Warrior's Heart

Chapter Eight

When Arielle opened her eyes, she was alone on the skin, the second one drawn up to her chin. She stretched, rolled onto her side, and smiled. Thorin was asleep, sitting propped against a fallen long, arms folded about his axe as if it was a favorite lover.

She sat up with a wince as her stomach pitched. She felt drained and wrung out, as if she was recovering from a terrible dysentery. Her mouth was dry and stale, so she reached for the canteen she and Thorin shared now, since hers was filled with kingsfoil.

The popping sound the cork made brought Thorin awake at once and he was on his feet, axe at the ready at the speed of light. "Who goes there?"

"It's only me," she reached over to pat his shin. "What happened?"

He relaxed, the axe head hitting the ground with a dull thud as he dropped it to sink onto the log. His forearms rested on his thighs, his hands dangling between them. "You don't remember?"

"I remember the Orcs. And then it becomes a bit...fuzzy." She lifted the canteen to her lips for a sip. Lowering, she added, "I remember calling out to you because you seemed so far ahead of me, and you didn't answer."

As she spoke, a dull chill crept over her as she remembered the icy terror that swirled through her when she looked for him but saw noone. The feeling of isolation, of loneliness bit into her and her throat tightened while tears clouded her eyes. "You left me."

"No, I didn't." He eased down from the log to sit beside her, slipping an arm about her. "I was there. I didn't realize you were slowing until I went to ask you something and you were no longer behind me. I came back and found you unconscious on the path."

"It was horrible," she whispered, the tremble threading through her as she tucked her head against his chest. There, she felt safe. Protected. Somehow, she knew Thorin would protect her, no matter what. "I thought I was all alone and the sadness was just so overwhelming. Sadness. Despair. And then I couldn't even think any longer."

"You're safe now, love," he whispered, tightening his arms about her and kissing the top of her head. "I promise you, you are safe."

"No." She shook her head. "None of us are safe, or we won't be for long. The evil is growing. It's growing in size and strength and..."

She looked up at him. "I think you are in grave danger, Thorin. Someone wants you dead."

He smiled. "That could be quite a few someones, princess."

"Thorin," she pulled away from him, "stop it. I'm serious. I can feel it."

"I am also serious. And I will be fine."

"You don't know that."

"No, I don't. But then again, not one of us ever actually knows that, do we? The notion is only a false sense of safety. We are only a few days out from the Blue Mountains and we will arrive there." He smiled and leaned in to brush her forehead with his lips.

She looked up at him as the air crackled around them once more. His eyes held hers, grew soft. His arm about her shoulder tightened to draw her in.

Her arms found their way around him as he bent toward her, capturing her lips in a soft kiss. She welcomed his lips on hers, parted hers to let his tongue caress hers, doing the same to his, smiling as he growled low in his throat.

He caught her around the waist with his free arm, pressing her gently into the skin beneath them. She welcomed his weight against her, sliding her arms about his midsection to flatten her hands against his back.

His hips arched into hers and her heart skipped a beat at the pressure she felt against her belly. He couldn't hide his arousal and feeling it did something odd to her, warmed her blood the same way his kisses did. She gave in to the urge to tug up his tunic, to slip her hands beneath it and let them roam over his hot, smooth skin. The muscles in his back were like granite slabs, and as she traced her fingernails over that smooth skin, he trembled against her.