Bold Bounty by Amanti Adri

Author:Amanti, Adri [Amanti, Adri]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub, mobi
Tags: FIC027310
Publisher: Hartwood Publishing
Published: 2018-02-13T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Two

Morwen struggled to open the door of Bjorn’s longhouse with her one free hand while she carried a thick piece of deer meat, provided by Lars, in the other. The roast was cured and tough, but Yvette had taught her how to cook the meat and baste it in the juice it would create to make it tender again. She also carried vegetables and a loaf of coarse bread taken from the oven only an hour ago. She placed all these items on the table near the hearth then removed her cloak and smoothed the pleats of her woolen dress.

Morwen glanced toward the rear of the house. From her position, she could just see the lump that was Bjorn’s legs under the covers. Will he try to deny he disobeyed me again and went outside? Morwen took a deep breath and marched toward the bed, ready to scold the man for sneaking out of the house after she had told him to stay in bed.

Her breath caught in her throat and a hand flew to her mouth as she came around the partition. She did not recognize the man in the bed for several heartbeats; he lay with the covers folded below his chest, and his long blond hair was not braided, but combed straight and shining in the soft light of a candle as it covered his broad shoulders. His face was peaceful and rugged, with small lines around the eyes. There was no trace of facial hair.

Only the slight pallor of a man recovering from an illness told her it was Bjorn Halden who lay in the bed. Until he grinned without opening his eyes. Two tiny dimples puckered in his cheeks. Like the dimples of a baby.

“I hope you like it, woman,” he said, and then he opened his gray eyes. They seemed somehow larger and brighter now that the beard and mustache were gone. The lines around his eyes deepened with the dimples as his smile increased.

“I…” Morwen lowered her hand from her mouth. “I didn’t even recognize you. You look like a man now, instead of a bear.”

He laughed at her and then gave a low growl. Morwen watched his exposed throat move to make the sounds. “Is that the best compliment I get?”

“I… You should be whipped,” Morwen said, remembering what had brought her into the room. “I told you to stay in bed, but I heard about your trip to the bathhouse. Several people saw you staggering along, hanging onto houses or carts or whatever you could find to keep from falling on your face in the snow.”

Bjorn threw back his head and laughed. “No Viking would have dared say that about me. It must have been one of your Welsh friends who saw something worse than what was true. One woman told another, the tale grew less true, and I am only surprised I was not being carried on a litter by the time word got to you, but you should have joined me,” he teased.

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