Freya woke to a cold bed and even colder morning. She must have slept through Ewen waking and leaving his chamber. It had been a long night of fitful sleep and twice more in the night, Ewen had reached for her and rolled onto her. The slickness between her legs had made it less painful the second and third times that Ewen had taken her but Freya could feel the throb and ache in her core even as she lay still waking up properly.

A knock on the door woke Freya up completely.

'Enter,' she called softly.

The maid who entered was young and appeared very timid.

'Morning my lady,' she greeted Freya, her eyes downcast.

Freya was grateful for the timidity of her maid. As she had sat up in the bed Freya felt the full extent of the pain from the night before and had seen the bloodstains on the shift she had been put to bed in. At least she had kept her part of the bargain she thought with some irony. The virgin bride had been a critical part of the alliance.

Drawn back to the present Freya allowed her maid to draw her bath water and dress her as befitting the lady of the castle. The day would be a long one with the many intricacies of being the lady of the castle ahead. With war looming it was critical that the people were prepared and the castle stocked and ready for the possibility of a long siege. Freya's father had trained her well. Her role since birth was to be the lady of the castle. The succession of ladies that had trained Freya had done their job thoroughly. The only role that Freya hadn't mastered yet was that of producing an heir for the her new husband but with the frequency that he coupled with her, she was fairly certain it wouldn't be long before she was with child.

The day was as long as Freya predicted and it was much later that she found herself seated next to her husband in the Great Hall. Glancing at him briefly as the evening meal was served, Freya felt a strange sense of panic. For the rest of her life she was tied to this stranger. He would sit next to her each night and raise his glass to hers, he would continue his nightly possession of her body until she bore him the heir he desired and yet despite this he was as strange and unfamiliar to her as the maid who drew her bath and dressed her. Freya was aware that her life was a privileged one. The comfort of her existence was not lost on her, but for one whole moment she wondered how it would have been had she been able to choose. If she had been able to choose the man she sat next to, if she had been able to spend some time first to discover what he liked and how to please him in bed. Would she have even chosen this man Ewen? Would he have chosen her?

Lost in her thoughts, Freya missed the silence that indicated a toast. Beside her she heard her husband clear his throat. She turned to raise her glass to his for the traditional toast before they left the room to retire for the evening. It was early still but tradition required the conception of an heir as soon as possible. The early departure of Ewen and his bride would continue for the next six months unless Freya had definite evidence of conception before then.

As they left the Great Hall, Freya felt the pain between her legs still and hoped that some of his seed remained slick in her from the previous night. It would be painful to endure what lay ahead without some help. As much as Freya dreaded the evenings activities she did know that the absence of an heir after a year of marriage would be a worse situation. For both of their sakes this coupling had to continue nightly.

In the loneliness of the great chamber, Freya didn't even bother to put on the shift left on the edge of the bed by her maid. She stood still and waited for Ewen to indicate she should get onto the bed. His clothes off, he did and she lay obediently naked on the bed waiting for him to join her. Moments later she felt the mattress dip and heard the light creak as Ewen rolled closer to her. Once again he sat up and stared intently at her naked body.

Emboldened, Freya lifted her eyes and looked at Ewen. She was startled to find him looking at her face and directly into her eyes. Flustered she looked down again. His hand hovered gently over her breast before touching her in soft strokes. Freya closed her eyes and tried to relax her tense body. She gasped as he bent over her and sucked gently on her nipple. Within her painful core, Freya felt the beginnings of a throbbing pulse. As abruptly as he started sucking on her nipples, Ewen stopped. Freya opened her eyes just in time to see Ewen move onto her other breast and nipple. The growing tingle in Freya grew and she felt herself breath a little faster.

As suddenly as he started, Ewen stopped sucking on Freya's nipples. His hand moved lower to the junction between her legs. Even lower and his finger touched the folds between her legs. Freya felt her breath catch as Ewens hand moved even lower and towards her opening. Still so highly sensitive from the previous night, Freya gasped in pain. Immediately Ewen moved his hand away. Without delay he rolled over onto Freya, like the night before he used his arms to support his weight and his knees to spread Freya's legs. He thrust into her quickly causing her to gasp out again from the pain and burning in her womanhood. Ewens movements were harder and faster than those of the first time he had taken her. Under him Freya struggled to breath as she tried to manage the pain. Her whole core was on fire as he thrust into her relentlessly. Soon, Ewen stiffened again and grunted before thrusting into her one last time.

The only sound in the room was his harsh breathing before he rolled off her and moved to his side of the bed. Freya felt burning in her core and the now familiar trickle of his seed slowly dripping out of her. Slowly Freya rolled over to try to sleep. She knew it wouldn't be long before he reached for her again and she was so very tired.