“It shows on your face, Lady Helen, as it should. God’s greatest gift to us is love.”
Jamie welcomed her warmly, and Alex stood and bowed.
“I wanted ye here to sign this contract as one of Jamie’s witnesses,” Alex said. “I have kept my promise and made yer husband an independent laird. However, one of the greatest burdens falls upon yer shoulders.”
“I will do anything to help Jamie.”
“Good,” Alex said. “In order for Jamie to keep his lands, ye must give him a male heir. Otherwise, I will be forced to appoint a new laird if Jamie dies.”
Helen understood only too well what she was expected to do. She wanted many children, boys and girls to fill her heart and Jamie’s with endless joy. Their children would live a very different life than she had. After Jamie signed three parchments, identical copies of the contract, Petro offered her the writing implement and she provided her signature.
“It is done.” Alex embraced Jamie. “I will send word to the other branches.”
“Thank ye again.” Jamie bowed. “My last request concerns Kuresh.”
“He is a free man, Jamie. Where he places his allegiance is up to him.”
“But he has been with ye almost as long as Petro.”
“And has more than earned his freedom.”
“I will make him my right hand.”
“A wise choice,” Alex approved. “Now go, before I change my mind.”
*
Two weeks later,Helen and Jamie were mounted on his war horse and leading a procession of more than twenty men northward. Nudar and Ramsey rode a mare and Miran her own horse. The soldiers protectively surrounded their new laird and lady.
Helen had heard much aboutSands Airgidand looked forward to catching her first glimpse of it through the winter fog. She’d been told that, perched atop a hill, the views surrounding the manor house were unmatched. The ocean to the north, mountains to the west, and fertile valleys flanked it to the south and east.
Jamie hugged her tight and whispered, “I am sorry about the bridal sheet.”
She gazed at him. “Why dinna ye tell me?”
He shrugged. “Because I knew what ye would do if I did.”
“Oh?”
“Ye are my wife, lass. That sheet would have ended up in the fire.”
She smiled and then laughed. Aye, her husband knew her well. And the more time she spent with him, the more confident and independent she felt. Jamie wouldna squash her dreams as her sire and brothers had. If anything, Jamie encouraged her to be herself.
As the sun started to fade, they followed a narrow horse trail up a hill. Twas at the top, located on the next knoll, that Helen first saw her new home. Although not as stately as Dunrobin Castle, the distinct gray-stoned building with a tower inspired a sense of deep pride in her.
Jamie stopped the horse. “What do ye think, Helen of the Highlands?”
“It is magical,” she said. “Yer ancestral home is more than I expected.”
“I will give ye free reign to do as ye wish. Order new furnishings and tapestries, build a new wing. Whatever yer heart desires. We are nay poor, Helen. Our clan will thrive. And I will put a son in yer belly before summer arrives.”
The thought of him spilling his seed inside her again and again sent a thread of excitement through her. She squirmed in the saddle, purposely grinding her arse against him.
He growled in her ear. “For that, lass, as soon as I carry ye over the threshold, I will take ye from behind on the stairs.”
As they approached the manor house, the gates opened, and Jamie’s soldiers and servants surrounded them in the bailey, welcoming their new laird and lady.
“Laird Jamie!” Crannog gripped his master’s forearm. “And Lady MacKay. On behalf of all of us, long may ye live and may God grant ye many bairns.”
