Claimed by Her Viking Wolf (15 page)

Kim sighed, remembering that conversation now. Several weeks had passed
with no attack from the neighboring pack. There had been more skirmishes and
reports of longboats up the coast, but no attack.

The village remained on high alert. Lord
Liufr
was deciding whether to launch an attack on the other clan first to force the
issue.
Ralloph
had advised against it. In his opinion
that was what his brother was waiting for. Leaving the village would leave it
largely undefended. At the very least their warriors would be depleted. There
was strength in numbers, so it had been decided to wait them out.

Sooner or later they would show their hand. With the sun beating down
on them, birds chirping in the trees, Kim could almost forget the
threat—almost. Little
Swaan
was asleep in his crib by
Guta’s
feet, and the other woman smiled up at her,
seconds before an arrow whizzed through the still air. It missed Kim only
because she ducked to tuck the baby’s blankets around him.

A horn sounded, and all hell broke loose as more arrows rained down on
them.
Guta
threw herself over her son, scooped him
up, and dashed for cover with Kim in hot pursuit.

Grabbing the heavy broadsword and the shield she’d left outside, Kim
joined into the battle cries of her fellow Vikings, as unknown men and women
invaded the village. She could sense
Asger’s
rage,
his worry, and saw him in her peripheral vision, as the bloody fight went on.

Bile burned in her throat the first time she gutted an opponent intent
on gaining entry into their homestead. Hot blood sprayed across her face and
clothes.
Guta’s
scream behind her gave her no chance
to dwell on it, however, as she whirled around to block another sword aimed at
her head. This guy was huge, his black eyes boring into hers, lips curled into
an ugly sneer. Surprise registered on his face briefly when she fought back,
but she was no match for him. Arms aching with the sheer effort required to
block his parries with her shield, she was backed into a corner. The next blow
would finish her off, of that she was sure, when a huge wolf appeared from
nowhere.
Asger
in his wolf form was a formidable
sight, as his teeth lodged in Kim’s attacker’s throat. With one sickening
crunch, he tore out the other man’s throat. The Viking fell to his knees, a
huge, red arch of his blood turning the ground wet.

It seemed to be the signal to shift, as all around her men shifted into
their animal selves. If that was possible the battle turned even bloodier,
until at long last the victory horn sounded.

Kim staggered to her feet with a sigh of relief, desperately searching
the crowd and smoking remnants of the few homesteads their enemies had managed
to set alight. Relief flooded her when she spotted
Asger
.
Bloodied and dirty, he was alive. He made his way toward her with a determined
expression on his face. Kim knew that look. He was annoyed with her. No doubt
she had earned herself another punishment for not staying inside the homestead,
and coming out to openly fight.

Warmth spread through her lower abdomen at the thought. Punishment
always led to hot sex, and that’s exactly what Kim needed right now. Before
Asger
could reach her, however, pain shot through her
heart. So intense she could barely breathe, as it spread down her arm. The wind
picked up, the world spun, and Kim fell into the abyss. The last sound she
heard before blackness claimed her was
Asger’s
shout.

“
Neinn
, stay with me.”

****

Kim came to in a crumpled heap in front of her wood burning stove. It
wasn’t on, of course, and she shivered in her cold cottage. The air felt stale,
musty, as though it had not been disturbed in some time. Her answer-phone light
blinked at her, mocking her with its cheeriness, its capacity full, she
noticed, the battery power fading fast. Struggling to her feet, she winced at
the dried blood on her clothes, testament to the fact that she hadn’t just
fallen asleep and dreamt the last few weeks … months … how long had it been
exactly?

Time moved differently here, she knew that much. Often much faster than
it did in
Asger’s
world. Kim blinked back tears at
the thought of
Asger
. Already she felt as though a
limb had been torn off h
er
. A faint glow emanated
from the bookcase, and Kim’s heart beat faster when she saw it came from the
old ledger. It had fallen on the floor, and the pages turned as though caught
in a gust of wind. She could have sworn she heard
Asger’s
voice before the book became immobile again, just like the ancient one had
warned. She’d been to see him, had been summoned by him, in fact.

Dressed entirely in black, blind and stooped over, the old man had been
a formidable presence, as he’d held out his hand. A shock of connection had
shot up her arm, when she’d placed her hand in his. The ancient one had smiled,
exposing crooked, yellow teeth.

“
I have a message for you from the gods,” he’d
said.

“
Message?” Kim had asked, her heart beating so
fast, it had been a miracle she hadn’t gone into cardiac arrest there and then.

The ancient one had nodded.

“
Yes, you have a choice to make. Following
your heart will let you travel to wherever you need to be. Your time, your
choice, but only you can decide which one that is. Choose wisely, my child, for
the portal is closing, not to open again in your lifetime, not for you at le
ast
.”

He’d smiled at her sharp intake of breath, but had completely refused
to extrapolate.

Kim hadn’t wanted to bother
Asger
with her
questions, so she had spilled her guts to
Guta
instead. The other woman had cocked her head to one side deeply in thought.

“
The ancient one likes to talk in riddles, but
I take that to mean that you will be faced with a choice. To return to your
time, or to stay here. Obviously we all want you to stay, but it can’t be easy
to leave all that behind. You tell such tales of wonder and invention.”
Guta
had smiled at her and seen to her son, leaving Kim to
ponder that question.

As she looked round her cottage now, it didn’t feel like home anymore.
Not without
Asger
here. What had brought her back,
however, and what blasted day was it?

A quick look out of the window brought with it renewed palpitations.
 
It had been summer when she left. Now the
trees were barren. A fine frost lay on the ground, which explained why it was
so bloody cold in her cottage. Turning on the light switch brought no result.
The power was either off or disconnected.

Shivering, Kim grabbed the throw off her settee. A fine cloud of dust
rose into the air. Sneezing, she shook it out, and then wrapped it around
herself. At least the wood was stacked neatly next to the wood burner, and in
no time at all she had a nice fire going. It would warm up the house and most
importantly give her enough hot water for a quick shower.

Instant hot water was one of the things she missed most when not living
in this time.

Once the fire was roaring away, she padded into the hallway. An
enormous stack of her mail sat neatly on the sideboard, and what looked like
several days’ worth of junk mail cluttered the floor. Susan and Richard had
clearly held up their promise to look after the place in her absence, but
hadn’t been here for at least a week. The odd pain she’d felt in her chest came
back to haunt her, and then she saw it. The note left on her kitchen table.

I don’t know when
and if you’ll see this, my sweet girl. You have been gone now for six months. I
had to turn the power off. As far as everyone is concerned you have gone away
to write, to find yourself. Your sister turned up, looking for you. She wasn’t
best pleased to find you gone, but she didn’t seem concerned either.

Kim put the note down and smiled. No, Lisa wouldn’t be concerned. They
had been growing apart for so long now, after all. Kim would have to leave her
a letter or something. Explain where she went. Not that Lisa would believe a
word of it, but it would make Kim feel better. And she probably ought to
release a statement to her readers, too. She had some loyal ones, after all,
who would no doubt wonder where she was.

Picking the note back up again, Kim gasped at the next words she read.

Now, I don’t want
you be alarmed, but Richard is in the hospital.
 
He had a heart attack last week. He will be okay, but I know how close
you are to him, and I guess, if anything will bring you back, it’s this.

A tear fell on the note in her hand, smudging the writing. Kim hastily
swiped it away. The ancient’s one prophecy suddenly became clear. She had come
back to enable her to say goodbye, because she was needed here right now.

You might not see
this, of course, and that is fine. I just thought I would leave it here, just
in case.

We love you,

Susan x

Kim drew a shuddering breath into her lungs.
 
The blanket fell to the floor, followed by
her bloody dress and boots, as she discarded them on her way upstairs. The
shower was only lukewarm when she stepped underneath the stream, but it was
bliss nonetheless, after the frigid water she was used to.

Having washed off the grime and blood of the battle, and thrown on some
jeans and a jumper—clothing which felt strange after the loose dresses she’d
grown accustomed to—Kim sat behind the steering wheel of her car, praying that
the vehicle would still work.

After several attempts the car fired. Breathing a sigh of relief, Kim
drove to the hospital Richard was at, and now found herself outside his door.

Susan was reading to him from the sounds of it. The other woman gasped
when she saw Kim standing in the doorway. Richard’s lined face broke into a
huge smile, and Kim burst into tears.

Chapter
Fourteen

Asger’s
muscles screamed
at him as he split the wood in half with one fell swoop. The pieces joined the
growing pile of kindling that threatened to take over all the space outside his
house, but what else was he to do?

The fight was over. Peace reigned, and it was the
wrong season to go raiding across the seas. Besides, setting foot in England
would only remind him of what he had lost. His chest tightened. His wolf whined
his distress, and
Asger
swiped the sweat off his
brow. Summer was over. Autumn, too, and the air held the promise of snow.

Winter was the time to celebrate the life they had,
to snuggle up with his woman, and to not leave their bed for days. If he had a
woman.

Asger
swung his ax again.
He missed and swore. The ax sailed through the air, impaling itself in the
tree, like the cruel hand of fate had split his heart in two.

The poets among them said it was better to have
loved and lost, than never to have loved at all.
Asger
wasn’t too sure about that. If he’d never met his
válað
he wouldn’t feel the gnawing ache in his soul now. A constant reminder of
what he had lost when she faded from view, as though she had been nothing but a
ghost.

For weeks he’d held out hope that she would come
back. Held vigil at the spot she disappeared in the vain hope that she would
fade back in. It had been a useless exercise, however. As time marched on, he
had to admit, to himself at least, that she wasn’t coming back. Why would she?
What did he have to offer her, but a life steeped in worry and danger?

His
kona
had
proven herself to be capable warrior, but he’d seen the horror in her eyes when
she’d felled her first enemy.

No, Kim was not meant for this life. Had he not
always known that? The ancient one, when consulted by him, had only said she
was making a choice. He had not divulged what that choice was, but time spoke
for itself.

Asger
knew that time
moved differently in their worlds. What seemed like ages here, could be the
blink of an eye in her time and vice versa, but that was small comfort in the
middle of the night, when he reached across the empty bed to pull his woman
back into his arms, and encountered nothing but thin air. It hit him then. He
was alone, and always would be, because there would never be another woman for
him.

Guta
was the lucky one.
The gods had granted her a second chance at happiness, a second
válað
.
An act that was practically unheard of
it was so rare. It wouldn’t happen to him. He didn’t want it to happen to him.
Grumbling under his breath he stalked to the tree to pull out his ax. Laughter
behind him made him freeze as an achingly familiar scent teased his nostrils.
It couldn’t be. This was just another figment of his imagination. Why did the gods
tease him so?

“
In
my time we say that talking to yourself is the first sign of madness, husband.”
Kim’s amused voice washed over him, soothing all the cracks in his heart and
soul her sudden disappearance had ripped wide open. Shaking his head he turned
slowly. If this wasn’t real, maybe he was going mad.

“
You’re
still abusing poor, innocent trees, too, I see. We really must do something
about this tendency of yours.” Another, much stronger wave of his
kona
’s
scent hit him in the gut. It was laced with something else that just couldn’t
be. She’d said that was impossible. He would have smelled it on her, yet…

Neinn
.

Tentative fingers trailed over his tense biceps,
stroked his beard and then there was the firm, gentle pressure of her lips on
his, the weight of her breasts pushing into his chest. The firm globes already
seemed heavier, her body more rounded, as he blindly reached out and mapped out
the contours of her body. The faint, rapid heartbeat galloped in his ears, and
he dropped to his knees like a stone. Still not daring to open his eyes, afraid
it might break the spell somehow, he pitted his ear against the gentle swell of
her abdomen.

There it was. Unmistakable, strong, his. Throwing
his head back he howled in triumph.
Asger
opened his
eyes to find Kim looking down on him. Silent tears ran down her face. She, too,
slid to her knees, and
Asger
pulled her into a hug
that he never wanted to end. He shifted them both, so that they sat on the
ground with his back resting against the tree, and Kim and her precious cargo
snuggled on his lap.
Asger
couldn’t help himself. He
put his large hand on her abdomen in a possessive move that made his
kona
smile. Dipping his head he claimed her mouth in
a tender kiss.

When they were forced to break apart due to the urgent
need for oxygen they were both gulping air into their lungs and grinning at
each other like fools.

“
I
missed you so much,” Kim said. Cupping one side of her face,
Asger
nodded and rested his forehead on hers.

“
And
I you. I never thought I would see you again. Let alone like this. I thought
you didn’t want my children.” He tightened his hand on her abdomen. When Kim
brought her hands over this, they interlinked their fingers.

“
I
never said I didn’t want them, you silly wolf. I just wasn’t ready. I’m still
not entirely sure I am, but your son had other ideas.” She grinned at his sharp
intake of breath. “It’s a boy, you know. I can feel it.”

Asger
pulled away,
bubbles of happiness bursting in his chest.

“
I
do not care either way. Boys, girls, what does it matter? I have you back, and
any children we have will be a bonus, but I do not understand. How did this
happen?”

He smirked when Kim laughed. She punched him
lightly in the stomach, trailing her fingers over his taut abs up to his
shoulders.

“
Do
you need me to draw a diagram, you big, brave, and rather dumb warrior of
mine?”

Her grin deepened when he growled a warning.

“
Watch
it, woman. With child or not, I can still take my belt to your ass for talking
to me like that.” He wouldn’t of course. No way in hell would he risk their
child.
 
This miracle
he’d never thought to have. Judging by the careless shrug of Kim’s shoulders,
she knew that, too. She stuck her tongue out at him, making his wolf growl a
warning.

“
I
seem to recall I told you before. Your big bad wolf act doesn’t scare me. It
never has. As to how. I wasn’t feeling well when I was wrenched home. Richard
was sick.” She put her hand over his mouth when he was going to interrupt her.
“He’s okay now, but I think that’s why I was pulled back. Well that, and
unfinished business. I tied up my affairs so to speak. I never told you, but
the ancient one summoned me, and told me I had to make a choice. I didn’t
really understand what he meant, until I woke up in my cottage, and felt as
though I’d left the best part of me behind, here with you.”

Asger’s
wolf growled,
recalling the horrifying sight of his mate fading from view, as though she had
been nothing but a dream.

“
I
paid him a visit, too, and that’s what he told me. When you didn’t return I
thought your choice meant you didn’t want me.”

Kim gasped and shook her head.

“
Never
that. You have to believe me. I spent hours just willing that ledger to bring
me back to you, but nothing happened until now. I guess, the gods decided the
time was right.”

Asger
gave a tight nod.
That was as good an explanation as any, he supposed.

“
At
first I thought I was being sick because I missed you. Lord, how I missed you,
but eventually Susan convinced me to go to the doctors. Imagine my surprise
when she announced I was pregnant. When my doctor went to remove the coil, she
couldn’t find it.” The most delicate blush spread across Kim’s feature as she
said that.
Asger
frowned at her. She had lost him
again.

“
Coil?”
he asked. “That’s the device that stopped you from having my children?” He
couldn’t quite keep the bitterness at that old hurt out of his voice, and Kim
pulled his head down for a kiss.

“
That’s
not why I had it. Well, I did, but not to prevent your children, per se. I
didn’t know you then, did I? It’s just something we do in my time. I know it
doesn’t make any sense to you, and it really doesn’t matter anymore, does it?”

Seeing her cradle her abdomen,
Asger
had to agree. She was here with him, and that was all that mattered now.

“
Not
if you truly want this baby, no, it doesn’t.”

Kim smiled, and he couldn’t doubt the sincerity
behind it. It lit up her face and soothed the last niggling doubts in his soul.

“
I
do, don’t ever doubt that,
Asger
. Anyway, let me
explain what happened.” At his nod she continued.

“
Apparently
vigorous sex can dislodge the coil. Extremely vigorous sex. I tell you, she
made me feel like a right freak, but I couldn’t exactly explain the whole wolf
shifter knotting thing now, could I?”

Asger
smiled at her.
Kim’s embarrassment subsided at his quiet acceptance. She wiggled on his lap,
and pulled a small parchment out of the back pocket of her jeans. The black and
white grainy image looked vaguely like a…

“
By
all of
Odin
.”

Asger’s
shout of surprise
made a flock of nearby birds took flight. Kim giggled, and pointed out the
various parts of the image.

“
Meet
your son. That’s his head, body, arms, and little legs, all accounted for. This
was taken yesterday. She did one when she checked for the coil, too, just to
make sure everything was all right. In fact, I’ve had a few. Paid for a private
one, too, because I wanted to show you, and well, being that I’m back here I
won’t be having any more—”

Asger
shut her rambling
up by kissing her. A kiss that quickly turned passionate. Picking her up,
Asger
carried her out of sight and into his dwelling,
discarding clothing as they went. He only stopped when he was buried balls deep
inside her body with her internal walls fluttering around his cock.

“
Has
anyone ever told you that you talk too much,
kona
?”
he asked.

When Kim seemed to consider this question, he
pulled out, only to thrust back in again. The action solicited a gasp of
pleasure from his woman.
Asger
smirked and did it
again.

“
Well?”
he asked.

Kim rolled her eyes. Using her internal muscles she
clamped around him, making him grunt. The little minx grinned at him.

“
Now
who’s talking too much? Shut up and fuck me already.”

Asger
didn’t need to be
told twice. He’d been granted a miracle, a gift from the gods. Only a fool
would argue with the gods, after all.

The En
d

www.dorisoconnor.com

Other Books by Doris O'Connor:

www.evernightpublishing.com/doris-oconnor