Page 127 of Crucible
“It’s my room.”
“Shouldn’t you be out raiding, plundering, and ravaging fair maidens?”
“Not today.” Swinging my legs over the side of the bed, I stand and stretch, but it doesn’t cure my restlessness.
Aurelia—despite her derision—gets me better than she should.
I’ve never been good at lying around the house and doing nothing. Cabin fever has already set in after being stuck inside for almost a week, and now it will be another two days before I can leave.
Fuck.
“So, is that your fantasy then?” I tease, hardening my expression as I approach. Aurelia nervously backs away with her hands up like I’m not stronger and faster than her. I bend and wrap my arms around her thighs just under her butt, and she yelps, her hands finding my shoulders when I lift and carry her out of the bedroom. “You want to be plundered and ravaged by a sexy Viking?”
“I didn’t say you were sexy.”
“You were thinking it.”
“I didn’t say you were a Viking either.”
“You called me Ragnar when we first met.”
Her eyes dart to the side. “And?”
“I happened to catch a couple of episodes ofVikingsbefore we left the States,and my memory is a little fuzzy, but I think I remember a certain humble blue-eyed, blond farmer turned ruthless raider who looksnothinglike me.
“You’re full of yourself, aren’t you, Thorin…whatever your last name is.”
“It’s Thayer. And I could make you full of me, too. Just say the world, Aurelia.” Since my face is level with her chest, I bite and kiss her breasts through my T-shirt as I walk, and her fingers curl in my shoulders when my voice drops a decibel. “I’ll even chase if you want. I can throw you down on my furs, and tear off your dress. You could scream for me, wolf. As loud as you can. I promise I won’t stop.”
“You’re making fun of me.”
My head lifts, and I stare into her eyes as I slowly set her on her feet inside the kitchen. “Aurelia, I know you’re still trying to figure some shit out, but I can promise you that no one here is going to make fun of you for what you want. It’s more likely that the three of us will come to blows to be the one to give it to you.”
“Except if I want to leave, of course.”
“Of course.”
I don’t want to ruin this tenuous peace we have, so I don’t bother to suggest she might not want to leave—especially when I’m not sure how we even got here. One minute, we’re fighting, and the next, we’re stripping each other bare before stripping each other bare.
“I like your hair,” I say as I brush her lip with my thumb. “Did I tell you that, wolf?”
She shakes her head while staring up at me with wide eyes. Her tongue darts out and licks the tip of my thumb, and my dick jerks in my sweats, wanting a piece of that action.
I sigh and drop my hand. “Get started on dinner. I’m going to chop some wood,” I announce before heading for the front door.
Some distance seems necessary, but Aurelia has other plans.
She follows me out of the kitchen.
“Can I come?” The request stops me in my tracks. I look over my shoulder to see her looking hopeful, but I’m already shaking my head. “Why not?”
“Because you have to stay inside and out of sight for a couple of days.”
“What’s the big deal? I thought you said search and rescue wouldn’t come this far?”
“I know what I said, wolf. It’s just a precaution.”
“Why?” she demands, looking seconds away from a panic attack. “You haven’t had a problem with me going outside before. You said as I long as I stay within sight, it’s fine. Why hide me now?”
