The Viking's Bride

Chapter Twenty Six - Forgiveness At The Falls

[Edited]
Warning: a little action between Valin and Thorin.

Valin's pov...
I woke up the next morning with Thorin's muscular arms around me, cradling me to his broad chest. My green eyes fluttered shut as the bright morning sunlight steamed into the room. "Thorin" I called softly and his cerulean blue eyes opened and he looked at me with a soft smile; "Valin, good morning" he greeted, his voice deep and husky with sleep. I smiled softly as I remembered him coming to my rescue yesterday with Destin; "Good morning Thorin" I said as he loosened his grip and I sat up.  "How do you feel" he asked and I looked down at my hands that lay on my lap. "I feel foolish...foolish for trusting him so easily, foolish for not listening to Terni, foolish for wanting to leave you" I said quietly. Thorin sat up and turned me to face him, I felt his thumbs, wiping away the tears that I did not know were pouring down my cheeks; "Don't cry, it's in the past Valin; no one will hurt you when I am here" he whispered to me. "I am so sorry, Thorin. Please forgive me" I apologized and he shook his head; "There is nothing to forgive, Valin" he said gently.
"I am the one who needs forgiveness, not you" he continued when I didn't answer him. "Thorin-" I started but he cut me off, "Go get dressed, I am taking you out riding" he said, slipping out of the bed and going over to his chest of clothes and pulling out some things to wear before walking to the door. "Meet me in the yard, and hurry" he said before he left the room. I got up and went to my chest of clothes, looking for something to wear. I had just found a navy blue dress to wear along with my boots when the door opened and two other servant girls came and filled the tub with warm water. When they left, I stripped out of the dress I slept in and slipped into the warm waters allowing it to caress my pale skin. I bathe as quickly as I could but the warm waters were so inviting. When I finally came out, I dried myself and dressed in the clothes I picked out; I dried my hair and fixed it into a neat enough braid down my back and went to look for Thorin.

Thorin's pov...
As she stepped out of the house, I smiled. "We do not have the entire day to waste Valin, hurry" I called and she ran to my side. I already had two horses waiting for us; "Where are we going?" she asked curiously and I smiled, grabbing her by the waist and helping her climb her mount. "You will see when we get there" I said with the hint of a smile before mounting Bree; we rode through the village and went out the gates. She stayed close to me and I was thankful for that; we rode hard over the now dry fields, until we came to a line of trees. "It is this way" I called to her as I rode ahead, she followed after me quickly. We rode for a few more minutes and I heard the sound of falling water and I knew we were there.
I dismounted and led Bree on foot, to a tree just outside the clearing, before helping Valin off of her sandy coloured mount. I grabbed the saddle bag I had attached to Bree and grabbed Valin's hand; leading her through the trees and into a good sized clearing. There was a small waterfall against a huge boulder at the back and the ground was covered in flowers of deep blues and purples. I glanced at Valin and she was looking around in awe of the place. I guided her to the waterfall, there was a pool of water beneath it, and was deep enough to stand and the water would only reach my waist. I had been here many times with my parents and siblings, it was a nice place. I released Valin's hand and opened the bag I still carried, pulling out a large blanket, I spread it in the ground before sitting, and allowing Valin to do the same. Once she was seated across from me, I emptied the food I collected from the kitchen this morning. There was fresh bread, a chunk of cheese, berry jam, some roasted fowl and two bottles; one filled with wine and the other with ale.

Valin's pov...
Thorin and I ate in silence and I was almost surprised that I ate as much as I did; but I remembered that I had yet to eat since lunch time, yesterday. Once we were almost finished Thorin spoke. "Can you forgive me? For all the hurt that I have caused you, I know that I have yet to promise you something but I need your forgiveness, as I will never forgive myself for hurting you" he said, sounding as sincere as one could and I knew I would forgive him. "I forgive you, Thorin. But do not ever break my trust like that again" I said as threatening as I could against a man three times my size and fifty times my strength. He chuckled and I continued quickly; "Can you also forgive me, for almost leaving you?" I asked, sounding hopeful and he leaned over, pressing his soft, warm lips to my own. When he pulled away I was panting for air and he chuckled, "I forgive you, Valin" he said and I smiled; allowing him to kiss me again, but this time, I kissed back with a fire of my own.
Our lips molded together, moving completely in sync with each others; our breaths become one as he slid his wet, hot tongue across my lower lip and I allowed him in. There was no battle for dominance as our tongues clashed with one another's; my hands moved to caress his wind blown hair and he moved to hover over me. We broke apart for a second before he kissed me again, his dirty blond tresses of hair curled around my delicate fingers; his large hand moved to my waist, the other moves to untie the simple knot at the neckline of my dress. A few seconds later, he pulled away, leaving me gasping for air; I looked at him and he looked me in the eyes. His usually bright blue eyes were now a dark, smothering cerulean blue colour as he drank in my image. Lust clear in his eyes.

Thorin's pov...
I looked at the woman before me and I wanted her, I ached for her body against mine, to feel her close, to bring her pleasures she has never felt before. Her bright green eyes mirrored my lust and I licked my lips, I would never force her to lay with me, until she was ready but I needed to calm my heated body. "Take off your dress" I said, as I stood and began stripping off my tunic and boots; "Thorin, I-"  she started but I cut her off. "I am not going to force myself upon you, Valin; I merely wish for you to join me for a swim" I told her and she nodded, before standing and stripping off her dress and boots, leaving her in nothing but a thin, sleeveless chemise; she pulled her braid out, allowing her curl to blow gently in the breeze. I stood before her in just my breeches.  Taking her hand, I led her into the water, it was surprisingly cool to the touch; once we were deep in the water, she started swimming. We immediately started a game of splashing one another and her joy-filled laughter echoed throughout the clearing.
I smiled at the sound and she swam over to me, calling a truce. I opened my arms and she swam into them, resting her arms on my broad shoulders to anchor herself. "This day has been fun Thorin" she said softly as she wrapped her legs around my waist and I held her close; her hair floating on the water behind her. "It has but it is getting late, it will be afternoon soon" I said and she shook her head. "Can we stay a little longer?" She asked and I nodded, causing a bright smile to light up her face.
We stayed in the water a while longer, and I swam under the falls with her. It was not till she began to shiver, that she allowed me to get her out of the water. I moved the blanket into the sun and out of the sheltered area where we were sitting, we both sat down to dry as we finished off the rest of food we had. Once we were both dry, we got dressed and I packed up the blanket and things back in the bag, reattaching it to Bree's saddle. Valin smiled down at me after I helped her remount her horse, before mounting Bree. We were in no hurry to return to the village, so we took it in a simple trot. "Valin, are you still cold?" I asked as she shivered beside me; she only nodded and I unclasped my cloak and draped it over her shoulders, she immediately snuggled into the smooth furs, a sigh of content leaving her lips. We soon rode back into the village and back to my house, I dismounted and helped her down once more before passing the horses off to the stable boys.
I took her hand and led her inside and to the main hall, my brothers, Nikhil and Terni were all sitting by the fire; a grim look on all their faces. "What happened?" I asked, shifting out of my relaxed mood; releasing Valin's hand and walking over to them quickly. "It's Mela" Thror said and my brow furrowed in confusion. "What about her?" I asked; Terni stood up and walked over to the table behind her, picking up a pair of broken cuffs; "The problem is, that she is gone brother" she answered.

Mela is gone!

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Hey guys!
Long time no see!
I made this chapter longer than any other in this book because I feel bad for not updating in almost three weeks, even if it's technically not my fault.
I wanna thank each and everyone for all their votes, the lovely comments and your reads. They literally mean the world to me.

Also I would like you guys to check out my best friend, @tjScipio's book 'Twist of Fate' it's an awesome book for all you wrestling fans.

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XxNikkyxX