Skars managed to give a look of pretended innocence, while giving his brother a withering glare when Raine turned her head away to assure Milly that Thorsen was joking.
His brother made a face back, silently communicating why he wasn’t taking the opportunity to rid themselves of the screamer. They were still dueling each other when Raine turned back and caught the faces they were making.
“Aren’t there any other choices other than my friends? For example, what are the aliens called that are green and mushy?”
“Mushy?” Skars asked uncomprehendingly.
“Their faces look as if they’re smushed.” Raine loudly clapped her hands together, causing all the Vikings to jerk in startlement. Rubbing her palms together in a twisting motion, she said, “You know, mushy.”
“They are called bruulls,” Skars supplied helpfully.
“Yeah, those.” Raine nodded happily. “I wouldn’t be opposed to you sacrificing as many bruulls as you want to. As long as I don’t have to watch.” Giving a wave of permission toward Thorsen, she said, “You can have at it.”
Skars felt his cock stirring at this bloodthirsty side of Raine. He wasn’t the only one. Appreciative stares directed at her had him frowning heavily at his clan members.
He would speak to Reva to hurry the wedding ceremony. While by ancient law, he considered himself married to Raine, he didn’t trust any of them not to sway her mind toward them.
If a few of them didn’t stop staring at her so covetously, he was going to come up with a few suggestions for sacrifices himself.
Chapter 22
Raine
“What’s the rush?” Raine tried to pull away from Skars’ hand on her arm as he attempted to steer her toward the elevator. “I was enjoying the talk I was having with Bjorn. He was tell—”
“I have heard the story before. He stole it from me.”
Raine arched her brows at the jealous tinge in his voice. “Bjorn could have showed me to my new room when he took the others to theirs.”
“You’re staying in the same room on my ship. Your friends are staying on Thorsen’s.”
“When will the healer see them?” she asked worriedly. “Silvia and Brinn looked so tired when they left, and Lucas’ wound needs to be checked.”
“Trygve is with them now. He will take good care of them.”
“I noticed how sweet he was to Brinn when he sat next to her at the table.”
Brinn had been so despondent lately, preferring to stay in her little corner of the vault and growing increasingly isolated from the rest of the group. She was part of the reason why Raine had done everything possible to keep Milly from picking on the depressed woman.
After the huge meal and the countless cups of the wine she had drunk, she became sleepy, but found herself startled out of her sleepiness when Skars turned her to face the back of the elevator as the door started to open.
“Wha—”
“Wait here.”
Raine felt the movement next to her as Skars left the elevator then returned a second later to take her hand. As she walked out into the corridor, she gazed around the passageway.
“Is this where I passed out?”
“Já.”
“Aw … That’s why I don’t remember it. I still can’t understand why I passed out. Usually, the only thing that fazes me is heights. I have to admit I’m a coward where that is concerned.”
Raine practically had to run to keep up with Skars because he was walking so fast. She was almost out of breath before they were again enclosed in the other elevator.
“Were you frightened of heights as a child?”
Terrifying images assailed her of long-ago memories she never let herself dwell on.
“Nothing beyond the range of normal childhood fears. How about you? Are you afraid of anything?”
“No, not anymore.”
Other than giving him a questioning glance, she didn’t pry. She didn’t want to divulge what had created her fear.
As she got out of the elevator, Raine noticed something different about the bedroom from when she had left. “Where did the window go?”
“It’s still there. I prefer it darkened at night.”
“That makes sense. Your ship can be hidden in the day within the clouds, and at night, they would be seen.”
“Já.”
Had she caught a caustic edge in his response to her? She was probably just tired and imagined it.
“Thank you for walking me to my room. Good …” Raine broke off. “What are you doing?”
“Going to sleep.” Skars continued to strip himself of his clothes.
“Naked?” she croaked out.
“Já.”
Raine tried to avert her gaze, but it was almost impossible to look away as the Viking revealed more of his body. “But this is my room.”
“Mine as well.”
“You slept here with me for the last two nights?”
“Já.”
“Why are you just telling me this now?”
He shrugged. “Because I’m preparing to go to bed.”
“What’s to prepare? You’re getting naked! Stop it!”
Should she turn around? She was torn between wanting to look and turning away, but her curiosity about his body won out over the scandalized part of her.