There weren’t many left in the village center at that point, most had returned to their tents and their families, but therewere a few. And I remembered Orthorr’s concern about ‘the women’ finding out he was injured.
“No, not here,” he agreed. “Would you… join me in my tent?”
My stomach flipped, and I felt my cheeks burn as I shyly nodded and took his hand when he offered it to me. We stood together, and I tried not to get my hopes up as we made our way to his tent. I’d offered to help him. That was all. It wouldn’t lead anywhere.
Though… I couldn’t say I didn’t hope that it might.
CHAPTER NINE
CEDRIC
Orthorr’s tent was much the same as the last time I’d been inside it. It was bigger than most of the tents I’d seen the barbarians living in, though not as big as the tent I stayed in with the other townspeople. There was a space in the middle with a table where he had his meetings with the clan, and another area separated with a cloth that likely held his bed. Rugs covered the ground, and soft pillows were placed around the table to sit on. There were even some decorative cloths hanging from the walls of the tents, bringing color to the space that most of the other tents I’d seen didn’t have.
We sat together at the table, much like we had the other night, with me kneeling beside him. My heart raced in my chest at the thought of touching him again, but I reminded myself I was there to help him, not take advantage of the situation.
“Do you have oil? A proper massage might help for longer than something quick.”
He hummed, leaning to reach into a box nearby. He searched it for a moment before drawing out what looked like cooking oil. “Would this work?”
“What is it?” I asked curiously, taking it when he offered it to me and popping the top to sniff the contents. It smelled good, whatever it was, but I doubted it was for massaging.
“It’s a bread oil I purchased when visiting Al Nuzem’s capital city. I keep it in here because our clan cook, Yamileth, would be offended if she found out I used it on her food.”
I couldn’t help but snicker. “Orthorr, you naughty boy. You’re going to get into trouble.”
The wicked grin he shot me over his shoulder as he shrugged out of his robes made my stomach flip and my breath catch. There were trousers under the robes, but his upper half was completely bare, showing off miles of tattoo covered muscles and old scars. He had a necklace like the other barbarians did, though his was special because it had extra beads and feathers tied to it. It drew attention to the tattoo on his chest, like a wolf howling at the sky, head tipped back and proud.
Orthorr noticed my attention and shifted the necklace out of the way, tapping the wolf tattoo with one finger. “It denotes my clan. The Northern Clan have ulvor on their chests. If you pay close enough attention, you will notice other clans have different animals here. The only clan with a large mixture is Clan Urthazrak. They are a clan of elders from different clans and already had their tattoos before they settled.”
Fascinated, I found myself reaching to touch the dark lines, hesitating when I realized what I was doing. Orthorr didn’t let me pull away, though. He took my hand and put it on his chest, covering it with his own.
“You can touch me, Cedric. I wish for you to do so.”
“You’re just saying that so I’ll help your shoulder,” I teased breathlessly, my cheeks flushing as I felt the muscles of his chestbeneath my palm. He was like stone wrapped in silk, hard and soft, and I couldn’t help tracing the lines of his tattoos when he released my hand.
I was so focused on touching him, I didn’t notice his arms coming around my waist to pull me into his lap. Gasping, I jerked my head up to look at him, feeling my whole body flush when I felt the hardness of his arousal against my behind.
“Ravsol, it is not only your assistance that I hope for. I do not wish to rush you, though. We will go slowly.”
Because forty years wasn’t slow enough? I wanted to shout at him that I didn’t want to go slow, that I wanted everything all at once, and each time he touched me, it only made me more wild for it. But that sounded desperate, and I didn't want him to think I was just using him for sex. Orthorr was my ideal man, steady and patient, with just a hint of playfulness to make me laugh. I wanted more than just to scratch a lifelong itch with him.
Forcing my hand away from his muscular chest, I made myself get out of his lap and moved behind him, taking in the expanse of his back and the tattoos that decorated it. “Let’s start with your shoulder then. Do you know where the injury came from?”
I dribbled the smallest amount of oil from the jar, not wanting to steal his treat from him, the scent of herbs filling the tent as I gently rubbed it into his skin. The knot was in the same place as before, which made me think he was doing something to cause it to tense up in that spot.
He leaned into my touch, only grimacing a little when I pushed harder on the tender spot to ease it. “I help with chopping the wood some mornings. I like the exercise.”
“That would definitely cause a strain if done repeatedly. Especially at your age.”
He swung around with a mock snarl that gave me goosebumps, snatching the front of my tunic and dragging meuntil we were nose to nose. “Call me old again, ravsol, and I will put you over my knee. I am not old.”
My cock was embarrassingly hard thanks to his little display, and my breathing was erratic. I wanted nothing more than to throw myself at him, and my gaze kept dropping to his lips, remembering the velvety feel of them pressed against mine, the seductive drag of his tongue, and the way his hands gripped me tightly like he was as eager to let go as I was.
“Orthorr…”
He made an appreciative growling sound that sent a tremor through me, his hand fisting in my hair as he yanked me closer and plundered my mouth with his. There was no sweet introduction like last time. He tangled his tongue with mine, dominating the kiss until I was pliant and subdued, allowing him to move me as he wished until I was straddling his lap, completely at his mercy.
His fingers trailing along the skin of my belly alerted me to the fact that he’d pulled my tunic loose from my trousers, giving him the room to slip his hands underneath to touch me. I trembled as callous roughened palms slid along my skin, touching me in a way no one had ever done so before. When he tugged the material up, I lifted my arms, allowing him to pull it up and over my head. He tossed it aside, leaning back to watch as his hands dragged over my skin.