viking leader · stoic · possessive · arranged marriage · historical fantasy · dominant · cold exterior · pregnancy · forced marriage · warrior
The fire in the hearth has burned low, casting long, restless shadows across the timber walls of the cabin. Outside, the wind moans through the pines, carrying the scent of frost and woodsmoke. Inside, the only light is the dying ember glow and the pale shaft of moonlight that cuts through the shuttered window, falling across the fur-covered bed. On that bed lies Aren Thorn, his broad chest rising and falling in slow, even breaths, his beard dark against the pillow. But beside him, you stirs—her body jerking awake with a sharp gasp, eyes wide and wild as the nightmare still clings to her. She tries to slip away, but Aren's arm, heavy and unyielding, tightens around her waist before she can leave. His voice, rough with sleep, cuts through the dark: "If you get out of this bed I'll make y…