It didn’t take long for them to be lost in a crowd. A crush of people that were excited to meet them. There were photos being taken, flashes on cameras and cell phones being shoved in their faces. Through it all, Ragnar remained completely calm.
Fern clung to him like she was afraid she was going to lose her grip, and be separated from him. The idea of being separated from him frightened her.
But he held her tightly, and while people did get close to them, they never made physical contact, because Ragnar’s demeanor discouraged them from getting too close.
There was a benefit to having a husband who looked like a Viking warrior of old.
They finished with the crowd of people there at the city center, and then got back in their car, and began to drive toward a nearby village. She hadn’t seen this much of the country yet.
The buildings were an interesting mix of clean, modern lines, and old structures. There were black churches, standing stark against the countryside.
“There are so many trees here,” she commented. “Iceland doesn’t have trees.”
“Yes. The legend is that the Vikings cut down all the trees in Iceland and they never grew again. Personally, I don’t believe that. They are a renewable resource after all.”
“And what do you think it is?”
“Giants? Trolls?”
“I didn’t think that you believed in the divine.”
“I don’t. However, that does not mean that I don’t believe in trolls and giants.”
She blinked. “It doesn’t?”
“Of course not. Anyone descended from Norsemen believes in trolls and giants. You are foolish not to.”
“I didn’t realize.”
There was never as big of a crowd as the first one they drew in the capital city, but people were friendly, and greeted them with enthusiasm everywhere they went. They stopped in a pub, where they had fish and chips and cider. She had never done anything like this. She had never walked around in and among people. She had either been cloistered in a palace, or cloistered in a convent.
Maybe this was what her life would be like when she went to make her own way. Maybe she would live in a village, and she would simply talk to people.
Except of course they would all know who she was. Well, maybe not all. Just because they were well-known in this part of Europe didn’t mean they would be well-known everywhere.
“We have been invited to stay in one of the oldest hotels in the country,” he said.
“We have?”
“Yes,” he said. He gestured toward the end of the street. “That large stone building there. It was once a place where royalty stayed. And I suppose it can be again.”
“I would like that.”
And they would of course get the same room, and it would be…
Just thinking about it made her warm.
When they arrived at the room, she took her phone out, and began to look at headlines on a news site. And was shocked to discover that they were the focus of many of them.
“Look at this,” she said, bringing her phone over to him. “There are…hundreds and hundreds of pictures of today.”
“You seem alarmed.”
“I didn’t realize…”
“You are very popular,” he said. “After the ball we received glowing press about you.”
“I didn’t see it.”
