Keeper of the Norns Read online

  When I began to relax back against him, I could feel the crown of Alexavier’s cock teasing against the folds of my pussy. I knew without looking it was thick, but I wasn’t prepared for the fullness that came with his grand entry. It stole my breath and initiated a war of tongues.

  Thorne’s flicked across my lips. When I parted them, he nipped and suckled at my fuller, lower lip, until Alexavier pulled my face back toward his. His mouth claimed mine and our tongues began to dance, sweetly, softly. Thorne’s fingers laced over my throat, and his thumb bid me to tilt back toward him. There was nothing soft and sweet about the deep passionate exchange that followed. While they fought for my mouth, Alexavier’s hips warred between my legs. Deep battering thrusts carried me back against his brother.

  Alexavier grabbed my hip and Thorne sought a breast. His thumb taunted my nipple, only to roll his fingers over the swollen bud. When I thought I would go mad from each little graze, he crushed my breast in his hand and slid his tongue up my neck. Alex’s head was bent, the other nipple was drawn firmly into his mouth.

  I sank my nails into the back of Thorns neck and gave in to the wave of pleasure that carried me between them. Rocking off one only to be scored by the other. I no longer knew which fingers belonged to whom. When I ended up with stubbled whiskers on either side of my jaw, I tilted my head back and began to cry out as teeth and lips simultaneously traveled about my throat.

  When I came, my cunt gripped at his cock, and I fought against Thorne’s strong hands to strangle Alexavier with my thighs. He may not have had the impaler his brother was proud of, but the man had the girth of a God. I hung, half suspended in Thorne’s arms and vying for breath while my senses came back to me. The sweetest of aches settling in my inner thighs. As if he could read my mind, Thorne’s hands slid up the inside of my legs and he began to roll and rub the area where my thigh met my groin.

  I wasn’t sure my legs would hold me, but they did. We sat by the fire a while, enjoying each other’s company and allowing our hair time to dry before risking the chilly route home.

  The tavern was mostly empty. It was funny—the place was almost becoming familiar. I wouldn’t say charming… but still.

  Shadows played on the wall as we made our way up the ancient stairs. Thane and Adira sat huddled around the blanket. Her face was tearstained, but at least now, something in her eyes said she might finally understand.

  “It is about balance,” I whispered.

  She nodded and sniffled a bit. “I didn’t know… I truly didn’t.”

  “Life has agreed to stop meddling with the mortals,” Thane offered.

  “That is a good start. I hope that we can work together for the sake of our mortal children… for the sake of everyone,” I added.

  “I will withdraw all of my influences and call a meeting with the other Goddesses. Together… do you think we have a hope?” She sounded meek, defeated.

  For a moment, I wondered what exactly had occurred while we frolicked in the cave. Was she drunk? This was not the woman who was boastful and full of antics only yesterday. Perhaps Life cannot be judged with a glimpse.

  “I do not want it to end. I truly thought… it could just be… fun.” She shrugged.

  We stared at her, long and hard. After a few moments, she looked away and flushed.

  “You are young and have not seen the fall of man. We have watched it twice. Trust us when we tell you the pain is unbelievable. The guilt.” I shook my head.

  She stood up, looking every bit the first century Goddess that she was.

  “If their life ends, yours does, too,” Thorne informed her. It was something one would think was obvious, but I supposed all lessons were learned.

  “I guess in a way, you went to war to save me, Zhenni.” Adira smiled. “Is there anything… I could do for you?”

  I laughed, unsure what any young Goddess could do for an old timer like myself. “You know what, honey? There’s really only one thing I have ever wanted.”

  Adira’s brows hitched, and four sets of eyes lingered in wait of my sole whim. It was an ego trip to say the least for a neglected Goddess such as myself.

  “All I ever wanted was to experience my own happily ever after,” I quietly confessed. I smiled and laughed on a sigh. I’ve watched hundreds of people a day reap the reward of my favor. Just once, I wanted to know what it felt like… to love myself and allow myself to be loved.

  “Mortal love?” Life scoffed. She squinted as if I were the simplest of fools. “Do you know what all the universe has to offer?”

  I smirked and nodded. Indeed, after this last mess, I was certain I had seen it all.

  “How can anyone say they have lived, if they haven’t experienced true love?” I countered.

  It was sad really; I normally tried not to dwell on it too much, but after meeting the three of them, the real them, it was all I could think about. I ached with the knowledge that soon, Life and I would both be sent back to our respective corners. I winced with the memory of my waterfall of grief at Worlds End.

  “You want to experience mortal love? If that is truly your wish, Goddess, then I will make it so,” she implored. She was serious. Her voice and expression attested to it.

  My gaze met Alexavier’s. He tore his attention away and stepped around her without a word. He put his back to me and began to fiddle with the quilt. Tears welled in my eyes as Thorne scoffed and fell into place beside him.

  A trick. I had been useful, and now I wasn’t. It had all been a facade.

  I swallowed hard, determined not to show any emotion, though it killed me how indifferent they were to part ways with me. I nodded and trailed toward my room. It was a silly attempt at escape, it wasn’t like I had any bags to pack. I collapsed against the door and drew a few grounding breaths.

  Alexavier

  I kept my head low, but my eyes on Thorne. His jaw was tense, the knots he formed on the quilt were tight and sloppy. He was always so calm and collected. It shook me to the core to see him so furious and yet determined.

  “It will be alright. We’ll get over it. We have before…” I reminded him.

  His hands slammed on either side of the bannister, and a finger jutted out in warning. Behind us, Zhenni’s door slowly creaked open.

  He shoved the wadded slippery quilt into my hands and started toward her.

  “Put it up,” he growled, on his way passed.

  It jiggled in my arms. Several times I struggled to keep it from spilling across the floor. It had happened once or twice, usually when Thane was too deep in the horn. I took it to Thane’s room at the far end and hurried back to join them. I hadn’t missed much, they were sharing a silence that had long passed anyone’s definition of comfort.

  “Ready?” I tried to keep a reassuring smile, but she seemed stone-faced.

  “Where are we going?” she whispered.

  “You’ve heard of the Tree of Life, right?” Adira interrupted.

  “It has a name…” Thorne grumbled.

  “Yes, yes.” she sighed, as if his educational tactics bored her already. She hooked her arm into Zhenni’s and left the three of us to trail after them.

  I lingered behind the others a moment, fighting the urge to drag her back inside. Why couldn’t we keep her hostage? That was why we brought her here. She would come to her senses again.

  I threw the doors of the tavern open and stepped out into the great circle with them. Villagers came out of their huts, eager to find the source of their interrupted supping. That tree had always been my favorite. You didn’t have to pretend; anyone could see that it held up the sky.

  Zhenni stood beneath it, staring up in awe at the miles of bark and roof-like branches. A carpet of leaves crunched beneath us as we gathered close.

  Adira stroked the bark until it glowed brighter than the sun. A doorway was illuminated and opened ever so slowly before us. My heart swelled, the sharp tinge of Nastrond sap lingered over my taste buds. Air seemed to have frozen in my chest; fuck, time itse
lf was standing still.

  Thorne

  “They won’t let me stay?” she called over her shoulder. Her voice broke, and it wounded me in a way I hadn’t thought possible.

  “No. They won’t,” I agreed.

  “I don’t want a happily ever after without you three,” she ground out before whirling around to face us. She swallowed and looked frantically from one of us to the other.

  “You really thought we would let you go alone?” Thane laughed in that provocative way that begged a kidney shot, then moved past her for the door.

  She sucked in air, but before she could deter him, my brother put his arms over his head, made his palms kiss, and dove through the door.

  “Dramatic ass,” I grumbled. Alexavier laughed, and I brought my foot up, landing a kick to the center of his ass. He went sprawling into the Blessed Tree.

  The light of its magic played fae tricks across Zhenni’s freckled face. The stars peeked at us between the branches, but I didn’t care. I had to have one more kiss before we set off on this journey.

  A journey of mortal life together.

  Again.

  The End.

  I loved bringing these characters to life, developing the brotherly bonds, and taking Zhenni through the process of acknowledging her own strength and potential. Keeper of the Norns is actually a final chapter in the lives of Zhenni and her harem, the real story lies in how they became immortal and sealed their paths together for all of eternity. Follow Zhenni into the mortal world in book two of the Heathen Harem Tales collection. Between Mortals and Makers is available today for preorder on Amazon!

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  Turn the Page for an exclusive sneak peek at chapter one of, Between Mortals and Makers!

  BETWEEN MORTALS AND MAKERS (BOOK II SAMPLE)

  Chapter One

  Scratching the Surface

  Zhenni

  Something solid and heavy slid against my palm. I absently curled my fingers around it, only to drop it like a serpent a breath later. The axe clanked against the bottom of the long boat, and I almost climbed over the side, trying to get away from the woman before me.

  Zaphori… I think that is what they called her. Her children Osanna and Sven watched on wide-eyed a few rows away. Her hands came out in surrender between us, and her long, bejeweled fingers tickled the air in a silent plea for me to calm myself.

  “I didn’t mean to startle you… but the men are about to throw anchor.” Her head tipped toward two burly looking men that I had only met at the start of the journey. “And... things will be happening quickly after that.”

  Her steely brown gaze shifted to the hills in the distance. Men lined it. They were mounted on beautiful steeds and armed to the teeth.

  “They come to welcome us,” I nervously suggested, even as the air around me started to tingle with testosterone. Men paced in tiny circles, hefting their weapons and working themselves up. “I… I… I don’t know how…” I began.

  My parents sheltered me from violence. Well, as best they could, considering the climate. Odd, given how our family came to be formed. You see, I wasn’t their flesh and blood. I was the sole survivor of my own village. The village their people erased from history. Father always blamed my mother’s warm heart for my existence. I’d seen enough to know what happened when they raided, just as they might now. I had no doubt he was correct. Her infertility had led to the mercy I was afforded. I was five years old when Cairn and Domhain ripped me away to another life. A Viking life. Now, fifteen years later, I sat frozen in shock once again. Reeling from the sound of her body being thrown overboard only a few short hours ago and destined for dry land on which I didn’t know a soul.

  A sword sang its way out of a sheath nearby, and my attention slowly shifted back to Zaphori’s children. The boy was looking at me like I was nothing more than a dung fly. The girl however, little Osanna, her eyes were wide and glistened with tears.

  I drew in the cool salty air and forced myself to sober. “It will be fine. It will be over very soon,” I assured them. I was done talking to Zaphori; the woman wasn’t trying to hear what I had to say, anyhow. Even if she was, I couldn’t let the children see how terrified I was.

  A man with long, braided blond hair passed in front of me. There were a dozen men on the around us on the boat, but he was different. He didn’t burn with energy or heft his muscles about. He placed a boot on the bench and leaned forward studying the waves. His jaw was strong, and his eyes rivaled the water he was staring into. A taller man with similar features came up beside him and clapped him on the back.

  “Thane says he can kill five men before you even wet your sword. little brother.”

  The man with his foot on the bench spat into the water, and his eye twitched at the challenge, but before he could respond, a bellowing tone echoed across the water. Both men cringed in response.

  “Fuck the both of you. I bet I get the prettiest wife,” the Spitter said before shoulder-checking the taller one and drawing his sword.

  “Thorne,” a deep voice boomed from beside me. The man who had conveyed the challenge turned, catching the shield just in the nick of time.

  “It will be fine. I thank you for saying that… for Osanna,” Zaphori offered quietly.

  The man beside me turned at the sound of her voice. His eyes roamed up and down me, only to settle upon the axe that dangled from my hand.

  “She stays to watch the young ones,” he growled, snatching the axe from my hand so quickly I yelped.

  “Thane, she’s…” Zaphori started, but her words cut short when the man faced her again. His eyes were like ice, but they burned right through her.

  “She’s staying on the long boat. And that’s final.” His voice was low, brows parked high on his forehead.

  “Zaphori,” her husband Einar called, making his way from the back of the vessel. “You do not meddle in the plans of men.” His voice rose, like he wanted everyone to hear him scolding her.

  What a little man. If his size matched his disposition, I would have enjoyed squashing him beneath my slipper. The thought of the crunch such a creature would provoke beneath my weight brought a satisfying smile I was certain he could read. His bloodshot, green eyes settled on me momentarily before he dismissed all of us without a word.

  Osanna squirmed her way onto my lap while her mother gave parting glances over her shoulder. I couldn’t blame her. I wouldn’t have wanted to rush off to battle and leave my babies to a stranger either, but her only alternative was to drag them into the mess with her.

  I tried to keep them focused on the skyline behind us, entertaining them with a few tunes I recalled Cairn humming when I was young and scared. Sven refused to be deterred--he was old enough to know what was happening and refused to be redirected. He straddled the bench, keeping an eye on us, but most of his attention was his mother and the others. They appeared to be ashore now and speaking with one of the horsemen.

  The boat rocked, and the boy groaned. His impatience rivaled my anxiety every step of the way. Each time a gull cried, I clung a little tighter to Osanna, forever mistaking them for the first clash of steel. It never came though. Perhaps an hour crawled by before Zaphori signaled and we were rowed to shore.

  “They did not fight,” Sven scoffed. I cut my gaze toward him, but the boy showed no remorse, nor did he make any attempt to soften his displeasure at the lack of bloodshed.

  “My mommy says that we are coming to a blessed land. A fertile land. She says we won’t have to go to bed with noisy bellies ever again!” Osanna chattered on as her anxiety began to bleed into excitement. “Are you going to have chickens and a farm with your family, too?”

  The girl’s words left my mind swirling manically. I snapped my gaze up in search of the shore. How much time did I have to figure out what I would do? Or even where I would sleep tonight in this strange, foreign land? Where would I go once the boat slid onto the sand?

  Panic sent warm waves through me. I had lifted
my head, but I still couldn’t open my eyes.

  “Zhenni?” A soft maternal voice pierced the anxiety attack long enough for me to comprehend that it was Zaphori standing before me. Her children flanked her. People moved around them, giving awkward looks toward me as they set about their new lives. “Thank you. For watching over my children and also… I just wanted to say that Cairn was a good woman. Surely, she will carry the favor of the Gods into the next life, just as she fought with it in this one.”

  Nausea threatened. For several moments, I was too afraid to try and speak. She squatted down next to the boat and reached out to gently grasp my forearm.

  “You knew my mother?” I whispered, tearing up in disbelief. I hated myself for it. I had to be strong. That’s what she made me promise, and I would figure out how to do it.

  “Yes, of course. A few years back, we fought in a battle together in Galena…” Zaphori’s finger pointed up the shoreline, indicating that the village in reference was somewhere nearby. “We banded together, all of us, for this. She helped secure this place for her family. For you. It is only right that you stay and share her portion. It is as she would have wanted!”

  “Damn right it is,” Thane testified. His voice held a low grovel that once again captivated me.

  “You knew her, too?” I asked, but he had already started walking away.

  “He admired her. You two were the only ones? From Olaf’’s Fjord?” Zaphori’s children had long since taken to prodding in the sand with sticks, their attention waning along with the sun. I nodded despite the lump in my throat.

  “After my father passed...”

  “Passed?” Zaphori’s husband piped up from behind her. “Is that what Olaf’s Fjord calls what happened to Dom?” His menacing laughter boomed from the darkness. He didn’t bother to join us, but he had wanted his presence known.