Kaarina smiled. “You are a fine man, Landwulf. Any girl would be proud to call you her own.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
“Yes, Landwulf, I care for you. That was why I felt hurt and disappointed when you avoided me.”
He smiled a huge grin that lit up his blue eyes and parted his blonde beard to reveal perfect white teeth. Kaarina thought she’d never seen someone as handsome as Landwulf. Her eyes rested on his lips, full and rosy. She caught her breath as she imagined what it would feel like to kiss them. He took her hand then drew her against him. She looked up at him and his eyes met hers, searching and intense.
“Are you sure about this?” he asked.
Kaarina had never heard of any man ever asking a woman for her permission to woo her. Women were regarded as inferior beings who did what they were told.
“I am sure,” she said with wonder in her voice.
Landwulf put his arms around her and held her against him in a tender embrace.
“My Kaarina,” he crooned, resting his face against her hair.
Then he drew back and looked at her while tiny raindrops swirled around them. His gaze was earnest and intense. Wordlessly, she closed her eyes and raised her face towards his while his hand cupped the back of her head and drew her towards him. His lips met hers, firm and silky smooth and utterly delightful. He kissed her gently, taking his time as his lips brushed across hers. She responded with hunger, eager to explore his sensuous lips in a kiss that grew more intense. She wanted it to never end, this exhilarating, breathtaking moment beneath the rainy sky. Kissing him was even better than she’d imagined and she felt breathless when they finally parted.
“You make my heart beat fast,” he told her, holding her shoulders while he looked into her face.
She smiled at him. “Oh Landwulf, I’m so happy! I never thought a wonderful man like you could ever care for me!”
“You are beautiful, Kaarina. You are beautiful on the outside and the inside. I love you,” he told her.
“I love you, too, Landwulf!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck. She had never felt so happy in all her life.
CHAPTER 8
M inna walked purposefully towards the barn where she knew Alfonso would be working. Her thoughts were on Landwulf. She wanted to make the right decision and that meant she must speak to Alfonso.
“Greetings, wife. What brings you to my barn?” Alfonso smiled at her.
She smiled back. “‘Tis a fine day to visit my husband away from the many ears in our house.”
“Is it a romp through the hay that you seek, my love?’
She laughed. Even after all these years of marriage, their love was strong; there had been times in the past when she had agreed with his quirky suggestions and they had indeed enjoyed a romp through the hay. But today, she had other things on my mind.
“As tempting as that sounds, no. I came to talk to you about something.”
He looked disappointed. “I was thinking a romp through the hay sounded good right now,” he said.
She grinned. “Never fear, husband. It shall happen again.”
“So why did you wish to talk to me?”
“It is about Landwulf.”
“Landwulf? Has he been causing trouble?”
“Not at all. But I’m concerned that he will find trouble.”
“How?”
“Have you not seen the way he looks at Kaarina? The boy is in love with her, I swear. And the girls seem to know more about it than they will say.”
“Is that such a bad thing? Kaarina is a fine girl.”
“That she is. I have no argument with her. But I think that our Landwulf should choose a bride from among the people of our faith. Besides, Kaarina has no kin to call her own and no one to arrange a brðtlouft for her. She is like an orphan.”
“That should not matter, my dear. We know what it is like to be outcasts, remember?”
“You are right. As you say, she is a fine girl. But not for Landwulf.”
“So what do you propose to do?”
“We shall send him to the village of Alahsan to find a wife from among our people there. It will do him good to leave our village and venture far away.”
“It will make a man of him,” Alfonso agreed. “Very well, wife, you know best in these things. Do as you see fit.”
Minna waited until Landwulf went outside to collect wood for the fire and followed him outside. She wanted to speak to him in private.
“Landwulf,” she said behind him.
He spun around to face her. “Mother! What is it that you want?”
“I wanted to talk to you away from the listening ears inside the house.”
“What did you wish to say?” he asked uneasily.
Minna decided to get straight to the point. “I have noticed your interest in Kaarina,” she said.
Landwulf didn’t deny it. “She is a fine girl. I like her.”
“Your father and I have decided it’s time that you went away to find a wife from among our people.”
“But why? What is wrong with Kaarina?”
“She is not one of us, Landwulf. Her people are the víkverir. Their beliefs are different from ours. They live differently. Besides, she is alone with no kin. Do you want to marry an orphan?”
“None of those things matter, Mother. Kaarina has adapted to living among us and she is a good person. Doesn’t that matter more than whether or not she has kin?”
“You have a point,” Minna conceded. “But it means that she will forever be dependent upon you and our family. Her own will never be able to support her in any way.”
“That should not matter, either, Mother. I
