He managed to grab her arm as the water tumbled them about and he gripped it so tight he feared he would break it. But it didn’t matter. Now that he had hold of her, he’d never let her go. He surfaced, dragging her along with him, getting his arm around her waist so he could free his other hand. He had seconds, barely seconds to spare. They were nearly on top of the tangled branches. He pushed hard against the water and swung out his hand to grab one of the bent branches and got caught in a small whirlpool that twirled him around, sending him directly into the mouth of the snarled branches ready to devour them both. He felt a hand grab his arm and bring him to an abrupt halt with only moments to spare.
He looked to see Fyn, keeping a strong hold of his arm, and Clive stood behind him.
Raven shivered even though she wore several wool garments and was covered in furs and she sat right beside the fire pit, the heat toasting her warm. The scowl that quickly surfaced on her husband’s face told her that he had seen her shiver and she knew what he would do. Sure enough, he grabbed another fur from a pile near the table where he stood and walked over to her.
“You should be in bed,” he scolded, wrapping the fur around her.
“Not without you to keep me warm,” she whispered. “So hurry and get done so I shiver no more.”
Detta approached them before Wolf could respond and handed a tankard she held to Raven. “A good hot brew will help warm you—for now.”
Raven smiled at the twinkle in the old woman’s eyes before she walked off.
“Make sure you drink it,” he ordered and gave her a quick kiss before he returned to where he had been standing.
He had kissed her endlessly since rescuing her as if he needed to assure himself she was safe and well. She’d been amazed that he had had the strength to carry her all the way back to the longhouse. He had suffered the brutal rushing river and its cold just as she had and yet it hadn’t hampered his strength as it had her. He had refused all help from those willing to carry her. He would allow no one to take her from him.
It had been sheer stubbornness that kept him going and—love.
Once in their bedchamber, he again, refused all help to tend her. He had stripped her bare, wrapped her in a blanket, and sat her before the hearth, then rid himself of his wet garments. He wrapped a blanket around his waist, dropped another blanket beside the chair before he lifted her in his arms and set her in his lap after he sat. He snatched up the blanket he had dropped and wrapped it around them both. And there they had sat in silence snuggled close together.
Passion may have tickled at them, but it wasn’t what either wanted at the moment. They simply wanted to hold on to each other, know the ordeal was done, know that all was safe, know that death had failed to claim them today.
Now she sat and watched her husband as he brought the whole ordeal to a close.
Greta came to stand in front of him and Fyn joined her, taking her hand as he stood by her side. She moved closer to him and he let go of her hand to wrap his arm around her waist.
“Fyn stands for the woman he loves,” Arran said, joining Raven on the bench.
“Fyn is a good man,” Raven said, proud of him and she, as well as her brother, turned quiet as Wolf spoke.
“How is Tait?” Wolf asked.
“He does well, sir,” Greta said. “Eria and George are with him now. He tells everyone that the evil man lied and that Fyn is his da.”
Fyn spoke up. “And he is right. I am his da now and always. Tait is my son, Greta will be my wife, and I will protect them both with my life.”
“That is honorable of you, Fyn,” Wolf praised. “But I will hear from Greta why she never told me the truth about Tait.”
Greta paled. “I feared for my son’s life. Brynjar was an evil and hated man. No one would have accepted Tait if they knew Brynjar fathered him. They would believe him evil as well.”
“She’s right about that,” Arran whispered.
As sad and unfair as it was, Raven agreed with a nod. There would be those who would want to see the lad dead.
“My son would be hunted and killed for nothing more than having an evil father. I couldn’t let that happen. I had to protect my son. My brother felt the same, which was why he told me to seek shelter with you. He told me that you were a great warrior who kept his people safe.”