WRATH OF WAR [BJÖRN IRONSIDE]

CHAPTER FOURTY-THREE

As the dark sky hovered itself over Harald's kingdom in Rogaland torches were lit and the main hall got filled with warriors, family and Harald for a feast to celebrate him and the heathen army's successful conquer in England. Three servants had knocked on Vál's door only to hand over four dresses in smooth silk material, various of details and styles. They had told her it was a gift from Harald to his guests, yet Vál wondered if Astrid had gotten the same amount of dresses or attention from Harald after they arrived.

Since dresses wasn't for Vál she had asked the servants if they were kind enough to wash her clothes as she took a bath for the night. As she sat relaxed in the bath they had brought her the washed clothing in a neat pile that was currently resting on her bed next to her armor. She hadn't seen much more of Harald's kingdom yet and she wanted to explore it the following day yet she wouldn't ask for Harald to show her around. She hadn't seen Amanda in a long time which made her promise to look for her and ask her instead.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door and she only hummed after washing her hair in the warm water. When she spotted Harald in new fresh clothing and crown as he walked inside she covered her naked chest, even if there wouldn't be much the older man hadn't seen before. Breasts weren't that big of a deal, she had the feeling that he had seen quite a lot of them in his days.

"Harald." Vál simply said as she covered her breasts with her long, thick and wet hair which glued itself to her skin. "What have I done to get the pleasure of your presence while bathing?" She asked him as she raised her brow. She noticed that his left cheek was kissed by a light shade of pink which intrigued her, yet she didn't mention it.

"I'm sorry Vál, I thought you were ready by now." Harald said and she heard the sincere tone in his voice. "The feast has begun." He added and she chuckled slightly.

"I can hear that." She said and Harald nodded by the fact that the sound of drunken singing men and women bled into the room. The whole situation with Harald flashed imagines of her encounter with Ragnar in her cabin as she bathed. The images of her inviting him into the bath, straddling him, the kisses, the way his rough fingers had roamed her body and the way it moved to her bed. The sounds of them moaning out in pleasure as they fúcked each other back then echoed in her mind. A slight shade of pink stained her cheeks as she felt her body reacting to the images. The tingle between her legs and the wetness that occurred between her legs. Due to everything it slightly made her feel dirty, not only due the fact that it was the father of a man she loved, but that he was dead and that she was sitting in a bath in front of Harald FineHair. She could feel Harald's eyes roam her body and both of his cheeks soon turned into the light shade of pink. She cleared her throat and their eyes soon met again. "Then maybe you can excuse me and I will be with you shortly." She added and Harald only gave her a slow nod before leaving.

Harald cursed to himself as he closed the door behind him before taking a deep breath. He had wanted the edge of the tub to be slightly lower or himself standing closer to the tub so he could get a better view of her naked body in the water. The soft light from the candles inside the room and the smaller fireplace had illuminated her skin in a warm tone and the droplets of water had made her skin glistening beautifully. He could swore that if he stood closer he wouldn't had been able to fight the urge to touch her skin that looked soft in the light. He couldn't help but to wonder why his body and mind suddenly had started to react the way it did around Vál so quickly, so strongly. He just knew that it was his only chance to get to Vál as Björn wasn't around nor would be.