Highland Knight (25 page)

Avery frowned as they rode up to the church. It had been a long journey but not an unpleasant one. The weather had stayed fine and the men had been good company. What they had not been, however, was very forthcoming. She still did not know why Payton had sent for her. Her suspicions had begun to grow with every mile, no matter how often she told herself it was not fair and that these men did not deserve such unkind thoughts as she was beginning to have.

The sight of Anne and Therese at the door of the church pleased her. It also added to her suspicions. There was no reason she could think of for them to be there. She did, however, smile with honest delight when she dismounted and they hurried over to hug her in greeting. Thirsty from the ride, she readily accepted the drink they gave her, only to frown after taking a sip.

“This is, weel, different,” she murmured. “’Tis something like mead.”

Anne nodded. “There is mead in it, but nay verra much, for I ken that ye find it too heady a drink.”

“Verra heady, and I need a clear head to speak with Payton. Where is he?” she asked, and she took another drink. It was not bad tasting and served well enough to
quench her thirst.

“Waiting for ye in the church. He said we could visit with ye for a moment or two first.”

“That was kind of him.” She smiled brightly at the woman. “’Tis verra good to see ye. I have missed ye both.” She frowned at Therese, who was fluttering about and carefully brushing the dust from her skirts. “I shouldnae fret o’er it, Therese. Payton willnae mind a bit of dust and dirt.”

Therese removed Avery’s cloak and tossed it to a grinning Leargan. “God will.”

It took Avery a little longer than she thought it should to understand what Therese meant. “Oh. Aye. I suppose one ought to look as good as possible before entering a church. Mayhap Payton should just meet me out here.” She finished her drink, then tossed the goblet to Leargan, who neatly caught it even as she wondered what had possessed her to do that.

“Nay,” said Anne as she began to unbraid Avery’s long hair. “Ye will want privacy.”

“God wants my hair down, too?”

“The headdress will look much prettier if your hair is down and brushed weel.”

“Of course. That makes sense.”

It made no sense at all, a small part of Avery’s mind told her, but she did not feel inclined to heed it. Questioning the kind things Anne and Therese were doing could lead to discord, and quite suddenly, Avery did not want even the smallest hint of discord. For the first time since she had left Cairnmoor she felt happy. A part of her expressed some dismay over how sweetly v blindly happy she was, but since that tasted suspiciously like discord, she ruthlessly banished it.

“Do I look bonny now?” she asked Anne, lightly touching the wreath of flowers in her hair.

“Oh, aye, verra bonny,” replied Anne. “Happy about that, are ye?”

“Verra happy. Odd, but I am verra happy about the sun shining, too. And how bonny the day is. And how nice Leargan looks when he is grinning like a fool. Did I just call Leargan a fool? That wasnae kind of me. Sounds like discord.”

Anne began to tug her toward the church. “And ye certainly dinnae want any discord today.”

“Nay, none at all. Oh, look at that. Leargan is getting to the church before us. Is he going to talk to Payton, too?”

“He will be saying a word or two to the lad, to be certain. Come along, lass, ye can look at those flowers later.”

“But they are verra pretty.”

“Verra pretty indeed, but ye willnae wish to miss what awaits ye in the church.”

“Payton waits there.”

“More than that.”

“A surprise? I do love surprises.”

“I am glad to hear it. It may keep ye from wanting to throttle us all later,” Anne muttered as she tugged Avery into the church.

“She is weel away,” announced Leargan as he walked into the church and moved to stand next to Cameron.

“So she willnae be causing any trouble?” asked Payton.

“Nay, she is happy as a lark. Doesnae want any hint of discord, she says.”

“Good. I believe I will get back to my corner ere she sees me. In her current state of mind, such a distraction could cost us precious time.”

Cameron grimaced and dragged his hand through his hair as Payton made his escape. “I should have preferred her sensible.”

“’Twould have been nicer, but I think the lad is right to have anticipated that she would be a wee bit cross. She began to get verra suspicious as we rode here.”

“Why are there so many people here?” asked Avery as Anne brought her down the aisle. “Are they all going to talk to Payton?”

Cameron tensed when Avery finally saw him. She stared wide-eyed at him for a moment, then gave him a beautiful smile mat made his heart ache. He dearly wished she were greeting him so while she was sober.

“Greetings, Cameron, my dark-as-sin chevalier,” she said as she skipped up to him. “I think I am supposed to be cross with you.”

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her lightly on the lips, fighting the temptation to help himself to more. “But that can wait until later, cannae it, loving?”

“Oh, aye, we cannae have any discord in the church.” Avery squinted at the priest standing in front of them. “Oh, dear, have ye made me come to Payton and Katherine’s wedding? I think that might cause some discord.”

“Nay, not Payton and Katherine’s wedding,” he murmured as he gently forced her to kneel beside him before the priest.

“Oh, good, then I can still be happy.”

“I hope so, lass,” he murmured, and he signaled the priest to begin. “I sincerely hope so.”

Avery frowned as the priest began to speak. It all sounded familiar, but she was beginning to have a little trouble keeping her head clear. Her happiness was fading into a fog, and although the fog felt pleasant, too, she wanted that happiness back. The priest asked her something and she looked at Cameron.

“Say ‘aye,’ lass,” he urged her.

An irritating little voice in her mind urged her to hesitate, but she said, “Aye.” Each time the priest looked at her, she looked at Cameron, then dutifully repeated what he told her to. The way he smiled at her when she did as she was told eased the sense of wariness that was trying to shove its way through her sense of utter contentment. Questions brought discord, she reminded herself, smiling at Cameron again.

When Cameron tugged her to her feet, she felt dizzy and leaned heavily against him. She murmured her delight when he kissed her, then frowned when he pulled away too soon for her liking. There was a lot of talking going on, but everyone sounded happy, so she ignored it. Out of the corner of her eye, she was sure she saw Payton grinning at her, but then he slipped from view.

She looked up at Cameron. “I think my happiness is slipping away.”

“Ah, weel, mayhap we can do something to bring it back,” he said quietly.

“Oh? Do ye have some blackberry jam?” she asked; then she heard someone start to laugh heartily. It sounded like Leargan, but as she turned to frown at him, she stumbled and was caught up against Cameron’s chest again. “Oh, dear.”

“Is something wrong, Avery?” Cameron asked.

She looked up at him, but could not see him clearly. “My happiness is starting to feel verra odd, Cameron.”

He caught her as she slumped, and picked her up in his arms. They were married, and he was sure she had no knowledge of it at all. It was going to be just one more thing he would have to try to explain and, mayhap, apologize for.

“What did Anne give her?” he asked Leargan.

“Some brew that she uses to ease pain,” his cousin replied.

“Mixed with mead.”

“Makes it taste better.”

Cameron stared down at his unconscious bride. “I hope it wears off soon and doesnae leave Avery with an aching head. I was rather looking forward to a wedding night.”

Avery opened her eyes and looked around. This was definitely not her bedchamber. Her eyes widened when her gaze settled on a very familiar chair. Then memory began to return. She turned to look at the man standing beside the bed. Cameron looked decidedly uneasy. As more memories flooded her mind, she decided it might be wiser of him to look afraid.

“Ye got me drunk,” she snapped as she sat up to glare at him.

“Nay drunk. ’Twas a brew to ease pain,” he said as he handed her a goblet of cider. “We needed ye, er, amiable.”

She snatched it out of his hand and sniffed it. “I am nay sure I want to drink another thing ye serve me.”

“’Tis fine, Avery. I want ye sensible now.”

After tentatively sipping the drink, she decided it was no more than cider and drank it down. It cleared away the lingering taste of the last drink. By the time she thrust the goblet back into his hand, she remembered even more.

“Did we kneel before a priest?” she demanded.

Cameron nodded as he watched her. She was definitely awake and sensible now. She was also getting angrier by the moment. That she had slept through the wedding celebration would probably not make her any happier. He hoped she did not figure that out until they got a few things sorted out between them.

“And just why did we kneel before a priest?”

“He married us,” Cameron answered.

That was what she had suspected, but she was still stunned. For one brief moment she was filled with joy; then she realized that she had never even been asked if she wanted to marry him. He had not given her any of those words of love she had wanted. There was still the chance that he had married her because honor demanded it. Once he had realized his mistake about Payton and Katherine, he had begun to feel guilty about their affair, to feel that he had to do what was right by her.

“The look on your face, loving, tells me that ye arenae thinking verra kindly thoughts.”

“Kindly? Ye want kindly when ye trick me into coming here, then pour some poison down my throat to make me senseless, and marry me without even asking me? I am nay senseless now, and I am thinking that was a verra sly trick to play.” She gasped. “And Payton was a part of it, wasnae he? I can recall seeing him there.”

Cameron sat down beside her on the bed and tried not to be stung by the way she shifted away from him. “Avery, dinnae ye want me? I shall make ye a good husband.” He slipped his hand beneath her tousled skirts and stroked her leg, finding comfort in the way she trembled at his touch.

Avery told herself firmly to shove his hand away, but she only managed to place her hand on top of his, stilling it for a moment. The warmth of his hand against her thigh, however, was robbing her of her righteous anger, replacing it with the heat of a too-long-denied hunger. There was no denying that she wanted him, but this was wrong, she thought. A marriage had to have more behind it than his sense of honor and passion. While it was true that she brought far more than that to it, he needed to bring the same depth of feeling, or the chances of suffering from deep disappointments and unhappiness were great.

“Ye married me because honor told ye to,” she murmured.

“Nay,” he protested.

She ignored that and continued, “Ye knew I wouldnae accept a marriage for the reasons of honor and guilt o’er whate’er wrong ye think ye might have done me, so ye tricked me.”

He pushed her down onto the bed and sprawled on top of her, lightly pinning her to the bed. “Nay. I married ye because I wanted to.”

“Payton arranged all this, didnae he.”

“Aye, he did. It was his plan.”

“Because he felt ye should marry his sister since ye had bedded her.”

“Lass, ye would ken it for a lie if I told ye that our being lovers had naught to do with this marriage.” He cautiously began to unlace her gown. “’Tis nay why I married ye, nay the whole reason. Jesu, Avery, of course I want ye back in my bed. I ne’er wanted ye to leave it.”

Since he was talking openly, Avery let him continue to undress her. She ruefully admitted that she was so hungry for his loving, he could toss up her skirts and take her now and she would not complain. However, it would not be wise to interrupt him at the moment. There was the small chance that he might say some of those things she ached to hear.

“So, ye wanted the passion back,” she said, trembling slightly as he opened the bodice of her gown.

“Did ye nay miss it, then?”

He stroked the tip of her breast with his tongue, dampening the linen of her chemise and making her shiver with want. “A wee bit.”

“I swear, lass, I didnae marry ye just because honor demanded it.” He pressed his face against her breasts as he slid his hand up her leg to find the heated welcome he had missed so much. “Avery, I want to talk; I want to tell ye why I did certain things; I even want to try and tell ye what I feel; but, Jesu, I do want ye.”

That was promising, she thought. “Right now?”

“Aye, now, and every moment since two heartbeats after ye left Cairnmoor.”

“And then we will talk?”

“Aye.”

“Then, aye, Cameron. Please.”

She helped him in their frantic removal of their clothes. When their bodies met, flesh to flesh, she nearly wept from the beauty of it. She tried to touch him everywhere as he tried to touch her, but their need was too strong, too insistent. A soft cry of pleasure and relief escaped her when he finally joined their bodies, but she looked up at him in confusion when he did not move.

“Cameron?” she whispered, tightening her legs around him to pull him deeper within her.

He shuddered. “I just wanted to savor the feel of ye. It seems as if it has been a lifetime since I felt this pleasure.” He touched his mouth to hers and whispered, “’Tis like coming home.”

There was so much feeling behind those soft words, Avery lost what little control she had over her passion. Their lovemaking was fast, furious, greedy, and a little rough, but she kept pace with him. Their release was equally fierce, and as Avery felt herself
pulled down into its turbulent waters, she heard and felt Cameron join her. She was only just returning to her senses when he finished cleaning them off and crawled back into her arms.

“My wee cat,” he murmured against her throat, “do ye nay love me just a wee bit?”

Avery sighed and combed her fingers through his hair. There really was no turning back now. They were married and, if she was honest with herself there was no other place she would rather be. He may not have said any of those sweet words she ached to hear, but there was affection there. She could feel it in his touch, hear it behind his words. And perhaps, she mused, if she was honest with him, he might find the courage to be honest with her. He might not love her yet, but perhaps he needed to know she loved him; perhaps knowing it would free him to love her.

“Aye,” she said. “Nay just a wee bit. More than ye probably deserve.”

A tremor went through his body. Before she could decide what that might indicate about his own feelings, he kissed her with a fierce hunger that brought her desire stirring back to life. Then, before she could look into his eyes, he buried his face back into the curve of her neck. If she did not know better, she thought she would think Cameron was feeling just a bit shy.

“When did ye ken that ye loved me?” he asked, warming her throat with soft, warm kisses.

“Shortly before I let ye seduce me.”

If I recall that night—and I do, verra weel—I believe
ye
seduced
me
.”

“Then that should tell ye verra clearly that I am a complete fool for ye.”

“Nay, loving.” He teased the tip of her breast with his finger, then his tongue. “I hope ye ne’er feel yourself a fool for loving me. I ken I did things that hurt ye,” he began cautiously.

“Ye did, but ye ne’er asked me for love. ’Tis nay your fault if I gave it to you.”

“Mayhap not, but I kenned verra early in the game that ye were nothing like other women I had kenned o’er the years. I wanted the passion, loving. Jesu, I craved it. But I didnae want to need you. I lied to myself so many times.” He began to toy with her other breast. “I wanted nay more than an affair. Then I would send ye on your way and, aye, there would be regrets, but they would fade.”

“Ye did send me away.”

“I did and I regretted it from the moment ye walked out those gates. Of course, fool that I am, I told myself it was because the passion hadnae faded yet. I told myself it was to be expected that I would miss these bonny breasts.” He briefly suckled each one, then slid his hand between her thighs. “And what mon wouldnae miss this honey?” He slowly stroked her. “Or those soft sounds of delight ye make when I taste your heat?” he whispered, and he replaced his fingers with his mouth.

She tensed for the space of one heartbeat, then gave herself over to the pleasure he offered. He tortured her and she loved it. And when he finally gave her the release her body was shaking for, she heard him say three little words that sent her soaring even higher.

It was several moments before she could catch her breath, and she looked down at him. He was lightly kissing her belly and her fingers were still tangled in his hair. Avery wanted to deny what had just happened, what she had heard, but she could not.

“Did ye just say ye loved me?” she asked tentatively, wishing he would look at her.

“Aye.” He began to kiss his way back up to her breasts.

“I cannae believe ye told me while ye were doing that,” she gasped, torn between utter shock and an urge to laugh.

“Ever since I kenned I loved ye, I have thought about telling ye while in my favorite place.”

Avery gasped with shock, then felt herself blush, then began to giggle. “Ye are a wretched mon.”

He held her face between his hands and brushed his lips over hers. “But ye love me.”

“Oh, aye. Madly. Desperately. Voraciously.”

“That sounds much like how I love ye.”

“When?” she demanded as she nudged him onto his back.

“
When
?”

Cameron sprawled on his back and watched her as she kissed and licked her way down his body. Revealing what he felt had not been so painful as he had thought it would be. The rewards certainly made a little discomfort worthwhile, he mused, when he felt her long, delicate fingers stroke him intimately.

“When did ye ken ye loved me?” she asked, teasing him with quick, feather-light kisses along the hard length of his manhood.

“When I discovered the truth about Katherine. I sat there in the garden hearing Payton pull and trick the ugly truth out of her, and the only clear thought I had was, this was what I lost the woman I love for? Worse, at that moment I didnae think there was any way to mend the mistake I had made.” He closed his eyes as she eased him into the moist heat of her mouth. “I want ye with me, Avery,” he managed to say before he lost the ability to talk.

She toyed with him until he was sweating with need. Then she straddled him and slowly eased their bodies together. He grasped a thread of control and held her by her hips, gently holding her still as he filled his eyes with the beauty of her.

“I swear, I woke up every night in a sweat, thinking I could see ye like this, feel your heat around me, and then nearly wept when I realized it was naught but a dream.” He slipped his hand down to the place where they were joined and stroked her, watching her lithe body tremble with pleasure. “I do love ye, Avery.”

“And I do love ye, my dark-as-sin chevalier.” She leaned over him and lightly kissed his mouth. “And right now, I have a wish to ride.”

“Hard.”

“Verra hard.”

Cameron opened his eyes to find Avery still sprawled across his chest. He stroked her back and felt her move slightly against him. It was going to be a long, exhausting night he thought with a smile.

“I want to do so much for ye, Avery,” he murmured.

“Ye do wonderful things for me, Cameron.”

“Thank ye. but I wasnae referring to this.”

She propped herself up on her elbows and smiled at him. “This is quite enough to keep me happy.”

He gently brushed the hair from her face, and tucked it behind her ears. “And I
intend to make ye happy, to make sure that ye ne’er regret marrying this dark devil. I will give ye tine gowns and all the treasures a lass could want. I will.” He frowned when she placed her fingers over his mouth.

“Hush,” she whispered. “I want but four things from ye, Cameron MacAlpin.”

“And they are?”

“I want ye to love me as I love ye.”

“I do, lass, though I shall probably ne’er understand how I could be so lucky.”

“And I want ye to need me as I need ye.”

“I need ye as I need food and air.” He lightly stroked her slim hips. “I need ye to just face each day and ken I can survive it. Jesu, I need ye at my side just so that I can sleep at night.”

“’Tis much the same with me,” she assured him. “And I need ye to trust me as I trust ye, with my heart, my soul, my verra life.”

He could tell by the slight tension in her body that his answer was important. It was easy for him to understand why. He had made his mistrust of women all too clear, even striking out at her with it. Cameron knew he had been able to trust her for a long time, even before he realized how much he loved her; but he also knew he had never told her.

“I trust ye, lass. I have for a long time.”

Avery felt an urge to cry with the strength of the joy she felt, but she knew Cameron would not understand, so she just smiled. “And, I want ye to give me bairns.”

“I believe I have already begun to grant that wish.”

“Aye,” she patted his chest, “and a verra fine effort ye have made. I want some lovely black-eyed lads.”

“And I want a wee kitten or two.” He studied her for a moment, knowing that she would probably never understand just how much she had given him, and praying that he would never give her cause to regret her gifts to him. “And naught else?”

“Weel,” she laughed softly and gently nipped his nose, “a wee pot of honey now and then wouldnae be amiss.”

He turned her onto her back and sprawled in her arms. “I think blackberry jam would be better.”