Chapter 44
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
Leo wasn’t sure what time of day it was when he woke in his chambers, Beatrice's warm and naked body curled next to him.
Her eyes were closed. She looked so serene that he did everything in his power not to disturb her as he climbed out of bed.
Ye did what nay person in this entire castle thought could be done again, lass. Ye made a married man of Leo MacSween.
He found a cloak to throw over his nakedness, his entire body too sensitive and prickly for anything more. Clothes at the moment would choke him. Besides, he didn’t want to be away from Beatrice for a second longer than he had to be.
He could still smell her on his hands, could still taste her on his tongue. He couldn’t get the image of her bending to his will out of his mind, begging him to keep going. She hadn’t wanted him to stop. She hadn’t wanted him to tease her and make her wait the way he had.
Aye, but she loved it, didnae she? She wanted it all at once like a hedonist, and she loved me forcing her to slow down.
Walking naked through the corridors of his castle, his cloak covering just enough to be decent and not frighten away any of the maids he was hoping not to encounter, he felt a surge of power stronger than he had ever felt on the battlefield.
Beatrice was not a conquest in the way most men thought of women, but their coming together was different, and her willingness to surrender her body reminded him of the man he used to be.
I’ve grown so cold these past few years. It’s been so long since I found joy in anything.
He rounded a darkened corner without looking up… and crashed directly into someone, their slight frame stumbling backward and landing on the floor.
“Och, will ye watch where ye’re goin'?” he snapped, masking his embarrassment at the fact that he had been so lost in thought that he hadn’t seen whomever he had crashed into.
A playful snort followed by a laugh softened his mood. Tyler was sprawled out on the floor, shaking his head at Leo’s reaction.
“Forgive me, me Laird,” he said. “But I would have thought ye’d be a bit happier, having just come out of yer chambers.”
“Aye, lad. Daenae listen to me. Ye ken I can be a bampot.”
Leo reached down to help Tyler up. The man took his hand and got to his feet, subtly running his gaze over him.
“I was comin' to yer chambers to check on ye,” Tyler admitted. “I didnae expect to see ye out in the corridor like this.”
“I didnae expect to be out like this either, but I am starvin’, and I suspect Lady MacSween is as well.”
Tyler smiled at the use of Beatrice's title. Leo was shocked at how effortlessly it rolled off his tongue.
I must like sayin’ it. I like that she’s now Lady MacSween.
“How is the freshly minted lady?” Tyler asked. “Besides starvin’.”
“Asleep for the moment.”
“Aye, there’s a laird who’s done his job well.”
Leo laughed and clapped Tyler on the shoulder.
His hunger was forgotten for a brief moment, though he realized that neither Beatrice nor he had eaten since the day before. The normal comings and goings, the day-to-day functions, had fallen by the wayside in all the excitement.
It’s hard to be hungry when one is fightin' for their life against a traitor. Or makin’ love with such passion that food isnae where their appetites lie.
“Ye heard the news about Allistair, I presume,” Leo said, his mood darkening. “I didnae get the chance to speak to ye about it.”
“Me Laird, if I kent anythin' at all regardin' that traitor—”
Leo raised his hand, cutting him off. “Never in me life have I thought ye had an inklin' about it,” he promised. “I want to thank ye for bein' so loyal to me. For bein' the kind of man I ken I can trust and rely on.”
“Of course, me Laird. I pride meself on bein' that kind of man.”
“Do ye think ye’re the kind of man who would pride himself on bringin' the exhausted Laird and Lady a bite to eat?” Leo narrowed his eyes at him. “If ye can make sure there’s nay arsenic in it, of course.”
Tyler thumped his chest with his fist and laughed. “Aye, me Laird. I can find ye the freshest haggis and cabbage in the castle.”
Leo stepped back and then realized his cloak was hanging open. He quickly tugged it closed and shook his head as Tyler looked away, pretending not to have seen.
“And if ye daenae mind, send a maid up to me chambers to draw us a bath,” he added. “We’re in a bit of a state and could do with a bit of washin’ up.”
“Me feet have wings.” Tyler tilted forward in a diminutive bow and started the opposite way down the corridor.
Leo stood there for a moment as the man disappeared into the distance.
I am a lucky one to have such loyalty around me.
His mind drifted back to Beatrice, asleep in his chambers.
And such love waitin' for me.
He headed back to her, hardly able to keep his cloak on as he crossed the threshold and joined her in bed.
Beatrice blinked awake, unsure of where she was for a moment. This had happened too many times in MacSween Castle, but this time, she enjoyed the realization as it crystallized in her head.
I am in Leo’s chambers. I am in Leo’s bed.
She glanced around the room, and her heart lurched at being left alone again. It was hard to remind herself that this was different, that he must have just gone somewhere for a moment and would be right back.
The door opened as she propped herself up on her elbows. There was a split second where she contemplated covering her nakedness with a sheet, but before she even had a chance to, Leo walked inside, his eyes landing on her instantly.
“Me Lady,” he said, crossing to the bed. “I’m glad ye are awake.”
“I daenae remember fallin' asleep,” she croaked.
“Nay, that’s how it works when lovemakin' is done properly.”
He had a cloak wrapped around his shoulders, and he dropped it to the floor as he settled next to her. The sight of him naked made her head swim and her vision gray around the edges again.
It’s like I’m nay longer rooted to the earth.
She studied the ridges in his abdomen.
It’s like I’m floatin’ above it all, driftin’ on me own private cloud.
“Me entire life, I never imagined bein' with a man like that,” she murmured as they lay in bed.
She pressed her hand to his chest, traced the shape of it with the tips of her fingers.
“Ye ken how the ladies who have been bedded talk about it. Most of them make it sound like it’s just somethin' we have to do to keep the men happy.”
“Most men daenae care how lasses like the act,” Leo admitted, and she was surprised at how disappointed he sounded when he said it.
“I suppose if they get what they want, what difference does it make to them what we want?”
Leo wrapped her in his arms and trailed his fingers over her skin, lifting the goosebumps that had only recently receded.
“That might be most men, but for me, what I want is more than just me own pleasure.” He kissed her, softly this time, a delicate press of his mouth.
“I want to see me woman writhe and moan under me power.”
“Still a man, are ye?” Beatrice laughed.
But the thought sent a tingle to her core.
“I daenae want a lass who has to be forced into going to bed,” Leo said. “If ye enjoy yerself, then ye’ll want it as much as I do.”
“I do, Leo.” She pressed a hand to the side of his face and kissed him deeply. “I really do.”
“And that is why we belong together, Bea. Despite how much I resisted marriage, it was the right lass who brought me to it.”
He kissed her on the forehead and then lay back against the pillows.
Beatrice sighed and draped herself over him. Heat still simmered inside her, tremors rippling under her skin and begging for his touch to bring them to the surface. But there was also satisfaction, completion. She stared down
the length of his body, at his strong legs and soft cock, and let her mind drift.
I tried nae to succumb to fate, but in the end, it found me. I did me best to run from destiny and instead ran headfirst into it.