"I'll tell her. Just nae right now." Magnus turned back to Torvald. "Go. Dae what needs daein'. I'll join ye soon."
Torvald nodded and left. Magnus took a moment to compose himself, to push down the rage and frustration before returning to Ada.
"Everythin' all right?" she asked as he approached.
"Aye. Just keep business." Magnus forced himself to smile. "Ready tae keep goin'?"
They worked through more techniques. How to break a wrist hold. How to use her smaller size as an advantage. How to read an attacker's body language for tells before they struck.
And slowly, other men began to drift toward the training yard. Drawn by curiosity, maybe. Or by the unusual sight of their laird teaching his lady wife to fight.
They kept respectful distance, but Magnus heard their murmurs. Saw them nudging each other, nodding with approval as Ada landed a particularly good strike.
"That's it, me lady!" one called out. "Show 'im what ye're made of!"
Ada's cheeks flushed at the attention, but she didn't stop. Just kept working, kept trying, her determination evident in every movement.
Magnus felt pride swell in his chest. His wife. Strong and brave and refusing to be broken by what had happened to her.
More men gathered. Their encouragement grew louder. And Ada, feeding off their support, pushed herself harder.
Magnus was demonstrating a defensive block when he heard it. A voice, slightly too loud, carrying across the yard.
"She looks good when she fights. Look at the way she moves."
Everything in Magnus went still. Cold.
He turned slowly, found the speaker. A young soldier, barely twenty, grinning at his companions like he'd said something clever.
The training yard went quiet. Every man there suddenly very aware they'd just witnessed something dangerous.
Magnus's voice, when it came, was barely above a growl. "What did ye say?"
The soldier's grin faltered. "I just meant—me laird, I was only sayin'—"
"I heard what ye said." Magnus took a step toward him. Saw the man pale, saw him realize his mistake. "Ye'll keep yer comments about me wife tae yerself. All of ye." His gaze swept the assembled men. "She's nae here fer yer entertainment. She's nae here fer ye to ogle and make remarks about. Am I understood?"
"Aye, me laird," came the murmured response.
"Good. Now get out. All of ye. Training's done fer the day."
The men scattered quickly, the young soldier practically running in his haste to escape. Within moments, the training yard was empty except for Magnus and Ada.
Ada stared at him, eyes wide. "Magnus, ye dinnae have tae?—"
"Aye, I did." He turned to her, still wound tight with possessive fury. "They dinnae get tae look at ye like that. Dinnae get tae talk about ye like that."
"They were just bein' supportive."
"They were lookin' at what's mine." The words came out more territorial than Magnus intended. "And I dinnae share."
Something shifted in Ada's expression. Not fear. Not anger. Something else entirely.
"Yers?" she asked softly.
Magnus realized what he'd said. How it sounded. But he didn't take it back.
"Aye. Mine." He closed the distance between them. "Me wife. Me responsibility tae protect. Mine tae defend and care fer and—" He stopped, jaw clenched.
