CHAPTER SEVEN
Katrin stared after him then turned her attention to her satchel.
Reaching for the ties holding the pack closed, she pulled them open and took out her wand.
Caressing the slender wood, she found her wariness fading, replaced by a courage she’d rarely experienced.
Setting the sack on the floor beside the wall, she carried the wand while searching for the wooden plates she would need to serve their dinner.
It seemed Hradi had only been gone mere moments when he returned, a smoked roast in his hands.
"This will need to be heated." While he spoke, he didn't look at her while he spoke, and spit the meat to place over the fire.
Katrin found herself watching his hands intently when he worked the meat onto the stake.
She imagined those hands on her and her mouth suddenly went dry.
Why did this man spark such vivid images?
She'd never felt her visions before, not like this.
Not making her gut clench, her palms sweat, her knees weaken, like they did when she looked at Dream Man.
Hradi stood, dusting his hands off, and faced her, a knowing smile curling his lips.
"We need more water," he said. "I will fetch it."
Once more, he left her alone for a few moments, just long enough to gather her scattered wits before he returned and upended her senses again. When he stepped back into the house, he poured some of the water into a basin, where he rinsed off his hands then splashed water on his face.
He turned and motioned to the basin, offering her the opportunity to clean herself off as well.
She hesitated before stepping beside him.
Carefully setting her wand down, she rinsed her hands and face, the cool water both refreshing and soothing.
She used the cloth he handed her to dry herself then turned to her wand.
Before she could pick it up, Hradi grabbed it.
"That’s mine. You cannot touch it!" Panic raced along her veins and she reached for the slender wood that helped control her ability to reach the gods’ ears and hopefully receive their messages in return. He held it out of her reach.
"Why not?"
"It is attuned to me and my… powers."
"If I touch it, will you be unable to use it?"
Katrin halted her attempts to take the wand and stared at him, unsure of how to answer. Honestly, she decided.
"I actually don't know, but I do not wish to risk losing my ability to speak with the gods.
" Not even for you, Dream Man. No one besides Gunilla when they first crafted the wood had ever held her wand before, so she truly didn't know what danger his touch might bring.
Forcing her doubts aside, she lifted her chin and met his gaze steadily.
She had no intention of letting him see her uneasiness and raised her hand, palm up. "Give it to me."
He held her stare for what seemed an eternity. "I'm sorry. I was curious."
He held the wand out. She took it and gripped it tightly, stroking the bulb-like end.
The familiar tingling of unison with the wood and her surroundings slid easily over her, mixed with relief, along with a resurgence of strength.
Alone though she might be, her gift reinforced her ability to control her situation.
The lust between her and Hradi them also worked in her favor, at least for now.
"Thank you," she whispered.
"Come, we have some time before our meal is ready. Sit with me." Hradi pulled a chair from the table and indicated she take it. Nervousness returned when she obeyed, worried about the questions to come.
She wasn’t quite sure she was ready to answer them.
Hradi sat in the chair beside her, leaning on the table and folding his arms before him. "I want to know more about your gifts."
His intense stare pierced. She read the unspoken question in his eyes. He really wanted to know more of Gunilla's powers.
"As you have been told, I have visions of the future."
He said nothing, merely continued studying her for several drawn-out moments. Katrin held her breath waiting for his response.
"And how do you see these visions?"
Her fingers tightened around the wand. Time again for honesty. "Most often, I can look into someone's eyes and see what will happen to them."
"Just by looking in their eyes?"
A hint of disbelief laced his words. She expected that though.
It often took proving herself over the course of a few days before people realized how very real her power was.
Once her visions occurred as she had described, she, Gunilla and the rest of the girls would be showered with gifts of wealth and treated as honored guests, much like royalty.
Until a few years ago, they had been beneficial to making the villages they visited prosperous.
That had changed several years back, with the first secretive flight entailing carting a significant amount of gold and jewels.
From that point on, their welcome had been shorter in every town they visited.
After a time, the villagers realized the truth behind Gunilla's intentions, which was simply to obtain as much wealth as possible.
No matter if Katrin's visions were accurate.
Once the whispers of doubt started, the retinue fled under cover of darkness, to wander anew until arriving at another village.
"Sometimes that is simply enough. Other times, I must touch the person in some way, like holding their hand, or placing my hand on their shoulder. There have been a few times where simply sitting beside someone is enough to bring a vision.
"But always, I must also have this."
She lifted her wand, still stroking the wood reverently. Through the years, this special wooden tool helped her focus on her visions. She explained this while she continued caressing the long stick. Daring a glance his way, she struggled to conceal her surprise.
His gaze locked on her hand, moving slowly over the wood that was like an extension of her arm.
A strange heat sparked in his eyes. Despite her lack of dealings with men, some instinct warned that her actions spurred lust within him.
She looked away, finding it difficult to draw another deep breath, yet curious to understand why he seemed so affected.
"You have had visions of me."
His roughly voiced words stirred another odd shiver of something that, while it grew more familiar, she still couldn't quite name, though the promise of great pleasure rang clear. While she remained unsure of so much, the knowledge she wanted more than the hint taunting her now.
His statement drew her gaze back to his and the resulting heat blazing in his eyes roused a responding fire that swept through her in a blast, leaving her breathless, a sudden lump briefly clogging her throat. She nodded.
"Dreams, really. Not visions as I usually receive them."
"You had them before you arrived."
Katrin lowered her head, warmth spiking in her cheeks.
Her stomach knotted, but with a feathery delight that tempted.
Her grip on the wood tightened again. Hradi caught her chin in his fingers and forced her to look at him.
The feel of his fingers against her skin burned, in a peculiar yet intriguing way.
The various sensations came at her from every angle, combining to create a tumult that left her weak and trembling in a way far more intense than any time after she'd received a vision.
At the same time, the allure of knowing there was much more behind these tantalizing hints invigorated her, enticing her to throw caution aside and give herself to the beckoning desire.
Unused to such emotions, she found herself unable to fully comprehend. A brief moment of longing for Gunilla arose. Katrin pushed it from her mind.
"Tell me."
His gaze roamed her face, warming her skin wherever he paused.
She found herself studying him as well, admiring the strong line of his jaw, outlined by the short, dark beard.
Her gaze settled on his lips, recalling the way they'd felt against her neck earlier.
Intrigued by the way his mouth had feathered across her skin, she wanted him to kiss her that way once more,.
A smile formed and she lifted her stare to his, clearly finding amusement in her interest.
"Tell me," he urged again, his voice low and filled with a husk that sent heat whisking along her veins.
Several unsteady breaths passed before she once more calmed enough to speak.
"I have seen you in my dreams. But just from afar. We never spoke or… When I saw you on the docks, I panicked. I had no idea you were real until yesterday."
A slow smile curled his lips and the sight spurred her heart into an uneasy yet exciting rhythm. His dark eyes still held hers. She found herself leaning a little closer, hoping he might kiss her again. Instead, he released her but kept his visual hold, pinning her in her chair.
"Did you have a vision when you saw me?”
More fire flooded her face when she recalled those first visions. Before she could answer, his smile widened to a knowing grin. Again he leaned close, so close his warm breath caressed her cheek.
"I can see from your expression that you did. You must tell me more of your dreams. I shall look forward to making them come true."
The deep rumble of his voice sent tiny sparks of heated anticipation along her spine.
An abrupt reminder of the cost of acting on her dreams flashed into her awareness, chilling her desire.
His words spurred alarm to temper the longing, enough to make her draw away.
How could she let herself forget the danger of giving in to the temptation he presented?
She shook her head. "You can't!"
His brow furrowed, the grin fading. "But I will."
"You don't understand. If –"
"I understand that you and I have an attraction. You knew what was expected when we struck our bargain."
"I know, but there's a problem."
"You are virgin."