“Easy now,” he murmured, his voice low and steady as he helped her. He stood behind her and began to untie the laces of her dress. Arianna remembered a time he had done this before, and it felt so long ago now.
She heard him release a low moan as her skin became exposed as he slipped the dress off.
He helps her step into the warm water. Arianna sank slowly into the bath, the heat easing the ache in her muscles and the lingering chill from the night. She exhaled softly, her shoulders relaxing for the first time since her capture.
Ian stepped back then, giving her space as he reached for his own garments. Without ceremony, he disrobed and stepped into the second tub beside hers.
Arianna could not help but glance at him. Her eyes lingered for a moment longer than she intended as she took in the strength of him, the broad lines of his shoulders, and the hard-earned muscle of a warrior who had spent his life in battle. She had seen him fight, fierce and unyielding, cutting through men as though nothing could stand against him. A strange warmth stirred within her chest as she remembered the way he had come for her without hesitation.
He had come for me.
Ian leaned back slightly in the water, letting out a quiet breath as the heat seeped into his skin. “I owe ye an apology,” he said after a moment, his gaze shifting toward her.
Arianna looked at him more fully now. “For what?” she asked softly.
“For nae tellin' ye about the raiders,” he replied. “We’ve been tracking them across the land for weeks.”
Her brows drew together slightly. “Why did ye nae tell me?”
“Because there was already strife between us,” he admitted. “I didnae wish to add to it by giving ye more to worry about.”
Arianna studied him in silence.
“I thought it best to handle it meself,” he continued, his voice quieter now. “To keep ye from fear, from danger.”
“And instead, I rode straight into it,” she said gently.
A flicker of regret crossed his face. “Aye,” he said. “And that was me failin'.” He straightened slightly. “It was a mistake,” he said firmly. “From now on, ye will ken all matters of this clan… if ye still wish to remain me wife, that is.”
Arianna stilled. The words settled over her, unexpected in their weight. For a moment, she said nothing. The water rippled softly around her as her fingers traced absent patterns along its surface, her thoughts turning inward.
He's offering me a choice, something I had not believed I truly had before. Not the council, not the contract, but me own will.
She lifted her gaze to him. “Ye would let me out of the contract freely?” she asked quietly.
Ian did not hesitate. “Aye,” he said.
There was no anger in his voice, no bitterness. Only truth.
“I want ye to ken that I wish ye to remain me wife,” he continued, his tone deepening with emotion. “More than anything. But I will nae force ye into it.”
Arianna’s breath caught slightly.
“I will plunge into despair if ye choose to leave,” he went on, a faint, rueful edge to his voice, “but I would rather suffer that than bind ye to me unwillingly.”
The sincerity in his words struck her deeply.
“I want it to be yer choice,” he said. “Nae the council, nae some contract. Yer choice alone.”
The room felt very still.
“And ken this,” Ian added softly, his gaze never leaving hers. “Me heart is true. I want ye, and only ye. I would never betray ye or yer family.”
Arianna held his gaze, something within her finally settling into place. All the doubt, all the fear that had driven her from the castle seemed to loosen its hold. She saw him clearly now, not as a man bound by politics or hidden intentions, but as the man who had crossed the dark forest to bring her home. The man who had risked death for her and who now chooses her.
“I wish to remain yer wife, Ian,” she said.
The words were quiet, but they carried certainty. For a moment, Ian simply stared at her, as though he scarcely dared believe what he had heard. Then a breath escaped him, one filled with relief so profound it softened every hard edge of his expression.
