Page 44 of Alliance Bride
That night, Aevar settled in to listen to Eadlyn read and massaged his arm where one of the men had struck him during their training bouts after he and Kian had sparred. It still throbbed beneath the skin, a clean hit and well-earned.
Eadlyn’s voice filled the room, enthusiasm coloring her tone as she told him of how her God had sent plagues down on the land of Egypt because the king refused to let God’s people go free. It was a dramatic tale—water turned to blood, locusts darkeningthe skies, the sun blotted out—and Aevar had to admit he found it more gripping than he’d expected.
But his focus wandered.
He kept drifting back to the moment earlier when she had stood at his side so boldly, facing Oda’s sneering hatred without flinching. She was quiet, and gentle, and poised, as one expected from a southern princess, but she carried a deeper hidden strength. He’d seen it from the first day they’d met, and it had revealed itself again today. And with that strength, he suspected she had a spark of fight as well. He’d caught a glimpse of it when she’d stepped in to stop the match between him and her Essian guard when they’d first accepted the marriage proposal. He hadn’t forgotten the spark in her eyes. It made him wonder, idly at first, but with growing interest, what else lay buried beneath that calm and grace. What would it take to get her ire up?
He shifted and looked over at her, that question turning into temptation. “Are you sure this story isn’t about the gods?”
Eadlyn paused mid-sentence and lowered the parchment. “No. It’s definitely abouttheGod. The whole point of the plagues was to show that the gods Egypt believed in were not real and had no power.”
Aevar nodded as if mulling it over. “Still sounds like the gods to me.”
“But you see, this reveals God’s power over all of creation. He is the God of gods. More powerful than any created thing.”
“‘God of gods.’” He lifted an eyebrow. “So thereareothers.”
She blinked. “What? No!” The first thread of exasperation slipped into her voice. “That’s not what it means.” She adjusted her shawl and sat straighter. “It means He’s God over everything, including man’s attempts at creating their own gods.”
“How can you be sure?”
She stared at him as if he’d sprouted antlers. After all, he had never questioned her like this. Not directly. Not in this tone that always annoyed his brothers. She thought through her answer for a long moment and drew in a breath. One of those slow, deliberate ones people took when they were keeping calm.
He fought a smile, but not well enough, apparently.
Her eyes narrowed. “You’re trying to irritate me.”
He shrugged, letting a grin break free. “I wanted to see if you could get irritated.”
She reached behind her and snatched a pillow. The throw was quick and clean. He laughed as he caught it just before it smacked him in the face.
“I’ll have you know,” she said with exaggerated dignity, “I can get plenty irritated. Edward would tell you that.”
Her face held his gaze, the amusement tilting her soft lips and sparkling in her dark eyes. It struck him how happy she looked, sitting there on his bed as if she had always belonged, her hair spilling over her shoulders in sharp contrast to the light blue shawl she’d wrapped around herself. Something sparked deep in his chest, and he forced himself to look away.
Without speaking, he tossed the pillow back at her—not too hard—and caught a feminine scent of lavender. It hit him without warning, bringing the past colliding with the present. Warding off the memories, he lay back down and stared at the ceiling. Eadlyn continued reading, but the words grew lost in a confusing sea of longing for what once was and the way his heart tugged at him now.
Chapter Sixteen
Themorningairhelda keen edge, thick with fjord salt and the promise of adventure. It hummed in the sounds of boots over planks, the shouts of orders and farewells, and the dull thud of crates and chests loaded into longships. Nearly all of Fjellheim had gathered at the docks to see the raiders off to seek their fortunes outside Nordra.
Eadlyn stood amidst the bustle and observed as men carried bundles of supplies onto the waiting ships, while others held their wives and children in long embraces. There was excitement, but also somberness in it all. The kind that came from knowing some of these goodbyes might be the last.
She had grown up hearing the dreadful tales of Nord raids along Essix’s coast. Of ships landing without warning, villages set ablaze, and people dragged away from their homes. How strange to stand on the other side now, watching the same ships depart under the blessing of people she had come to care about. Because of the alliance, Essix was now spared such horror. She found grim relief in that.
She scanned the crowd and found Aevar near one of the docks, clasping forearms with one of the departing warriors. He wasn’t among those leaving. Thank God for that. She approached him as he stepped away from the man, his expression unreadable.
“Where are the men headed?”
“Waelon. We figure if they are dealing with raids, they will be too busy to think about invading Essix, and we will not have to march to your brother’s aid. It benefits both sides of the alliance.”
A tangle of mixed emotions knotted inside her. Relief, yes, but also guilt. Waelon might be an enemy of Essix, but the ones who suffered most were the farmers, the villagers, the children. She offered a silent prayer for them. For those with no warning or say. The people around her might not approve, but she couldn’t pretend she did not care.
She let her attention drift over the raiders themselves, many faces she now recognized, and prayed for their safety too. This was her home now, and though she didn’t condone their violence, she didn’t wish grief on their families either.
She turned her attention back to Aevar. “Have you ever been raiding?”
“A couple of times. Years ago. My family usually stays here in case Kalgora breaks the truce. There’s no guarantee year to year, and we must keep a strong enough force to hold them off.”
