Page 79 of Highland Vows of Betrayal

Leaving the church, their guests threw rose petals over their heads, wishing them luck, and bagpipers led a path from the churchyard to the castle.

A lavish feast was prepared for them in the great hall, indicating the start of a new, happy life.

God, I love her.

The thought occurred to Noah strongly as they supped and celebrated with their guests.

“Well, brother, ye are a married man at last!” Ian came to his side and clapped him on the shoulder. “I wish I’d placed a wager on this a year ago. I would have won a large sum.”

“I am glad ye didnae,” Noah commented. Never did he think he would agree to such a marriage, but with Scarlett beside him, it seemed completely natural.

Eloise came up to Scarlett and kissed her warmly on the cheek then passed her a letter.

“Avery was sorry he couldnae come,” she explained, looking between them both. “He sends his best tae ye both and wished me tae give ye this letter. He hopes tae visit soon.”

Scarlett tore open the letter hurriedly. As she read the words, her lips spread into a smile.

“What does he say?” Noah asked, leaning toward her. She proffered the letter, so he could read it for himself.

There was one particular line that caught Noah’s interest.

“Unfortunately, there is some business I must attend to. I cannae go into detail, but suffice tae say, it cannae wait. I will deal with it and hope tae return soon, where I will congratulate ye both in person.”

“He doesnae reveal much, does he?” Scarlett said, turning to Eloise. “Do ye ken where he has gone?”

“I wish I did,” Eloise said, sitting beside Scarlett. “When I found him again, he would still nae tell me much of his whereabouts. He is a secretive one.”

“Perhaps he is trying tae protect ye both from it,” Noah concluded.

Something that both he and Ian had agreed on after the business with Athol was that Avery was a skilled swordman. For someone who was supposed to have run away from his father’s home when he was a teenager, he had excellent skills and appeared to be a trained soldier.

“He holds secrets,” Ian had said one night to Noah, shortly after his sling had come off. “Whatever those secrets are, there is danger in them.”

“I am certain ye are right.”

“Well, this is a celebration, is it nae?” Ian said and clapped his hands together, returning Noah’s focus to the feast. “Lady Eloise, would ye care for a dance?”

“Aye, why nae?” She moved to her feet, a great smile on her lips. Noah looked briefly between them both, wondering if there was some sort of spark there as they walked to join the other dancers.

Scarlett laid a hand on his arm and leaned toward him, whispering in his ear in such a way that he found himself thinking of her and her alone.

“How much longer do we have tae stay at this feast?”

“Ha! It is tae celebrate our union, ye ken,” he whispered back to her, turning their faces so he could look her in the eye.

“Aye, union indeed.” She raised an eyebrow. “Does that nae mean we arenae truly wed until we have…?” She broke off and cleared her throat, not quite saying the words.

“Well, perhaps we could sneak away for a short while and return later,” he suggested.

He checked no one was looking their way, but people seemed much more intent on staring at the dancers, making toasts and laughing together. Even Callie was enjoying a drink and being dragged to dance with one of the footmen.

Noah crept out of the nearest door with Scarlett behind him. The moment they were out of view of the others, he hurried for the staircase.

“Impatient?” she teased.

“Ye were the one who taunted me with what was tae come,” he reminded her.

They laughed and stopped on their way to her bedchamber. He pressed her into the shadows of a doorway, using the opportunity to kiss her while also hiding from a maid who scurried by, late for the feast. When the maid left, Noah drew Scarlett into her bedchamber.