Chapter 1 #2
I looked up in his eyes, “But this is our first time, I’ve never slept with you before. Except, you know, actual sleeping. We never made love before, this is very much an exhilarating first time, but somehow…”
His hand rubbed down my hips. “Somehow I ken yer scar, and ye feel familiar, under it all.”
“We’re connected.”
His head nodded, right beside mine.
I said, “I didn’t notice the feeling of familiarity before now…”
“Aye, since we married.”
I raised my chin and he kissed my lips.
Then he said, “This is what I meant earlier, I ken ye, yer body, the beauty of it, and the pleasure. That is all I need.”
“Well, let’s just agree that when I get my period it’ll be a whole new side of me, very moody, likely, but you’re saying it’ll be alright.”
“If ye tell me I canna hae ye somedays because of God’s curse, tis the way of life, I think, not something for me tae worry on.”
“That’s really nice, so you love me anyway? Despite all my faults, even though I’m warning you that I will have moods?”
He raised his head and looked down on me, “I daena love ye despite it, I love ye because of it, I will harness yer moods and turn them upon m’enemies.”
I laughed. “I’ll be like your grumpy bear? You can invite your enemies over and I will snarl at them for you?”
“Aye, and for that glorious moment I can watch ye vanquish my enemies with the comfort of knowin’ that for a time ye winna be snarlin’ at me.”
I really laughed and batted his shoulder. “I never snarl.”
“Aye, tis true. Ye just argue and daena listen — did I tell ye how grateful I am that ye agreed tae be my wife?”
“I’m really glad you agreed to be my husband.”
“I am nae worried at all about yer moods, or anything about ye that might be a surprise. I look forward tae finding out all about yer mysteries. We ought tae be much more concerned about yer learning of my failings.”
I rolled my fingers through his hair. “You don’t have any failings, my love.”
“Och, I hae bedded ye well, ye hae forgotten all yer earlier complaints.”
“True… I can’t remember a thing.”
“Ye were furious at me for drawin’ the evil men here.”
“I’m still furious, but,” I kissed his temple, right beside my lips, “I’m feeling very forgiving, must be all the orgasms.”
He pressed his mouth to mine. Then said, his lips brushing mine as he spoke. “Tis a thing ye enjoy?”
“See, Albannach, there is so much you don’t know, yes, I like it very much. I especially like when your mouth is here, and your hand is here.”
I gestured, he looked. “Och, this is verra good news, because I greatly like tae put m’mouth there and m’hand there. I am thinkin’ of doing it once again.”
“I bet I can think of some other things too, that I like.” I drew his finger up to my lips and kissed the end. “I liked when this finger touched here,” then I drew it down, “And here.”
He kissed my cheek while his finger gently played between my legs. “I think my finger likes tae burrow there, tis one of m’favorite things in the world.”
“You decided that’s your favorite thing in the world? But you’ve only been in bed with me for a few hours, you already know it?”
“Aye, I learned it tonight, and it has eclipsed all else. I canna think of anythin’ but when ye will allow it again.”
His stomach growled. “Och, all my appetites are hungry.”
“Since we’ve fed your sexual appetite repeatedly, maybe we need to get up, shower, and feed you breakfast.”
“Tae shower, ye mean…?”
I kissed his forehead and rolled from under his arm and spilled from the bed. “Follow me!” I pulled on a robe. “Here’s one for you,” and went down the hall to the upstairs bathroom that had a shower stall.
He came around the corner, the robe didn’t close in the front and only came to mid-thigh. He grinned. “M’stones are out.”
I laughed. “Yes, they are. Your robe is too tiny.”
I turned on the water, and put a hand under it to check the temperature. “Takes a moment.”
I immediately had to pee. “Don’t look, I gotta pee.” I sat down on the toilet and started to go.
He was not looking, instead his brow drew down, and he was investigating the wall. “Where does it come from?”
I said, “See that handle, it turns the water on and off, press it down to turn it off, see?”
He turned it off. “Then you press it up and a little to the left.”
He turned it back on and off again.
I finished peeing and wiped, as he turned the water back on again.
He put his hand in. “Marvelous.”
I said, “Your turn to piss in the toilet.”
He did while I got a stack of towels out of the cabinet, placed them on the counter, and checked the water temp. It was perfect.
I dropped my robe to the floor and stepped in. I glanced over my shoulder at him, his eyes widened. “Och, ye are invitin’ again.”
I beckoned. “Come in, Albannach, the water is warm.”
He grinned as he stepped into the tub. “This is wondrous.”
“You can take a shower every morning, and every night too, if you want.” I squeezed some soap in a washcloth and began rubbing it over his skin.
He moaned with pleasure.
“You like it?”
“Aye. But that sounds like a lot of washin’.”
“In this time, Torin, people expect a lot of washing, you have to smell good.” I squeezed shampoo into my hand and began washing his hair.
He moaned contentedly.
“Now you can see why I was so irritable when we were on our trip. I missed the showers.”
“Ye do this every day? Aye, I can see why ye would miss it, though I still think tis too many. The men of this time must be verra soft, I hae tae go tae bed covered in mud and ripe with stench at least once a month or I winna be driven enough tae win a battle.”
“You need mud to fight?”
“I need deprivation tae win. Aye. The promise of a soft bed at the end of the battle, but I canna hae it at the beginning, or I would never go.”
I raised the shower sprayer over his head. “Close your eyes.”
I rinsed his hair, asking, “But, what of kings, they have soft beds, and they still win battles.”
“Kings hae tae live on the edge of a battlefield alongside their men, until they win, then they can go home to the soft bed.”
While I put shampoo in my hair and lathered it up, he put his hand out and tentatively touched my breast. I joked, passing him a bar of soap, “Put some soap on your paw and you can touch all you want.”
He put his soapy hand on my breast. “You are a verra good wife.”
I opened an eye, he looked mesmerized and as if he was really going to drive his excitement up again, so while I was rinsing my hair I jokingly sprayed him.
“Och nae!”
“I’m going to hose you down, Torin, we’ve already made love like five times, we gotta go get food.”
He joked, “I am verra hungry, but ye did promise ye wouldna say no tae me.”
I sprayed him again. “I changed my mind, my mood is going to go bad if I’m not fed. This is too much sex, not enough food.”
He took the shower handle and rinsed off all of himself and then me. “Ye are nude, my wife, tis a promise. I canna bear it, I must hae ye if ye are so close.”
I put the handle back in its spot and turned off the water. “We have to go eat, you’ll have to wait, my love.”
He sighed, dramatically.
I stepped from the shower and wrapped in a towel. “Better? I’m hidden.”
He said, “Och, I am made tae suffer.”
I laughed and tossed another towel at him and we both dried off.