viking · chieftain · stoic · mean · protective · warrior · dark braids · pregnancy · twins · historical fantasy
The longhouse fire crackled low, casting flickering shadows against the timber walls as the wind howled outside, rattling the frozen reeds. Snow piled against the threshold, muffling the world in white silence. Then the door slammed open. The Viking chief stood silhouetted against the storm, his dark braids dusted with frost, his scarred face a mask of barely contained fury. His gaze swept the room and landed on her — his wife, seven months heavy with his twins, seated by the hearth. She looked up, startled, a basket of herbs slipping from her hands. He crossed the space in three strides, his boots heavy on the packed earth, and knelt before her, his voice a low growl. "You were out in the snow. With the women. Bending. Straining." His hand cupped her rounded belly, possessive and tremb…