The Battle Lord Saga 02 - Her Battle Lord's Desire (35 page)

her moist heat.

“What’s come over you, Atrilan?” he moaned, pressing his lips to her forehead.

“I want you.”

“I know that. But you’ve never been like this before. Has this come about because of

what you and Tory may have talked about?”

“Perhaps,” she laughed lightly.

“Or because you no longer have to worry about becoming pregnant?” he ventured,

broaching a subject they hadn’t spoken of since MaGrath had given her the contraceptive.

To answer him, Atty pushed him onto his back and climbed on top, easing herself over

him before she began rocking up and down in a long, slow, sliding motion. She was as tight as

she had been when he’d first taken her virginity, but unlike then, she could almost take the whole

of him. Her body could encase him in pure ecstasy. Yulen grabbed her hands where they rested

along his ribcage, and pulled them up to his shoulders until her breasts rubbed against his. The

friction was like setting fire to tinder.

He groaned loudly, shifting his weight. He threw her back onto the mattress and rolled on

top in order to assault her senses with his mouth and hands as little sounds of pleasure came from

deep within her. Sounds that were music to his ears, and shifted every nerve ending into

overdrive.

She lifted her knees even higher, giving him the ability to sheath more of his length.

Raising her feet above his head, Yulen rested her heels on his shoulders, and Atty shuddered at

this totally new and unexpected sensation. He was a delicious thickness that made her wish she

could crawl between his thighs and never leave. She wanted to be his saddle he rode on during

the day, and his blanket that covered him at night.

He was beyond her reach now. She could only grasp the bedcovers, twisting them in her

hands as every cell was flooded with wave upon wave of erotic delight as he continued to pound

into her, moving faster as he brought them both nearer to the edge of their world and prepared to

hurl themselves toward the broken moon that was flooding the bed with light. Panting heavily,

Yulen opened his eyes to look down and saw her face twisted into an expression of pure lust. In

the dying firelight, her face was framed within a sea of midnight-colored hair. At that moment

Atty’s eyes opened, and they gazed at each other as they molded flesh into flesh, over and over,

until the overwhelming climax seized them, churning and overflowing, leaving them breathless and

quivering as they writhed on the sweat-coated sheets.

Kissing her lightly on her swollen lips, Yulen gathered her tightly against him as he settled

onto his side and let oblivion take him without a struggle. It wasn’t until much, much later that he

realized she’d never answered his question. But by then, it no longer mattered.

“What’s the first thing you’re gonna do when we get back, Jake?”

“Get rip-roaring drunk, then have a three-night sleep. How ‘bout you?”

“You know I’ve been seeing Shellee, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I’m thinking about maybe making an honest woman of her. Would only be right,

seeing as how we’ve been together going on nearly a year now.”

The soldier to her left crowed with delight. “I think you’ve got that a bit backwards,

Dugglas. She’s going to make an honest
man
of
you!
No more late nights playing double deuce with the boys!”

The soldier ahead and to the right snorted. “That’s what
you
think, Jake, my boy!”

The other soldiers around her continued to jibe each other with questions, trying to pass

the time as they’d done the past few days. They were only a few miles from Alta Novis and

making excellent time. Unless something barred their way, they would make the compound

before nightfall, even though the days were noticeably shorter.

Atty sighed and stretched her arms over her head. The soldier to her right saw her

fidgeting and grinned. “Not much longer, Atty.”

“I know, Russell. So what’s the first thing you’re gonna do when we get home?”

The soldier named Jake gave her a short salute and made way for his replacement as the

men took turns on their three-hour shifts.

“I’ve been worried about my dad,” Russell admitted. “He hasn’t been doing too well, and

Mom’s been having to double-up work just to take up his slack.”

“Oh?” Atty gave him a concerned look. “What does your dad do?”

“He helps take care of the compound livestock,” Russell said proudly. “My mother’s the

one who makes certain fresh milk is delivered to the main lodge every morning. But with Dad

under the weather, things have been a bit short-handed. I pitch in and help with the milking and

all when I can, but with me being gone these past few weeks, I’ve been worried about how

they’ve been getting on.”

His replacement trotted up to take over. Russell gave her a little salute goodbye. “See

you at the compound, Atty!”

One at a time, the soldiers changed places, until she was surrounded by six new men. One

of them, a man by the name of Kort, greeted her jovially. “Almost home, Atty girl!”

She flashed him a weary smile in answer.

“Won’t be soon enough,” the soldier behind her and to her left grumbled. “We’ll make it

just in time to catch the latest massacre.”

Kort guffawed. “That’s the right attitude, Freshon! Always could see a bright ray of

sunshine coming from your ruddy face!”

“I don’t know why you guys are so gung-ho about finally being home,” Freshon

continued. “We’re being inundated with Bloods. You guys are acting like it’s Market Day.”

“You can’t dwell on it,” the soldier ahead and to her left shot at him over his shoulder. “If

they come, we’ll deal with ‘em. Hell, we have Atty on our side. How could we lose?”

“Still, I’d feel a helluva lot better if we knew what they were planning. How many are

there? What kind of weapons do they use? Can you tell me
that?
”

Atty gave him a small smile. “They use whatever they can carry in their hands.

Sometimes they may have a crude knife or ax or sword, but they’ll also use rocks and big tree

limbs. And when they don’t have those, they’ll use their hands and teeth. Just be careful not to

get bitten, or let any of their blood get in an open wound if you can help it. We’ve found that

some of their blood can hurt you, like a poison. I’ve even heard of a few who had blood that was

like acid. Just ate through the skin as quick as you please.”

Silence reigned for a few minutes as the men digested this bit of information. The caravan

continued at a quick pace. The Battle Lord had ordered no stopping for lunch since they were so

close to their destination, forcing everyone to take their meal in their saddles.

Like the day before, and the day before that, Atty hadn’t seen her husband except for brief

glimpses. He stayed busy with reports from the scouts, and from discussions with Mastin and the

lieutenants. It was only at night, after camp had been erected, that she could be with him, and

even then there was practically no privacy to be shared. Which was why she’d been especially

glad when they had stopped at Foster City. A tiny smile creased the corners of her mouth. If

Yulen was surprised by her enthusiasm last night, just wait until this evening, she promised

herself.

“So, Atty, what are you looking forward to doing when we get back?” Kort interrupted

her thoughts.

For a second she wondered if he’d been reading her mind. A slow blush began to creep

up her face. She tried to hide it with a toss of her thick braid. “I want a nice hot soak in the tub,”

she told them. “That, and I want to sleep as late as I want for the next week.”

“What? No going out hunting before the crack of dawn?” the soldier on her left inquired.

Atty peered through his helmet and recognized the face behind the armor. She smiled.

“Just because I’m a hunter doesn’t mean I enjoy rising before everyone else does and

traipsing about in the near-dark. I love the hunt, and I love the feeling of accomplishment when I

can bring back fresh meat to the compound. But, to be honest, if I could stay in bed until noon,

and
then
go out, I’d be happier. Of course, we all know that’ll never happen.” She blew an

errant lock of hair out of her eyes. “What about you, Johed?”

“I’m going to beg Berta for the biggest haunch of roasted meat she’s got cooking in the

kitchen, and I’m going to die a stuffed but happy man!”

The men laughed at the admission. Johed turned slightly in his seat, a big grin evident on

his face despite the masking effect of the helmet. “How about you, sir? What are you looking

forward to when we get home?”

A deep, rich voice directly behind her answered, “I’m looking forward to a little more

quality time with my wife.”

Startled, Atty gasped and whipped around in her saddle to see his blue-gray eyes twinkling

within the shadows of his helmet. “How long have you been back there?” she demanded.

“Long enough,” he laughed with a chuckle that came from his chest. “So...you’d like a

looong soak in a hot tub, and then stay in bed for...at least...a week?” Yulen drawled slowly.

There was no way she could escape the insinuating tone in his question, and the slow

blush she’d managed to hide earlier returned with a vengeance to burn her cheeks a bright pink.

The men around her also caught the double-edged meaning as he turned her words around and

gave them back to her. They roared in laughter to see her speechless.

“Wellll...I’ll see what I can do...to accommodate you,” he commented, much to her

chagrin. The soldiers continued to snicker.

Glaring at him, Atty watched as her husband tossed her the customary little salute as he

pulled away from the entourage, allowing another soldier to take his place. He hurried ahead,

leaving her to cope with their good-natured teasing. Seeing him go, she couldn’t help but smile.

At least she knew he’d been thinking of her, and missed her enough to insinuate himself into the

guard in order to surprise her. She pressed a cool hand to an overly warm forehead, and sighed.

“How much further before we get there?” she asked, off-handedly. For some strange

reason, that elicited another round of laughter from her guards. Atty rolled her eyes. “Oh, come

on, guys!”

She searched ahead again to see if she could spot her husband. They were coming into

territory that looked slightly familiar to her, which meant they probably were within one or two

miles of the compound. Alta Novis, her home. Her real home now.

Despite the inclement weather, Atty loved this time of year. Her father often referred to

the winter as “cuddling” weather, and for the first time in her life she was looking forward to

sharing some quality cuddling time with Yulen. It would be their first winter together. Glancing

down at her hands, she thought back on some of the things Tory had suggested to her, and a

playful grin came over her. Oh, yeah. Things were definitely going to be a lot more fun.

The men around her continued to talk, leaving her alone for the moment as it was obvious

she was lost in her own thoughts, which was fine with Atty. She’d been a solitary person for so

long, she had no problem blending into the background when others were around. It gave her the

chance to sharpen her observation skills. Like now.

Atty glanced at the cloudless sky overhead. It was a good sign. No clouds meant no

approaching bad weather. But it also meant a clear night, and clear nights were always very cold

nights. She shivered unconsciously at the thought, then smiled. Cold nights would mean a warm

Yulen beside her as well.

She blew away that same irritating bit of hair that tended to want to stay right in front of

her left eye. Was it her imagination, or did all the birds sort of disappear within the past few

minutes? Her eyes darted from one side of the road to the other. When did the insects stop

chirping? Why did the air suddenly seem thick?

A cold finger drew an imaginary line up her spine, lifting the hairs on her head. Before she

was aware of her own actions, little Atty withdrew into herself, and the huntress-warrior Atty

stepped into her skin just as all of her inner bells began to ring. Without thinking, Atty reigned in

hard on her mare. Not expecting her sudden stop, the two guards behind her plowed into the

little bay, then passed her up a few feet before they managed to stop along with the others of her

guard.

Behind them, the rest of the caravan, traveling in squads of four, as per the Battle Lord’s

orders, saw the disruption in the line ahead of them, and immediately halted.

Unaware of them, Atty jumped from her saddle, landing in a crouch beside her horse.

Every nerve tingled, every sense attuned. The one thing she hated most in the world was when

the tables were turned, and she the hunter became the hunted. It was an eerie, almost sickening

feeling that sat inside her chest like a heavy congestion, making it difficult to concentrate and

almost impossible to breathe.

Instinctively, Atty pulled her bow off her shoulders and nocked an arrow as she remained

close to the ground, listening...watching...waiting...

Behind her a huge gray horse drew close and stopped. Up and down the caravan