Twin Passions (25 page)

Hakon stared in disbelief for a moment, holding her
away from him. "What have you done?" he asked finally, his voice low.
His eyes glittered dangerously in the orange, glowing light of the fireplace.

Gwendolyn stepped back, frightened, and shakily held
out her hand. The silver-blond tresses tumbled to the floor like finely spun
gossamer and landed at his feet, a stark contrast to the black fur rug. Hakon
looked from her to the floor, then bent down on one knee and picked up a silken
tendril.

"Your beautiful hair . . . why?" he murmured
softly after several minutes, deceiving Gwendolyn into thinking his rage was
past.

"It matters naught," she replied simply,
though her heart was pounding hard against her chest. "'Tis done, my lord,
and cannot be undone." Strangely, she found she could not say what she had
planned —that she had denied him at least a part of her.

Hakon slowly rose to his feet, his blue eyes raking her
with heated intensity. "Nay, little one, it matters a great deal to me,"
he whispered huskily. "You are mine, Anora, and have been since the moment
I found you on my ship. Everything you are, and everything you possess, is of
great importance to me." He took a step toward her. "I have long
awaited those words you spoke earlier this night . . . too long. I should have
taken you in the bathing house at Sumburgh Voe, but I had hoped one day you
would come to me willingly. What a fool I have been! Even tonight I had thought
your heart had softened toward me, but again I have been deceived!" He
held out the shining lock of silver-blond hair. "By doing this, you have
taken what belongs to me. Now, I shall take what is mine!"

Hakon swept Gwendolyn so suddenly into his arms that it
seemed the room spun around her. Holding her tightly against his broad chest,
he carried her from the main hall into a large adjoining room that was softly
lit by small oil-burning lamps. She struggled wildly in his arms, her mind
reeling from the force of his words. But before she could even begin to grasp
fully their meaning, she found herself flung upon a wide, fur-laden bed.
Desperately she tried to crawl to the far end, but he caught her by one leg and
dragged her back.

Her emerald eyes met his, and it was then that she
realized any further attempts to escape him would be useless. Hakon's eyes,
burning with desire, seemed to devour her as he easily ripped her mantle and
linen shift in two, exposing her slender beauty to his gaze. Gwendolyn tried
frantically to gather the remnants of her clothing about her, but suddenly he
was upon her. He caught her wrists over her head with one hand, while he pulled
her body against his hard length with his other arm.

Gwendolyn closed her eyes tightly, awaiting the rape
she knew she did not have the strength to fight. Her only thought was to resist
in the one way she had left to her. Aye, she thought defiantly, the Viking
could have his way with her, but she would be damned if she would respond to
his hated touch. She suddenly went limp in his arms and turned her face away.

Hakon was not surprised when Gwendolyn ceased her
struggles and lay still. A faint smile crossed his face as he gazed down upon
her delicate features. By the blood of Odin, she was by far the loveliest woman
he had ever held in his arms, he thought appreciatively. He had no intention of
raping her, though he knew he had given her that impression from his rough
treatment. His anger had cooled now that she was beside him, and in its place
was a growing desire to savor every inch of her.

Hakon gently traced his finger along the determined
line of her chin, trying to stifle a chuckle. He was well enough versed in the
ways of women to know she had issued him a challenge he could not refuse. She
might lie limply in his arms now, but he was sure that before the night was
through she would want him as much as he wanted her . . . and cry out for his
touch.

His eyes wandered down the delicate length of her, his
hand pulling aside the torn clothing to reveal fully her form to his heated
gaze. She was so fair, from the silver-blond curls that framed her face to the
silky blond mound between her slender thighs. Her creamy skin, shining like
alabaster in the soft glow of the oil lamps, was a sharp contrast to the
burnished bronze
of his own
. Her breasts, though
small, were high and perfectly
rounded,
the pale pink
nipples taut from the cool air in the room.

Hakon drew in his breath sharply. The very sight of her
made his blood hot, yet he knew he would have to take his time with her. He
could tell Anora was no common wench to be bedded and then forgotten. Her
dignity and proud bearing alone bespoke a high birth and genteel upbringing.
She was like a fine, high-spirited filly that had not yet been broken. He had
no doubt that she was yet a virgin. Her shock at his kiss had attested to that.

Nay, he would go slowly with her, not only because he
longed to see passionate desire for him burning in her emerald eyes . . . and
perhaps one day, something more . . . but because he wanted her to find
pleasure in his arms. Too much rested on this one night for it to be otherwise.
Perhaps she would not be so hesitant to share his bed in the days and nights to
follow. He bent his head, his lips tracing a feather-light path down the long
column of her throat, while his hand caressed the taut hollow of her belly.

Gwendolyn shivered suddenly. A strange sensation was
building within her unlike anything she had ever felt before. She fought to lie
still in Hakon's arms, but it was becoming impossible. It seemed his hands were
everywhere at once, caressing, teasing . . . yet ever so gently. This was not
the cruel assault she had expected. Nay, this was almost worse, a lingeringly
slow torture that heated her skin wherever he touched her. His lips once again
captured hers, seeming to draw the very breath from her body, demanding a
response.

Hakon was rewarded as a soft moan broke from Gwendolyn's
throat. He lifted his head to gaze down upon her. Thor, but she was beautiful!
A triumphant smile played about his lips, but he knew it was yet too soon. She
was still fighting him with her spirit, though her tantalizing body was
beginning to betray her.

"Open your eyes, Anora, and look at me,"
Hakon whispered huskily, his breath warm against her ear. Shaken by his last
kiss, Gwendolyn felt almost drugged as her eyes flickered open, but her resolve
to resist him still burned within her mind. She gasped as he began to remove
his clothing, but for some strange reason she could not tear her eyes away. He
easily shrugged off his silken vest, fully baring his sculpted chest with its
mat of golden curls to her view. He kicked the leather boots off his feet,
then
pulled the drawstring at his waist, loosening his
trousers, and slid them from his long legs.

At the sight of his erect manhood Gwendolyn quickly
looked away, a burning blush firing her cheeks. Hakon ignored the look of shock
in her eyes and drew her to him again, cradling her in his strong arms.
So, she has never seen a man before,
he
thought. Yea, it pleased him mightily that he would be the first. He reveled in
the silken feel of her body against his muscled length, and once again he began
his gentle assault.

His hands stroked the narrow indentation of her waist
and the slender curve of her hips, while his lips gradually became more
demanding, plundering her mouth. He then trailed a molten path of fiery kisses
down one delicately boned shoulder to the crest of her breast, his tongue
tentatively flicking the pale nipple. Cupping the perfect mound with his hand,
he suckled hungrily.

Gwendolyn arched her back at this new sensation, her
fingers unconsciously entwining in Hakon's blond hair. Sweet Jesu! How could
she fight what he was doing to her! She could feel his strong fingers stroking
the silken skin of her inner thigh ever so lightly. Then his hand strayed
purposefully to the moist core of her, probing, searching.

"So beautiful . . ." Hakon murmured thickly,
kissing her breasts, her throat, her love-bruised lips.

A ragged sigh tore from her as his expert fingers found
the sensitive point he had been seeking. She arched against his hand, her body
no longer in her control as wave after wave of heady sensation rippled through
her, all resistance forgotten.

Exulting in her passionate abandon, Hakon was no longer
able to contain his own burning desire. The sight of her writhing wantonly
beneath him was more than he could withstand. He quickly shifted his weight
until he was poised over her. Then he gently parted her legs with his knee. His
throbbing shaft nudged the final barrier of her maidenhead at the heart of the
satiny folds, rubbing against the pearl of her desire.

Gwendolyn cried out again as another wave of pleasure
surged through her body, her slender hips moving instinctively against him as
she reached out to pull him to her. At the height of her ecstasy Hakon brought
his mouth down upon hers in a crushing kiss and plunged himself into her.

A sudden, tearing pain caught Gwendolyn by surprise. "Oh!"
she gasped against his lips, her passion-dimmed eyes flying open.

"Now there will be no more pain, little one . . .
only pleasure," Hakon whispered soothingly, moving ever so slowly within
her.

It was true, she thought fleetingly. The pain passed
quickly, and she was overwhelmed by a surging crescendo of heated passion
building within her. All conscious thought fled her mind as she wrapped her
arms about Hakon's muscled back, matching the thrusting movements of his body
perfectly with her own. His stroke was gentle at first, but then it increased
in intensity as he delved within her, deeper and deeper.

Her lips clung to his, drawing from them, breathing
with him as one, as they soared together on a tidal wave of raging desire.
Their bodies moved in a rhythm as old as time itself, merging, writhing,
the
hot tension mounting higher and higher until it broke
over them both in an exploding shower of searing, throbbing delight.

Gwendolyn did not know how long they had been lying
there, clasped tightly in each other's arms, when she finally opened her eyes.
She felt dazed, yet strangely at peace. A numbing sense of contentment had
settled over her, like nothing she had ever felt before. Hakon's tousled head
was resting on her shoulder, and she unwittingly ran her tapered fingers
through his thick, white-blond curls. His rumbling deep voice startled her and
she stopped, suddenly aware of what she was doing.

"You have hidden your passion well from me, little
one," he murmured huskily. "Until now." He raised his head from
her shoulder and gazed down upon her with tenderness, his hand gently stroking
the side of her face. His lips brushed lightly against hers, his breath warm
upon her skin. "You have pleased me greatly this night, Anora."

A twinge of anger flared within Gwendolyn at his
soft-spoken words, the sense of contentment fleeing from her mind as quickly as
it had come. Aye, so her body had betrayed her, she thought with some chagrin.
At least her defiant spirit still remained intact, if naught else! She tried to
shift her weight from beneath him, but it was of no use. His powerful body
seemed molded to her slender form.

Hakon groaned audibly at her movement, feeling
himself
grow hard deep within her. Thor, this woman fired
his blood like no other! Suddenly he rolled over onto his back, carrying
Gwendolyn with him. Her emerald eyes widened in astonishment as she found
herself astride him now, her silky thighs hugging his tapered hips. He laughed
deeply, a wicked glint of desire lighting his blue eyes.

"It seems I have not yet had enough of you, little
one," he murmured thickly, his large hands grasping her narrow waist as he
began to move slowly within her.

"Oh . . .!" Gwendolyn cried, trembling
uncontrollably, her hands resting on his broad chest. Her fingers entwined
themselves in the dense golden curls as a heated rush of pleasure surged
through her body. Her eyes, half-closed with passion, followed the fine line of
hair trailing down his taut abdomen to where they were joined as one. She
blushed
bright pink.

"'Tis how man and woman were meant to be."
Hakon chuckled easily. Then he pulled her to him, his warm mouth nuzzling her
high, firm breasts. Gwendolyn moaned as his tongue traced a moist circle of
fire around one taut nipple, while his hand caressed and teased the silky
smooth skin of the other. There was
a fierceness
to
his movements this time, possessive, demanding, as he took her with a burning
urgency he knew only she could fulfill.

Their melded bodies, bathed in a fine sheen of
perspiration, were one in a wild dance of passion, swirling ever upward on a
wave of rapture so intense that Gwendolyn thought she would surely die from the
surging sensations. Hakon's lips captured hers at the very pinnacle of their
release, stifling the cry that tore from her throat. For a moment it seemed as
if time stood still, and there was nothing save the tumultuous ecstasy they
both shared.

Sated at last, Hakon gently lifted her from him and
cradled her in his arms as he rolled over onto his side. He kissed away the
tears of passion that streaked her lovely face. Then, reaching behind him with
one hand, he pulled a thick fur blanket over them both.

Too exhausted to offer any resistance, Gwendolyn
lay
her head against his chest. Lulled by the steady beating
of his heart, she slipped into a dreamless sleep.

Hakon smiled, his eyes drinking in every delicate
feature of her upturned face. He marveled at the dark length of her gold-tipped
lashes, fluttering ever so slightly as she slept, and the rose-tinted
translucence of her creamy skin. Gathering her closer to him, he was amazed at
the strength of his feelings for her. He had never felt so drawn to any woman
before, but in her he believed he had finally met his match.