The Birth and Revelations #7
“Thank ye for these precious animals ye brought to us. Thor will enjoy watching them grow up too. The sheep will help provide us more wool to spin into yarn when they have grown.” Ilona’s mother had brought a beautiful woven blanket to use for one of their beds.
The beautiful turquoise-blue blanket reminded Ilona of the sea surrounding Orkney.
“Mother, this is beautiful, and I ken it took ye many months of weaving to make this lovely warm blanket for us. I will put it in the bedroom you and father share, as it will be Thor’s bedroom later, when he is older.”
In the following days, Rathnon took Ewan to visit the blacksmith, tanner, carpenter, and blacksmith, as well as the potter.
Rathnon insisted he choose an item they would like to use back home as his gift.
Depending on the items they chose, it would take time to create.
Rathnon hoped these could be finished by the time her parents returned to their home.
Rathnon and Ilona took her parents and Thor for a picnic by the loch on a warm day. He took his son swimming in the loch. Thor loved the water and kicked and splashed with abandon, bringing great happiness to his parents and grandparents.
While the men went hunting and fishing on other days, Ilona and her mother walked in the forest, with Thor snugly attached by cloth to his mother’s body.
They gathered berries and herbs and made baskets.
Ilona savored every day spent with her whole family.
For she kent the time would pass more quickly than they thought.
Ilona’s mother helped Ilona cook and prepare meals and do the washing.
She had discovered how much more laundry needed to be done with a bairn.
Some evenings, her father would recite stories from his childhood to Thor, and on other nights, he whittled a wooden wolf for him to play with when old enough. They enjoyed the warmer weather and basked in the sun as they worked in the garden and cared for the animals.
Their gifts had been finished. Ilona’s father had the carpenter fashion a carved door to be hung inside their home on Orkney.
Rathnon gave him a dirk to carry on his belt.
Ilona wove a basket for her mother to use when harvesting the garden and gave her herbal sachets and medicinal teas to take home with her.
Rathnon and Ilona gave her father a fur-lined leather jacket with fur sewn on the outside to keep him warm in the winter weather, and for her mother, Ilona gave her a warm green sweater.
In another week, it would be time for them to venture back home.
In the evenings, they discussed when Rathnon, Ilona, and Thor might visit them the following year, or when her parents could return to visit them again. Her parents had assimilated well into the village and enjoyed the camaraderie of the people.
One evening, her parents entertained Thor while Ilona and Rathnon took a walk in the forest. Rathnon had been preoccupied of late, quieter as he studied Ilona intently.
He clenched and unclenched his free hand while clasping Ilona’s other hand in his.
She thought she kent what Rathnon was concerned about but thought he would tell her when ready.
She kent he was worried the king would have duties for him soon or was concerned for her and Thor while he returned with her parents.
After several days of seeing him tense with furrowed brows, they took a walk.
“Rathnon, I cannae tell ye how much it means that ye brought my parents home to us to visit and get to ken ye and their grandson. They have greatly enjoyed themselves here with us, and I ken it was a welcome adventure for them to travel for a short time without duties and obligations. Their grand surprise visit is one I will always treasure. They have come to love ye, and I am grateful they ken the wonderful man who is my husband.”
Rathnon kissed her tentatively at first, his hands gently cupping her face.
Then, as if a storm of passion had surged, he lifted her up, her legs wrapped around his waist, and he kissed her fiercely, pulling her close to him in a strong embrace.
“I love ye, Ilona. Ye are my heart and my love. I could nae bear to live without ye.” He pulled up her skirts in the throes of passion and braced her against a sturdy tree as he thrust inside her in one powerful stroke while kissing her lips and holding her tightly as he made love to her.
They joined with their hearts and passion for each other.
Momentarily, he stilled and gazing at her earnestly, pleading in a low gravelly voice, “Do nae leave me, Ilona. I love ye with all my heart.” Thrusting again and again until he brought them both to the zenith of their passion, they reached their release simultaneously.
Afterward, he gently laid her on the ground in a soft bed of grass and took her again.
They clung to each other afterward. Rathnon stroked Ilona’s head and ran his hands through her silky hair as the wind whispered through the pines and the golden sun set with brilliant colors in the sky.
Ilona leaned up to gaze at Rathnon directly eye to eye.
“Ye were afraid I would leave ye and return to my parents home when they leave? I cannae leave ye, Rathnon, for I love ye with all my heart and soul. I did try to escape when ye first brought me here, before we kent each other. I could never leave ye now and would never take yer son from ye. He needs ye, his father, to guide him to be a strong man as he grows and to teach him how to be a powerful warrior. I could nae live without ye, for I made ye vows of love and promised ye with my heart full of love for ye. Now we have a son, I love ye even more than before. Ye have given me a gift of yer heart by giving me yer son. I love ye, Rathnon.” Ilona claimed him with a kiss. “Yer heart is my home.”
Rathnon’s heart eased, overjoyed to hear his lovely wife declare her love for him. He counted himself a fortunate man to have not only captured a beautiful woman and wife, but one who freely bestowed her heart and love to him. Ilona and a family were all he ever wanted in life.
Rathnon looked forward to fathering more children with his beloved Ilona. He now prided himself more on being a husband and father than a famous warrior. Fame fades over time, but love leaves a precious legacy—one he had claimed over and over with Ilona.
Pulling him to her, Ilona covered Rathnon with butterfly kisses over his face, neck, and lips. And then kissed him deeply in invitation. An invitation he eagerly accepted.
Rathnon had stolen Ilona, but she held his heart captive always….