unused to sleeping out of doors, though it didn’t seem to bother the men who huddled on their sides by the small campfire. Out of sight in the forest, guards were posted.
Even though he knew he was safe, sleep evaded Kai as he thought of his grandmother, now gone, and the parents and siblings he’d lost to the fever years ago. Fighting tears, he vowed to be strong. He was among warriors now; he was no weak farmsteader. A rustling in the underbrush caused his heart to slam against his ribs, but in the low light of the fire, he saw that it was Rayken, coming off his turn at watch. Kai breathed a sigh of relief. He didn’t know why, but he felt so safe when the big warrior was near. The mountain of a man was the leader of these men, and they deferred to him, but he acted no differently and took no privileges above them, even insisting upon taking first watch.
Eyes that glittered amber in the near darkness studied Kai. He stared back, but remained silent while Rayken spread his bedroll and climbed inside. A chill raced over Kai and he shivered. No words were spoken, none were needed. Rayken merely looked at him, lips turned up at the corners in an amused smile, and lifted one arm. Kai darted beneath, snuggling into the warrior’s warmth. That was their first night together.
Every night thereafter, he’d fight sleep, waiting until Rayken retired. One look and that arm would rise in invitation, though it was merely comfort and warmth they shared, never more.
“You seem unhappy, Kai, did none please you?” Rayken asked once the group of young women left their tent. Only Kai and Rayken remained, along with the village wise-woman, who was there as chaperone.
Kai looked down, anywhere but at his guardian. His coming of age was fast approaching and no suitable mate had been found, nor would one if all the candidates were female, though he dared not voice it. In his village, men who desired other men were run off to fend for themselves in the hills. The villagers called it “feeding the wolves.” Had he remained there, he probably would have been banished, too, spared a death by flames only to freeze to death or be eaten.
“Why do I have to have a mate?” Kai finally asked. “You have none.”
When he looked up, he noticed Rayken exchanging a look with the old woman. “I’ve not yet found the mate I seek,” he replied simply.
“How do you know?” Kai persisted, grasping any opportunity to escape the fate they intended.
“You never look for one.”
Rayken smiled, stretching his long frame out on the mound of blankets that served as his bed.
Kai had one like it across the tent, one that had never once been slept in.
“When the time is right, my mate will find me,” the warrior said. In a teasing tone, he added,
“Besides, how can I share my tent with a mate if I have a ward living here? Perhaps after you’re mated, I’ll find one of my own.”
Kai pondered the words, a sudden spark of jealousy flaring to life in his heart. “I do not want a mate, then,” he said, defiance blazing in his eyes. He’d always worked so hard to please Rayken, living for the warrior’s smile and approval, but if his leaving meant Rayken would belong to another, well then, he wasn’t going anywhere! “I want to stay with you,” he stated flatly.
Once again, Rayken and the wise-woman shared a glance. Finally, Rayken asked, “Is there a reason you don’t want any of the village women? Would you rather have a man?”
Kai’s faced flushed hotly and he looked up with wide eyes. Surely Rayken couldn’t know! If death from a wolf’s hunger was his fate in the village, what would it be here in the highlands where more vicious foe lurked just out of sight in the dense, snow covered forests? “No!” he lied, though he couldn’t hide his panic. “I am not like that!”
The big warrior sighed, shaking his head. “Surely you’ve slept among the men enough to have noticed that some sleep in pairs?” He raised an eyebrow in question. “I forget that the lowlanders still have such strange ideas about mating.”
He rose from where he’d been lying, never looking away from Kai when he said, “Leave us.”
Mesmerized by what lurked in the warrior’s eyes, Kai hardly noticed when the old woman left their tent.
Rayken sank to his knees, cupping