The next morning Lothiriel woke up alone in the room. She remembered the events of the previous night and got angry immediately. A new thought became poignant in her mind: she had to get rid of that horrible woman who had robbed her of her husband for the first year of their marriage. She managed to run to her chambers without anybody catching a glimpse of her carelessly wrapped in the big dress from the night before and found Galda waiting in her room.

"Milady!" the young girl exclaimed.

"Oh, spare me! Get my bath and get me a dress quickly and maybe I will forgive for yesterday's happening."

"Yes Milady."

Lothiriel was determined to speak her mind to her husband. Yet when she found him in the hall looking over maps of the Riddermark she became nervous.

"Good morning!" she said in a trembling voice.

"Good morning!" he replied giving her a wide warm smile.

"I … I need to speak with you." Her voice became dimmer with every word.

"Yes?"

"I … I …I wish for…" her eyes were inspecting the floor and her hands seemed to try to make knots in her dress.

"Lothiriel, I really wish you could be less nervous when talking to me. You only seem to feel free to speak your mind when I infuriate you."

"Oh, I am infuriated …"

"Really?" he asked in amusement. "And what have I done to accomplish that? I hope you are not mad because I left the bed before you this morning, I got the impression that it is what you wanted after yesterday's occurrence."

He was mocking her. She felt tears come to her eyes and made a real effort not to cry. He didn't deserve her grief for treating her like that.

"Lothi? Are you really upset? What's wrong?" he asked coming right in front of her and looking her in the, by now very wet eyes.

"That … woman. I want that woman gone."

Eomer's eyes grew wide.

"You want me to have her killed?"

"No! I don't want anybody killed. I just want her away from you. Gone."

"Lothiriel, I promised to you I would be faithful and anybody's closeness is not going to affect that."

"I want her gone!" Lothiriel shouted.

"All right, I understand you are upset and you are very right to be so …"
" Eomer, I have never asked you for anything. I am asking you now to make that woman go away from Edoras."

"Love, I promise you I will not have anything to do with her anymore, ever."
"Then why are you so reluctant to make her leave? With her skills she could make a living at any court, the gods know there is never a shortage of whores."

She was looking at the floor and trying to keep a steady voice but it was trembling.

"Lothiriel, I know you dislike her, you are right and I am sorry but she is not a whore."

"Now you are going to claim that she is a good, decent woman?! That she does not give her body for financial gratification?"

"Well, she doesn't. I was her only lover and she never accepted anything from me."

Lothiriel went pale.

"She is your lover, not you're paid …mistress? Oh that's just so much worse …"
Eomer took her chin in his hand and made her look at him.

"She was a convenient way of … finding release. We were not lovers, just, well bedmates. And it is over because you are all the woman I'll ever want or need."

"Why her, Eomer?"

"What do you mean by that question?"

"Why did you pick her? You obviously had where to choose from. Why this one? What can she do?"

"Lothiriel, do you really think it is a good thing for you to learn such facts? Isn't it better if we leave it how it is and move on?"

"I need to understand, Eomer. I get that you didn't know how to be with me, that you were not ready to be married and that is was as much forced on you as it was on me…"
"Lothiriel, I did not marry you because somebody made me."

"But I am a convenient match. Just not a convenient bedmate, I suppose."
"You are an excellent bedmate and wife, Lothi, I was stupid and immature and I probably will not stop apologizing for that in a lifetime… I kept her because it was easy. I am not proud of it; I will do whatever it takes to make it up to you …"

"Then send her away! It is even worse that your relationship was exclusive! She is in love with you!"

"Lothi, there was never a question of love between me and her …"

"Maybe for you! Yes, you are rather stupid if you do not understand that any woman that ever gets close to you has no other choice but to fall in love! "

His frown upon hearing her call him 'stupid' quickly turned into a big smug smile.

She wanted to shove him but got her hands up then stopped and looked down.

"You know, my lovely wife, you are like one of those small dogs. You boldly attack, then suddenly get scared and make use of your beautiful eyes to keep your opponent from striking back."

"I still want her away. Even more now. "Lothiriel said in a dim voice.

"That would be as bad as killing her. She has her life and her horses here. She could not do that anywhere else."

"Horses? "
"She breeds horses. Most of the stallions at our court come from her stock …"

"So … she is wealthy."

"Yes, she is. Her parents married her when she was fifteen to a very old and rich horse breeder. He died a few years into the marriage and she was left with everything."

"Oh… Don't you try to make me feel bad for her! So she had it bad with the old husband but that is no excuse for taking mine!"

"Lothi, I have an idea. Hear me out and then if you still want her sent away, I promise I will respect that."

Lothiriel was looking at him with curious eyes.

"You know how in Rohan marriage can never be broken and that for women to be unfaithful to their husbands is a deadly offense …"

"Yes, I know, but it is somewhat unfair that it is allowed with men…"

"I can understand that. To us paternity is very important. So if you have a wife, you have to be sure that her babies are yours. And if you , married or not, get another woman pregnant, you have to take responsibility for the child and either provide for the mother or take the child into you own family if your wife accepts it."

"Eomer, do you have a child by her?" she looked horrified.

"No, I don't have a child by anybody so far and the only ones I shall ever have will be yours. What I'm trying to tell you is that if Lilith were to marry, she would be as useless as if she was away. "

"Oh!" Lothiriel was still not over the shock of the possibility of Eomer being a father.

"So if she marries, will you agree that she can stay?"

"Only if she has a baby by the end of a year passing since she is wed. I do not want her to be ready and waiting for my bed to be inaccessible to you."

Eomer's eyebrows rose.

"Am I to understand you plan to make it inaccessible at some point?"

"No…."

"Look at me, please."

She raised her eyes and he could see that was difficult for her.

"What did you mean by that Lothiriel?" he didn't seem mad which was somewhat reassuring.

"Well… I … if I should …um…be with child at some time, I could not really… I mean, I could up to some point I suppose but then… and if I should not be with child again … sometimes I …"

"Bema, Lothiriel, we have to figure out a way for you to be more at ease with me."

"I am not used to discussing such things."

"Well at least I am relieved you do not want to punish me by keeping me away from you."

"I would be punishing myself like that … and denying Rohan an heir…"

Eomer smiled. His wife was very sweet in her admittance that she enjoyed his lovemaking.

"I am very happy you think like that. And I promise to always respect your wish, whether you are pregnant, going through the flux or just not in the mood for me. "
"Eomer!"

He put her arms around her and kissed her passionately. She responded to his embrace and they got lost in the moment till she was sitting on the big wooden desk, with her dress lifted up and his hands desperately trying to remove the very warm but unpractical knee long underpants she was wearing. She realized what they were about to do and became really uncomfortable. He eventually managed to unlace the undergarments and lifted her just a little so he could take them off. Now her bare bottom was resting on the table and he was struggling to free her legs from the white linen. She was looking away, biting her lip and Eomer realized something was amiss so he looked at her. His first impulse was to stop. Then, a wicked idea came to him: his wife needed to learn to speak her mind even if it made her uncomfortable. She felt his gaze and looking at him tried to smile. He raised his eyebrows. He was not upset or frightening and Lothiriel knew what he was asking but could not get herself to give him the honest answer so she just wiggled her legs and threw the funny looking leggings on the floor. Eomer came closer and she accommodated him between her thighs. He still had all his clothes on and Lothiriel wondered a bit about that. Should she have undressed him? If she took her arms away from the table she would fall on her back…She felt weird an inappropriate and wondered if this was what Eomer used to do with that woman. If it was, she was not so jealous anymore. This was uncomfortable and humiliating and just … bad. She was almost crying when all of a sudden she was startled by her own scream. So lost in her thoughts she had not noticed that her husband had put his head under her dress and his mouth was now hungrily licking and sucking her female folds with incredible skill. She could not help moaning and when his fingers started to make use of the moisture that has instantly gathered between her legs she completely lost herself and in the attempt to push him away with her hands collapsed on her back on the desk and remained there moaning and squirming till she could no longer stand it and reached her peak screaming "Please stop!".

"Yes, Milady." He replied coming up for air. He picked her undergarments and put them back on, helped her up, tied the laces and mended her dress.

She caught her breath then looked him right in the eye but only held his gaze for a moment. His wicked smile made her mad. Still, what could she scold him for? She couldn't deny that he gave her pleasure. And as it was, he obviously got none from that...

"Why did you do that?" she eventually asked.

"You didn't want me to?"

"I think… there could have been a better moment or place for that …and you didn't really…"

"Yeees?"

"Well, I don't think it was pleasurable for you too."

"I'm glad I managed to give you pleasure. I'm sure you will reciprocate it a better place at a better time."

"I will…" she said still avoiding his eyes.

He came very close again and whispered in her ear:

"And you can tell me stop anytime, love, not just scream when you cannot bear it anymore."

"You toyed with me." She said looking at him.

"You let me. And you liked it…eventually"

"Don't do that please."

"Do what?"

"You are impossible!" she screamed then stormed out of the hall.

She went to her room and sat down on the bed. She was so angry with him! Then she felt something strange, as if she was sitting in a puddle. She needed to wash and change and all of a sudden it struck her: she had promised to reciprocate. And considering how he had brought her to pleasure, he would probably demand she indulged him in the same manner. She was instantly sick to her stomach.