Page 38 of Between Two Barbarians

Torgrind shook his head, amused, and I snatched Jamal around the waist to pull him back to us when he tried to take off. “Always so quick to run off. What are we going to do with you?”

He grinned at me over his shoulder, stealing a kiss before I set him on his feet again. “You said you didn’t want to change me. You’ll have to learn to keep up! I–”

“Jamal!”

We’d just barely stepped into the village center when a familiar voice called out. Jamal’s smile fell, and his brows furrowed as he turned in the direction of the speaker. “Amir? What are you doing here?”

The soldier who had escorted Jamal to our clan crossed his arms over his chest, his expression foreboding as he said, “Your father sent me to fetch you. The prince has left and the scandal avoided. It is time for you to come home.”

My blood turned to ice in my veins as a horrifying realization hit me. We’d never discussed our intentions to claim Jamal. Between learning to share with my clan brother and keeping Jamal out of trouble, I hadn’t gotten the chance. After our conversation the day before and the moment shared this morning, I’d thought it was understood, but we’d never actually spoken the words. Jamal was too wild-spirited for me to leave things to chance like that. For all I knew, he could wish to go just to escape the boredom–

“No.”

My fear spiral ended so abruptly, it made me a little dizzy. I blinked at Jamal, watching as his chin lifted stubbornly. There was no hesitation, no uncertainty in his eyes. He was sure of his words.

“Wha– What do you mean no?” Amir asked incredulously.

“I mean what I said. No, I won’t be going back with you. If you have a problem with that, take it up with them.”

He waved a hand at me and Torgrind, and we both stepped up together to flank his sides. It brought me great pride that he would reach for us instead of trying to fight the man on his own. The soldier looked furious at his refusal, but when sizing up Torgrind and myself, he seemed to think better than to force the issue.

“Brothers?”

Idrull’s voice sounded amused as he joined the conversation. I hadn’t had a chance to see who else was in the village center, some liked to share meals with other clans while we were at our resting area, but the Clan Mother was seated under one of the shades nearby, and I assumed our clan leader had been with her. He stepped up between us and the soldier who still looked close to losing his temper, raising an eyebrow at us.

“Is there something I need to know?”

I didn’t even need to share a glance with Torgrind to know how to answer. “Torgrind and I wish to claim Jamal as our bondmate. He belongs here with us.”

Idrull looked to Jamal, since it was his choice as much as ours, and Jamal raised an eyebrow in challenge. He didn’t need to say the words out loud.

Chuckling, Idrull shook his head. “Now I owe Frida a trip to the capital. She bet me this would be the outcome,” he said quietly enough that he wasn’t overheard by anyone but us. “As a bonding gift, I will deal with the escort. Go. Enjoy your meal. We will discuss a ceremony later.”

Letting out a quiet breath of relief, I nodded to my clan leader, putting a fist against my chest and bowing slightly. Torgrind did the same. Jamal took one of each of our hands, tugging us along once we were dismissed, heading for the Northern Clan’s village center instead.

“I want to eat with my friends. Let’s go.”

He pulled us away, ignoring the indignant squawks of his would-be escort and smiling brightly instead. I kept a sharp eye on the soldier to ensure he didn’t do anything stupid like follow and smiled to myself when Jamal tugged on my arm to get me to move faster. Claiming him would always be an adventure, but to me, it was worth it to keep the man who stole my heart.

JAMAL

I found Simon seated on his bondmate’s lap, half-asleep and lounging lazily against him as the barbarian hand fed him fruit from his bowl. Prince Zakai was nowhere to be seen, but I assumed he’d join us eventually and sat beside Simon, snickering at the tired look on his face.

He narrowed his eyes at me. “How are you so perky in the morning?”

Shaking my head, I explained, “I’m not, usually. These two woke me up in the most perfect way. I think I have you to thank for that. I know better than to assume they wouldn’t ask questions to keep me safe and comfortable.”

Torgrind grunted his acknowledgement, not looking the least big embarrassed as he scooped me up and sat with me in his lap while Brenek went to fetch our meals. I knew it. They’d looked confused when I first brought it up, like they didn’t think it was possible. I knew they wouldn’t try it without someone explaining it to them first.

Simon sat up, looking a little more alert when he grinned at me. “They did ask, but I thought they’d chicken out. How was it?”

“Amazing,” I replied, breathless just remembering it. “I’ll feel the ache for the rest of the day, and I truly don’t care. How often can I do it?”

“How often can he do what?” Prince Zakai asked. He looked disheveled and more alert than Simon had been. Simon noticed as well and eyed him suspiciously.

“Hold on. Did everyone get woken up with sex except me?” He spun to glare at his bondmate. “You realize how unfair that is?”

His bondmate just smirked at him, saying something in the barbarian language I didn’t understand. I glanced over my shoulder at Torgrind, who thankfully translated for me.