Page 71 of The Return of the Heir

Chapter Twenty-Two

Twilight had taken hold by the time Alastair took Gwendolyn’s hand and led her upstairs to the laird’s bedchamber. Mrs Honey had insisted on feeding everyone a simple meal of cock-a-leekie soup with crusty bread and thick slices of cheese before letting them settle for the night. Alastair allowed no one to sleep in the spaces between the walls. He wanted no one else to know of the secret passageways for the safety of everyone at the castle. Instead the warriors would bed down in the great hall, the solar, the library, the drawing room, and even the chapel until the new roof could be built.

Gwendolyn’s heart thundered in her chest as Alastair closed the door behind them. Leaning against the door he turned his gaze on her. “I was so afraid I had lost you forever today,” he admitted, allowing her to see the fear in his gaze, fear he usually kept hidden from everyone. “I could not have survived losing you again. I am sorry, Gwendolyn, to have failed you. I promise to keep you safe, to protect you and your siblings in every way possible from this day forward. You are precious to me and I never want to lose you.”

“I forgive you, Alastair.” Her lips turned up with happiness. “But you must know by now that I am a fighter.”

“That you are.” He leaned forward and kissed her.

Sharp and bright, a thrill of expectation flashed through her as his kiss grew hungrier, more demanding. She gripped his shoulders for support as instinct took over. Her desire for him was simple, and yet complicated by all that they’d lived through. Brought together on their wedding day with great expectations only to have them ripped away, then restored years later when they were both older and more prepared for what life held in store for them. Her heart was beating so hard now she could feel it in every part of her body. “I never wish to be parted from you again,” she said boldly against his lips.

He pulled back. The emotions in his eyes shone bright. Faith. Hope. Love. Beacons that would guide them through the years ahead. “I love you.”

Those three words rippled through her, wrapped around her heart. “And I love you.”

He lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed. There, with only golden candlelight bathing their skin, they celebrated all they had, all they had reclaimed. Life had not been easy for either of them, and still they realised the gift they had been given in each other and this second chance at love.

With their hands, lips, and bodies they scaled the peak of their bliss, loving each other as only they could. Love drove them, racked them, enfolded them in its grace. And finally, when at last they lay together in a tangle of limbs, with the bedsheets tousled, and the warmth of satisfaction heavy in their veins, their new reality crept around them.

Alastair perched up on his elbow, glancing down at her. “My dearest, I believe there is something I forgot.”

Gwendolyn thought back over their lovemaking and laughed. “Nay, I’m fairly certain you covered it all, and quite well I might add.”

His lips twitched. “Once you answer a simple question for me, I’d be happy to cover everything again.”

She arched a brow. “And what question is that?”

He leaned closer, lowered his head and brushed his lips across hers. “Will you marry me, Gwendolyn Harris?”

Tears of happiness she’d never expected to feel all the days she’d been locked away in the tower filled her eyes. The same emotion swelled in her chest, filled her heart to overflowing as she struggled to find her voice. “Nothing would make me happier.”

“On the morrow?”

Gwendolyn laughed. “So soon? Mrs Morgan and Mrs Honey will not be well pleased at that, but aye. Tomorrow.”

He smiled slowly, his dark eyes finally peaceful and calm, as he kissed her again and made good on his earlier promise.