Claimed by the Viking

Chapter 10 : Alive and Unsure

Now washed, he was even more handsome, his hair still slightly wet from the water but clean and untangled and his body smelling a really nice scent.

Adelheid reached for his hair which fell down on his shoulders to push it back. It was a very intimate gesture but she was so attracted to his hair which was usually left in a braid that she couldn't help herself from touching it.

As she played with a strand, he reached for her neck and brought her closer to him until their lips joined once more.

This kiss was fairly different from the one they had shared when he had woken up. Fast enough, it became deeper and more sensual. Feverish, Tharn wrapped his arms around Adelheid, ignoring the pain in his shoulder stirring him slightly. He was too enthralled in the kiss to really notice any pain anyway, appreciating the softness of her body against his hands. But he wanted more, he wanted to feel her body against his, not only against his hands.

Groaning as he couldn't feel her as much as he wanted, he brought her to him and made her straddle him so that their chests were flushed against each other.

Adelheid moved back a bit and their eyes crossed.

Her mouth was slightly open, her eyes shined a darker shade than normal.

She was magnificent. A real gift from the Gods.

Tharn locked his hand around her neck and appreciated the silkiness of her hair against it as he brought her throat to his mouth, leaving open mouthed kisses on it. He couldn't get enough of her. His second hand untied her dress and pushed her undershirt aside, and he couldn't contain a low growl as his fingers finally had her tender breast under them.

Unconsciously, her hips started to buck against his, as she was looking for something but had no idea what. She could feel how aroused he was, but that didn't frighten her.

He captured her mouth once more as she pressed herself against his bulge and he suddenly pushed her away to put some space in-between their bodies with a groan.

He held Adelheid from the tip on his fingers, admiring how her cheeks were flushed and her lips swollen, eyes glazing with lust. But he couldn't do that now. He couldn't just take her here and there. Not like that. Even if her breasts were on display and looked like they were begging for his attention.

She had clearly expressed her refusal of being his concubine before, whatever had happened afterwards, like his undoing before his departure, but taking her maidenhood would be a huge step. One he was not willing to take that way as nothing attached her to him.

"We should stop." He breathed out with difficulty, bringing her shirt back on top of her chest and adverting his gaze. "You are not my concubine."

Adelheid received those words like a blow in her stomach. He didn't want her.

How ironic. She was the one who didn't want to be his concubine before, and now that she offered herself to him willingly, he was the one to reject her.

She bent her head so that her hair covered her face since she felt so ashamed of his rejection and didn't want him to see her face.

She rose from his lap with trembling legs and hands as she was putting the strings of her dress tight again. She felt so embarrassed that her feelings were one-sided.

"Adelheid wait-"

She didn't wait for him to finish his sentence, afraid he would hurt her some more, and she took her shawl in a haste before she made a run out of this cabin.

Before she had time to close the door, Tharn had been able to clearly see her trembling lips and hurt face.

He didn't understand. She was the one who refused to be his concubine a few months before. Sure, they had shared a few passionate moments, but not enough to compromise her future: her maidenhood remained untouched to this day. For a few seconds he wondered if she had been with a man from the Clan within the two months, but he hastily pushed the thought away: Adelheid would never do that with anyone, he had no doubt about that.

And he had no doubt about something else: he didn't want to dishonor her in any way. If she became his concubine again it could work. But she had clearly expressed what she thought of concubines before. She saw that position as a great humiliation.

That left only one way for him to be with her: marry her.

Tharn sighed.

A Jarl should only marry a woman for political reasons. That's how things were. The elders of his Clan were currently trying to find someone fit for the position of Jarl's wife. They had been for the past year, and in complete truth, this thought only made Tharn gloomy. Most Jarls took a wife for those reasons and then had one or more concubines if they wanted to or if they were taken with a woman. His grandfather had been married to one woman he hated and had had two concubines. His official wife had borne him a daughter, who was Tharn's mother. She had had a painful childhood, being unloved by her father and having a mother who was no more than a ghost in the Clan despite her position. Those were many reasons why he didn't want to marry a random Jarl's daughter and be unhappy with her.

As he thought about Adelheid's hair cascading down her back as she worked in the nursing house, he realized that she was the only woman he had even been attracted to to the point of only wanting to be with her and no other.

If she'd agree to be with him, he would go against the elders and take her as his wife, however that would harm his position as a Jarl.

"Regan!" He shouted as he tried to get up, his wounds lightly hurting him.

His friend and second-hand man arrived quite fast, a curious look on his face as he had seen how tormented Adelheid looked as she had escaped the Jarl's cabin.

"Have a bark prepared." He said in a dark tone. "It'stime for me to go back on land."