Her Viking Saviour (Lore & Love Trilogy #1)

Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

Wynflaed settled into the soothing warm water of the hot spring and swore an oath at her wanton behaviour. No doubt, Torben thought she was immoral. Maybe that is why he pulled away. Sniffing the cake of soap, she inhaled the scents of lavender, lemon balm and other florals she had yet to discover. She scrubbed her skin furiously with the soap before moving on to her tresses, massaging her scalp in an attempt to relieve the tension.

After she had scrubbed herself from head to toe, she grabbed a wooden bucket that sat on the edge of the bath and used it to pour water over her hair and body. She stood up, the water level just below her waist and enjoyed the water sluicing down her body. She repeated the action a few times before she set the bucket down and travelled her hands down her body. She felt the smooth curves of her breasts, then moved down to her waist and the small of her back before she spread her hands out across her buttocks.

She blushed as she remembered the heat that had emanated from between her legs at Torben’s kisses and moved her hand to the curls that covered the area, unable to refrain from touching herself there. She knew it was unholy but in this moment she did not care. She was not a virgin but had little experience. She had only experienced the carnal knowledge of a man a handful of times and had found little joy in it. But the desire that Torben had wrought in her body was so delectable she wanted to know the feeling again and again, so she rubbed herself harder and faster, fascinated by the sensations spreading through her extremities.

She had not been aware her body could feel this way as she tensed and her breath started to come out in pants. All of a sudden something deep inside her exploded and she felt a wetness between her legs that was not from the water. She felt more free, more alive, and more satisfied than she ever had before. She sat back down in the bath to catch her breath and felt both slightly proud and slightly ashamed of the pleasure. She could not help but imagine how much more pleasure she could feel if Torben touched her, was inside of her.

She heard a tap at the door and Olga’s voice.

“I am here when you ready, Wynflaed. I have clean clothes for you,” she said.

“Yes, Olga, I just need to dry myself.”

Wynflaed quickly used the cloth to dry her skin and then wrapped the material around herself before she opened the door and poked her head out. Olga handed her a clean linen shift, a moss-green dress with long sleeves, and woollen hose for her feet.

“It gets much cold at night,” Olga told her with a smile.

Wynflaed returned her smile with thanks, closed the door, and quickly dressed herself. The clothes all fit a little loosely, but Olga had clearly taken the hem up in consideration of her shorter stature. The dress flattered her figure nicely after she tightened the strings around the bodice. A floral motif was stitched over the bust in a brown thread, and she fingered the pretty pattern. She pulled on the hose as high as they could go and then slipped on the leather shoes Torben had bought her. Lastly, she placed the cloak around her shoulders, another reminder of Torben. She gave it a sniff. It was due for a wash, but she would leave that for another time. She bundled up the rest of the clothing and stepped out to meet Olga.

“You have nice hair,” Olga said with admiration as her wet curls slowly dried and sprang back into shape while they walked through the crisp air back towards the hubbub of the settlement.

“Thank you, Olga. I will need to comb it out before it gets too unruly,” she said, laughing.

“I take you to room. Torben give you room next to Freydis in the main house.”

She could only assume this meant she would be sleeping in the same quarters as Torben. A shiver of anticipation ran down her spine.

“What of Hilde, Cynewin, and Cola?” she queried, realising she had not seen her comrades in some time now.

“Cynewin and Cola have been given hut and Hilde sleep in the women’s longhouse. Olga there, Olga take care of her,” Olga said with a reassuring nod.

Olga led her into a large longhouse that held colourful tapestries, ancient wooden carvings inlaid with precious metals, and luxurious pelts that spoke to the nobility of the Ulfsons. Men and women sat on wooden benches on either side of a long fire pit, perhaps waiting to speak with Torben, as they looked to see who had come through the door. The people smiled at her when she passed and she smiled back, relieved that no one here gave her any looks of animosity.

Olga led her through heavy fur curtains to a hallway with several doors. She pointed at each room.

“Chieftain Torben, Ragnav, Freydis, you, and rooms for guests.” She pointed at the last two rooms. The wooden doors were all open so she could see they were all unoccupied. Relief spread through her body. Torben was not here.

Her room was small and cosy. A comfortable-looking bed covered with warm pelts. A chest for her belongings. A stool, washstand, chamber pot, and a latticed window that let sunlight in. On the bed was a tray of food and her comb from Ragnav. She eagerly reached for it and started to tease out her tresses and Olga laughed.

“You fix hair, you eat, and you sleep. You wake when we eat later,” Olga informed her and left.

She sat on the bed and alternated between combing her hair and eating the bread, cheese, and fruit. The room was clean and the floor had fresh rushes littered with sprigs of lavender. It was a much bigger space than she was accustomed to. As a handmaiden, she had slept on a makeshift pallet on the floor beside her mistress's bed. This room was a luxury, and she would have moments of privacy.

Wynflaed let out a shuddering yawn that wracked her whole body. She did feel exhausted even though it was daylight still, her body did not care. It had been many a night since her abduction from Northumbria. The journey to get here had been arduous and exhausting, with few opportunities to sleep peacefully. She had a whole new life to adjust to. She had made this choice and she had no regrets. She lay back on the bed and closed her eyes as the events flashed through her mind. Each thought led back to one person. Torben.