Everything Has Changed

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Maria woke with a startled heart, eyes widening in fear as her hands instinctively grabbed for something to hold onto. Her fingers shot to the front of the saddle, before she noticed Thor's hand around her middle.

The horse moved gently, walking with steady steps that swayed them lightly from side to side. Maria sat in front of Thor on the saddle, his hand holding her little body back against his chest as they rode. His grip loosened slightly as she stirred, and jolted herself awake.

His chuckle rumbled through her from his chest. "I wondered when you might wake." he said in his beautifully deep voice.

Maria's heart was still beating fast.

Slowly, she gulped and straightened up against her husband, feeling the side of her neck ache from the uncomfortable position she'd slept in. How long had they been riding for?

The landscape was different than she remembered before. The trees here seemed thinner, taller, greater spaced apart as they rode gently through the wood, hearing the birds twitter somewhere above. The air smelt fresher and lighter as she sucked in a breath, feeling it sharpen her senses, alerting her. And there were flowers. Bushes of brightly coloured flowers dotted around the base of the tree trunks, a pretty splash of colour. Everything looked beautiful. Just so natural, untouched.

She didn't even have the words to say, just content to see. She could happily lose herself here for the next week with her husband.

Thor chuckled again behind her, his arm steady around her waist; he knew the utter wonder that must be shining in her innocent orbs. He knew she'd like it. It was like the country of her home... only better.

They rode on gently in silence, no longer the hurried trot they'd needed to as good as flee the palace. Now they could relax - well, Thor could relax. He'd been the only one tense in the first place. He let the smile play on his lips as his steed led them forward.

He thought he needed this as much as Maria did. He closed his eyes and basked in the fresh, free air. He wanted time - no princely duties, no meetings, no fate of immediate relatives to decide...he couldn't do that. It was too much. Maria's birthday party had made him realise, watching everyone glow and fuss over her and their unborn children: he had such wonders in his life, but he hadn't time to stop and admire.

He wasn't about to let his first year marriage anniversary go by without anything to show for it. He wasn't about to blink, have his child or children and not be able to recount the days in between because he had been too busy.

His family should be more important than his job, even if that job was as prince of the realm. And one day king.

He'd vowed to put his wife first.

"It's beautiful!"

Thor peeled his eyes lazily open at Maria's gasp, smile already on his lips. The horse stepped into the clearing, and Thor halted at the reins.

He scoured over his creation with pride: filling the clearing was a cottage, walls made of thick, layered pale logs, a door in the center of it's front with two little windows either side. The slated roof blended with the charming little chimney, the whole structure homely and comforting.

Thor was very proud of it, and knew his success would only be more evident once inside. He'd planned everything very carefully to make it perfect for his wife.

He swung himself off his horse and guided the beast gently forward, grasping the reins under it's head. A small platform elevated the structure of the little log cabin from the ground, with a short balcony running along it's front. Everything was just perfect, so crisp and unblemished. He trusted the steed to hold it's place rather than need to tie it to the balcony's wooden rail, as he took the luggage from the strong steed's sides, setting it down for him to take inside in a moment.