Epilogue
On the night before the wedding, Iain and Claire enjoyed their last meal together as single people. After they had finished, Iain smiled at her and lifted her hand to kiss it. “This time tomorrow, we will be husband and wife,” he said softly.
“I can hardly believe it.” Claire felt tears pricking her eyes, and hugged Iain tightly, loving the feel of his firm body against hers.
She was still using her own chamber to sleep in until the wedding, but everyone knew that her relationship with Iain was not exactly chaste.
Indeed, even in public they would walk with their arms around each other, laugh and tease each other and occasionally kiss.
It was quite unacceptable behaviour in their level of society, but Iain was unmoved.
“If they don’t like it, they don’t have to look at us,” he said firmly. “This is my home, and soon it will be yours too, Claire. We are in charge here, and we will do as we please.”
Claire’s position had become a little awkward, since she was now elevated above the level of servant but not yet mistress of the castle. She was loath to interfere in matters concerning the staff, but when she heard that Iain was going to dismiss Lorna, she stepped in at once.
“But why?” Iain was puzzled. “She was doing her best to make your life a misery.”
“Agnes told me that she is supporting her sick mother and a much younger sister,” Claire replied. “I have no grudge against them. Give her a stern reprimand, Iain, and demand an apology, but give her another chance, please.”
Iain, who was sitting behind his desk while Claire was standing next to him pouring him a glass of wine, pulled her down onto his lap and kissed her tenderly.
“You are such a good woman,” he murmured. “I am so lucky to have you, and I cannot wait to make you my wife.”
Now Claire was standing before the mirror in her chamber looking at the woman gazing back at her who looked almost like a stranger.
When she chose the material for her wedding dress, Claire was overwhelmed by the choice of colours and fabrics that were available to her, so she settled for white velvet, with a pale blue satin sash and lace trimmings in the same colour.
She had wanted blue to match Iain’s eyes, even though she knew she was being silly and sentimental!
The dress itself had a modest round neckline, bell sleeves and a short train with a blue satin underskirt that showed through a slit in the front. It had been very quickly made by a team of four seamstresses, since Iain did not wish to waste any time.
Claire, however, wondered what all the fuss was about. “We are only having a small wedding,” she pointed out. “A pretty dress from the market will do.”
“Not for Lady Ross,” Iain said firmly. “Only the best will do for my bride.”
He would brook no argument, and Claire had been obliged to endure fitting after fitting as the dress took shape. However, now that it was finished, she had to admit that it was quite exquisite.
Agnes was helping Claire dress, since there had been no time to find and train anyone else as a personal maid for her. Now she stood behind her, smiling at Claire.
“Are ye nervous, my Lady?” she asked.
“Yes, Agnes,” Claire replied. “But I am not ‘my lady’ yet.”
Agnes laughed. “An hour willnae make any difference,” she said. “Ye look beautiful.”
“Thanks to you, Agnes.” Claire turned to the other woman and gave her a hug, much to Agnes’s surprise. “You have always helped me.”
Agnes blushed. “Ye are too kind, M’Lady,” she said bashfully. “Now I need tae go an’ see tae somethin’. Excuse me.”
She slipped out of the room and Claire sat down on the bed, trying to slow her racing heart. Now that the moment had arrived, she had just realised the enormity of her situation. She was tying herself to Iain Ross until the day she died, and in a way it was a terrifying thought.
Then she remembered the night he had rescued her, his gentleness and fierce protectiveness. He had been born to be hers.
At that moment, Claire caught sight of Rose’s letter, which had arrived that morning, and she picked it up and read it for about the tenth time because her sister’s words moved her so much.
Dear Claire,
I am so thrilled that you have found true love, as I have. It is so wonderful to wake up in the morning and know that you will be protected and nurtured by the devotion of the man of your dreams.
Cormac, Babs and I wish you every happiness, and my only regret is that I cannot be there to see you and Iain take your vows.
I hope that you are so much in love that waiting would be unbearable, and if so, I completely understand your feeling.
I love you, my dear sister, and I am with you in spirit on this day of days.
Your Own Rose.
Claire put the letter away and once more turned to the mirror, thinking about the woman who would have been wearing this dress had Claire not been there.
To her surprise, Morag Cameron had been very understanding, and had sent Claire a letter saying that she was glad that love had won out in the end. She had said that she always doubted that she could ever have made Iain happy, but hoped that Claire could.
Claire, touched by the missive, had invited her to the wedding, and she had accepted.
Agnes came back into the room and handed Claire a posy of wildflowers before taking a last look at her.
“The Laird will be proud o’ ye,” she said, smiling widely.
They proceeded to the castle chapel, where there were perhaps thirty guests, all friends of Iain and council members, and everyone turned to look at her and smile as she entered the church.
Claire saw Iain waiting for her at the altar, dressed in his clan finery, and he looked around and fixed his eyes on her, and the smile he bestowed on her reminded her of the sun coming out.
Claire’s heart was beating nineteen to the dozen as she reached his side, then he took her hand and kissed it.
“Claire, you look like a queen… my queen” he whispered.
Claire’s eyes were full of happy tears, so she merely smiled at him, and they turned to face the minister.
After he gave them the blessing, he proceeded with some readings from the bible, then invited Iain and Claire to make their vows.
This was the moment both had been waiting for, and Iain, who was going first, was so nervous he thought he might not be able to speak.
He cleared his throat and took her hands.
“Claire. From the moment I first saw you, I knew there was something special about you. The more I got to know you and the closer we grew to each other, I began to love you, although I was too foolish to realise it for a long while. It was not until my love for you was tested, and I almost lost you, that I knew I could not live without you. You are my life, my love, my everything.”
His eyes were shining.
Claire smiled happily. “Iain, you have no idea how long I have wanted to say these words. When we first set eyes on each other, I was afraid of you, but as I came to know you I realised that you are gentle, kind, and generous. You are my protector, my shelter, and my home.”
“I now pronounce you husband and wife,” the minister said, smiling as he motioned for Iain to slip a plain gold wedding band, which had belonged to Iain’s mother, onto Claire’s finger.
Iain shook his head slightly as he smiled at Claire. “I cannot believe it,” he whispered as he gazed into her honey-brown eyes. “Mine at last.”
Then, because she simply could not resist a moment longer, Claire threw her arms around Iain and kissed him passionately. They heard applause coming from the church, and when they looked around everyone was clapping, some even cheering.
Iain took Claire’s hand. “Come, Lady Ross,” he said proudly. “Our feast awaits.”
Claire sighed. “I am only hungry for you,” she said sadly, but her eyes were twinkling.
He chuckled. “You may eat your fill of me later, My Lady,” he said. “Now we have guests to entertain.”
The banquet was delicious, but seemed to take forever. There were endless congratulations to accept, hands to shake, people to greet, and after the meal was over, dancing.
Claire had never been able to practise dancing very much and considered herself very clumsy, but with Iain’s guidance, especially when she was in his arms, she felt more confident than she ever had before.
They stayed for another hour before Iain took Claire onto the dance floor, then they quietly slipped away, mounting one of the back staircases to reach Iain’s bedchamber.
Iain opened the door, then swept Claire off her feet and carried her over to stand by the bed, where he kissed her tenderly.
When they drew apart, she looked around the chamber, seeing it for the first time as her own.
This was where she and Iain would be spending their first night, and every night of the rest of their lives, together.
“Would you like some wine?” he asked.
“No,” Claire replied. “I want some husband first, because he looks very delicious.”
Iain chuckled, then they began to undress each other quickly, only just managing not to tear their clothes in their haste. When they were both naked, Iain lifted Claire and laid her gently on the bed, then stood looking down at her for a few moments, his expression infinitely tender.
Then he lay down beside her and breathed, “What did I do to deserve you, Claire?”
“It must have been something very wicked,” she said, smiling. “And I must have done something wonderful.”
“No more talking,” Iain said huskily. “I want to make you my wife in the proper way.”
Claire opened her arms to him and, for a moment, they did nothing but hold each other.
Iain, then, began to kiss his way down the side of Claire’s jaw, her neck, her breasts, all the while caressing her body gently.
He cupped her buttocks in his hands, and she arched her hips up to him, offering herself like a sacrifice to his desires.
She reached down between them and took his shaft in her hands, running her thumb over his sensitive tip while he worshipped her breasts, licking, suckling and kissing them.
“You are adorable,” Iain breathed. “I will never tire of making love to you, my Claire.”
Claire did not answer, but pulled his lips down to hers in a hungry kiss. She moved her hips from side to side, teasing Iain so that the pleasure she was giving him was so intense it was almost like torture.
He groaned, but not in pain because how could this woman he loved possibly hurt him? He leaned down to her sensitive bud and began to tease it, while reaching up and giving her nipples the same treatment with his thumbs and forefingers, until Claire was writhing with pleasure.
She gave a little squeal of disappointment when he withdrew from her, but when he kissed his way up her body and reached her lips again, Claire opened her legs and wrapped them around him, feeling his manhood rubbing against her wet and sensitive sex.
“Please, Iain,” she begged. “Please.”
“Please what, sweetheart?” he asked wickedly. “You have to tell me.”
“I need you,” Claire replied desperately. “I need you inside me.”
Iain kissed her, then abruptly rolled over so that she was on top of him.
Claire gave a little squeal of surprise and looked down at him with wide, startled eyes.
They had never made love this way before, but she was excited to try it, and she needed no instruction as she gripped Iain’s shaft again and stroked it firmly for a few moments.
She then sank slowly down onto him, watching his face as she did so.
“Claire!” Iain cried out his wife’s name as he felt the wet walls of her sex closing around him, and as she bent over him, he reached up to take her breasts in his hands again, squeezing them gently.
Claire felt powerful and dominant in the unaccustomed position, and she circled her hips forwards and back, up and down, watching Iain’s expression tighten with pleasure as she worked on him. She felt it growing inside her, too, felt herself climbing towards some incredibly high peak of sensation.
It seemed impossible at first, but as she felt Iain’s last, most powerful thrust she reached it, and wave after wave of rapture swept over her, making her shudder uncontrollably and cry out.
Iain reached his titanic climax at the same moment. As it hit him, he threw his head back and cried out Claire’s name, but this time he did not withdraw from her, instead spilling his seed inside her because now there was no more need for holding back.
Claire belonged to him, and he to her.
He pulled her down to lie beside him, and for a while they lay entwined in each other’s arms, cosy and content. Claire had an incredible feeling that she was in exactly the place she was meant to be, at the right time, with the right person, and it was glorious.
Claire looked up into Iain’s face only to find him gazing at her. “What are you thinking?” she asked, reaching up to run her thumb softly over his full lower lip.
He smiled. “I was thinking that I would rather be here than anywhere else in the world,” he replied. “And you?”
She hugged him, saying softly, “You read my mind. I was thinking exactly the same thing. We were both meant to be here, in this time and place, together.”
“We will never be apart again,” Iain murmured, wrapping his arms around Claire. “Ever.”
Thank you for reading my story!