The Bride of a Viking

Chapter Ten

Aila sat by the fire in her room, a warm fur blanket wrapped tightly around herself. She thought about the surprisingly good day she had with Ingrid and Nadine. How they swam naked in a very open stream. Anyone could've stumbled upon them. Yet, neither of them had spared a second thought.

A smile crept onto her lips. It was the first moment she had felt content here.

The door creaked as it opened slowly. Tove stood in the door frame, his hair a tousled mess. His cloak hung awkwardly off one shoulder, and his pants looked as if they had been pulled on in a rush. Aila had plenty of ideas of where the brute had just come from. Maybe he had just taken a bath, or he could've been taking a shit, or he could've been off fucking that awful wife of his. Either way, Aila didn't care as long as he kept those pants on and his hands to himself.

Tove yanked the door closed rather roughly and threw off his cloak. He regarded Aila with a nod and continued undressing. She watched nervously as he removed his shirt and then his boots. He stopped at the pants, adjusting them and then sitting on the bed. He sat for a few moments, not moving, not speaking. It was all very confusing. The man seemed as if he were in a rush just a moment ago.

     An uncomfortable silence filled the room before Tove stood and approached her, taking a seat on the floor. His hands inched out to the fire, grabbing a metal rod and and poking at the burning logs.

     "What are you doing here?" Aila asked. She sounded stronger than she felt.

     Tove's eyes found hers, a look of discomfort on his face. He sighed, the smell of alcohol on his breath. "My sister suggested I talk to you." Aila got the feeling that he'd rather be anywhere else. She watched him, waiting for him to continue. "She said I should apologize."

Aila's brows rose in surprise. This was rather amusing. The thought of the brute on his knees begging for her forgiveness.

"I should never have touched you, we are not yet wed." Tove took a moment, adjusting himself into a more comfortable position. His back up against the wall so that he was next to the fire and facing toward Aila. "I am very eager to have an heir," he said. "You may have been told this already, my wife cannot have children."

     Suddenly everything made sense. Aila had only been chosen as his wife to bear him children, nothing more.

     "This information was not disclosed until after we were married."

Aila wondered if Yrsa had become so bitter because of the fact that she couldn't bear children. It was a saddening thought. Aila had always desired having a family of her own some day, only she hadn't wanted it to be so soon. Birthing children was a scary thought. She had known many women who had been taken too soon from complications while giving birth.

"What makes you so sure that I can give you an heir?" Aila asked.

Tove seemed to think it over for a moment. His eyes met hers as he responded: "if you cannot, then I'll have to find another woman who can."

Aila wondered what would happen to her if that were the case. Would Tove still keep her around? Would he let her go home? Would he kill her? So many questions ran through her mind. He was so unpredictable.

"What will become of me when I give you an heir?" Her fingers nervously scratched at the fur blanket around her body.

The brute sighed heavily. "I am typically not a cruel man." He pushed himself off the floor and approached Aila's delicate frame on the chair, his arms gently lifting her into his chest. He was so warm, providing Aila the heat she had been craving. Her room never seemed to be warm enough, even with the fire going.