Chapter 14 Freija #2
Instead I focused on my surroundings. The trees were still shielded by the splintered stone wall Halvar had created.
If I wanted any chance of winning this evening, I had to remove that.
I had to keep him talking. Thinking. Watching.
Anything to give me time to use my Fjell Fae magic and eliminate the barrier that forced me close to him—even if the dagger he’d placed in my grasp warranted close-contact fighting.
“What is your favorite weapon?” I asked while focusing on the warm trill of power between my ribs. “Which do you gravitate toward?”
“Axe.” His eyes narrowed, but I kept my gaze moving as I lifted my free hand and pulled.
The stones around us ground together like thunder, booming and cracking as they returned beneath the soil.
The one closest to Halvar in the middle of the clearing retracted too, forcing him to divide his attention between me and the rock formations.
Once they slipped beneath the dirt, leaving piles of disturbed grass and moss in their wake, our gazes collided.
“Interesting choice,” he said.
I moved to my right, stepping closer to the tree line.
How long had it been since he’d walked these mountainsides?
He had said to use my magic and size to my advantage, but there was one more thing in my arsenal: knowledge.
I’d grown up on these hills, wandering between these trees for days on end, learning about the resident flora.
A wild plan took shape in my mind, and I bit back a smile.
I could attack him with the small dagger… Or I could run and come up behind him. Perhaps it was worth finding out just how long that stamina of his lasted.
Gripping the hilt of my blade, I took a deep breath and ran.
“Shit,” was all I heard as I bolted for the trees.
Thick, pine branches tried to slap me, but I pushed past them and quickly veered left, circling the clearing while letting the forest shield my movements.
Keeping my footsteps as light as possible, I ran as fast as I could and slunk behind a tree.
To my left, I caught sight of Halvar charging into the forest in the direction I’d disappeared. Perfect.
I snuck through the brush and back into the clearing. My chest heaved, and I sucked in air.
Slowing to a stop, I listened for footfalls.
Silence rang back at me.
Hmmmm. Time to run after hi—
Something flew at me from the left and I swung my blade in its direction, hoping to deflect.
Halvar’s forearm knocked the dagger from my palm and surged forward.
Damn. I took two steps back and swung my fist at him.
He caught my punch with his hand and spun me, twisting my arm against my back. “Nice try, princess.” He shoved me away, and I used the momentum to whirl around and kick my leg out.
Jumping over it like a hare, he landed in the grass with a thud, crouched and spun.
His leg connected with my ankles and my feet flipped toward the darkened sky. I crashed against the ground, air knocked out of my lungs. That was going to leave a bruise.
Halvar appeared above me, his body pressed against mine as he skimmed his hands up my arms and pinned my wrists over my head.
His eyes glittered and his lips twitched into a smile.
I sucked in a breath and bit my bottom lip.
My word, that was a mesmerizing sight. And to be completely at his mercy like this…
It lit up something deep inside me. Added oxygen to a flame that had ignited the night we met.
No. No. No. No.
For ancestor’s sake, Freija. You cannot think like that. It would only end badly. Wouldn’t it? Or would the way his lips brushed against mine light my body on fire? Would the way he moved his hands across me, sweeping over my hips and curves, have my toes curling and my heart racing?
The lump in his throat bobbed hard and his eyes filled with heat as if he could hear my thoughts.
My body trembled at the sight but could barely move under his weight and the tight hold on my wrists. He had me. Every part of me was under his control.
And I liked it.
I shouldn’t have.
But I did.
“Halvar.” His name slipped from my lips like a question and a plea.
He leaned in, pressing his chest fully against mine and nuzzled my neck. With a deep inhale, he let out a low growl.
My thighs tightened around him in response. Heat flooded every pore and thoughts of propriety drifted away like a leaf on a breeze. “Halvar.”
Another rumble reverberated against my chest, and he nipped at my neck.
I gasped and every nerve in my body zinged. Had he just bitten me?
“Say that again,” he murmured against my sensitive skin.
“What?”
“I like the way you say my name.”
My heart stopped beating, and the world around us ceased to exist. Henceforth I was only ever referring to him as soldier.
With the sensations humming through my body and the pleasure welling at my core, it was the safest thing to do.
This… this couldn’t happen. Wouldn’t be accepted. Shouldn’t feel as good as it felt.
I ground my center against his thigh once more and instantly regretted it.
More. I needed more.
As if hearing my thoughts, Halvar flipped us and brought my knees to either side of his hips so I was straddling him. I pressed my hands against his chest and let out a breath. He felt like stability on a cliff edge—sturdy and sure.
Halvar shifted into a seated position, bringing us face-to-face.
Ancestors, that countenance. The firm lines of age. Those eyes that had borne witness to so much yet currently looked like they wanted nothing more than to watch me. Halvar was overwhelm personified. A beast in both presence and name. I couldn’t tear my gaze away. Didn’t want to.
His breath brushed my cheek and his hands swept up my back. I leaned in, the smell of oak lulling me into a heady and hazy bliss.
“We shouldn’t,” I muttered.
“No, we shouldn’t,” he echoed as one of his hands strayed south and cupped my rear.
I let out a whimper, and the responding hardness between my thighs was strong enough to have my eyes fluttering shut, giving in to the feel, the need, the thickness—
A cool drop of water crashed against my cheek, shocking me from my wanton thoughts.
Wriggling out of his hold, I rose to my feet and brushed off my thighs, ridding myself of the last remnants of lust as a gentle rain set in. “We can’t. We shouldn’t do this.” I pointed between us. “This cannot happen.”
The heat in his eyes banked and he cleared his throat. “No. No, you are right.”
“It’s inappropriate.”
“Agreed.”
“However much I want—”
His head snapped up, gaze boring into mine as I abruptly stopped airing my thoughts.
“We… We should not,” I continued.
He slowly rose to his full height.
“If the Council found out… If my father found out…” I paced back and forth. “No, I won’t have you killed.”
“I’m not so easily dispatched.”
I tried not to roll my eyes. Of course he wasn’t, but he was a valuable asset to the Fjell Fae and I wouldn’t get him killed for impropriety. “This was a momentary lapse in judgment. We were caught up in the… It won’t happen again.”
“It will not happen again,” he agreed.
I huffed and set my hands on my hips. “Right.”
“Right.”
Swallowing hard, I tried to focus on anything but him while attempting to get my heart rate back down.
But all I could see was him. The way the waning light glinted across his silver hair.
The way his lips parted just so. The way his muscles flexed when he crossed his arms. Ancestors, what was happening to me?
What was it about him that made my surroundings disappear?
As we ambled back down the mountainside, drenched in heavy silence and drizzle, I knew it wouldn’t be only his words that would keep me up tonight. It would be the way he’d felt beneath me too.