill. He looked comfortable as they walked to the feasting wedding party with his arm wrapped lightly around Freya's waist.
The light of the blue moon was casting a luminous glow around the camp and the surrounding forest. All of the clouds were gone at the moment, but a herd of darker clouds were lurking in the distance. They held the promise of the coming storm.
As the rest of the Vargar warriors in the camp noticed Cain and Freya making their way to the crowded feast tables the new anointed couple was met with cheers and howls. The crowd thumped their mugs in rhythm on the long wooden tables, and Cain looked happily down at Freya who was blushing. But the deep smile on her face and joy in her light eyes spread into him.
Cain pulled Freya closer into his side and with his opposite hand he gently caressed her cheek. Freya leaned into his warm hand on her face and sighed contentedly.
"Your fellow birds are still here. We need to make sure to keep them happy until they leave," Cain murmured in a hushed voice as they walked towards the head table.
"I'm sure they'll leave soon. They don't look happy to be here," Freya responded. Hawke Aurelian was sitting at the head table with Vistra, but his body was incredibly tense as he made small talk with a grimace. Vistra on the other hand looked at ease, not a care in the world as she enjoyed herself on this chilly night.
It made Freya feel ashamed she had grown up with the same prejudices against the wolves that her former king and father still held onto. Even knowing that Vistra wasn't behind the attack Ivar had coordinated they still didn't look pleased to be in her presence, nor that of the pack.
Vistra looked like the elegant and fierce leader Freya knew her to be. The moonlight was highlighting her shimmering red eyes that were shadowed in her black war paint. Freya was apprehensive she'd never be able to live up to her example as the Vargar Wolfmother. She hadn't been groomed for the position all her life, and she was just beginning to learn the foundations of Vargar culture.
Hopefully in the years to come she could make Vistra proud. Well, and Cain and the rest of the Vargar. There were many of them back in the mountains awaiting their return.
Would the rest of them be as welcoming of Freya as those here at the camp? The initial envoy of warriors that had journeyed here so many moons ago to plan the new peace they were living into now were so much more than Freya had feared them to be.
When Freya saw her father sitting at the head table picking at a plate of roast her mind was taken back to the spring when Raga had come home and brought her the news of wolves on the boarder. In that moment Freya hated the ones she thought to be monsters. But those were the fools who had been working with Ivar. She supposed she could still think of those individuals as unruly beasts.
But not the others. Everyone wanted peace desperately since the generations of war had tainted every person here in some way.
Freya's grip on Cain's arm tightened as the got closer to the head table. Even though Vistra was beaming a marvelous smile in their direction, Freya couldn't seem to pull herself away from the fake smile on the Adaryn king's face. And then there was her father, with a sorrowful appearance as he glanced at his only daughter being held tightly by a Vargar.
"Speak to your father while I have words with your king," Cain told Freya.
"He's no longer my king. I'm with your people now," she squeezed his hand from within his much larger one before letting go. Hearing her words brought a smile to Cain's face and he leaned forward to plant a reassuring kiss on her brow.
Hawke Aurelian and Lonan Mourning were separated at the table by a few Council members. Freya frowned to see Allen Grouse amongst them, sniffing his cup of mead with disgust.
With all the courage she could muster Freya let go of Cain and held her head up high as she walked towards her father. Lonan had a brief look of surprise as her eyebrows rose to see she was walking in his direction. He would have been correct to assume Freya didn't want to speak to him, she was only doing this to appease the family-loving Cain.
If it was important for him to make her peace with her father, then she might as well. Although anxiety was clutching at her heart the closer, she got.
"Freya," Lonan turned in his seat at the head table to look at his daughter. There was sorrow in his eyes, and the lines around them had deepened. He appeared as though he had aged a century since the last, she had seen him. That morning at the manse he had seen her but hadn't been bothered to tell her goodbye. As much as she wanted to appease Cain and have this moment with her father it was only hurting her to see him.
She started to turn away from him, but Lonan still had sharp reflexes. He wasn't yet soft like the rest of the Council. His hand on her arm stopped Freya from turning. In the corner of her eye she saw Cain looking at her from his conversation with Hawke and his mother. Cain narrowed his eyes in question, but Freya wasn't going to disappoint him.
"Father, thank you for being here," he must have noticed her tone was cold as his face fell in sadness.
"I'm so sorry, Freya. Can you ever forgive an old fool for giving away his last daughter to the beasts?" His hand tightened on her arm as his eyes glistened. He looked genuine in his apology but the insult, Freya couldn't stand.
"They are not beasts! You sit here among them and still have the audacity to say something like that?" Her fists clenched as she turned on him. "You would give me away to them, not knowing what was going to become of me and now you want to apologize? You're lucky I'm actually happy with them. With him."
Her eyes cast to Cain and in the moment, she looked at him she noticed the rest of the Adaryn's at the table looking at the interaction between her and her father. She didn't care who heard her anymore. The thoughts of the Adaryn going back to their mansions in the sky to gossip only enraged her further.
"Are you happy, daughter, truly?" His question was like a plead falling on her ears.
"I am." Freya spoke truthfully.
"I saw you with him. I heard what the last envoy said when they returned. They spoke as though it was blasphemy to see you together, even though they wanted to send you away. Freya, you have to believe I never wanted to send you away. They made me... I had no choice," his voice was low and weak as he plead with Freya. As he spoke his hand moved to her arm as he held her in place. The sorrow in his eyes deepened as Freya only grimaced down at him.
She wanted to believe that her father hadn't really wanted to send her away, but he still had.
"Then why? Why am I here?" She retorted.
"We had to do it, Freya. We all wanted peace and to create an unbreakable alliance. You were the one who was chosen," his voice trembled, and Freya could only scoff at him.
"I am happy. I love Cain and I love his people. I belong more to the wolves than I ever did the birds." Her tone was a bit harsher than she meant it to be. Even if she believed her father's apology to be genuine it still angered her to know she was so disposable for them. "Father, I will forgive what you have done. I hope now I can live up to Raga in your eyes. After all, I'm doing my duty, am I not?"
Then Freya jerked her arm free of Lonan's grasp and turned her back on her father. Her hands came up to her stomach where she could feel the pieces of her sister's armor on the dress. The feeling of havi
ng that part of her sister with her made Freya feel stronger, and she sent a silent thank you to wherever Raga was in the sky.
Freya nodded her head in respect to the other members of the Adaryn council at the head table. When she joined Cain, she made sure to bow her head deeply at king Hawke, he nodded back briefly before jumping back into conversation with Cain and Vistra.
“I do believe there’s a great opportunity for trade. Our wine, your mead. We can share resources from our orchards and expansive farms, we have great interest in the cream you procure. The cheese and butter are very different in flavor to what we have,” the king was authentic in his conversation of resources.
Freya attempted to stay focused on the conversation, but the storm clouds were rolling lower and the chill was seeping into her bones even with the thick coat lined with fur wrapped tight around her. Her skin was as cold as ice and she wanted nothing more than to fall asleep with Cain’s massive frame wrapped around her sharing warmth.
The Bird and The Wolf Page 16