Chapter 14
Fourteen
ZAKAI
Uttin had cracked the code on how to get me to learn something new.
I was definitely more willing to learn if he rewarded me with sex.
After he cleaned us up and got comfortable beside me, I gave him fifteen minutes to recover before I reached for him again.
He pinned my hands in one of his, a smirk on his face, and started pointing at things to get me to say the words out loud.
Whenever I did, he rewarded me with a kiss or a touch, leaving me burning for more and willing to say just about anything to get him to touch me, until he finally took us both in hand and made me come.
Days passed in a similar fashion as the storm continued.
There were breaks sometimes where the snow wasn’t falling, but the wind was constant, and I only ever left the tent when I absolutely had to.
Even speaking with Simon wasn’t worth the effort.
It was too damn cold, and I was warm with a sexy barbarian on top of me. Why would I want to be anywhere else?
“Hungry?” he asked, his deep barbarian growl against my ear giving me goosebumps.
I hummed, hugging his arm a little tighter around my chest. “No.” My stomach chose that moment to rumble petulantly. It’d been hours since we last ate, and with the number of orgasms I’d had the past few days, I was working up an appetite.
“Liar,” he chuckled, nipping at my shoulder. “Up. We go.”
He kept his sentences simple, since that was all I could comprehend.
I did the same for him when I spoke in my own tongue.
Despite figuring out how to get me to engage with his lessons, he was still diligent in learning my tongue as well, which made me unbelievably happy.
It didn’t seem there was anything Uttin wouldn’t do to ensure my happiness.
Of course, just because I engaged didn’t mean I was well behaved.
I held his arm tighter, refusing to move.
We’d run out of the dried meat the night prior.
Our next meal had to come from the clan, and Uttin was refusing to go out and get it for us.
He wanted to go to the tent where everyone met together.
I didn’t want to. I wasn’t looking forward to being surrounded by people speaking another language and ignoring me. It bothered me.
Pestering from Uttin didn’t get me moving. What got me out of bed was when he pulled me tighter against his chest and his cock brushed against my ass. I yelped and jerked away from him, eyes wide as I sat up to gape at him.
He raised an eyebrow at me. “What?”
“Don’t what me!” I snapped, lapsing into my own tongue automatically. “Your cock is going nowhere near my ass!”
His brow furrowed, and I knew he didn’t understand me.
He knew a few words in that sentence, but not enough to put it all together.
And I wasn’t about to explain it to him.
My cheeks felt hot, and I was glad for my swarthy complexion hiding the blush.
We’d done many things in bed together, but that wasn’t one of them.
I didn’t want him to think me weak, and the thought of doing that to him felt…
wrong for some reason. I didn’t want to.
And he’d never shown any interest in it either.
My embarrassment was enough to chase me from the warmth of the tent. I yanked on my warm clothes and snatched up Uttin’s cloak, avoiding his eye when he stood to get dressed. He chuckled at my awkwardness, taking his time to put on his clothes.
“Zakai walk?” he asked, stopping next to me.
I looked up at him with a frown of confusion only for him to swoop down and plant a kiss on my lips.
It left me flustered, and when he opened the tent flap, instead of having him carry me like last time, I hustled out to avoid him.
Why was he so sweet? Abdul had made up the biggest lies when telling me about them.
These barbarians couldn’t be as evil as he’d made them out to be.
My breath caught in my chest as I looked around.
The clan had been diligent in moving the snow out of the main walkways enough for people to move about if necessary, but the rest was almost buried in the snow.
I’d never seen anything like it. Every surface was covered in sparkling white as the sun shone upon it.
Wind still whipped around, making the snow dance through the air.
I could see my breath escape my lips in a cloud, and each tent had its own clouds puffing from the tops of them.
I let out a longer breath, fascinated at being able to see it.
Uttin huffed a laugh, nudging me toward the tent where everyone gathered.
What surprised me was seeing a few with no tunics in a cleared area nearby.
They were wrestling with each other, trying to pin the other, and when one succeeded, they dumped their friend into the snow.
“Cold!” I protested, gaping at them.
One looked up, a crooked smile on his face as he answered. My expression immediately flattened at how quickly he spoke, but Uttin stepped in before I could lose my temper.
“Slower. He’s learning.”
The barbarian who spoke looked abashed and tried again, speaking slower this time. I didn't know all the words he used, but I got the gist of it. “Not cold. Practice makes us hot.”
“Snow cold,” I replied with a frown.
His buddy shrugged. “He warm me later.”
My eyebrows jumped up, and when I looked at Uttin, he explained, “Tavik and Saneth bondmates.”
Ohhh… Simon had explained that word to me. They were the barbarian equivalent of married. Which explained the flirty comment, but not the inclination to roll around in the snow. Another gust of wind cut through me, and I shot Uttin a grimace.
“Too cold.”
He hummed and nodded, waving to the two others. “We eat now. Saneth, go for his knees.”
I understood that sentence since we’d gone over the body parts several times already, and I watched in fascination as the smaller man spun around, going low to tackle his bondmate to the ground with a cackle.
Of course, the bigger man rolled them, but Saneth was no pushover and managed to wiggle free and get Tavik into a headlock. I pointed at them as we walked away.
“Teach me?”
Uttin frowned at me. “You not know?”
I just shrugged. I wasn’t going to admit I’d given up on hand-to-hand combat because I was embarrassed. And I trusted Uttin to be nicer about it than Hameed had been.
Uttin didn’t seem bothered with my reply. He just nodded. “Later. Too cold for you.”
“Not outside!” I grumbled, making him grin. But then again, there wasn’t a ton of room in the tents. With the fire pit and the table, there was barely enough room for a bed. Where else would we be able to practice?
We stepped into the biggest tent, and my eyes immediately scanned for Simon. He was in the corner with a few men I didn’t know. I assumed them tributes given how different they looked from the clan, but they were dressed similarly and had those necklaces I’d seen many wear. Bondmates, maybe?
“Go sit with Simon,” Uttin urged.
I went because there was a line for food, and I wasn’t patient enough to wait.
Simon nudged someone to make room for me in the little circle, which made me insanely smug as I plopped down on the cushion beside him.
But when he handed me a toddler no more than three, I didn’t know what to do.
My hands shot out and up, and my eyes widened in shock.
“What is this?” I croaked.
He smirked at me. “One of the orphans brought here when you were. Finn and Rath have adopted him. They’re in line right now.” He jerked his chin to where a small blond and one of the biggest barbarians I’d ever seen stood collecting three bowls from the cooks.
“So why am I holding it?” I demanded.
“Him. And you’re holding him because he’s warm.”
I frowned, taking a moment to process that.
He wasn’t wrong. The toddler looked unconcerned with being handed to a stranger, leaning against my chest as he watched the crowded room, and warmth seemed to seep off him and into me.
Slowly, I encircled him in my arms, letting out a sigh as the chill in my bones began to fade.
“Why is he so warm? Is he sick?”
“No,” Simon shook his head. “Little kids just run warm. I’ve met a few since coming here, and they all run warm. It’s nice after being in this awful weather.”
An older child, maybe seven or eight, ran up to Simon with a smirk on his dirty face. He said something in the barbarian language, and Simon nodded approvingly. He pulled something out of his pocket, handing it to the kid who popped it into his mouth and took off again.
“That one is my favorite,” Simon murmured with a grin. “He’s a troublemaker.”
“What did he say?”
“He said the barbarian word for shit,” Simon told me with an evil grin. “I told him to ask around and see if someone will tell him. When Feigrind hears him, he’ll lose his mind.”
He cackled like upsetting his bondmate didn’t bother him in the slightest. I was suddenly glad I’d wound up in Uttin’s care and not Simon’s. The child wasn’t the only troublemaker around here.
“You’re evil.”
Simon’s grin never dimmed. “And you’re so pure? Why have you not been here the past few days?”
“It’s freezing!” I argued, gesturing toward outside. The toddler looked up at me, and I grimaced. “Sorry.”
“Erik,” the small blond man called as they approached, beaming at the toddler, who wriggled free of my lap to go to the men.
The barbarian looked proud as the smaller one picked the child up and sat him on his hip.
A bit of longing swelled in my chest. Since I wasn’t the crown prince, I technically didn’t have to have kids, but I liked them just fine.
I just wasn’t interested in making them the old-fashioned way.
Adopting like the couples here had done might be better for me.
Though, I wasn’t sure my parents would ever allow that.
They probably wouldn’t even allow me to be with a man.
“What’s wrong? Your face just turned sour.”
I wrinkled my nose. “Nothing.”
The flat look Simon gave me said he didn’t believe me. How he could see right through me, I’d never know. I sighed heavily.
“My parents have been speaking of arranging my marriage to a woman of their choosing. They expect me to wed and make babies. But I have no interest in women. I barely tolerate spending time with my sisters on a given day. Once I return, I’m not sure how much longer I can hold them off.”