Page 50 of Married to her Kilted Enemy

“Ye are, fer sure.” She paused for a moment, thinking. “Rowena is a lovely name. D’ye think if we have a daughter we could name her after yer maither?”

His face lit up, and he gathered her in his arms, kissing her hair. “Och, Maddy, I’d love that,” he breathed. “I dinnae deserve such happiness.”

“Aye, ye dae,” she told him, both moved and awed by the combination of loving gentleness and brutal, calculating strength that coexisted within him. The urge to make him happy was irresistible. “This would make a lovely nursery, d’ye nae think? Would yer maither mind if we made it into a place tae raise our children? If ye could bear tae change it, I mean.”

“I feel it in me bones that she’d be over the moon,” he said, hugging her more tightly, clearly deeply moved by her suggestions. “Now, come over here. I’ve got something’ I want ye tae have.”

He led her over to the dressing table with its frilled covering and opened a small drawer. He took out a velvet ring box.

“I want ye tae have this,” he said, opening it.

Maddison gasped. Inside lay a beautiful golden ring set with a large sapphire. It sent blue stars dancing around the walls as the candlelight reflected off its many facets.

“Och, it’s lovely,” she gasped, admiring it. “But I cannae accept it. ’Tis yer maither’s.”

“Yes, ye can. As me wife, me maither would want ye tae have it. Besides, it deserves tae be worn.” He took the ring out and, taking hold of her wrist, slipped it onto the third finger of her left hand.

“’Tis dazzlin’,” she whispered, showing it off. She gazed up at him and smiled. “I’ll always wear it. Thank ye, Odhrán. ’Tis the most beautiful thing anyone’s ever given me.”

“’Tis meant fer ye, Maddy, tae thank ye fer all ye dae fer me.”

“Och, c’mere,” she said, flinging her arms around his neck so she could kiss him. He embraced her fully, his lips warm, his kiss tender, and her heart was so full to bursting with emotion, she almost let slip the words she kept thinking but was still too scared to say aloud.

They lingered a while longer in the chamber, but then they grew chilly and decided to return to their own.

“Thank ye fer the ring, Odhrán, and fer showing me yer maither’s chambers. I ken how special that is, and I really feel honored that ye would share it with me. D’ye think she would have approved of me as yer wife?” Maddison said as he locked the door and replaced the key to its hiding place. Feeling almost shy, she turned the ring on her finger.

“I ken she would. She would have wanted me tae be happy, and ye make me happy, Maddy, so why would she nae approve?” he told her as they quickly returned to their chambers.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

When they got inside, they found a note had been pushed under the door. Odhrán picked it up.

“’Tis from Liam,” he said, opening it and reading the few scrawled lines. He frowned and dropped his hand.

“What is it?” Maddison asked, watching him.

“He says they searched for the soldier who attacked us, but they found naethin’. Liam reckons the man must have gone through the woods and had help getting over the wall. At any rate, there’s nae trace of him. Damn. I’d been hopin’ they’d find him, and that I could use him tae prove tae the council that Rollo’s behind the attacks.” His calm, happy mood was somewhat deflated by the news.

Maddison said, “I’m sorry, I ken that’s a big disappointment fer ye. But I’m certain there must be a way tae get the proof ye need. I feel certain the opportunity will come tae foil Rollo.”

“I like yer optimism, Maddy. I’ve nae choice but believe ye’re right. ’Tis frustratin’ though,” he admitted.

Before they got into bed, she checked the wound on his head and applied a little more salve. Then, they got in to bed and cuddled up again, finishing off their wine.

“I think ’tis safe fer ye tae sleep now,” she told him, seeing him yawn widely. “Ye must be exhausted.” She took his empty glass and put it with hers on the nightstand before they snuggled down in each other’s arms. Odhrán lay awake for a short while, reveling in the warmth of Maddison’s body next to his, feeling happier and more complete than he could ever remember in all his twenty-six years.

He mused on how things had changed so rapidly, hardly able to take it all in. He knew well the bitterness of loving and having that love returned with hatred. He had believed himself doomed to a miserable marriage to the one he adored with all his heart and soul.

But now that Maddison had let her guard down and admitted she cared for him despite their past, he found himself filling up with new, unknown emotions, as if a dam had crumbled inside him and let loose an ocean of happiness and fulfillment. He sensed he was at last becoming the man he had always wanted to be but had been forced to hide away.

Yet deep down, the fear lingered that it would all be snatched away from him in an instant. To prevent that, he knew he had to destroy Rollo, the only cloud on his horizon. Apart from one.

I just want her tae say the words… I want tae hear her say she loves me.

Maddison slept late the following morning and awoke feeling deeply content. But when, still fuzzy from sleep, she reached for Odhrán and found his side of the bed empty, she sighed, missing him keenly.

“Ach, he shouldnae be up and about with that wound tae his head,” she murmured, concerned that he might still be suffering from the effects of the blow. She sat up and sipped the cold tea from the tray that Jessica had apparently left for her on the nightstand. She turned the sapphire ring on her finger, admiring it once more and feeling a flush of pride at his dedication to being a good laird.