Chapter Four

A tremendous crack of thunder roused Wyn from a deep sleep. Torrents of rain lashed the abbey walls and the place where he’d taken his improvised shower had turned into a wild cascade. The sound of the newly created waterfall was comforting.

It was the sound of home.

His eyes closed for a second and the pain of separation was breath-stealing. He couldn’t wait to return to his family and friends. By now they probably thought him long dead, though surely they wondered what had happened to him. 

He’d been on his way home after a fortnight in Mer de Luna when he’d been captured. His men would have been quick to raise the alarm, but there was little they could do. His people had very little contact with the land dwellers. Where would they have gone for help? When he returned that was one of the first things was determined he’d rectify. It was time the mer-people forged a relationship with the land dwellers.

A gust of rain-scented wind blew through the dubious sanctuary and Wyn rolled onto his side. The breeze sent the clothes on the line to dancing. A few feet away, Nova lay on her right side, sound asleep with her hands tucked under her cheek. In repose, the fierce cat had been replaced with an exhausted kitten. Dark shadows marred the skin beneath her eyes and her long midnight hair confined in a braid accentuated her pale skin. Her features were delicate, which contradicted her prickly disposition. With her dark lashes and expressive blue eyes, Nova was easily the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. 

He smiled when he thought about mistaking her for a man. Who knew a woman would smoke a pipe? There was no way she could be mistaken for a man now. 

Despite the blankets she was curled in, she shivered. The temperature had dropped in the past hour and the wind had picked up. The smart thing to do would be to stretch out beside her so they could share body warmth. But he hadn’t seen her knife in a while and wasn’t sure if she’d kept it near, though he’d hazard a guess she would. Warmth or not, he didn’t want to wake with it buried in his chest.

In her slumber, she made a low noise and her hand clenched. Even in sleep, something tormented her. 

Wyn rose, ignoring the protests from his abused body as he forced bruised muscles to respond. Spreading his blankets wide, he created a pallet for them both before adding more wood to the fire. He waited until the flames leapt high and hot before he approached her. Crouching, he scooped her up, blankets and all. Cradled in his arms, he carried her the few feet to his pallet. 

He stopped just short of burying his nose in her fragrant hair as he placed her on the pallet. He’d never spent this much time with a human woman before and found he quite liked the experience. Her skin smelled of rain and reminded him of home. 

He slid close behind her, then pulled the blankets over them both. With his chest to her back, he slid one arm around her slim waist. After a few moments, her shivers slowed and she leaned into him, still sound asleep. She murmured something and her hips wiggled against his groin, causing a rush of arousal to streak through his system.

He closed his eyes and allowed her scent to surround him. Mermen were highly sexed and it wasn’t long until memories of making love crowded his mind. He tried to push away the lusty thoughts, but the vision of him entering her, taking her as a man takes a woman, were too powerful. His cock lengthened and thickened as shivers ran down his back and thighs. Just knowing she was nude beneath her blanket set his body on full alert. 

He’d been in captivity a long time and, consequently, had allowed himself no release. Mermen were conditioned to have sex at least once a day, if not more, and his captors had wanted him to have sex while humans paid to watch him perform. He’d refused and been sorely beaten. In his world, sex was private, an act of mutual pleasure and procreation. It wasn’t to be used for money or degradation. 

Now that he was warm, well-fed and he held a beautiful, though mortal, woman in his arms, he could barely stand to lie motionless beside her. Inhaling the scent of her soft skin, he could only imagine the delicious anticipation of sinking into this woman’s heat. Having her move beneath him, her strong thighs gripping his waist—

Swallowing a moan, he rolled out from under the blankets and rose to his feet. Stripping the blanket from his waist, he stalked into the driving rain, away from the woman who tempted him so. Walking the length of the ruins, he found a small sheltered area in the far corner. He climbed onto the wide ledge and pulled up his legs to brace his heels on the edge. With his back against the wall and his cock undaunted by the cold rain, he slid his hands around his thick shaft. His palm was already wet—it slid easily against his aroused flesh.

Through the overgrown weeds and vegetation, he could see Nova illuminated in the flickering firelight. He could imagine her full breasts—the sight of her in that corset had almost brought him to his knees. Would her nipples be big and round or small and tight? Would the thatch of her hair between her thighs be as dark as the hair on her head? 

His eyes closed as powerful images washed over him. In desperation to remain silent, he bit his lip so hard he drew blood as he imagined sliding his cock into her body, her hands moving over him, stroking and caressing his flesh as she urged him on. Her thighs tight around him, her body damp and snug beneath him as he thrust again, again, again...

He clenched his eyes as the familiar sensation of orgasm overtook him. His testicles tightened as release gushed forth. He moaned against bloodied lips as wave after wave of release washed over him. Finally, as his tremors slowed, Wyn tipped his head back against the wall. His skin was cool and slick from the rain, but inside he was raging hot. He opened his eyes. While his body had found release, he still hungered for her.

 

 

 

Nova came awake and, for once, it was a lovely feeling. Toasty warm in her blankets, she found it difficult to open her eyes for a change. Her body was still tired from the arduous journey of the day before but her mind was at peace. She stretched and thought about sleeping the day away—

Then a gentle male snore broke the serenity.

Her eyes flew open and her body tensed, ready to spring at the first sign of danger. Something warm slid across her belly and she shoved down the blankets to see a large male hand cupping her bare breast. Sometime during the night, her blanket sarong had abandoned her, leaving her nude in Wyn’s arms. His big hand almost covered her entire breast and, between his thumb and forefinger, her nipple stood proudly erect. His fingers tightened and gave her a tender tweak that sent a shaft of heat down through her belly.

Wyn snored again and she scowled. The bastard was groping her in his sleep!

Her thighs tightened and she became aware of something poking her buttocks. She gave an experimental wiggle and felt his hips move against her in instant response. He mumbled something under his breath as he tweaked her nipple again. An answering heat spread through her abdomen and she automatically pushed against his groin with her hips. All she had to do was part her thighs and move back just a bit and he’d be in the perfect position to—

Dear Ola, what was she thinking?

Shocked at the lusty turn of her thoughts, she shoved his hand off her breast and rolled away. To her dismay, Wyn only scooted into her spot with a snore. He rubbed his face against the blanket before he settled and slept on undisturbed.

Bastard.

Nova rose, clad only in her drawers as her blanket was now trapped under her uninvited bed partner. Her body was stiff and she had numerous aches from the journey and a night spent on the ground. Grouchy because of her disturbed rest, she yanked her clothing from the line, pleased to see it was only slightly damp. After picking up her pack and boots, she slipped off for a few quiet moments to clean up and compose herself. If she remembered correctly, there was a small stream to the south where she’d be able to bathe.

She stomped through the thick rain-slick vegetation, her brow furrowed. How in the devil had she ended up in his bed anyway? The last thing she remembered was bedding down on the other side of the fire, which was definitely not where she’d found herself this morning. She rubbed her hand over her face. Why had he moved her? Did he think to seduce her?

She yanked her knife from her boot to slash at a thick vine that hampered her progress. She didn’t want a man, not now, not ever. She’d spent the last year as a free woman and not once in that time had she wanted to take a man between her thighs. It wasn’t because she thought all men were brutes. That wasn’t the case. While a slave, she’d been lucky enough to have a master who’d taught her the pleasure her body was capable of. She just didn’t want any man to have domination over her and, in her world, taking a lover would enable a man to do just that. 

She shook her head. No, from now on Wyn would sleep on his own side of the fire and nowhere near hers.

Nova located the small stream and, since the water was cold, wasted no time in getting to work. As she scrubbed clean with her bathing cloth and soap, images of Wyn using the same items on his body flashed through her mind. Water running down his muscular frame, his skin sleek in the firelight—

The raucous cry of a crow startled her from her daydreams. Annoyed with her wandering lustful mind, she completed her bathing in record time. Thanks to fresh undergarments she located in the bottom of her bag, she could almost overlook the dampness of her outer clothing. She couldn’t wait until they reached a town and she could rid herself of these clothes and purchase new ones. Fully dressed and feeling much more in control, she slung the pack over her shoulder. She’d wake him up, break their fast and be on their way. Within a day or so, she’d be home. 

She headed up the hill at a brisk pace, eager to get moving, but when the abbey walls came into view she heard a wild whinny from the horse. She skidded to a stop and her hand automatically reached for her bodice knife. A shout sounded from the interior of the ruins and her heart leapt into her throat. Ignoring the lack of a path, she ran the rest of the way. The rain-soaked ground was treacherous underfoot and she almost lost her balance several times. When she reached the wall, she eased into position near a broken window to see into the ruins.

Nude, Wyn stood near their pallet, brandishing a large stick toward Evi’s henchmen. Ber held a sword while Dreg carried a large fishing net. Her eyes narrowed when she saw the blood running down Wyn’s arm.

Did these fools think to attack an unarmed man?

She slid the pack from her shoulder and dropped it beneath the window. Opening the front pocket, she removed a bola, a weapon made of a leather thong with two iron balls, one at each end. When thrown correctly, it could bring a grown man to his knees with the flick of a wrist. 

“Come here, fish-man,” Ber taunted. “I have something for you.” The early morning light glinted off his sword.

As Nova slipped through the broken window, she unfurled the weapon. With deliberate steps, she moved forward. Dreg stepped toward Wyn and she swung the bola over her head several times, then released it. The weapon shot from her hand and flew through the air to catch Ber around the knees. The momentum of the iron balls twined the thong around his knees, trapping him.

“What the—!” Ber fell back with a crash and the sword flew from his grasp.

Wyn wasted no time and leapt on Dreg, using the element of surprise to take him down and tear the net from his grip. Nova ran forward and kicked Ber’s sword out of reach. She slid her foot under the blade near the handle and flipped it high enough to catch it. She brought the blade around and aimed at his throat. 

“Did Evi send you?”

“Fuck you,” he snarled.

“Not on your life.” 

“Bitch,” he snarled.

“So original.” She pressed the tip of the sword against his chest and sliced through his shirt and the first few layers of skin. Blood welled to stain the material.

“I think we know why they’re here,” Wyn spoke. He grabbed Dreg on the nape of his neck and squeezed. After a few seconds, he sagged to the ground, unconscious. “I’ll take care of him.” He nodded toward Ber. “You go deal with their horses.”

Nova backed away, taking care to remain out of Ber’s reach. His legs were restrained but his arms were still free. “You might want to consider borrowing some of their clothing while you’re at it,” she said to Wyn.

“Good idea.”

She ducked through the doorway and ran to the cart, the sword still in her hand. She found their attackers’ horses tethered to a small bush around the corner of the abbey. Both animals were in fine shape and, other than identifying marks on the saddles, neither had been branded. Lucky for her because their lack of marks meant she could claim them as her own. These two would fetch a good sum.

She stripped the saddles and left them on the ground before she led the horses to the cart and secured their reins to the side rail. Taking them also made good sense. They would enable her to travel faster as they could switch the animals when one grew tired of pulling the cart. 

She returned to the abbey and saw Wyn had secured both of the men with a section of clothesline. She was relieved to see he’d taken her advice and had relieved Ber of his clothing. He was dressed in dark trousers, knee boots and a white shirt stained with a small area of blood where she’d poked Ber in the chest. In his big hands, he held her bola.

“Sorry I ruined that shirt. It didn’t occur to me until after I’d put a hole in it that you’d be able to use it,” she said.

“It’s nothing.” He looked up. “Will you show me how to throw this weapon?”

“Only if you show me how you knocked him out.” She nodded toward Dreg. “And after we put some distance between us and them.” Ber was still conscious, though now striped down to stained baggy drawers. He glared at her and she barely resisted the urge to stick out her tongue. She grabbed an armload of blankets. “How’s your arm?” 

“Just a scratch. We can deal with it later.” 

“As you wish.”

She hurried past their prisoners to dump the blankets in the cart. There was no time to break their fast now, so they’d have to eat on the road. In a few short trips, she’d packed the wagon and retrieved her pack from under the window. When she returned to stow it in the cart, she found Wyn had already harnessed the mare to the cart. 

“Are we ready?” She secured her pack under the seat.

“Almost. Shall I get rid of the sword?” He pointed to the weapon lying on the damp hay in the cart.

“No, we can sell it at the market in Wryven.”

He nodded at the horses secured to the rails. “What about them? We aren’t taking them, are we?”

“We sure are.” Nova patted one on the rump. “They’ll fetch a good price.”

He cocked his head. “Is that all you think about...money?”

She climbed into the driver’s seat. “No. I think about food, too.”