A Battle Lord’s Heart (25 page)

Chapter
Eighteen

Emerging
Feelings

           
It was turning out to be a gorgeous
spring day. Okay, so the weather wasn’t quite as cooperative as it was last
week, Atty told herself, but it was certainly making up for it today. She was
stretched out in a chair, feet propped up on the edge of the bed, head resting
on the back of the seat, while the sunshine coming through the window bathed
her in its warm, bright rays.
 
It
wouldn’t be too difficult to fall asleep right where she was, but it wouldn’t
be possible. Not in her present “condition”.

           
The door in the next room squeaked.
Atty snorted, smiling, yet refusing to budge. Everyone knew the damn thing’s hinges
needed greasing, but apparently no one wanted to take the time to do it. She
waited to hear who would be entering the room, knowing it could only be one of
three people. When no footfall came to her ears, she had no doubt as to who was
standing in the doorway.

           
“Good heavens, Atty, what do you
think you’re doing?”

           
“Enjoying the warm sunshine,” she
answered, neither moving nor opening her eyes.

           
“You’re bare-ass naked.”

           
“Good eye, Yulen. The heat feels
good on my stitches. Care to join me?”

           
To her surprise, a clinic blanket
was draped over her. Making a face, she lifted her head and opened her eyes to
give her husband an annoyed look. “I wasn’t going to fall asleep this way. I
just wanted some sun. Besides, the window’s way up high. No one can see in
unless they’re over eight feet tall.”

           
She watched as her husband sat on
the edge of the bed, next to her feet, and crossed his arms over his chest.
“What if it had been Liam? Or Click coming in?”

           
She snorted again. “Oh, like they
don’t know what I look like without my clothes on? Geez, Yulen! They’ve seen
parts of me even
I
haven’t seen!”

           
Her last statement made him grin.
Atty had made a remarkable recovery in the past week, especially with the help
of Click’s medical expertise. Both Yulen and Atty knew they owed their lives to
this compound, and it was a debt they intended to repay.

           
“Okay,” he relented. “Then let’s
just say I have a personal reason for covering you.
And
requesting that
you not do it again.”

           
She wrinkled her nose at him. “You
haven’t got a jealous bone in your body, Yulen D’Jacques. So why can’t I
sunbathe in my birthday suit?”

           
“Because you provide too much of a
temptation to me, and we both know neither one of us is ready or able to resume
that part of our relationship just yet.”

           
Atty met his steady gaze with her
surprised one. This was one topic that had not come up in all the time they
were convalescing. In the back of her mind, she knew it eventually would. But
since he had broached the subject first...

           
“How are you feeling, my love?” she
inquired in a more serious tone of voice.

           
Yulen nodded. “I’m doing very well.
In fact, I found out I’m doing much better than I originally thought.”

           
“Oh?” One dark blue eyebrow went up.

           
He sighed and scratched under his
jaw. “Don’t worry about it, Atty. I’ll be okay.”

           
“No. It’s not okay. You’re my
husband, and I love you. I would do anything for you.”

           
“And you just gave birth to our
son,” Yulen quickly interceded. “Plus you ruptured a blood vessel during
delivery. It’s going to take a few weeks before we can make love again. Not
until Liam thinks you’ve healed enough.”

           
There. It was out in the open.

           
“But you’re starting to get those
feelings again, aren’t you?” she asked softly. No wonder he had covered her up.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized.

           
“Don’t be. Shall we talk about
something less stressful? Like...going home?”

           
She was up and in his arms at the
announcement. The blanket slipped, revealing her satiny back and buttocks as
she threw her arms around his neck to hug him. Atty felt his arms go around
her, then suddenly stop and withdraw. Surprised, she pulled back and tried to
look into his eyes, but he avoided her gaze. Neither could she miss the
tell-tale clenching of his jaws.

           
“Well, this is quite a pickle we’re
in, isn’t it?” she breathed.

           
He tried to laugh it off. “Forget
about it, Atty.”

           
Curious, she leaned forward against
him, rubbing her newer, rounder, fuller breasts along his chest as she placed a
soft kiss on his chin. This time she felt a definite tremor go through him, and
he grabbed her arms to push her away. Looking down at his lap, she saw visible
evidence of his arousal. “Yul, how long have you been this way?”

           
“Atty, let’s not talk about it ri—”

           
“We have to talk about it,” she
insisted. “This is something new for us. I mean, at least it’s something new
for
me
. To be quite blunt, I’m not feeling particularly amorous at the
moment.”

           
“And you won’t,” he told her. “Not
for a few more weeks. Right now your body is doing what nature created you to do.
You’re the mother of our son. You’re feeding him, caring for him, and all your
energy is focused toward doing that. As it should be. And that’s not taking
into consideration the trauma your body went through when you went into
premature labor.” He patted her arm, and Atty found herself not liking that
kind of endearment from him. “Give it time, my love. We’ll have our moment soon
enough.”

           
“And what are you going to do about
your...um...needs, in the meantime?”

           
Yulen smiled after a short hitch in
his throat. “What other men in my condition have done since time began.” He
didn’t elaborate, but Atty got the impression it was a matter where she
wouldn’t be involved. A tender smile came over her.

           
“I think that’s one of the sweetest
things you’ve ever said to me,” she confessed. Even his puzzled expression was
endearing. “After I got fat, and irritable, and all waddly. And then you saw me
being cut open and all that messiness that went with it.
 
And now I’m standing here still bloated and
stitched up tighter than a hog for a celebration barbeque... you’re telling me
you still find me
desirable?
”
 
She was rewarded with a boyish grin.

           
“Atrilan, let me tell you something.
When we first met, you were gawky, gangly, skinny as hell, like a stick with
long blue hair. After we were married, and Berta took you on as her personal
crusade, you changed. You filled out, you lost that gangliness, and your
movements became smoother, more assured. You became...sexy.”
 

           
His hands moved
from her arms to her face. His thumbs traced little semi-circles beneath her
jaw as he lightly kissed her. “Then you became pregnant. Your skin took on this
incredible sheen that you haven’t lost. Your hair became thicker, your eyes
brighter. Even the pitch of your voice dropped a little, so now it’s a bit
huskier. Definitely, definitely more alluring. Yes, you still have a little
paunch around your tummy. A little more roundness to your hips. Your breasts
were perfect before, but now they’re incredible. My God, Atrilan. You went from
sexy to breathtaking, and then several notches above that. Do I desire you?
Damn right, I do. That’s why, at this very moment, I’m wishing I was still
needing a few more days’ recovery time, because when I was too sick to do
anything but eat and sleep, and my body had nothing to do except worry about
healing itself, sex was way at the bottom of my list of necessities.”

           
He kissed her, branding her mouth
with his, to show her how far his need for her went. Atty tried to kiss him
back with the same desperation, but there was no way she could disguise her
lack of passion. Her body just wouldn’t respond, no matter how hard she tried.
When Yulen regretfully drew back, she murmured a thoroughly disgusted, “Shit.”
He burst out laughing.

           
“What if...” She bit her lower lip.
“There were those methods Tory told me about.
 
I could make you happy with my mouth. I mean I could—”

           
 
He quickly cut her short, although she could tell that the
suggestion was not meeting any resistance. “Enough of that, Atty-cake. I would
love to take you up on your offer, but this is neither the time or place. It’s
time we pack our bags and catch the first caravan for Alta Novis tomorrow
morning at dawn. Once we get home, I promise you can show me what Tory
mentioned, and I can give you a few pointers on how to perfect that technique.
How about it, my love? Ready to sleep in our own bed again?”

           
“You damn right I am!”

           
His eyes slid over to the small crib
by the head of her bed. “So am I. We need to let Alta Novis know we have a son,
and they have a future leader.”

           
She nodded. It would indeed be a
very unusual homecoming.

*
* * *

           
As the cock crowed, signaling the
coming sunrise, everyone in the compound gathered at the main gates to bid
farewell to the Battle Lord and his Lady. Overhead, above the central lookout
turret, a half-blue, half-red banner lay limp against the pole, waiting for the
next March breeze.

           
As a going-away gift, Atty was
presented a hand-tooled leather carrier for her son. It had padded straps she
could wear over her shoulders, enabling her to carry the infant either on her
back, or in front where she could nurse him unobtrusively. Atty thanked the
child who presented it to her with a kiss on the cheek.

           
Yulen thanked everyone for their
help and assistance during their time of great need, and promised to send a
replacement battalion to begin re-fortification construction as soon as they
arrived back at Alta Novis.

           
The night before, Atty had assured
her husband she could seat a saddle, but if it got too uncomfortable, she
promised to transfer to the small wagon. So it was, before dawn topped the
trees, one hundred and eighty-nine men, one woman, and one newborn infant left
West Crestin on horseback. When Yulen gave the signal to increase speed, the
nearly two hundred soldiers breathed a sigh of relief.

           
The world had righted itself. Life
was back the way it was meant to be, with the Battle Lord and Lady once more in
total control.

Chapter
Nineteen

His
Eyes

           
Yulen and Atty were in discussion, away
from the main group, when MaGrath rode up. Seeing him approaching, they
abruptly ceased their conversation and waited for him to join them. Their
actions were not lost on the physician. “Go ahead and tell me to butt out, and
leave you two alone,” he admitted. “I don’t have anything important to report.
I’m just wanting some company.”

           
“It can wait. What’s up, Liam?”
Yulen asked.

           
“Well, the men aren’t going to say
anything because they trust you beyond a shadow of a doubt. I, on the other
hand, can’t help but ask. Where the hell are we?”
          

           
“Taking a short cut.”

           
“No shit.”
        

           
Chuckling, Yulen grinned. “The
Council showed me a map with a quicker way back to Alta Novis without having to
go back the way we came.”

           
“You mean, back to Bearinger?”

           
Yulen nodded. “It’s mostly through
the forest, but it’s not as dense. Once we get to Fort Park, we’ll turn east.
We should hit the main roadway within another day. Altogether, it’ll take a
good two days off our trip home.”

           
MaGrath scratched his head. “Fort
Park? Another Mutah compound?”

           
Atty made a face. “Yes and no. It’s
not as big as a compound. It’s much smaller. No more than a hundred people, if
that many.”

           
“Then why have it if it’s so small?
Why not incorporate it into a full-fledged compound?”

           
“Because it’s the hub. It’s
the..”
 
She searched for the right word.
“The...oh, damn, what’s the term? Mid-way?”

           
“Mid-way between what?”

           
“Mid-way between compounds. Our
compounds are spread out like spokes in a wheel, if you look at their placement
on a map,” she explained. “Fort Park is a resting place for those of us
traveling from one compound to the next. It has an inn, a tavern, an eating
establishment, and several stores where you can get clothing and the like. You
can even trade in your horse for a fresh mount at the stables, if you need.”
She grinned at him. “We don’t have a main roadway like you Normals do. Can’t be
too obvious. It would be too dangerous.”