Page 63 of Shared By the Vikings

She smiled, sighed, then scooped up the dead cormorant. Another fat bird of this size would feed her men well.

Her men.

Ja, that is what they are.

All of them.

After walking for a few minutes, a skylark bemoaning her presence with short sharp trills overheard, she spotted a fat-breasted gannet sitting on the sand having a midday doze.

She stilled, half hidden behind a dune, rested down her catch, then primed an arrow.

The bird didn’t know she was there. It also had no idea when an arrow fired through the air in its direction.

On target.

The bird squawked and toppled over.

Ingrid grabbed the cormorant and raced to her newest strike. Quickly she broke its neck, then retrieved the arrow from its chest. They’d eat very well tonight.

She turned to look for Erik.

He was a speck in the distance and had arrived at the small shed. He pulled open the door, stepped in and out of her view.

She studied the tide, then the sun. It was time to head back to the headland.

As she went she collected edible plants, pleased when she also found some ox-daisies, the sweet white petals making for a snack as she walked.

Finally reaching the headland, she sat on a rock to wait for Erik. The tide was rushing in, its frothing fingers stretching a little more with each gallop up the beach.

Luckily he was soon jogging back her way, sticking to a steady pace along the water’s edge.

A smile caught on her lips. This big sexy Viking had her maidenhead. If it couldn’t be Raud she was glad it was Erik.

But I still want Raud, and Gunnvar and Tali.

A small bubble of anxiety caught her belly but she pushed it away. She’d been told by all three of the Vikings she was stranded with that her being with them all wasn’t an issue.

And so I will take what I want. I am a princess after all.

She smiled and stood as Erik approached. “What’s in it?”

“Treasure.”

“Really?”

He laughed and dropped to a walk. “To a man like me,ja. It’s an old boat, not seaworthy but we can make it so. There’s also tools and fishing net.”

“Who does it belong to?”

He shrugged and stepped up onto the rocks that would take them over the headland. “I don’t know, the monastery. But it’s ours now.”

She followed him.

“What will we do?”

“Morrow when the tide retreats we’ll relocate to this beach. Then we can fix the boat.” He turned and nodded at the two birds she held. “And you can keep us well fed.”

She smiled and held up their dinner. “I can.”

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