23. Erik

Chapter 23

Erik

T he voyage was cold and rough. Gales would start up in the middle of the night, sleet pounding the decks, and at times, the fog was so thick, he couldn’t see the tip of the mast, nor the dragon’s head as it pointed north.

Erik worked himself and the crew around the clock, trying to get home in record time. Even with half the sea between them and France, he still didn’t feel safe. He just wanted to get to M?re and, save for Knut and possibly Karst, say goodbye to the other men and start his life over again. He wanted it so badly, he could taste it. It and the prospect of pickled herring and salmon roe, of dill potatoes and cloud berries, of all the things he had missed.

He couldn’t wait to introduce it all to Cherine. She was growing thinner during the voyage, struck with bad seasickness, unable to eat anything except bread and collected rainwater. She stayed down in the small cargo hold for most of the journey, and though the men never expected her to actually do her part in rowing, she would for a few hours every day. She wanted to prove her worth and be taken seriously, as someone more than a lady.

Erik had told the men earlier that she was to marry him. He had said Rolf wanted to stay on in France as the future Duke of Normandy, that he had sent Erik and Cherine off to be married, to start a family back in the home country. The men understood, perhaps because they thought Rolf always had a soft spot for Erik. If only they knew how hard that spot had turned.

But Erik chose to spend his days at sea, thinking of Cherine instead of Rolf. Whenever he saw the betrayal in his old friend’s eyes, he’d look to Cherine’s glittering green ones. Whenever he thought about Rolf possibly being alive and crippled, he thought about Cherine and how he’d saved her from nothing short of torture and rape. And when he thought about the life he was turning his back on, he thought about the life he was quickly approaching.

And so, with that, he proposed to Cherine.

They had been at sea for three weeks. It was a cloudless night, and the sliver of the moon was high in the sky. The only sounds were the rhythmic oars in their holdings and the splash of water as the ship glided through. He stepped down into the cargo hold, which was only about four feet deep, and found Cherine awake, lying uncomfortably atop a pile of blankets, wedged in between crates.

“How are you feeling, fair maiden?” he asked gently, crouching beside her.

“Better,” she said. She reached up and stroked the scar on his face. He hated the fact that Rolf had marred him so, and he could tell it wasn’t healing nicely. Still, it was healing, and she seemed to stare at him in awe, as if he was just as handsome as before. That was all that mattered. If she stared at him like a woman in love, then that was all he needed in the world.

“What is it?” she asked, peering at him inquisitively. She sat up and leaned in closer. “You seem nervous.”

He bit his lip and tried to stifle a laugh. “Do I?”

She nodded and ran her finger over his lips. He closed his eyes at the touch.

“I’ve been on this ship with you for three weeks now. I can read you like a book.”

He cupped her face and leaned in close, his nose rubbing silkily against hers. “Then tell me: what am I about to ask of you?”

Her breath hitched, and her lips grazed his as she found the strength to speak, “I don’t dare say it, in the event that it might not be true.”

His eyes searched hers, seeing the longing in them. He whispered, “I can’t offer you a ring worthy of your beauty, and I can’t give you a wedding worthy of your soul, but I can ask you to spend the rest of your life with me and hope that’s enough to be worthy of your love.”

For a second, he thought that maybe she hadn’t heard him. She looked stunned, her mouth dropping open a few inches as a small gasp escaped from her lips.

Then, she burst into the biggest grin he’d ever seen and threw her arms around him, squeezing him to her.

“Is that a yes?” he said with a laugh, unable to keep from smiling himself.

“Yes,” she cried out into his neck. “Yes, of course, yes.”

“I mean it, Cherine,” he said gently, stroking her hair. “We’re both starting over when we get to Norway. I want our new lives to start together and end together. I love you.”

“And I you,” she whispered. She placed a gentle kiss on his mouth that slowly melted away into something more. The mere stroke of her tongue against his caused the pressure to build in his groin. It had been far too long since they’d been intimate; there had always been prying eyes and lack of privacy. And even though he knew the crew could hear them speaking, could see his head poking out of the cargo hold, it was too much for him to bear. He needed her and needed her now.

He pulled his mouth away from hers and trailed it over to her ear. “Sit up and turn around. On your knees. Part your legs.”

Her eyes sparkled, and she immediately placed her hand to his stiff cock, squeezing it with delight. “You don’t mind if everyone knows what we’re doing?”

He grinned slyly, making the turning motion with his hands. “The woman I love just agreed to marry me. I don’t care what they hear.”

She bit her lip seductively, feeling his thickness for a few meaty seconds before turning around on her knees so she was looking out of the cargo hold. Thankfully, she was facing the front of the ship and not the rowing crew. As much of an exhibitionist as they’d become, this was intimate to him, and he didn’t want the crew to see anything more than the back of their heads. The days of sharing Cherine were over.

Of course, they’d be able to hear every moan and grunt, but that fact only turned him on more.

He positioned her in front of him and started smacking his cock against her pale ass, closing his eyes to the satisfying thwack it made as it made contact. She let out a small gasp, deliciously amused as she arched her back, asking for more. He complied, stroking himself and rubbing at her clit. From her musky, sweet perfume, he knew she was just as ready and begging for it as he was, and he wasn’t surprised to find her pussy wet and warm. He ran his slick fingers back and forth, alternating between light circles on the nub and fingering her deep.

She came immediately, head thrown back in ecstasy, her cries shooting out across the wooden planks of the ship, her muscles quivering from head to toe. He knew she was probably feeling a pinch of embarrassment now that the heady desire had worn off, so he only took a break to spread her cheeks and press his cock into her.

He moaned from the sensation as her walls squeezed him tight, little after-pulses of orgasm still running through them. He reached around her, took one of her hands, and placed it down onto her sensitive clit.

“Pleasure yourself,” he ordered into her ear as he held her back against him. He licked down her lobe and shivered with delight. “You’re coming again.”

He manually moved her hand, making her rub herself until she started squirming, and kept it there. With his other arm held across her chest, he started pinching and squeezing her nipple, going hard and soft. Occasionally, he’d lick his fingers and slide over them, all while thrusting into her, like he was trying to nail her to the ship.

Their movements together matched the high seas, the swell of the waves, and the rowing of the oarsmen behind them. He pumped her steadily while she continued to pleasure herself and, together, they built up to an edge they so desperately wanted to fall from. He came hard, his hand digging into her breast, his moans filling the starry-night sky. She soon followed, little heartfelt gasps carried away on the chilled breeze.

He wrapped his arms around her, covering her sweat-soaked dress from the cold, and nuzzled his face into her neck, seeking her pulse and her warmth. His cock slowly slid out of her, but he held on, embracing her, hoping the seed now running through her would find life, just as they started their new one.

“Welcome to your new home.”

Erik and Cherine stood at the bow of the boat as it glided through the fjord to M?re. He could tell she’d never been so impressed before. Her fingers were up at her mouth, and she watched the towering white mountains, with their dramatic cliffs and slashes of rock, in pure wonder. The water around them was a silky green that matched her eyes, and seagulls darted to and fro, hoping to score leftover scraps from the decks.

It was freezing cold now that winter was in full-swing, and though the sun was setting at two in the afternoon, there was just enough light to see the dock as they approached it and the handful of townspeople gathered there.

M?re was a pretty town comprised of tiny dwellings framed by meandering creeks, overflowing gardens, and the mountains that seemed to gather it all in one place. It was the perfect home for someone as beautiful and deserving as Cherine, and Erik was tickled at her reaction to it.

The townsfolk, mainly fishermen, gave hearty, albeit surprised, greetings as the ship pulled into the harbor. Lines were thrown, oars were thrust back in, and excuses were quickly made. It wasn’t often that a single Viking ship, especially one with a small crew, returned home.

But Erik told them what was now the truth: he and Cherine would be getting married and starting a family. And everyone, especially his dear mother, who had honestly believed she’d never see him again, seemed pleased at the prospect.

Erik’s mother, Trude, was still a sprightly woman for her age, with the cheekbones and fair skin and hair she had passed down to her only son. She was stoic and serene but had a big heart, and it warmed Erik to see she embraced Cherine with open arms. It didn’t matter that Cherine didn’t speak Norwegian yet, or that she was a foreign peasant at one time. Erik mattered to Trude, and if Cherine mattered to him, she’d be treated like gold.

The gold treatment grew exponentially within a month. That was when, after she and Erik had settled into Trude’s home, Cherine told him she was pregnant. Suddenly, the whole town was bowled over by the thought of one of their bravest warriors having a child, and Erik truly felt he was on his way to a second chance. A wife and a family was something he never thought he would have, not when he lived the life he did. He’d learned to love Cherine with a strength that filled his heart, and soon, that love would expand to two.

Finally, he was on his way to redemption.