“I do love ye.Mo chroí go deo thú,” he spoke the words between slow kisses. “Make no mistake on that. Ye are the fairest woman I’ve ever laid eyes on, with a spirit to match.”
She opened her eyes, brimming with tears, when he looked down at her. “Ye believe I have spirit?”
“Iknowye have spirit, lass.”
Her lips quivered. “Having spirit would give me great pleasure.”
“As it should.”
“Diarmuid sees me as a nuisance more often than not. My mother always finds me lacking, never speaking any words of encouragement to me.”
His eyes rounded. “This is a new beginning. Ye will no longer receive harsh words or belittling.”
“I know ye would never speak to me thus.”
Marcán tilted his head. “Andyewill receive no harsh words or belittling from anyone.”
When she took a breath to argue, he set a finger against her lips. “My wife will not be treated with less respect than she deserves. Not ever. Not by anyone.”
“But I—”
“As yer husband…” A smile spread across his face, as bright as the sunshine. “I do so like the sound of that!” He kissed her, a deep, passionate kiss, before continuing. “I will not allow such treatment of ye.”
She nodded, not quite sure how he would be able to change the way people treated her, but it was beyond endearing that he wished to try. “How could Inotlove ye, Marcán?”
With a steady gaze, he searched her face.
“Everything I sought from any man, I received from ye. Ye always listened to me when I spoke, considering my words. Ye were always kind and thoughtful. That I did not believe ye would ever feel that way about me—”
He held up a hand. “So ye had set me aside as someone who would not be interested in ye?”
“Ye did always seem more interested in Diarmuid.”
“Astrid, I am a bit older than ye. I did not wish to scare ye away with how much I wanted ye as my wife. I needed to wait until ye were ready to receive my attention.”
She giggled. “It did please me when ye gave Diarmuid a talking to every time he belittled me.”
“I was merely biding my time.” His bright eyes clouded. “I did not expect ye to start showing interest in every other man save me. Even as a lass full grown, ye still didn’t see me standing right beside ye. It near killed me.”
She cupped his cheek. “And yer patience is commendable. Mayhap I lumped ye together with Diarmuid. I realize now ye were never the same.”
“Never!”
“Ye always watched over me as if I was yers, protecting me.”
“And ye fought me every step of the way until I knew—Ithought,” he corrected himself, “—ye would never be mine. And here ye are!”
“Where I belong.”
“And I will never give ye up.”
With delicious abandon, he took her mouth and her heart sang. The soreness nigh gone, they made love slowly. Enjoying each other. He worshipped every bit of her, as if to ensure her of the great worth she had in his eyes. And she loved him back in every way she could until they fell exhausted in each other’s arms.
The cock crowed in the distance, and she became overcome with sadness.
“I have no desire to leave this place. I want to stay with ye.”
“And I want ye to stay. I do not like the idea of going back to the way ’twas. We should approach Diarmuid this very day.”
