“Of course, nae.” He shook his head. “Me faither will give his blessin’. I give ye me word on that. It’s high time the Scots and the English put an end to their arguments. Perhaps it will be a good symbol to our clan. I reckon me faither would like that. He’s been eager to assure them of peace for some time.”
“If you’re sure,” she smiled now, giving way to the excitement he felt.
“Two weeks today, come to the castle,” he pleaded. “Wear a dress, and from that day forward ye will nay longer have to be Billie, but instead you can be safe as Laura again.”
“A dress?” she repeated. “It’s going to feel strange after all this time.”
“Aye, but I reckon the best way to show me faither me intentions and persuade him to help ye is to have ye there with me. So, that’s me plan. Two weeks’ time, come to the castle, I’ll meet ye there and introduce ye to me faither. What do ye say?”
“How could I say no?”
He kissed her again, this time dropping both of his hands to her hips and pulling her against his leg so that he could create the perfect level of friction between her thighs and against her center. She gasped into the kiss, and her hands trembled.
If they continued to carry on like this, Erskine would gladly make love to her there and then in the hallway and damn the risk of being caught.
He was rocking their hips together, playing out what he really wanted to be doing with her. He pulled open the top of her shirt, exposing just enough skin above her breasts to allow him to drop more kisses and worship her skin. She was moaning his name as he adored her body.
Sounds came nearer beyond the door, and there was the unmistakable sound of Magret’s voice.
“Erskine!” Laura said with a panicked voice. She took hold of his hair and tugged it back, a little harder than was normally playful in the attempt to get him to stop.
“In the name of the wee man, she came back quick,” he muttered as he stepped away and tried to straighten his clothes. They were both frantic for a minute, adjusting their clothes until they were straight again. Erskine was finding it particularly difficult to adjust his trews and hide the obvious evidence of his arousal. As he looked back to Laura, he could see she had re-done her shirt buttons all misaligned. “Well, that only makes it obvious,” he chuckled and pointed this out to her.
She looked down, seeing his point with wide eyes, and rushed to redo them, just as Magret walked through the door.
“I forgot one of me bags….” Magret trailed off as she looked between the two of them. “If I was interruptin’ somethin’,” her sharp eyes looked at him, “then do me the favor of waitin’ until I am back at the house. Honestly, Laird-to-be,” she shook her head at him. Behind her, Erskine could see Laura smiling. “Can ye nae wait a little time?”
“Sorry, Magret,” he shook his head and laughed too. “I have to get to the castle and report to me faither what happened today.” He reached for the door, just as Laura did too, their hands connected, and he held her there. Just the grasp of her hand was enough to want to make him stay.
“Two weeks, then?” she asked.
“Two weeks,” he nodded. “I’ll come to see ye when I can.”
Had Magret not been watching them with suspicious eyes, he would have kissed her again. As it was, he offered Laura a smile and then slipped back out of the house.
Two weeks, it is nae long to wait.
Chapter Twenty
Erskine looked up to the sun setting over the horizon of the town as he and the soldiers made their way back into the city.
“It’s been a long two weeks,” Tam murmured at his side.
“Aye, so it has,” Erskine agreed. Two weeks had passed, and it felt like an eternity to him. As he was leading the Highland army, he had barely been able to see Laura and had spent most of his time in the mountains, tracking down the brigands. When they eventually found them, there had been a mounted attack, along with some men from the Douglas clan.
Within two days, the brigands had lost the fight. Erskine and his men were escorting the thieves back to the castle to face trial for their crimes after the two-week mark had passed.
He was exhausted, barely able to sit straight on the horse. Beside him, Tam was riding, as equally tired and yawning. Camden and Aiden rode just behind the two of them, talking at length of the battle they had faced.
“Do me a favor, ye two?” Tam called back to them. “Stop talkin’ for a minute so I can sleep.”
“Yer horse might walk off a cliff if ye do that,” Aiden warned with a chuckle.
“I think I wouldnae mind that right now,” Tam laughed too. “I daenae remember bein’ so tired.”
“Lennox might have somethin’ to say if we have to go back and tell her ye walked off a cliff,” Camden’s voice came from behind them. Erskine joined in with the laughter as he let his eyes return to Tam’s face. At the mention of Lennox’s name, there was a new smile in Tam’s features. One that showed just how much had happened between them. “If ye do fall off a cliff,” Camden continued, “can I be the one to tell her?”
“I ken what ye want, Camden,” Tam shook his head, “she is taken now. Ye cannae get near her.”
