Viking Heart (The MacLomain Series: Viking Ancestors Book 3) (8 page)

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

His eyes met hers, drowned in their shimmering depths before he shook his head and murmured, “Never apologize for love.”

When her lower lip trembled slightly, he rubbed his thumb over it, entranced by its plump softness. “I know nothing of love but am glad you found it.” Though it took a great deal of strength, he quirked his lips. “One of us needed to.”

“You will,” she whispered against his thumb.

Kol shook his head. “Not in this lifetime, Little Tease.”

Clearly overly aware of his touch, Amber pulled her lips away. “So that’s your nickname for me then?”

He sunk beneath the water and pulled her after him. “Can you think of something better?”

“No nickname at all?”

Kol shook his head. “No, you are a woman who needs a nickname.”

“Why?”

“Because you are you.”

“I always have been,” she admitted and swam alongside him. “Me, that is.”

“I could call you Scatach.”

“What’s that?”

"She who strikes fear. A Lapp Goddess.”

Amber snorted as they waded toward shore. “Do I really strike fear then?”

“No.” But he was starting to realize that she did…a type of fear he wasn’t ready to look at too closely. Near the shore but still in the water, he leaned against a boulder. He brushed the wet hair from her forehead and murmured. “I think from this day forward you can only ever be my Little Syn.”

Her eyes turned from his. “That sounds sort of naughty, Kol.”

“Are you not familiar with the Goddess, Syn then?”

Amber’s eyes returned to his. “You’re serious?”

“As serious as I’m capable.” He eyed the fog covered water. “Syn, or ‘truth,' is the Goddess of doorways and of love. An attendant of Frigga, Syn guards the door of Frigga's palace, refusing to open it to those who are not allowed to come in. She is not as popular as some gods because she is known to overly guard love. Now, if things do not go well for people when it comes to love, they declare it a Syn because surely she is against it.”

“Shoot, we Christians think of Sin, hopefully spelled different, as an act against God.”

“It is a strange religion you celebrate.”

“Gotta say, yours sounds pretty weird too,” Amber said.

Kol steepled their fingers against one another’s, enthralled by how small and delicate hers were against his. “So I should not call you my Little Syn.”

She seemed equally fascinated by the way the pads of their fingers rolled against one another’s. “I didn’t say that. But…” She hesitated. “You have to lose the word “my” because we’re not together and we both know that won’t be happening.”

“What of little?”

“It makes me feel…” She shrugged and grinned. “Little.”

“Which you are.”

“And you’re huge but you don’t see me calling you
Huge Kol
.”

“But you could, yes?” He glanced down then winked at her. “To describe certain parts of me.”

She rolled her eyes but smirked. “I meant the size of your body.”

“Of course you did.” He liked bantering with her. “And what are your thoughts on Syn?”

Amber shrugged and offered a small smile. “Not sure why but I like it.”

“You do?”

She scrunched her nose and shrugged. “I really do.”

“Why?”

Her eyes flashed at him. “Do you really need to ask?”

“No. I just wondered if you knew why I wanted to call you that.”

Amber’s eyes wandered his face for a brief moment before they returned to the water. “You think I guard love like Syn because of what I said.”

“About Sean,” he provided when she trailed off.

“Of course about Sean,” she murmured.

Kol entwined their fingers and though he inherently disliked a man he’d never met, he nodded. “I think you hate love but guard it anyway.”

Though she didn’t pull her hand away, Amber remained silent as she focused on anything but him. When she finally spoke her words were a mere whisper. “I think he loved me too.”

How could he not?

“Here's to love then,” he murmured and brought her wet palm to his lips.

Though he barely pressed his lips against her flesh, Amber pulled her hand away as though she’d been burned. “We should get back. My sisters must be worried.”

Though her sisters knew she was well because of his dragon connection with his brothers, Kol wasn’t about to say as much. Amber was warring with her feelings and he didn’t much like where his were going either so getting back was a good idea.

Yet when he pulled her after him, the same problem existed. She had the body of an alluring, sultry goddess, and his cock hadn’t for a moment forgotten it.

“Damn,” she whispered, eyes flickering up and down his body as she scrambled for her dress.

No fool, he took his time pulling on his pants as he watched her dress. But then maybe he was a fool after all because any man in his right mind would have had her legs spread and been enjoying the soft moans coming from her lips.

And they would be so soft.

Until they were screaming loud.

Because she was every inch
his
Little Syn.

Just not one he would indulge in…yet. But may Odin bless him now if she wasn’t soon willingly beneath him and with Syn’s approval, screaming the word ‘love’ by the time he was done with her. For purely passionate reasons that is.

When he grabbed his tunic and turned back, Amber was frozen, eyes locked on his shoulder. The interconnecting tattoos that matched her stone.

“Did you only just see them now?” he said.

Amber nodded and though her response was light enough, she didn’t seem all that happy. “I just wasn’t looking that high when you were turned around before.”

Kol sat her on a rock and helped her put on her boots.

“But you knew I had the tattoos to match the rune staves on your stone, right?” he asked softly as he gave her back the stone.

“Yeah, I knew,” she murmured and for a moment it seemed like she was going to say more but remained silent.

When he finished tying her boots, his eyes rose to hers and he tried not to flinch at her obvious sadness. “We don't have to fulfill the seer’s pact, Amber.” Even though it was hard to say, Kol wanted to reassure her. “It is not my wish to replace Sean.”

“I know,” she whispered.

Kol remained still when she lightly traced her finger down the stubble on his jaw, eyes a little lost. Then, startled, she pulled it away as if she didn’t realize what she was doing. They stared at one another for a long moment before he stood and pulled her up.

She lingered, her body so close he could feel her heat. Her eyes remained unfocused. He wasn’t entirely sure he took a breath the entire time she stood there. It almost felt like any sudden movement, even an inhale, might drive her in the opposite direction.

Eventually, she released a ragged breath and stepped away. “I need to get back to my sisters.”

“Of course.” Kol was alarmed by the disappointment he felt as they swung back onto his horse. Until he was foolish enough to bring up Sean, they had been having a really good time. Though he loved women, he rarely wanted to have fun with them beyond sex. Besides Megan and Veronica, he’d certainly never considered one a
friend
. Yet he had a feeling he and Amber would get along even better than he did with her sisters.

But why?

Kol loved the hell out of her sisters and genuinely enjoyed their company. What made Amber so different? He was pondering that when she turned her head slightly and touched her hair.

“Oh wow, did you just dry my hair?”

Startled, Kol realized he had been rubbing a few strands of her thick, dark brown hair between his fingers. That wasn’t so shocking. What threw him off was that his dragon magic had dried her hair without him controlling it in the least. That had never happened before. It was as if the dragon was taking care of her.

“Kol?”

“Yes. I did.” He blinked a few times and pulled his hand away. “I didn’t want you to be cold.”

“Thanks,” she murmured.

Kol frowned. It seemed like every ounce of joy that had surfaced in her at the water had filtered away. Though still frustrated with himself for bringing up Sean, he knew deep down that it would happen again. Understanding Amber meant understanding her past and those she loved. True, he knew a lot about Sean from Megan but he wanted to learn about him from Amber’s perspective. What drew her to him and what ultimately made her love him.

Again, Kol tried not to look too closely at why exactly he needed to understand their relationship except that he did. Maybe he was just curious what sort of person made people like him and Amber fall in love with them. Because she
was
just like him…more so than he ever could have anticipated.

Unlike their ride here, both remained silent as they returned. Several times, Kol started to say something but stopped. He sensed her mind was wrapped up in Sean and though that irked him, he didn’t want to interrupt her thoughts. He supposed he remained silent for the same reasons she hadn’t mentioned once or seemed particularly bothered by the women he surrounded himself with earlier. No, Amber was secure enough in herself to let him love who he wanted and he’d be damned if he wouldn’t reciprocate. 

As if Loki was having a little fun, Kara sauntered up to them as they rode through the fortress gates.

“Hello there,” she flirted. Not bothered in the least by Amber, she ran her hand up his calf. “Ready to take me for a ride now?”

Before Kol could respond, Amber replied. “He definitely is.”

Then she held out her hand to Kara. “Help me down?”

Kara nodded and took her hand. Kol frowned, surprised at how quickly and fairly gracefully Amber removed herself from Thorunn.

Amber smiled at Kara. “Thanks, sweetie.” Then she gestured at Kol. “He’s all yours.”

Kol’s frown deepened as he reluctantly pulled Kara up. This wasn’t how things should be going. Or was it? Confused, he watched Amber walk backward a few steps as she eyed them. “You two look good up there.” Then she spoke directly to Kara. “Careful you don’t dive into the deep end. It’s not nearly as safe as it looks.”

Then she turned away.

Kara eyed him over her shoulder. “I like her.” She lowered her lashes in blatant invitation. “Take me somewhere and let us have sex, Kol. It has been too long.”

“It has,” he agreed. He couldn’t stop grinning as he turned the horse and thought of the flash of fire in Amber’s eyes just now.
Jealousy.

Kol patted Kara’s hand and urged the horse forward, words kind but firm. “No more sex for us right now, woman.”

She pouted. “Because of your new woman?”

“Maybe,” he murmured.

“Maybe
after
you have had her then?”

Kol offered a shrug and squeezed her hand. “Come, we can still have fun, yes?”

Unsure, she sighed as her eyes met his. “Not the kind of fun I want though.”

“No.” He clucked her gently under the chin. “But I will still make you laugh.”

Kol winked and urged Thorunn into a run. Kara held on tight and as he suspected, released a peel of laughter. Grinning, he chuckled as well.

After all, things were suddenly looking up.

Amber was jealous.

“Are you awake?”

Amber curled onto her side and mumbled, “Go back to sleep, Sean. It’s
way
too early.”

“It is Kjar.”

She cracked open an eye and peered over her shoulder. It was Kjar all right. “Hey there. Sorry about that. I must’ve been dreaming.” Amber yawned as she sat up. “What’s going on?”

Kjar seemed amused as he eyed the papers and clothes strewn around her on the bed. “Your sisters have been looking for you.”

“Oh,” she murmured and tried to organize the sketches she had been working on before she dozed off. “Sorry, after exploring then shopping earlier, I got tired. One of Kol’s girls said I could rest here.”

“It’s a good place to rest,” he agreed and helped her with the papers.

Amber again eyed the lodge. Only slightly smaller than Kol’s, it hosted not only a wide variety of weapons but an unusual amount of shiny round discs that she assumed were metal shields. “Whose place is this anyways?”

“Mine.”

“Really?” About to apologize, the words died on her lips as he started to stoke the fire. For a split second, she was ensnared by the memory of Sean doing the same thing back home. It was something he often did so it made sense she would think of him. Still…

Kjar stopped and eyed her. “Are you well?”

Amber nodded. “Yeah. Sorry. You just reminded me of someone for a second.”

The shipwright went back to stoking the fire. “I have that effect on people.”

“I find that hard to believe.” She couldn’t help a snort as she stood and stretched. “You’re pretty damn unique.”

He chuckled, turned from the fire and nodded at the tub of water. “I had that brought in for you.” Then he nodded at a tray of food on the table. “And that.”

“Awe, thanks.” She grinned and plodded over to the food. “I’m starved.”

Kjar joined her. “You could use some meat on your bones,” he muttered before he popped some cheese in his mouth.

“You’re probably the first person to ever tell me that.” She shrugged and bit into some bread. “I’m not overweight, but I’m definitely not as skinny as my sisters.”

The tall Viking eyed her with blatant admiration. “You are thinner than most but appear to have more in areas where men like it best.”

“Is that so?” she murmured and took a hearty swig of mead. “Thanks, I suppose.” Amber cocked her head at him. “Two things. First, thanks for letting me crash at your place. I didn’t know it was yours or probably would’ve looked for another spot. Second, I’m wicked sorry about earlier.”

“Earlier?”

“Yeah.” She made a gesture that encompassed them both. “The whole
ménage
on the dance floor thing we had going on with Kol. You know, when I freaked out.”

“Ménage?”

Amber bumped his shoulder with a closed fist and chuckled. “Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. The whole two guys on one girl thing.” When the corner of his lip curled up, she nodded. “See, you know exactly what a
ménage à trois
is.” She shrugged. “Sorry, not sure what the Norse translation is for that.”

Kjar stroked one of the braids in his goatee and considered her for a moment. “You have nothing to be sorry for.” Then he nodded at the bed. “You are welcome to stay here as long as you like.”

“Really?” Amber chomped on a few nuts and thought about it. She might have only been here a day, but she was quickly getting the hang of how to talk to Viking men. “Do you think we can sleep in the same bed without you wanting sex?” She arched a brow. “Especially considering the whole
ménage
thing?”

Kjar waited approximately half a second before he flung back his head and laughed.

Amber chuckled. “What’s so funny? I know you’re attracted to me.”

“I am,” he agreed. “But I will not have sex with you, woman.”

“No?”

“No.”

“So we can sleep in the same bed and you’ll be good?”

His fond eyes held hers as he chomped a handful of nuts. “We can.”

Amber held up a finger and laid down the ground rules. “No touching.”

“No touching,” he promised.

“Excellent.” She held out her hand. “Then we have a deal.”

When Kjar took her hand, she shook it. “We have a deal.”

“Nice. Thanks.” Amber bit into a piece of bread. After she had finished chewing, she pointed out the obvious. “It probably won’t be for long. After all, I’ll be traveling back to the twenty-first century.”

Kjar nodded and they continued enjoying a nice meal together, one they brought to the bed and consumed as they chatted. Any tension that may have ignited earlier was long gone by the time Megan and Veronica appeared.

“There you are,” Megan exclaimed, eying them.

“Hey.” Amber smiled at her sisters. “Welcome to my new place.”

“Um.” Veronica’s eyes narrowed on Kjar. “Isn’t this
your
place, hon?”

“It was,” he conceded, grinning. “Now it is
our
place.”

“Ah ha,” Megan said slowly as she looked at Amber. “You know we have a lodge for you if you’d like it.”

Amber scrunched her brows. “Does it have men I don’t know standing guard outside?”

“Yeah.” Megan nodded, confused. “But you would be there alone…with your own space.”

“Hence the meaning of alone.” Amber shook her head. “But all I’d be thinking about the whole time are the strangers standing outside protecting me and I’d likely invite them in so I wouldn’t be lonely.” She arched her brows and shook her head. “Perfect strangers. Now that’s scary.”

Megan and Veronica looked at her like they always did, with incredulousness.

“Or,” Megan said, obviously still trying to make sense of Amber’s decision. “You could sleep with Kjar, who, by the way, is also a perfect stranger.”

“A perfect stranger?” Amber and Kjar shared a shrug. “Not anymore. And I've been very clear. No sex. So all’s good.”

“All’s good?” Veronica mouthed, eyes wide. “Do you realize how insane you sound?”

Megan released a chuckle and shook her head. “Ya know, Veronica, it might sound insane, but I think it’ll work.”

“You do?” Veronica tossed aside her cloak and scowled at the fire.

“Sure do.” Megan’s eyes went to Kjar. “Mind giving us some sister time? We’ve gotta help her prep for the celebrations.”

“Not at all.” Kjar’s eyes met Amber’s. “Are you ready?”

“Absolutely.”

When he tossed a nut, she caught it in her mouth and winked. “Told you I’d get the hang of it.”

“So you did.”

Kjar stood, stretched and snatched a sketch off the bed. “May I keep this one?”

“Of course!”

The shipwright grinned and strolled from the room, words tossed over his shoulder. “I’ll have more hot water added to your bath. Dress and come dance soon, woman.”

By the time Amber refocused on her sisters, their mouths were hanging open.

“What?” she said.

They shook their heads and eyed not only her sketches but the clothes stacked on her bed. Then it was just an onslaught of questions.

“Why didn’t you try to come find us? Where did you get the paper and the charcoal to sketch? How did you end up with Kjar? Where did these clothes come from?”

Amber polished off her mead. “I
did
try to find you guys, but you were M.I.A.” She grinned as she eyed them. “So I assumed you were getting crazy with your men. Was I wrong?”

They started to respond but stopped. Megan nodded and blew her hair out of her face as though overheated. Veronica gave a noncommittal shrug though she blushed and trailed her fingers over her collarbone.

“I thought so.” Amber smiled at the women who came in and poured hot water into her tub. “Thank you…Efura and Freydis, right?”

Their faces lit up and they nodded.

“We’ll go shopping tomorrow, yes?” She nodded at her new clothing. “I’ll buy you a few dresses?”

They smiled and again nodded before leaving.

By the time she’d stripped down and sunk into the water, her sisters looked baffled.

“You two okay?” she said.

They blinked several times before Megan fingered the clothes laying on the bed and spoke. “Not sure where to begin but let’s start with how you got these.”

Amber smelled the soap. Flowery but not overwhelming. Lavender? “I offered my drawings in exchange for clothes.”

“But we were having clothes made for you.” Veronica frowned. “So they took your sketches in exchange for their wares?”

“Yeah.” Amber ignored the sting left in the wake of her sister’s doubt. “Is that so hard to believe?”

“No,” Veronica said but Megan interrupted her before she could continue. “Where did you get the bark sheets and charcoal?”

“I asked around.” She shrugged. “I said I was a friend of Kol’s, Kjar’s, and Kara’s.”

“Kara?”

“Kol’s woman,” Amber informed. “Long blond hair, gorgeous blue eyes. A body I’d kill for.”

Megan continued as her sisters stared at her, completely astounded. “So who hooked you up?”

Amber ran the soap over her arms. “One of Kara’s friends. Asmund.”

“So nobody who knew Kol, the king’s brother, or Kjar, the master shipwright?” Veronica said, amazement in her voice.

“Nope.” Amber dug her fingernail into the soap, amazed at the milky texture despite its firmness. “Like I said, Asmund.”

“Who’s Asmund?”

“Really?” She frowned at Veronica then rolled her eyes. “Oh yeah, you call him Wandering Hands.”

Veronica’s mouth dropped open then snapped shut.

Megan kept going. “So Asmund got you paper and charcoal then you did what exactly? Started selling your drawings?”

“Sort of. Not on purpose of course.” Amber continued to lather up. “I started walking along the boardwalk and would sketch wherever I found a flat surface, which as it turned out was often on the corner of the vendor’s tables.” She shrugged. "I asked them first and they were fine with it. Not long after that they wanted me to sketch them and their stands.”

“Boardwalk?” Veronica whispered, hand on her belly as she shook her head.

Amber lathered the soap in her hands and rubbed it into her hair. “What else would you call a strip of stores, or carts, along an oceanfront?”

By this time, Megan was looking at her with a warm smile. “So in exchange for your drawings they gave you clothes?”

“Yeah.” Amber nodded at the table in the corner. “And jewelry.”

“Fuck, love,” Veronica muttered. Hand to her lower back, she waddled over and started inspecting them. “These are fabulous.”

“Vikings are super talented,” she agreed and started rinsing off. “And so damn nice. Sure they barter up a storm but don’t give you an attitude once everyone agrees on a price.”

“Which were your drawings,” Veronica murmured as she scanned the jewelry then turned a genuine smile Amber’s way. “I’m really impressed, Sis.”

It was a rare day that her former New York society, magazine owner, high-fashion sister gave her a compliment like that. Sure, she typically rebelled against Veronica’s high-and-mighty attitude but right now it felt
really
good…and down to Earth.

“Thanks.” She smiled. “That means a lot.”

Veronica gave her an odd look before she continued checking out the jewelry. “Anytime.”

Megan fingered the clothes. “These are nice. Better than most.” Her eyes went to Amber. “It’s obvious that whatever you drew meant an awful lot because this clothing is the finest sold around here.”

“I just gave them what they wanted.” Amber stood and dried off. “Which really wasn’t much.”

Megan started leafing through the stack of papers Kjar had found in bed with her. “And these?” She slowed as she went through them, her mouth falling open a fraction. “Tell me about them.”

“They’re nothing.” When she went to grab them, Megan snatched them away and shook her head. “I'm still looking at them. Get dressed.”

“Damn, you really have taken on the role of Queen Bee, haven’t you?”

But, as she had been doing her whole life, Amber didn’t pursue questioning her oldest sister but did as she was asked. It didn’t matter anyways. She drew what was in her heart and wouldn’t hide it from them any more than she had Kjar.

The only difference?

He wouldn’t question her.

They would.

Either way, she had years of practice at this. If nothing else stayed true, it was that her sisters worried about her and that she would never quite measure up. Yet she’d developed a thick skin and a sure fire way to push past it. Say what they needed to hear, what gave them comfort, and then she did her own thing.

It was the perfect formula to keep the peace between them all.

Amber slid on a pair of fitted brown leather pants and a form-fitting tunic. Then she looked around and muttered, “Where the hell’d they go?”