Epilogue
SIX MONTHS LATER
“James Lennox!” Iris bellowed out the door, her hands on her hips. “Dinnae hide from me!”
James ducked behind the hut, holding in the laughter that threatened to give away his location. He knew that Iris was upset about the jest he had pulled on her this morning, and while he would pay for it when she found him, he didn’t mind.
That was one of the best parts of their marriage.
Crouching so she wouldn’t see him, he thought about the last six months with his wife. They lived on McGregor land, not far from the keep that he had spent his youth in. It had been a long discussion between them on where they would set down their roots, but James had been surprised when Iris had agreed to live in his lands.
“I cannae be a warrior all mah life,” she admitted one evening when they laid in bed. “I always thought I would, but now, I want more out of our life, James. I want a family.”
He did too. So they had moved to the village on McGregor land, and Ian had appointed his sister an emissary to keep the peace between the two clans. James himself was still training to be an advisor, wanting to spend his nights in the arms of his wife and not on the battlefield even though he had every chance to become a warrior for Irvine. The laird had in fact given him a warrior’s sword, but while James thought he would miss the chance to be the warrior he always wanted to be, he had realized that something was far more important in his life.
Iris. Iris was his life, his future, his world.
“There ye are!”
James barely had time to react before Iris clocked his shoulder with her fist, rubbing it nearly immediately.
“I cannae believe ye did that, James!”
He chuckled as he took her hand in his and pressed his lips to the reddened area.
“Do ye not like having a tiny lizard in yer bed, lass?”
She looked down at his breeks pointedly.
“I never said it was tiny.”
He growled at her and she shrieked as he pulled her against him, peppering her face with kisses.
“I will show ye just how tiny it is, lass.”
“James!” she laughed, the sound filling his heart as it did every time. “Stop! I have something tae tell ye!”
He paused, and she placed her hands on his cheeks, tenderness shining in her eyes.
“I’m increasing.”
For a moment he didn’t realize what she had said before it dawned on him.
“Ye’re…” He couldn’t get the word out.
She nodded as her eyes filled with tears. “We are going tae have a bairn before the winter.”
James swallowed the tears that gathered in his throat, pulling her tightly against him. He was going to be a father! The thought seemed to be laughable at best, but now his Iris was carrying a bairn.
“I…I dinnae know wot tae say,” he croaked.
“Tell me ye are happy,” she asked, snuggling against his chest. “And that will be enough.”
She had no idea how happy he was, how happy she made him.
“Aye, I’m happy, lass,” he whispered against her temple.
Iris sighed. “Well, ye will have tae tell Ian then because I cannae.”
James groaned and pulled away from his wife, thinking about his brother-in-law.
“I cannae. He will run a sword through me for touching ye.”
He and Ian were on cordial terms because Iris was so happy with him, but to know that he would be placing birthing a bairn on her in a few short months meant that Ian was going to detest him again.
“James!” Iris laughed. “Trust me. Mah brother is aware of wot we have been doing in our own hut. ’Tis not like I wed ye tae listen tae ye snore at night.”
Her jest made him grin, and he picked her up in his arms, carrying her back to their hut, the hut they had already made a wealth of memories in.
“Lass, I dinnae think yer brother thinks aboot me ravishing ye nightly.”
Iris laid her head on his chest as he carried her to their bed, depositing her on the furs.
“Nay, he probably doesnae.”
James joined her on the bed, kicking off his boots as he did so. Iris giggled as he slid his body against hers, the heat flaring in her eyes.
“Cannae we tell him when the bairn is born?” he murmured, pressing his lips along her jaw line. “He cannae run me through then.”
“He’s not going tae hurt ye,” she answered, angling her neck so he could have better access. “He loves ye.”
Love was such a strong word to describe his relationship with Ian.
“We will get Stephan tae tell him.”
Iris tugged on his tunic until he pulled it over his head. She sat up, pressing his shoulders into the bed.
“Well, if that is the case…” she said, roving her hands over his naked chest. “Then perhaps I should tell ye how happy ye are making me right now, James Lennox, and we will figure it out later.”
“I dinnae mind that,” he told her, placing his hands behind his head and letting her work on his breeks. He would never grow tired of having her in his bed, in his life. Her hands touched him with a gentleness that he thought he would never have from her, but it was more than just her touch that made him feel like he was a rich Scot.
It was the love she bestowed on him and the future that neither of them wanted but ended up with.
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