Page 127 of Wicked Tides
“Show her she doesn’t have to be,” he said, once more holding out his hand to me.
I inched forward and slowly, Vidar raised my hand toward the animal and pressed it flat against her muscular neck. I felt her skin twitch beneath my fingers. Felt the fiery heat of her body. Her strong pulse soared under my touch, powerful and alert.
“I never imagined I would touch one,” I admitted. “I’ve seen wild ones on the islands. I used to watch them run when I was young. It amazed me that they could move so fast.”
I could see Vidar staring at me in my peripheral and slowly panned my gaze toward his. Something was on his mind, but I couldn’t tell what it was. His hand remained pressed over the top of mine, his thumb stroking my knuckles.
“They used to be my favorite as a boy,” he said, releasing me. “So? Are you ready to ride her?”
My eyes widened at the prospect. I knew men rode the giant animals, but it amazed me that he even offered. Smirking, Vidar grabbed a thick tuft of the mare’s mane and leapt up onto her back with very little effort. He situated himself astride her, adjusting the thin ropes in his hand that wrapped around her long muzzle.
“I learned to ride on the fiercest of them,” he continued, offering me his hand.
My heart was doing somersaults when I gripped him and he hoisted me up onto the horse behind him. It was far off the ground and as she sidestepped, I could feel every muscle move beneath me. Every breath coursing through her giant lungs vibrated across her body. I wrapped my arms around Vidar’s waist and held onto him, certain the animal would throw us off of her, but she didn’t. Vidar clicked his tongue, tapping her ribs with his heels, and she trudged forward.
“His name was Dawn,” he continued. “He hated saddles, so I often rode without.”
“That such a strong creature lets men ride it is fascinating.”
“They don’t all let men ride them. And I regret that defiance is often met with cruelty.”
“As it is with all things,” I said with regret. “Sometimes giving up is worse than the punishment, though.”
I nuzzled against his back and the warmth he provided as we rode back toward the village. My limbs were frozen and my body ached, but none of it mattered. My nerves savored the echoes of how Vidar felt inside me. The way he claimed me and commanded me and pushed away the darkness.
Nothing had ever been able to do that. Not even for fleeting moments.
I rested my cheek against his shoulder and closed my eyes, finding that I didn’t want to be without the bastard. Some pathetic, sad, weak part of me wanted him. Needed him. I locked my fingers together against his stomach, listening to the gentle thrum of his heartbeat and the rhythm of the horse’s gait like they were a lullaby.
“We are so different, Vidar,” I muttered. “How is it that I have waited more than half my life to kill you and now…” I trailed off, turning my lips into his shoulder. “I almost died trying to save you.”
I felt his hand slide across my forearm to cup mine. It was affectionate and affection was something I didn’t know how to digest. No one but my sisters had ever offered it in any form.
Not even my mother.
“You may yet be a monster succeeding in tearing me apart from the inside, Dahlia,” Vidar said. “But the fool in me refuses to end you. So, I suppose we do have something else in common. Neither of us seems capable of destroying the other.”
“I don’t believe that. I believe you’ve destroyed me, Vidar Woelfson. Just not the way you intended.”
When we returned to the village, the horse was left at the round pen, and Vidar and I continued inward. I was eager to put on a coat and some shoes. Or at least get somewhere to rest my aching feet. When we came to the longhouse, I saw Meridan sitting outside with Taupek and Mullins. She stood as soon as she spotted us, her lips parted with concern when she saw my stained and torn dress. I strode toward her, despite the stabbing pain in my soles from running across frozen branches and rocks, and cupped her face in my hands.
“Are you alright?” she whispered. “I’m sorry. It was stupid of me to tell him—”
“I’m alright,” I answered softly, kissing her on the forehead. “I’m going to rest.”
“With him?”
I nodded. “You must trust me. Please.”
She bit the inside of her lip and then finally inclined her head. Sighing, I turned back around to see Vidar waiting for me on the path.
“Cap’n?” Mullins asked, pointing at the blood that stained his shirt over his shoulder and down the front.
We were both aware what it looked like. It looked like we had just tried to kill each other.
It wasn’t too far off from what actually happened…
Vidar shrugged, grinning. “Do I look bothered, Mullins?”
