“Neither,” he said coarsely, and that was the blessed truth. “I know they’re special.” He closed his eyes and shook his head before blinking up at the great beast above him. “I know you are special. The most special.”
“Then what’s wrong?” Her voice had softened to the sweetest of silk, a seductive rub. She was truly special. All due respect to the gentle giants that he shared a mountain with, but Britt was the most captivating person he’d ever met.
“Your faith is so much stronger than mine,” he finally rasped out. “And you don’t even know it.”
“I do. In my own way. I believe what I believe, if that’s what you mean.”
“Unquestioningly?”
She laughed. “No. Quite the opposite. I question everything.”
“You don’t seem ridden with doubt.”
“Are you?”
“Yes.”
“Then your questions aren’t sharp enough, Bjorn. Dig deeper, and the doubt will fade away as the truth makes itself known.”
“Just like that.”
“What is the ancient prayer? Forgive me Father, for I have sinned?”
“That prayer refers to our Heavenly Father, not a priest or a fellow monk. And I do ask God for forgiveness every night.”
“What does he say?”
Nothing. Bjorn felt Him all the time, but God never spoke to him. It was the real reason he’d never considered entering seminary, content to serve as a witness of Christ through personal vows and not to a congregation.
He wasn’t sure he could shepherd anyone else when dealing with his own demons proved a constant battle.
“What do you need forgiveness for tonight, Bjorn?”
“Forgetting my way.”
She moved closer, her cloak quietly thudding to the ground as she discarded it. His breath caught in his throat as she stopped a foot away from him and held out her hand. “Does this feel like straying?”
No. He wordlessly shook his head.
“Then go and see whoever you must see to settle the worry in your heart. And then come back to me, and see if maybe we can’t ask some questions together.”
“My way…”
She waited, blinking up at him.
“It was to you. That’s what I mean. I will make you my wife, Britt.”
“I already am.” She smiled. “Right now to being frustrated and exasperated with you.”
“I may be out of practice, but I believe the standard response for dealing with such infractions is grovelling and significant making up, yes?”
“If by making up you mean kissing me, then yes. You must do that.”
He couldn’t agree more. Threading his fingers into her hair, he lowered his mouth to hers. She tasted like hope and fear, and he knew without a doubt that she was his future.
“I love you, min kæreste. With all of my heart.”
She smiled against his lips. “Then come to my bed tonight, and I will love you right back.”
“From tonight, and for the rest of our lives, it will be our bed.”
“You promise?”
It was the easiest oath of his life. “With all of my heart, and in front of God. I promise.”
THE END