Taken By the Vicious Highlander (Taken by Highland Devils #5)

Extended Epilogue

Eight Years Later

Lilith sat on the edge of their bed, her hand resting gently on her swollen belly. The fire crackled in the hearth, casting warm, flickering light over the chamber.

The weight of another pregnancy was something she had grown familiar with, yet each time was different. Each time carried its own joys and fears, and this time was no exception.

She let out a breath, stroking the curve of her stomach, feeling the small but insistent movements of the life inside her. Their third child.

She should be sleeping, resting before the baby arrived, but sleep had eluded her tonight.

The door creaked open, and she turned her head to see Damon step inside. His dark hair was slightly damp, as if he’d just come in from the cold night air, his expression softening and darkening the moment his eyes landed on her and her exposed belly.

“Still awake?” he asked, his voice low and full of warmth.

“Aye,” she murmured, shifting slightly to make room as he crossed the chamber and sat beside her on the bed.

He reached out, his hand covering hers atop her belly, his palm warm and steady.

“She’s restless tonight,” he mused, rubbing small circles over her skin until it pebbled under his touch. A low growl vibrated in his chest, and Lilith gripped his biceps tightly, desire coursing through her at an inexplicable rate.

Resting her head against his shoulder, she smiled. “Like her faither.”

Damon let out a low chuckle, pressing a kiss to her temple. “If she’s like me, we’ll have our hands full.”

Lilith’s smile faltered slightly as a shadow of fear crept into her heart. Damon must have sensed it because his fingers curled around hers, anchoring her.

“Ye’re thinkin’ too much again, wife,” he said softly.

She sighed. “I cannae help it, husband. Even if this is our third bairn.”

Damon turned to face her fully, his expression serious now. “Tell me.”

She hesitated, then whispered, “I worry, Damon. I worry every time. The risks, the pain… but I also ken that I’ll do it all over again for ye. For us.”

Damon exhaled sharply, tilting her chin up so she’d meet his gaze. “Ye’ve given me everything, Lilith. Our home, our bairns… ye. I would never ask ye to risk yerself for another bairn, yet here ye are, ready to give me another blessing.”

His throat bobbed slightly, and his fingers traced over her knuckles.

“I will never take that for granted. But promise me, if it comes to it, ye’ll fight. Ye’ll fight for yerself, as much as for this wee one.”

Tears welled up in her eyes, but she nodded. “I promise.”

Damon kissed her then, slow and lingering. Pressing his body against hers, giving her what she needed. Everything she ever needed. Him.

He worshiped her, body and soul. Drove her to heights unimaginable, and remained the same man—true to his word, his actions speaking louder.

Their bodies moved in sync. The feel of him inside her, filling her with unchained desire and intense adoration, pushed her over the edge like never-ending waves crashing thunderously on the shores.

She would never get enough of him.

Sleep took them both, his arms wrapped around her tightly, the warmth of his body blanketing her completely.

Lilith woke up to the soft sounds of giggling outside the chamber doors, and Damon chuckled in her ear.

“They’ve been waitin’ ever so patiently,” he said.

A smile tugged at Lilith’s lips. “I’ll need an entire blanket to cover me these days.” She stretched out like a cat before sitting up.

Damon laughed again, standing and walking over to her to help her up. He helped her into her dressing robe, but his eyes never left her.

Securing the silken fabric at her waist, he planted a kiss on her temple. “Ready for the monsters?”

She raised an eyebrow. “Monsters!” she said loudly, eliciting raucous laughter from just beyond the chamber doors. “We dinnae have monsters here, husband!”

“Well then, how do ye explain this?” Damon asked playfully as he pulled open the door and their two children roared, walking in with clumsy feet.

“Och nay! Save me, husband! Save me!”

“I’m comin’, love.”

The playful roaring and growling subsided, the two children giggling uncontrollably as their father scooped them up and spun them around wildly.

“Again! Again!” the youngest, Fiona, said, her blonde, untamed hair bouncing up and down with each excited jump she made.

“I will outside, little monster,” Damon said, kneeling to her level. “I’ll race ye down there?”

“Aye!” their first born, Lachlan, hollered before setting off without warning.

“Hey! Ye cheated! He cheated, Lady McCallum, what do ye say about that?”

“I didnae see anythin’. Looks like he’s beatin’ ye, finally!” Lilith said loudly, and the echoes of their son’s gleeful squeal made both of them laugh.

Damon scooped up the youngest and took off down the corridor after their son, leaving Lilith to dress and join them shortly after.

She walked through her mother’s garden, her pace slow but steady. Their two children, a bright-eyed boy of seven and a fierce little lass of four, ran just beyond the gates in the wide open glen, their laughter ringing through the crisp morning air.

The boy proudly screamed, “I beat him! I finally, finally beat him!”

His younger sister gleefully praised him with cheers of her own, mimicking his movements.

Damon followed behind, ever-watchful, his protective nature never fading, though it softened over the years. He was a father who doted on his children, who lifted them onto his shoulders and told them bedtime stories of battles won and monsters vanquished. He was a husband who still looked at his wife as if she were the most precious thing in the world.

She had built a life with him, a life she once feared was beyond her reach. And though the fear of losing it still lingered in the shadows of her mind, she had learned to live despite it.

Lilith eased herself onto a bench just outside the garden with a sigh. Damon came over and sat beside her, their fingers intertwining naturally as they watched their children play hide and seek a few paces away.

“I received another letter from Ariah,” Lilith revealed, glancing up at him.

Damon raised an eyebrow. “Aye?”

“She’s well. Her daughter is growin’ fast—she’ll be five this winter.” Lilith smiled, remembering their last visit.

Ariah had settled into a quiet, peaceful life with Tristan, their past wounds having healed over time.

“She asked when we’d all visit next.”

Damon exhaled through his nose, thoughtful. “Soon, perhaps, if ye feel confident enough to make that journey. Just say the words, lass, and I’ll make it happen.”

Lilith squeezed his hand, her response a silent one, but he understood it all the same.

The morning faded into the afternoon as they all were tapped to play their parts in their children’s game.

“Maither is the princess!” their youngest shouted.

“Aye, and Da and I are the knights!” exclaimed their eldest.

“I wish to be the dragon,” Damon said defiantly, “and I believe Fiona wishes to be a knight, Lachlan.”

Their son considered the suggestion before shrugging with satisfaction. “Right, then. Fiona and I versus Da, the dragon, to save Ma.”

“Yay!” Fiona exclaimed, jumping up and down before her brother scolded her.

“Ye’re a knight—ye need to act like it. I willnae repeat meself, ye ken?”

Fiona blushed but nodded.

Lachlan nodded and then steeled himself for the challenge ahead.

Lilith and Damon’s eyes met, laughter playing at the corners, but they worked to keep their expressions serious.

“Ready? Go!” Lachlan cried out.

The chaos turned into fits of laughter and wild cheers of celebration when he defeated the dragon and saved the princess on his very first try.

Over dinner, he recounted every single move and sword stroke, using his utensils as his demonstration weapons—as if no one at the table had been there for the real deal. Fiona perched excitedly on the edge of her seat, eating up every morsel on her plate along with every word her brother said.

She loved him, and he was a great older brother to her. It made Lilith’s heart swell.

Damon squeezed her hand knowingly, intent on listening to their son but ever attentive to her as well.

That evening, as Lilith readied herself for bed, Damon leaned against the doorframe, his arms crossed, watching her with a look of utter devotion.

“Ye’re starin’,” she murmured, pulling the covers over her lap.

“Aye,” he admitted, unashamed.

She shook her head fondly, motioning for him to join her. He did, slipping beneath the furs and pulling her close.

His palm rested on her belly once more, his thumb tracing idle patterns. “I love ye, Lilith.”

She turned and looked into his eyes, knowing—feeling—the depth of his words. “And I love ye.”

Damon kissed her softly, reverently. “We have a good life, do we nae?”

Lilith smiled, her heart full. “Aye. The best.”

And as she drifted off to sleep in the arms of the man she had once fought so hard to resist, she knew—no matter the fears that lingered, no matter the risks—that she would choose this life, this love, over and over again.

The End