In a swift, sudden movement, Cailean grabbed her with both hands. Both their swords clattered to the ground and Maeve flew back. Tree bark suddenly pushed up against her back, and Cailean stood over her, pinning her to a tree. Their bodies were remarkably close, and heat flooded through Maeve in an instant that had nothing to do with the exertion of the fight.
Both panting, sweating, and breathless, they stood there, Maeve unable to move as Cailean pressed into her, their gazes boring into one another. Maeve couldn't help it. Maybe it was the adrenaline pulsing through her from the fight, or maybe it was the way he was looking at her, or the closeness of his body, or the way his lips were so close. She found a small, nervous giggle escaping her lips.
Cailean gave her a little half-smirk in return, and the heat inside Maeve grew more intense, pulsing through her entire body and traveling down. He moved back a little, still pinning her in place, but even pulling back a tiny bit felt like a bereavement. Maeve's body cried out for his, and she instinctively reached out with her non-pinned hand, resting it on his chest — not to push him away, but to keep him close.
He looked down at her hand and then back up at her face, that intense burning look still in his eyes. "Ye did call me a coward," he reminded her in a soft voice that was barely a breath.
"Ye're right." Her own voice caught in her throat, her breath coming quickly and heavily. "I did. But I was wrong. I never meant it."
Cailean leaned closer, their foreheads almost touching. "Iwasa coward," he whispered. Then his little smirk turned into a full grin. "And ye have lost."
"I… what?" Maeve could barely understand what he was trying to say. "How are ye a coward?"
"Iwas. I dinnae intend tae be anymore." One hand still gripping her arm in place, he raised his other and touched her cheek lightly with his fingertips. "I've spent too long denyin' truths, so long that I almost forgot about them entirely. I've been hidin' away, nae only from the other rebels but from the whole of Scotland and from meself as well. I've been wearin' a mask so convincin' that I almost convinced meself."
"Cailean…" The feel of his fingertips on her cheek was distracting, and she found herself leaning closer.
"I love me people, Maeve. But I've let them suffer just by choosin' tae do nothin', nae ever realizin' that this was as much of a choice as actin'. I've betrayed the oaths me family took tae protect the land and its people, betrayed the gifts given tae me great-grandfather by that capercaillie so long ago. I was never meant tae just survive.Scotlandwasnae meant tae just survive. We're meant tae live, Maeve, live and thrive. An' I'm done pretendin' that anythin' else is acceptable."
Maeve's breath caught and she stared, hypnotized, into his eyes. The passion that flamed behind them was intoxicating, and she began to feel like she'd never look away again.
"I'm done fightin' only tae survive. If I'm tae die, then let me die. But if I am to Iive, let this life be given for somethin' greater. For me country. For me people." His voice softened. "I'll do whatever it takes tae live up tae me father's name — and I'll start immediately. With yer help, if ye'll give it."
The full weight of Cailean's admission and renewed determination washed over Maeve like a soothing balm. She understood what he was saying to her, understood what he was offering her, but more than that, she understood that he was finally allowing himself to be who he was always meant to be. His love shone in that moment. Love for his family, long gone. Love for his country and its people, still here, just waiting for him to reach out and take them back again once and for all. And here he was, asking for her help to do it. She admired him immensely, she felt overwhelming hope for her sister and her people, and she felt like at last she truly knew the man who held her now.
And, as perhaps was only natural, she felt the love that poured from him entering her own heart too. Or maybe it had been there for a long time already, just waiting to be released into the world.
He was watching her, waiting for her answer, but there was really only one response she could give. Without a word, she moved, tilting her head slightly and bridging the tiny gap between them, pressing her lips to his.
Cailean let out a small sound of surprise, and Maeve almost pulled back, worried that she'd done something wrong. But then his lips moved against hers, and he kissed her back, the passion and want echoing through them both. Maeve gasped against his lips as he released her arm and instead wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her close to him. Her own hands pressed against him, and for one blissful moment, the rest of the world disappeared.
Maeve's only experience with kisses had been harsh, unpleasant, forced and disgusting, but this couldn't be any more different. Cailean's kiss was intense but not forceful, his lips soft and molding to hers, his tongue tender when it darted into her mouth, sending little jolts of happy electricity through her. Leaning against him, she felt safe in his arms in a way she'd never felt safe in a long, long time, and the taste of him was like the sweetest treat she'd ever experienced.
He smelled like the forest, like the pine trees and the fresh wind of their home, and when he kissed her, she felt like they were alone together in a perfect paradise. She breathed him in, surrendering her body and soul into that kiss, not denying herself when her own desire urged her to get a little closer, hold him a little tighter, feel the kiss a little deeper. She shivered in delight at every breath.
At last, he pulled away, softly, slowly, leaving little pecks on her lips, her cheeks, and her forehead before he at last moved back to look down at her.
"Well, damn it all," Cailean said with a low whistle.
"What?" Alarm flooded through Maeve. Had she done it wrong? Was she not good enough? Was it?—
He grinned and moved closer again. "Ye're still braver than me," he whispered, his breath against her skin sending delightful goosebumps along her flesh. "I should hae done that a long time ago."
"Well, there's plenty of time tae make up for it," she told him breathlessly.
He started the kiss this time, another soft press of the lips that quickly grew deeper, more intense. That kiss said everything that words couldn't, all of the hope and dreams and fear and love and everything in between washing through them both.
There was much that they needed to discuss, much that they needed to do. But for now, they were just two young people, allowing themselves to take the biggest risk of all and fall in love at last.
It wasn't a surprise. It didn't scare Maeve. In fact, it felt inevitable. And for once, though it was overwhelming her heart and soul and mind, she felt at peace.
21
Chapter Twenty-One
A while later, Cailean and Maeve sat together on the grass of the riverbank, watching the water go by, hand in hand. They sat in silence, both lost in their thoughts, but there was no awkwardness between them. In fact, just being together felt as natural a part of the world as the trees and plants around them.
Cailean didn't remember the last time he had felt so calm. He was happy, of course, but more than that, he was beginning to feelwhole. A part of him that he didn't realize had been missing had finally returned to him, and a renewed strength filled his heart and soul. Maeve's hand in his made him feel like he could do anything,beanything, and it made him feel a new kind of wonder that he was almost afraid to explore — and yet, he couldn't wait to see where it took him. He knew now that whatever steps he took next, he wanted her with him.
