‘It is tempting. But if I forced her to stay with me, she would eventually grow to hate me, and that would hurt more than losing her.’
‘It sounds like you are already lost, my friend,’ sighed Lejo, patting him on the shoulder as he walked past, and gesturing to Iskko to follow him.
Runar was surprised by their sudden departure. Until he saw Embla standing only a few feet away.
Thankfully, she could not speak the Sami language, and had no idea how low he had sunk.
Embla watched the two men leave, and wondered at the long and openly curious stares they gave her as they passed.
What had they been talking about?
Although she could not understand what had been said, the two men had been listening to Runar reverently. As if he were Odin, explaining the sacrifice of his eye for the benefit of wisdom, they obviously thought highly of his opinion...whatever it was about.
‘Why did you leave the elders? I told you I’d come back for you,’ he asked, peering at her through the darkness, as if he was worried she had grown anxious in his absence.
‘I was tired, so I thought I would come and find you instead. Is that where we are sleeping tonight?’ She gestured towards the storage tent, and he nodded, sweeping open the doorway with one arm.
‘Yes, it is even smaller than what you are used to but it will be warm. There is a little brazier burning within, and a hot stone in your bedding.’ He paused, and then said, ‘If you wish to stay here, instead of going back to the cabin with me tomorrow, I will insist my mother find a place for you.’
‘Oh, I would rather stay with you at the cabin,’ Embla replied immediately, and Runar stared at her as if she had dropped the moon on his head. ‘I mean, your mother’s tribe have been kind and gracious, but I feel happier...’ She almost choked struggling to find the right words, her mind a blizzard of confusing thoughts. ‘I... I like helping you at the cabin... Do you mind if I stay...? Just until the spring... I would feel more useful there.’
‘Stay with me,’ he said quickly, his voice rough.
‘Until spring.’ Then, desperate for a distraction, she looked towards the sleigh. ‘Will the dogs manage all this? It seems a lot for them to pull.’
After a moment he answered her, the pained emotion thankfully gone from his voice. ‘They will be fine. Besides, Iskko says he will come with us. Only one of us will drive this sledge, and the other will be with you in the empty sleigh.’
‘Can I ride with you?’ she asked, a hot blush creeping up her neck. ‘I am sure Iskko is a nice man but I do not speak Sami...’ She had run out of excuses, and so fell silent.
The truth was that she would always prefer to be with Runar. It was why she had left the elders to find him. No matter how entertaining or welcoming his mother’s people had been, she had still eventually come to miss him.
But was her behaviour fair? To beg to stay with him one moment only to remind him she was leaving in the next?
Runar’s smile reassured her, and he flipped the tent flap open. ‘Go inside. It is cold out here.’
Embla ducked into the tent gratefully, her chest warming when she saw the carefully prepared accommodation. The brazier was burning cheerfully in the centre of the room. Their bedding was laid out on one side, while the remaining half of the tent was stacked high with barrels, pots, hay bales, and firewood. She imagined he’d had to shift the supplies to allow room for them to sleep.
Sten got up from his own hay bale, sauntered over to lick her hand in greeting, and then received a hearty pat from Runar before wandering back to his bed.
‘Has he been fed?’ she asked, a little worried that they had both been too distracted to care for him properly.
‘Oh, he has had plenty, and not just from your bowl...’ Runar said dryly, carefully placing another log on the brazier before retying the tent flaps tightly to shut out the cold night air.
She chuckled to herself as she sat down on her bedding roll and began to take off her boots. The light from the brazier was weak, and she could barely see him. ‘He always gives me such sad eyes. I cannot resist him.’
‘You should—he will be as big as a horse soon.’
Embla giggled, and Runar dropped down beside her, crossing his long legs to pull off his boots. Their bodies were close in such a small space, and she suddenly felt warm all over. The bedding rolls had been laid out next to each other. Usually she slept in Runar’s large bed, while he lay on a bedding roll on the floor. It reminded her of the night in the cave, and a shiver of excitement ran down her spine in anticipation of his body pressed once more against hers.
‘It seemed wiser to put us together. It is going to be very cold tonight,’ he explained, avoiding her gaze, as he placed his boots by the entrance. ‘And it was easier just to push everything to one side...’ His voice trailed off as he finally looked up to meet her eyes.
It seemed as if Sten’s eyes were not the only ones to affect her. Although Runar’s ruined her in a very different way. She swallowed a sudden dryness in her throat, and wondered what would happen if she gave in to temptation and kissed him.
‘Your mother wants you to marry...for the good of the tribe,’ she whispered.
Runar folded his arms across his chest and raised one raven brow. ‘Did she? If she said anything to make you uncomfortable, then I apologise.’
Embla shook her head. ‘No, she didn’t... But...she said you have refused to court any of the Sami women.’ Her chest tightened like a cage around the questions she longed to ask, and then it was freed in a sudden and unexpected rush that made her breathless. ‘Why is that? Why have you not courted any of the women here? Is it because you still care for Gertrud?’
