Page 60 of Storm of Desire
Quiet was not a natural state ofÁrdís's.
Her silence infected him too, leaving him lost in the thought that she'd never taken another man to bed.Drekimales had thrown themselves at her feet, but she'd never beentempted.
"You've ruined me for all othermen."
It had been said laughingly, but there'd been a hint of truth theretoo.
He didn't know what to think. Rage had been smoldering within him ever since Rurik told him the truth. All he'd wanted to do for the past month or two was smash things, and demandanswers.
What he hadn't expected was for those answers to raise morequestions.
Árdís might have revealed a hint of her reasoning, but he was fairly certain she hadn't told him everything. He could practically see the iceberg floating in front of him, barely the tip revealed. There was a depth of secrets between them that he didn'tlike.
And yet the anger was softened, the edges of it dulled by the knowledge he wasn't the only one hurtinghere.
He'd always been a careful man. A hunter who followed the near-invisible tracks of his quarry. And anger had blinded him, for there were signs here that something wasn't quite as itseemed.
"Take the bed," he said, tugging the blankets open for her. "I'm used to hard travel. You'renot."
"No." She tried to drag his heavy cloak around her shoulders, and he fought the urge to help her. "I'm not even thattired."
"Árdís, stop being bloodystubborn."
"I will as soon as you do," she snapped back. "I'm not weak. I can handle this body. And you barely slept lastnight."
Starting toward her, he stopped when she tried to hobble around the fire to avoidhim.
"Lie down," he said. "You need the rest more than I do. You have several more days in the saddle ahead ofyou."
The look on her face said itall.
"I'm fine," she insisted, but it lacked her earlier adamancy. "You've been taking all of the watches, and doing most of the work. It's your turn to sleep. I'm not just some pamperedprincess."
It wasn't as though he'd forgotten how stubborn she was, but the years apart had dulled the frustration. Árdís could give a mule lessons in obstinacy. Years ago he'd argued against her, their wills clashing in a storm of passion, but he was a different man now. Not a young man who'd never left his village, his days sorted into a routine of monotony, but a man who'd challenged the seas, and the storms, and the beasts themselves. A man who no longer simply met each challenge headlong, but one who sidestepped it, outthoughtit.
He stared ather.
She staredback.
Haakon's eyes narrowed with slow determination. "Fine."
The second she relaxed he made a sudden grab for her, and swung her up over his shoulder. One hand clamped firmly on her backside, he turned and strode toward thebedroll.
She was tired. She was sore. She wasstubborn.
There was more than one way to deal withthis.
Árdís yelped, kicking him in the gut. "Put me down, you bigoaf!"
He stroked his hand over her bottom, and she sucked in a startled breath. Haakon smiled to himself. Revenge against her earlier entreaties on the horse. "You're not going to win this argument, so you might as well simplyconcede."
"Concede?"
"Yes, concede." He dumped her down onto the bedroll, one of his knees trapping her skirts to the ground, as he followed her. "You have heard of the word, have younot?"
Árdís lay flat on her back, staring up at him with her mouth agape. Haakon pinned her there, hands on her wrists, and just like that they were seven years into the past. This could have been any night during their marriage. Argument ringing in his ears, even as blood raged through his erection. He wanted inside her.Now.
Old habits died hard. If this was seven years ago, then he would have simply fused his mouth to hers and kissed her. Dragged her skirts up, as he settled between herhips.
