Chapter 17
Once the two lairds had made sure that the bandits were driven off, they sent off a garrison of guards to pursue the them, ensuring that they would not be troubled again.
They were led by Hendry. Islay trembled, still shaking with fear.
Now that it was over, the vigor and courage that had overcome her faded away, and she was left with nothing but fear.
Her face paled. Iona whimpered and sobbed beside her, while Kirsten groaned in pain, still groggy from the impact of her fall.
Callum came to Islay and helped her to her feet.
“They’re gone now, Islay. They’re gone,” he said, pulling her close to him. She rested her head against his chest and closed her eyes, steadying herself against the strength of his body and the firm beating of his heart.
Guards and servants of the house rushed in to clean the hall and drag the bodies out.
Once Callum had received words that the bandits had been fully driven away, he ushered Islay away from the hall and took her upstairs where they could be alone.
Islay wasn’t entirely sure how much time had passed, but the day had given way to twilight, and the room was illuminated by candles.
They lay on the bed. Callum wrapped his arms around her, and she found herself whimpering.
“Ye know, ye are gaeing tae hae tae stop this habit of finding yerself at the mercy of bandits,” Callum said.
He spoke in such a way that Islay knew he was joking, but she wasn’t in the mood for humor.
She offered him a weak smile and averted her gaze, spreading her fingers across the broad expanse of his chest.
When he next spoke, his tone was more formal.
“I’m sorry ye haed tae see me like that.”
“Like what?” Islay asked, her voice light.
“The warrior side of me. The part that is in my blood. Sometimes there’s a beast that comes out, and I cannae control it.
It’s what I try tae fight against. It’s what I try tae be better than.
I dinnae want people tae think of me as some simple barbarian, and I dinnae want ye tae be scared of me. ” He let his head drop.
“I could never be afraid of ye, Callum,” Islay said, lifting her hand to his chin so that she could pull his gaze towards her.
“Whatever ye might think of yerself, ye are being tae harsh. Ye arenae a beast. Ye arenae fighting wildly. Ye are fighting tae defend the people ye love. Ye are fighting tae defend me. I know ye would never raise a hand against me or anyone who haes done ye no unkindness. Ye reserve yer wrath for those that deserve it, like the bandits.”
“Aye, perhaps ye are right,” Callum said with a heavy sigh. “I didnae want our wedding day tae happen like this. I wanted ye tae be happy. I fear we are gaeing tae remember it for all the wrong reasons.”
“I’m nae,” Islay said defiantly. Now that her emotions had settled and she’d had some herbal tea, she found herself growing more confident and levelheaded.
She found it easy to be that way when she was being held in Callum’s arms. “I’m gaeing tae remember that moment when we stood up there taegether and promised ourselves tae each other.
I’m gaeing tae remember that moment when we kissed and linked hands, and everyone cheered for us.
That’s something the bandits cannae take away.
They and whoever sent them tried tae steal our future, Callum, but they didnae succeed. ”
“What dae ye mean who sent them? I didnae think the bandits had a leader.”
“Before he took me by the neck, the bandit told me that they had been sent tae kill me, that there was a price on my head, and he was looking forward tae collecting the reward,” Islay said bitterly.
“What’s more is that he said someone had told him about the secret tunnels.
That’s how he was gaeing tae get away. I cannae believe that anyone would betray me like that!
And yet…I dinnae know why he would lie when he was just about tae kill me. ”
Callum stroked his chin and had a thoughtful look on his face.
“I wouldnae be quick tae believe anything a bandit said. Villainy and dishonesty runs deep in their heart. It wouldnae surprise me if he did that just tae torture ye one final time. I will think on these words and talk tae yer da about it, but I wouldnae worry unduly. Most likely, he was trying tae twist the knife even deeper intae yer mind. Bandits cannae be trusted,” Callum said as though it was a fact.
Perhaps it was, and perhaps Islay was letting the bandit affect her mood too much after he had died.
She pushed the thought out of her mind for a while, not wanting her thoughts to linger on the bandit for any longer than they needed to. Instead, she changed the subject.
“Yer brother looked tae be born from the same stock as ye. Where hae ye been hiding him?” Islay said, chuckling slightly.
Callum laughed and nodded. “Aye, he is a wild one, alright. He takes more naturally tae the anger inside than I dae. Da taught him well. He sees himself as a hunter. He spends a lot of time out in the forests. Sometimes he can be gone for days if he finds himself on a good trail. He was caught out there when the storm hit.”
“And ye didnae send out a search party?”
Callum smiled broadly. “Hendry can take care of himself. I learned that a long time ago. I used tae try tae stop him, but how can ye stop a bird from flying? I’m just glad he made it tae the wedding.”
“Aye, I look forward tae getting tae know him better.”
“I hope ye look forward tae knowing me better as well,” Callum said.
His voice took on a different tone, something deeper, and with more intent.
He shifted his body so that he was lying beside her and began to pluck the flowers from her hair.
Candlelight danced in their eyes, and Islay became acutely aware that the mood in the room had shifted.
“Oh, is there any more tae know?” Islay teased. Callum leaned his head in, and for a moment, she caught his scent, which made her skin tingle. One of his hands rested on her waist as he continued to take the flowers from her hair, ever so slowly and gently.
“I hae a few secrets that only ye will be privy tae,” he said as he took the last flower and threw it behind him.
Then, he started to unlace her bodice. She gasped as the dress was peeled away from her body.
Under the sheets, it was as though they were in a cocoon, shielded from the rest of the world.
It was a place of shadows, where forbidden things could take place.
Her breath deepened as Callum’s eager hands moved around her exposed flesh, touching her where nobody had ever touched her before. Heat flowed through her body.
“Callum…” she whispered.
“I hae been wanting this since I first met ye. My body burns for ye, Islay...” His words drifted away, silenced by a kiss.
She knew he told the truth. She could feel it in his bones.
As he undressed her, so did she undress him.
Where he revealed slender curves, she uncovered taut muscles and thick hair.
Gasps flowed between their kisses as she pushed away his clothes, her gentle fingers caressing his hard, passionate body.
Arousal twitched inside as her instincts responded to him, deep instincts that she could not ignore.
He had saved herself for him. All these years, he could have seduced any maiden he wanted and had his fun before marriage, but he had saved himself.
He was a man of honor, of honesty and loyalty, and it was these qualities that attracted her more than his brute strength.
His lips scorched her, and she yielded to his touch.
As they stripped themselves of the last remnants of clothing, they twined their bodies together, and this time they needed no rope draped around them.
His hands ran down her golden waterfall of hair, twisting his fingers around it before his hands ran all the way down her spine, bringing a feeling of lightning crackling across her skin as he did so.
She pressed herself into him, wanting to be engulfed by the flames of his desire.
She wrapped her arms around him and found that she settled naturally into his body, as though they had been made as one and were only now reuniting.
With every caress, he brought waves of delight.
With every kiss, she felt him groan and tremble, like a mighty mountain that would make the earth quake.
As their lips pressed against each other, his hands ran around her front, cupping her breasts.
Breath escaped her lips in one long rush as she trembled in his arms. Heat flowed from the middle of her body, and she could already feel it scorching the sweet spot in between her thighs.
Her hands drifted down too, down into the shadows.
She could feel his arousal pressing against her, as hard as iron, as hot as the sun.
When her fingers curled around him, Callum groaned more loudly than before, and he shuddered.
She continued to stroke and caress him, feeling the rivers of veins and the smooth tip, learning exactly what he liked and wanted.
While she did this, his hands continued their descent; his fingers moved with purpose, aiming directly towards her femininity.
He seemed to know just what he was doing.
He moved with confidence, and as soon as his fingers met the most sensitive area she possessed, it felt as though her entire body opened up like a blossoming flower.
Her neck arched back, her mouth opened widely.
It felt as though fire flowed through her, as though she was being transformed into a dragon.
She closed her eyes and could hear the thunder of her heart.
As she did this, her grip tightened around Callum’s manhood, and he seemed to like this.
He pushed her onto her back. Golden hair fell all around her.
Shadows danced upon the ceiling. Callum’s lips were affectionate and ardent.
The manly beauty of his body was illuminated in a soft amber glow.
She pressed her palm against his chest, and she could feel the hammer of his heart, while he withdrew his fingers.
She could feel the hot wetness slick against her skin as their bodies came crashing together.
It was the most natural, intimate moment.
Islay sighed as she wrapped her arms around Callum’s neck and then rested them against his shoulder blades, feeling the tremors and the movements of his strong body as he plunged into her.
She felt him inside and out, and it was as though she was being exposed to a whole new world.
She loved Callum more deeply and more intimately than before.
She was experiencing sensations she had never realized were possible before.
Her thoughts descended into sweet, ecstatic madness.
Pleasure bloomed and flashed and made her melt into a puddle of pure joy.
It throbbed inside her, pulsing with all the vibrancy of spring.
The heat was almost unbearable, and the world became a blur before Callum tightened his grip on her, and his breath became more fervent and frantic.
It seemed as though he let some of his savage energy out in love as well as in battle, but underlying it all was a tender and sweet love.
Their bodies were seized in a storm as the volcano erupted and the mountain crumbled.
Islay lay there, a dazed smile upon her face, melting into his arms. Their lips brushed again as their chests heaved.
Droplets of sweat glistened as the candles burned all around them, but Islay knew that none of them burned with as much heat as was contained within their own bodies.
They did not say a word for some time. There was too much on their minds, but at least the joys of the wedding night had not been stolen from them as the peace of the day had.
Islay rested her head and enjoyed the sound of Callum, her husband, falling into sleep.
Soft snores rumbled out of his lips; she knew it was going to take a little getting used to the idea of sharing her bed with someone else.
But soon she fell asleep as well, descending into slumber, drifting away to the sound of Callum’s breathing, looking forward to the thought that in the morning, he would be there.