A hundred knives carved into his heart at the thought. Even though he’d told Amber he was happy to wait, he hated feeling like this. Helpless. At her mercy. At the mercy of destiny.
His whole happiness depended on this rock. This silent, cold stone. He never felt this helpless and distraught.
He stopped himself from kicking the damn thing and walked out of the storeroom. He climbed the stairs and came out into the courtyard.
It was winter now, and the ground was covered with a thick layer of snow. The atmosphere had changed in Inverlochy since the Bruce had won the Pass of Brander. There were no more enemies in Scotland.
The MacDougalls had run to England, so had the MacDowells of Galloway, and the Comyns. There was still no peace with England, but that was a distant threat now. The Bruce had relaxed his forces in Inverlochy, and there were less soldiers here now, though the castle was still fortified and prepared for whatever was to come.
The Bruce had delivered on his promise and bestowed all MacDougall lands to the Cambel clan, which had suddenly made his family one of the most powerful clans in Scotland. Like the Bruce had promised, Owen had received an estate in Lorne, which he still hadn’t visited. As soon as he’d gotten better, he’d ridden to Inverlochy. There was no treasure or estate in the world that would make him miss the arrival of his bride.
After Kenneth’s death, Alexander MacKinnon became the constable of the castle, and allied clan members could come here for a rest during their travels.
Owen marched through the courtyard to the opposite wall. He suggested that while he was living here and waiting for Amber, he’d serve as the part of the garrison. The air was crisp, and the sky was blue and cloudless. The sun shone brightly, and the snow was such a brilliant white that Owen squinted as it hurt his eyes.
He entered the tower to climb the stairs and walk onto the wall to keep watch. Despite the more relaxed situation, they still needed to keep an eye out for any threats. Who knew if the English would decide to attack. There was no signed peace treaty yet.
Angus and Raghnall Mackenzie came to stand next to him. They watched the white vastness of the Highlands spreading before them and exchanged a few words. Then Raghnall glanced behind Owen, and a look of surprise and admiration appeared on his face. With a tightening in his heart, Owen turned.
His heart stopped. She stood there before him, alive and well and more beautiful than he remembered. She was dressed in a long, woolen cloak trimmed with fur. Under it, she had on men’s clothes: leather breeches that hugged her legs and tall boots. She wore a white woolen hat, and a single braid came out from under it.
Her big, slanted eyes were misted with tears. “Owen…” she whispered, and he felt like his body was filled with air instead of blood, and he was about to soar.
With the brightest smile, she crossed the space between them. But before she could hug him, she slipped right before him. She was about to fall, but he caught her and held her close to him.
“Thanks,” she muttered. “Damn ice.”
Without another word, and without paying attention to the Mackenzies and others staring from the courtyard, he brought her closer and hugged her.
His bride…
“Lass,” he whispered, inhaling her delicious scent, that exotic, mysterious sweetness of spices and fruit he only knew from her.
She felt both strong and fragile in his arms. She wrapped hers around his neck, and he felt something warm and wet against his cheek.
He looked at her without letting her go. She was crying. “Amber?”
“I’m okay,” she said. “I’m just so happy to see you… There were moments I thought I’d never— And I thought maybe you’d change your—”
He swallowed her words with his kiss, plunging into the delicious feast of her lips. The world stopped existing, everything disappeared except for him and his bonnie bride. She softened against him, setting his blood ablaze. He deepened the kiss, hungry for her, his heart beating painfully hard.
When he broke away, and she sagged against him, breathing harder, he said, “I was going mad waiting for ye. What took ye so long?”
She shook her head once and chuckled. “You know, trying not to get caught…or killed. Jackson almost choked me to death.”
Owen felt blood leave his face. “What?”
She grinned. “It’s okay. I won. You saved my life, again. I heard your voice in my head, and it gave me the strength to fight. I kicked him in the balls. He’s in prison now. So whatever you did telepathically, thanks.”
“Ye’re welcome, lass. Didna ken I did anything except tear my hair off my head. Any longer, and ye may have come back to a bald man.”
“I’ll take you in any shape and form.”
“I almost kicked the rock into dust in frustration. ’Tis probably a trench down there in the underground storeroom where I paced daily.”
She laughed, and the sound reverberated in his chest, melting the last tensions, reservations, and fears. She was truly here, truly in his arms.
“Come, lass.” He took her by the hand and led her down the stairs. “Ye must be freezing. I’ll warm ye up. There are less warriors in the castle now, so more spare rooms. The constable gave me a bedchamber, so ye and I have plenty of time together alone.”
They climbed down the stairs and reached the courtyard.
“I’m so glad you waited,” she said.
He looked around to see if anyone was watching, then he slowly ran his hand down her cloak and took a handful of her arse, though it was mostly fabric. “Let me greet ye properly, like I’ve wanted to all this time without ye.”
“And you think I’ll just stay with you in the same room without being married?”
He stopped and stared at her in astonishment. “What?”
“Just kidding.”
He shook his head, and in one swift movement, he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. Amber squealed and beat against his back with her fists. Without a care about who saw them, he clapped her arse. “Jesting, huh? Dinna give me—what did ye call it—a heart attack?”
“Let me down!”
“In a moment, lass. When ye’re in my bedchamber, and I’ve barred the door. I wilna let ye out even if the English come knocking again.”
He reached the small tower and quickly climbed the stairs to the first floor with his bonnie, precious load on his shoulder. Inverlochy Castle was a royal castle, and Owen took her to the room designated for honorable guests. It was where the Bruce would sleep should he come to stay. A fire burned in the fireplace, and it was warm and dry in the room. He set her down on the bed and stretched on top of her.
“I missed ye, lass.”
She ran her fingers through his hair. “I missed you, too.”
He kissed her deeply, settling his weight between her legs. He was already hard and aching for her. He undid the fastening on her cloak.
“Was it hard to say goodbye? To leave everything behind?”
She bit her lip. It was swollen from the kiss, and he ached to take it between his own teeth.
“My brother Jonathan helped me clear my name. Without him, it would never have worked.”
“Aye. Kin.”
“While we worked together, we grew closer than we’ve ever been. In the end, it was hard.”
“Did ye tell him ye were marrying a man born hundreds of years ago?”