Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 103370 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 413(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103370 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 413(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Raven stood in the bedchamber trying to comprehend that this was where she would sleep for the rest of her days. It was a sizeable room with a bed that appeared more a box then the type of bed she’d once been used to. Two roughhewn posts were attached to the two top corners, a board with carvings on it fixed between them, and the same at the two bottom corners with a sizeable box stuffed with a mattress and a mix of blankets and furs sandwiched between all four posts. The posts were carved with a plethora of intricate symbols. The last five years her bed had been where she could make it, so she had no reason to complain about this one. And she had to admit that the bedding looked inviting and comfortable and had a pleasant scent to it.
She was surprised, though glad, to see a fair-sized fireplace on the far wall, roaring with flames. Chests sat to either side of the bed with several candles on top of each. A small table was tucked against one wall with two benches beneath and a larger chest sat in front of the bottom of the bed.
Raven turned when she heard voices approach the closed door and she stepped away from the bed just as the door swung open.
“A bath,” Gorm announced and stepped aside as three servants struggled with a large wooden tub.
She had recently washed before arriving home and had made her men do the same. While she had kept herself relatively clean, there had been many more times that hadn’t been possible. Grime was a necessary companion for someone who didn’t want to be noticed or when thieving.
Ambivalent about the prospect of taking a bath, she watched as a cloth was draped inside the tub and bucket after steaming bucket was carried in to fill it. The more she watched the tub fill, the more her desire to strip and climb in it grew. She could almost feel its heat soaking into her, chasing the cold that forever settled into her.
She was ready to jump to her feet after the last of the buckets were emptied into the tub—when her husband entered the room.
The tub was for him, not her, and a heavy disappointment washed over her to the point she thought she would cry, an annoying thought. She didn’t cry. She wouldn’t let herself and hadn’t let herself. A few days after the attack she cried copious tears while hiding in a small cave. When she’d finished, she swore to herself that they were the last tears she would ever shed and she would do anything and everything to survive and see her family reunited.
Raven stood. “I’ll leave you to your bath.”
“It’s your bath as well. Go first while the water is hot,” he said.
She stood staring at him, not trusting him.
“In!” he ordered sharply. “Gorm has told me how he has noticed how much you shiver. The heated water will warm you.”
The thought of the hot water soaking into her had her quickly shedding all but her shirt. She had no intention of standing naked in front of him, not ever if she could help it.
She hurried to the tub.
“Your shirt,” he cautioned.
“It could use a washing,” she said and hurried into the tub before he could stop her. She quickly immersed herself in the luxury of the wet heat. A deep, satisfying moan slipped slowly past her lips as she buried herself up to her neck in the deliciously hot water. She rested her head back against the tub and closed her eyes, not caring about anything at the moment than the heat that infused her.
Desire struck Wolf like a punch to the gut, hearing her drawn out moan that aroused his shaft much too swiftly. Damn, even clothed he found his wife far more appealing than he ever imagined he would. And damn if he’d never get that tempting moan out of his head, not until he heard it spill from her lips as he pounded into her and brought her to—he shook his head.
He had to wait. He had to be sure she didn’t nourish another man’s seed.
It was good he would wait and bathe when the water was cold. The sharp chill would rid him of the ache in his stiff shaft.
Raven let herself drift in the comforting heat of the water until she felt the heat dissipating, though it still remained warm enough. She had learned the importance of sharing while with her men. Sharing could often be crucial to survival and they had often cuddled close to a campfire at night to make sure none of them froze.
It was the reason she gave no thought to her words before she spoke. “Join me before the water grows too cold.” She had no fear of him poking her since he had made it clear he would wait until he was certain she wasn’t with child.