Page 7 of The Physician's Barbarian
“I know you’re probably freaked out, but try not to worry. They’re really nice people. You’ll stay here for tonight, and tomorrow you’ll start learning the language. I promise you’ll understand better after that. You’ve got nothing to worry about here.”
He said his goodbyes and ducked back out, leaving me alone again with the barbarian who seemed more interested in his food than me. He glanced up at me and patted the ground beside him, gesturing to the bowl and saying something in his language. I was hungry, so I followed directions and sat beside him, pulling the bowl closer and examining the contents.
I didn’t recognize most of the food. That wasn’t totally surprising; I wasn’t a very good cook and tended to stick with what I was familiar with. The barbarian noticed and pointed at the meat, saying something else in his gruff language. When I only stared at him blankly, he made horns with his fingers and grunted out an animalistic sound. He was trying to tell me what kind of animal it was, but he only succeeded in looking like a fool. I pressed my lips together to stop myself from smiling and nodded. I still didn’t know what animal he was referring to, but that was fine. As long as it wasn’t a smart animal like a horse or a dog, I was open-minded.
The meal itself wasn’t anything fancy: bread and meat with steamed vegetables on the side. It surprised me how well rounded it was. I’d expected vegetables to be scarce in a barbarian village, but apparently not. There were even nuts in the bread for extra protein. Then again, given the muscle mass on most of the residents here, they needed a lot of protein to keep up bodies like that. I thought of Sebastian again, wondering what he’d think of the meal. He’d always hated eating his vegetables, but maybe the way the barbarians prepared them would open his mind to the idea.
The barbarian cleared his throat, catching my attention. When I turned to him, he pointed at his chest. “Godr.”
I assumed he was telling me his name, so I did the same, putting a hand on my chest, and said, “Ambrose.”
His brow furrowed. “Am—brows…”
I shook my head, slowing the sounds down a little. “Ambrose.”
It took a few attempts for him to reproduce it without it sounding a little silly with his accent, but he seemed proud of himself when he finally got it. Once the introductions were made, he started touching things and saying their names, lifting his eyebrows expectantly until I repeated him. It wasn’t the worst way to learn a language, though I thought Patrick had mentioned language lessons the following morning. Maybe Godr was the type to get a head start on things. That would make us similar in that regard.
We kept up with the language lesson until the exhaustion from the trip started to get to me. I was used to nights without sleep, but after days of stress and traveling, I was worn out. I rubbed my face under my glasses, removing them for a moment to pinch the bridge of my nose. I always got a headache when I was overtired. Godr noticed and the next word he taught me waswhat I assumed was bed. He patted it, then repeated the word and pointed at me, cocking his head in question.
I got the picture and nodded. I could use some sleep.
He seemed fine with this, but didn’t immediately let me lie down. Instead, he led me out of the tent and to a trench to relieve myself, then to a shallow river to clean up a little before leading me back to his tent and shooing me toward the bed. I kicked off my boots and set them aside, dropping onto the bed. My glasses I tucked out of the way between the edge of the pallet of blankets and the tent wall so I wouldn’t lose them. I figured Godr would leave for his own tent since this one wasn’t that big, but he surprised me when he turned down the lamp and nudged me so he could lie down next to me.
Maybe the word he’d taught me wasn’t bed. Or maybe it was, but the expectation of what we would do there was just assumed? What in the world had I agreed to?
Five
AMBROSE
I’d figured I’d have to deal with this at one point. I’d honestly expected it much sooner, like on the journey here. Mentally, I was prepared for it. I knew what I was signing up for when I volunteered. I knew the barbarian clans came to the towns for tributes because they didn't produce females. Male tributes were given to other men. I met a pair just last year. I’d spent the last few days gearing myself up for what was to come. I still didn’t feel ready for it.
Godr wriggled a little to get comfortable, resting his hand on his belly. I waited for him to make demands or pull off his clothes, but he did neither. Was he expecting me to make the first move?
Awkwardness swelled in my chest, but I forced myself onto one elbow to look down at him. It was too dark to see much of anything aside from shadows, especially with a new moon in the sky. Maybe that would work in my favor. I could just pretend for a little while that he was a woman.
Since I couldn’t see him well, I put my hand on his chest first, sliding it up to cup his neck and get my bearings. I felt him stiffen beneath me and realized the move probably felt threatening, so I shifted to cup his cheek instead. The stubble of his five o’clock shadow burned against my palm, reminding me that I was touching a man. I moved my hand again to avoid it, sinking it into his hair instead.
“Ambrose?”
I was stalling, I knew that, but aside from in the course of my work, I never touched other men. A thought occurred to me. Maybe if I pretended I was working, I could get him off, and we could move on for the night. I’d studied enough to know where all the pleasurable spots on a man were. Surely I could distract him with touch without having to get anywhere near my ass.
Shifting so I was seated on my knees beside him, I used both hands to trace over his chest again. His breathing picked up a little, which I took as a good sign. He was distracted enough that he seemed fine with letting me lead. I traced over the defined muscles of his chest, brushing light fingers over his nipples. His gasp was loud in the dark, and he shifted restlessly beside me. That made me a little anxious—I didn’t want him getting any ideas about taking over—so I moved lower, over the bumps of his abs to the top of his trousers. He said something, but I had no clue what, and I didn’t think he knew enough of the common tongue to explain it to me. Or any at all. He’d only spoken the barbarian language since I was handed over to his care. I ignored it, my heart rate ratcheting up as I pulled at the ties of his trousers.
Clinical. It was just clinical. Like a physical exam, but with my hands instead of my eyes. That was it.
I pulled his trousers down his thighs, imagining that I needed to because he was sick or unable to on his own. Once they were gone, I traced my hands up his legs again, focusing on themuscles there. I knew the barbarian clans were nomadic and rode horses twice the size of those in the town. This guy was a prime example with his thickly muscled thighs. He probably spent most of his time on the back of a horse to get muscles like that.
He shifted restlessly again as my hands traced up his thighs, the hair tickling my palms. It took some internal coaching to get me to go further, and when I wrapped my hand around his cock, he groaned loud enough to send a shiver up my spine. My patients never reacted like that to an examination.
Pushing that thought aside, I focused on the feel of him. He was well endowed, long and thick, with a leaking head. I couldn’t see him, which helped a little, and I could almost convince myself I was jerking off my own cock instead of a stranger’s if I focused hard enough. On the next upstroke, I ran my thumb along the seam, teasing at the V of his crown like I enjoyed doing to myself when I was alone. Godr seemed to like it as well, if his moans were anything to go by. I spread the pre-cum down his shaft to ease the glide, adjusting my grip a little to something I enjoyed on myself. It was a little difficult sitting next to him, but I didn’t hear any complaints from Godr. He didn’t say much of anything, the only sounds coming out of his mouth being moans of pleasure.
A hand touched my knee and slid up my thigh, making me jump in surprise. I hadn’t expected him to reciprocate, and if I wanted to avoid this going any further, I needed to do better at distracting him. I sped up my hand, ignoring the twitch of my cock when he groaned loudly in response. It was a natural reaction to hearing someone experiencing pleasure. It didn’t say anything about me.
The hand on my thigh tightened, but he didn’t move any further, too distracted by what I was doing to continue. My plan was working. Godr’s breathing was short and quick, and his hipsstarted moving, thrusting up into the circle of my hand like he couldn’t stay still any longer. He was entirely focused on my touch, and from the way his thighs shook, I didn’t think it would take much more to get him off. I cupped his balls with my other hand, rolling them in my palm, and, using my knowledge of the human body, began rubbing small circles behind them where I knew a pleasurable spot was hidden.
Godr’s surprised groan accompanied his bucking hips as he thrust harder into my hand. The steadyschlck schlcksounds joined his moans as more and more pre-cum spilled from his tip, easing the glide. He was also talking, though I didn’t have a clue what he was saying. It sounded desperate and soft, like if I could understand him, he would’ve been whispering encouragement into my ear. That didn’t help with the thickening in my trousers that I was still ignoring. I liked a noisy partner.
Anxiety over my reaction made me want to get this over with. So, after gathering my courage, I released his balls and moved my hand lower, rubbing lightly against his hole. It seemed to do the trick because his back arched off the blankets, and he came with a shout, his seed spilling over my fist and onto his abs. He kept thrusting and gasping until he was spent, and his body melted into the blankets.
