Neither Willa nor Jorvun had stopped thinking about their last encounter when it was finally time to get moving. When he had woken her, she had glanced at his talented mouth almost immediately, flushing hot at the recent memory. Willa was swift to dress and Jorvun set about holstering guns, knives, and his beloved spear, which perched on his back.
They exited quietly, each carrying a thick pack. Instead of entering the bar, as Willa had done every time before when she left his flat, Jorvun used a set of keys to unlock a screened chain link gate. A small bubble of anxiety formed in the pit of Willa's stomach. She hadn't really seen where they went when she first got here and she hadn't been outside the two buildings and the alley. Aside from asphalt, she could only guess what lay beyond the fence. He creaked it open and stepped out first, glancing around before gesturing at Willa to follow.
She was a little disappointed when she peeked out and there was essentially nothing. A few scattered brick buildings stood up from the asphalt island. The sand and dust dunes that occupied their surroundings swallowed up swathes of cracked, sun-beaten asphalt and the waning moon above them cast an eerie glow on everything. Willa apathetically noted the doors that Barr first carried her through as she and Jorvun hurried across the blacktop as quietly as they could.
They reached the edge of the asphalt island and then they were plodding up the side of a dune. As they reached the crest, Willa's heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she saw a gathering of horses and marauders on the other side.
"It's fine. They're with us," Jorvun reassured. They slid down the dune and approached them. As the pack came into focus under the moonlight, Willa recognized among them the broad shoulders of Barr and let go of the breath she was holding. There were two others with him. One she recognized as Oro. Now that she was looking at him through sober eyes, she could see he was actually quite handsome. He was lanky but lean and strong. His short, sandy hair was sheared almost to the skin on either side of his head. The other was a woman, as tall as Oro and thrice as striking. Standing as tall as Oro and at least a head taller than Willa, the warrior was also built like a swift athlete. Her slender body was smooth and tight with sheer physical power. Her eyes were ringed with kohl and it made her already intense gaze downright terrifying.
"Oro, Hilda." The two slender warriors bowed their heads. "Your loyalty will be rewarded."
Willa wondered briefly what he would reward them with. She was distracted from the idle thought when Jorvun turned to her and spoke.
"C'mon. We need to get moving before the sun rises." He helped her onto the back of a gentle painted mare. Willa tensed when he pulled himself up into the saddle behind her, so his front was pressed firm against her back. He raised his voice slightly so everyone could hear him. "Barr, take up the head. Oro and Hilda, you'll take up the rear. We'll go north and collect information in Redwater."
They started moving, and as the dust rose around the hooves of their horses, the compound quickly disappeared in the dunes. The party was quiet for hours before they began to let down their guard. Hilda began teasing Oro relentlessly and he jabbed right back with easy wit. Barr interjected occasionally with a sarcastic or lewd comment that made all three of them roar with laughter. Willa was still tense against Jorvun. When he wrapped an arm around her waist and squeezed the mare to a trot, Willa spoke.
"You said you wouldn't touch me." She felt the warm rumble of his laugh behind her and received no response. Willa had felt comfortable with the patient and broken Jorvun behind his closed door, but she was not so confident with this Jorvun. This Jorvun still had cold eyes and a hard touch. The merchant decided she would not risk confrontation for his minor breach of her comfort but she could not relax her body against his hardness, which was pressed into the small of her back. As the ride went on, Willa tried to shift forward and break their contact but Jorvun's heavy arm pulled her tight against him each time. After the fourth or fifth time, he left his arm circled around her and leaned into her, speaking softly against her ear.
"Just because I regret the things I did, does not make you any less mine."
"What? You were going to let me go." Willa was confused and frustrated by his inconsistency. She raised her voice slightly. "I thought you wanted me at your side. That's the point of all this, isn't it?"
Oro and Hilda had fallen quiet. When Jorvun's hand smoothed up her belly and rested soft but strong about her neck, Willa fell silent as well.
"You are the one who chose to stay with me, woman. I'll make myself clear this time." His lips brushed against her ear as he spoke and a chill shook her spine while the warm serpent of arousal coiled in her lower belly. He lightly tightened his grip on her throat. "If you leave in the night when we make camp, I will not hunt you down. But if you stay, you submit yourself to me as Adhvhar and accept me as yours in return. I will vow to protect your flesh with my flesh, and I will strive to give you all you need. But you must also offer yourself. It goes both ways, love. Am I understood?"
Willa thought for a long moment. Jorvun had loosened his grip on her neck but his hand was still wrapped about her throat and his thumb made soft circles over her pulse. The reins were twisted loosely about his other fist, which rested on Willa's warm thigh.
"Please make me at least one promise. If I stay." Willa offered quietly. She was well aware how his last promise went, though that promise had been flippant and without solidity. She was also not ignorant of the dangers of her old ways, traveling alone as a young woman. A partner like Jorvun would be the perfect insurance. Willa just wasn't sure if she was prepared to vow her body to the marauder. She was certainly attracted to him, but her trust was thin. She had been so sure she had the upper hand back at the compound but now she did not know where she stood, which meant he had the power.
"What would you ask of me?" Jorvun prompted. Willa hesitated, her swallow felt tight against his calloused hand.
"I would ask that you do not... force yourself upon me. If you do, I would have to boil your eyes for soup. And I do not think that Barr would be very happy with me."
Willa was nervous at the silence that followed. When Jorvun began to laugh, his body shook hers and put her at ease. Hilda, Oro, and Barr also broke into laughter. Evidently they had been listening closely to their bargain.
"Very well,' Jorvun nodded and dropped his hand so it was splayed over Willa's breast bone. His voice went low so only Willa could hear him. "But I expect you will still fulfill your duties."
Willa swallowed hard but she nodded. So that was that. If they made camp and she awoke with him in the morning, the contract was done. The ritual might have opened her heart but this was to be her vow. The thought made her dizzy. Willa knew full well she should disappear into the night. But she also knew that come nightfall, she was going to curl up in his tent, on his bedroll. And in the morning, she would wake up next to him. She was coming to peace with her new path, if slowly.
The party rode through the day until the dunes tapered into brush and grassy hills. Sparsely distributed trees marked the landscape. The red sun was beginning to disappear behind the hills and cast everything in an orange glow when they finally came to a stop at a minor creek. The little stream skipped and hopped over bare stone and was lined with spindly trees and verdant grass. They made camp in the shadow of a soft slope, protected from the winds carried from the dunes. Oro secured the horses and while Jorvun, Barr, and Hilda set up a small camp, Willa set about searching for tender and wood. In the dry plains, it would not be difficult to start a fire. She gathered a night's worth of fuel while she thought about Jorvun's words. Willa would not deny that she found his aggressive personality and overbearing presence to be sultry and enticing. As she hurried back with her harvest, she could feel his eyes on her. She wondered if he already knew she would stay. She also wondered why she was so curious about the way his hand felt when wrapped around her neck.
As Willa set about starting a fire, Oro returned from settling the horses in for the night. Jorvun and the others were finishing up camp. Instead of joining his brothers and sister, the slender blond settled on the ground across from Willa and watched her closely as she kicked sparks off her flint and onto a carefully arranged bundle of tender. She swiftly completed her task, nestling the tender into the firepit and waving the flames to life beneath the neatly stacked branches.
"Beautifully done, Adhvhar." Willa startled at the sound of Oro's voice. It was the first time he'd ever spoken to her and his voice was gritty and low. She glanced up at him and he was staring her down with a raised brow.
