All of it had led to disaster, and now Liv wanted nothing more than to repair whatever damage had been done. She felt deeply for Bryn and wanted to rebuild their friendship, even if all she could do was imagine all the sounds Bryn would make under her dedicated attention until she was writhing under Liv—sweat-slicked and satisfied.
She had only gotten a taste and Liv would never be the same again.
Even the thought made her skin grow tight, her belly molten as she imagined what it would be like to dip her fingers inside Bryn's inviting heat. She imagined all the ways she would make Bryn squirm with pleasure, her tall, slender body splayed out for Liv. She imagined her hazel eyes darkening as her lids grew heavier.
Soon, Liv was clenching her thighs together as her imagination ran off with daydreams about Brynna Helvig for the thousandth time that morning.
"Liv!"
A man called out her name from across the crowded hall she stood in, pulling her from her sultry thoughts of the Helvig heir. In the end, it didn't matter if Liv felt like this about Bryn because if her feelings weren't shared, Liv would not jeopardize their friendship. She valued it too much.
Pushing away her desires, Liv focused on who was calling out to her. Pressing through a group ofvitki, Sigurd made his way to her side with a tall man who seemed to be both wary and in awe of his surroundings.
Reaching out with one arm, Liv grasped Sigurd's forearm as he gripped hers. "I'm glad to see you've made it here safely, my friend."
"It was quite the journey, but I had some help," Sigurd replied, gesturing over his shoulder to a stout woman who appeared from behind him and the stranger at his side.
"Thora!" Liv exclaimed as the older woman grasped her tightly in an embrace that lifted her off the floor. "It's good to see you."
The woman laughed before saying, "I said I was looking for a better fate when ye left me in Engate. It was time to join the rest of the resistance against that bastard Helvig."
"We're happy to have you," Liv beamed at the innkeeper who had offered them refuge too many times to count over the years. Waving over a young Elven boy who worked in the palace, Liv continued, "This is Frey; he will bring you to your rooms. I have some business to attend to with Sigurd, but I'll find you later. Rest in the meantime."
Thora squeezed her hands and then turned her attention to the young male who held an arm out for her. Without hesitation, Thora wound her arm with the young male's and said, "Lead the way fer these old bones, youngin'."
Liv chuckled as the two disappeared down the hall, leaving her alone with Sigurd and the man who now watched her with suspicion.
Her friend cleared his throat as waves of annoyance seemed to radiate off the stranger.
"Liv, this is Finn." He motioned to the man whose dark green eyes and fair reddish blonde hair seemed at odds with each other. "He is a blacksmith who has been working with the rebellion in Logi."
Liv narrowed her eyes at the mistrust Finn was showing even as she reached out to grasp his forearm.
"Welcome to Nida, I'm sure Sigurd explained the involvement of the Elven to you on your trip," Liv said carefully.
Finn nodded as an equally tall woman with golden blonde hair that hung in heavy ropes down her waist and light hazel eyes came up behind him, a small bundle wrapped around her chest. Though she stood eye to eye with Liv, her straight spineand the way her focus shifted from her to Finn told Liv that this woman was no idle companion. She would be just as vocal as any of the strong women Liv had known.
"He explained it all, I'm just having trouble believing it," Finn replied, his voice strained. "I thought that when Sigurd mentioned allies in the north, he was talking about nomads in Finniskali."
Well, that explained his hesitation. Liv snorted.
"To be fair to Sigurd, he only just discovered our existence too."
The woman behind Finn chuckled, her serious features cracking with the action and softening her face into one of strong beauty. She put a hand on Finn's shoulder.
"The world is not what we thought it was," she whispered to him. "That is a good thing."
She released him before extending her arm to Liv. As she reached forward to grip the woman's arm, she spied theperthrorune inked on the inside of her wrist.
"I am Frida," she said warmly.
Liv grasped her arm. "You're a seer."
Frida nodded, her smile radiant as she released Liv's arm and put a finger over her lips. "I am, but I'm retired now ever since I married Finn. Someone had to reign in his temper, and I couldn't manage that from the temples in Logi."
Finn wrapped an arm around his wife's waist before ducking to muss her hair with his lips, a smile carving through his fierce features and softening them before he placed his free hand on the bundle at her chest.
"And this is Annika," he said softly, his voice reverent and he revealed the sleeping babe. "She is quiet now, but like her mother, she is opinionated."
