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The wedding day had arrived with a beautiful golden dawn. The sky was clear, and every member of his clan was in good spirits. Ian hadn’t seen much of Ainsly during the last few days, although he had been aware of her movements. He had allowed her the illusion of freedom, and he hoped she appreciated it. One wrong move and he would have no hesitation in putting her in chains. He had come too far to let anything threaten his new home, and he wasn’t going to allow a spirited woman to be his undoing.

The thought of marriage had never really concerned him as he had only ever been driven by one thought: to get a home. But now that he had a home in which to settle, it made sense to take a wife, and while Ainsly was wild, he liked the idea of taming her, like breaking a horse. She might buck wildly, but that was part of the fun. It would help maintain legitimacy over the clan as well, and the sooner she could give him a son to consolidate his legacy, all the better. Calan still had his doubts, but Ian was confident that nothing would go awry. Ainsly had made one thing abundantly clear in their interactions so far, and that was that she valued the wellbeing of her clan above anything else, even her own safety. She wouldn’t do anything while he had the power of the clan, and he had given explicit orders to Calan that if anything should happen to him, Calan should exact vengeance against the McLallen clan. If Ainsly truly valued the safety of her people, then she would be wise not to try anything dangerous.

He wanted to get the matter over with as quickly as possible, although it took a few days for the necessary arrangements to be made. The feast of triumph had claimed much of the stores of meat and ale, so more had to be carted in from nearby towns. It gave the McLallen clan a chance to get used to the idea of their laird being taken as their new laird’s wife. He didn’t mind waiting a wee while either, for he was sure his patience would be rewarded.

In time, the wedding day arrived. Ian stood by the throne, waiting for his bride to enter. The hall was filled with people, some of whom looked happier than others. Ian noticed the confusion on the faces of children, and remembered how many things had seemed confusing to him when he had been younger. Adult life hadn’t given him clarity, though, and it was a lesson they would do well to learn. This marriage was a display of strength in and of itself, and he hoped the children took the lesson to heart; otherwise, they would be useless to him by the time they grew up.

When Ainsly entered, all eyes turned to her, and even Ian had to admit his breath was taken by her beauty. His body went rigid with tension as the rest of the hall and everyone in it melted away, leaving only her. She wore an emerald dress, which was the same shade as her eyes. Her curled red hair flowed down her shoulders like a wave of fire. She wore a silver chain around her neck, which rested against the hollow of her throat. The dress clung to her lithe, slender body and accentuated the femininity of her figure. She held her head high, and he admired the look of pride upon her face. Her lips were soft and sensual, and she seemed to glide across the floor rather than walk. But when she joined him on the dais, he saw the anger burning in her eyes, and this amused him.

“Ye look beautiful,” he said.

“Thank ye,” she replied in a flat tone. Oh yes, he thought, a life with this one is certainly going tae be something tae remember.

He turned to the crowd and bellowed out: “I stand before ye all as laird of this clan, and I declare that I am gaeing tae make this woman my wife.” He gestured to Ainsly with his powerful hand. “I will protect her, I will make sure she never gaes hungry, and I will always love her,” he said, although he said the last vow in such a tone that it was taken as a joke by his men, who jeered and laughed. Ainsly winced, and he could sense the tension running through her body. He clasped her hand tightly. Instinctively, she tried to pull her hand away, but his grip was too tight. He smiled at her and took delight in the swelling anger and hatred that boiled inside her. He could torment her, and there was nothing she could do about it. One day she would break, and that day would be glorious.

“I stand before ye, and I declare that I am gaeing tae take this man as my husband,” Ainsly said, choking on her words. Her voice was thin and reedy, having lost all the strength she had displayed when she had first met him. “I will tend his wounds, I will keep his bed warm, and I will always love him.” She almost spat the last words, but Ian didn’t care. The most important thing was that she had made the vows. As far as the gods were concerned, they were binding.

Again, his men cheered, especially at the part where she said she was going to keep his bed warm. Calan came up with the strip of leather and wrapped it around their hands, tying them together. Once he was done, he declared that nothing could separate them. Ian glanced towards Ainsly, and neither of their stares wavered. He lifted his hand in triumph, and with his hand came hers. Where he smiled, her face was set in a stony expression, and her eyes swam with anguish. She was not happy at all, but one day she would be grateful that he had taken her to be his wife. One day she would realize how merciful he had been.

Ian wasn’t about to let Ainsly’s pouting stop him from having a good time. In fact, he took a perverse delight in pushing her to her limits and seeing how angry she could get. He feasted well and made a joke of pulling her hand away whenever she was about to eat. Tradition dictated that they should be bound by the leather until they went into the marriage bed, and that meant a whole evening of moving as one. Ian wasn’t about to miss out on a feast. He ate well and drank hard, and the keep was once again alive with the raucous sounds of a feast. Bards played merry tunes, and everyone was eager to have a good time. It was mostly his men who came up and offered them congratulations, and only a few of the McLallen clan offered them gifts. When Ian noticed this, he made it an order that all of them should come and offer their congratulations. What followed was a procession of narrowed eyes and grunted words. They were all bristling with tension, especially an older man who seemed fond of Ainsly. Ian had heard through tales in taverns about the old laird who had died four years ago and had left only a daughter in his stead. It was a tragedy, really, and only confirmed to him that he was meant to come here and rule. This keep was crying out for a strong hand, and only he could provide the leadership to make this clan rise again.

In time the hours of the night dwindled, and Ian’s loins were aching. He rose and jerked Ainsly up with him. She had been in the middle of drinking, and so wine spilled all over her table as her hand was jolted away. She glared at him but did not have the strength to resist when he strode away and declared that it was time to test her vow of keeping the bed warm. They walked out of the bubbling hall into the quietness of the keep. Ian laughed as he dragged her along.

“Ye cannae dae this tae me,” she said as they ascended the stairs and went into his room. He slammed the door behind them and looked at her directly.

“Ye are my wife now, and ye hae duties tae perform,” he said. In reply, she spat at him. Her saliva was warm, and it trickled down his cheek. He wiped it off and smirked.

“The more ye fight, the more it’s gaeing tae hurt,” he said.

“I dinnae care. Did ye really think I was gaeing tae make it easy for ye? Ye can make me say the vows, and ye can make me be ye wife, but ye cannae make me love ye!” she screamed. Ian pulled her close and whisked her around, pressing her against the door. His strength was such that he was able to lift her off her feet without much effort at all. She gasped.

“Are ye willing tae gamble on that, lass? We hae a whole life taegether, and I think ye may start tae change ye mind. Besides, hae ye already forgotten our agreement? If ye cannae convince me ye will be a good wife, then I’ll hae nae choice than tae banish ye from this keep, along with anyone else I think is nae worthy of staying. Is yer virtue worth more than the lives of the people in this keep?”

“Ye’re a monster!” she cried after a moment’s pause, and then beat her fists against him. They bounced off him like pebbles rattling down the side of a mountain, and as she pummeled him all he did was laugh. This enraged her more. She shrieked and started to claw, and her nails hurt more than her fists. He wrenched her away from the wall so suddenly that she lost her balance and staggered, still being dragged behind him because of the leather bonds that bound them together. He went to a desk and pulled out a knife.

Her eyes went wide with fear.

“What are ye…what are ye gaeing tae dae?” she gasped, her voice trembling. The anger upon her face had vanished, and now there was only fear.

Ian smirked and said nothing. He took the knife and made a single slash, cutting through the leather bindings. She looked down at her hand and waved away the leather, while Ian carefully unwrapped the material from his wrists. “We dinnae need this now that we are married. Ye see lass, ye may be ready for a fight, but the time for fighting is over. Ye are my wife, and ye hae a promise tae fulfill.”

He approached her with intent in his eyes. Arousal twitched in his body, and everything was on fire as he grabbed a fistful of her flaming hair and pulled her to him.