My Thor's Day Viking Reading

A Viking's Return by Cassandra Zara
Blurb

In an ancient time, a young girl waits for her lover to return. Despite Eydis' best efforts, she knows she will be married off soon to another. Will Arlan return in time, and will he still be the man of her dreams?


This 4500 word story features a young couple in love and their steamy romance, with two love scenes showing the passion of youth and the excitement of reunited lovers.

Eydis was pretty, and she knew that she could not wait for Arlan forever. Even though she insisted that she be able to wait for the boat to return, it had been over a year since it had left, and some of the men of the local villages were quite insistent. Her father was sympathetic, telling men that came with dowries that she wasn't ready yet. Her mother was gradually trying to convince her to find a husband, someone to take care of her. She said that it was summer love, and that sometimes these things weren’t meant to be. She knew that if she settled with another man, if she had his children, Arlan would never forgive her, and she would never be truly happy. She walked carefully when she was off her father’s farm- some of the looks she got were from men that wouldn't take no for an answer if they found her alone and could force her into marrying them through a pregnancy.

It was all she thought about most days, and this day around noon her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a little girl in the village, Brynja, yelling about boats in the horizon. She climbed the ladder next to the house until she could see the shore. Was it him? Had he returned? She could see the white sails bobbing in the bay as small figures emerged from the returning ships. She bolted to the field where they had always met, where he would look for her. An hour passed, then two. She thought about going back to the village but she was afraid of the rough men that would come back with him, or, worse, that she would find he never came back at all. She played with her two braided pigtails while she thought about what she would do if he didn't come. The ships had returned and if he was not on them, she would be left to the mercy of her scorned suitors.

Excerpt