Page 93 of Taken By the Ruthless Highlander
Bolting upright, he squinted through the shadows, half expecting to see his father lingering like a phantom. He swallowed hard, forcing the lump of uncertainty down.
Slowly, he slid off the mattress so as not to wake his wife. His body tingled, but it wasn’t from the cold. There was a shadow growing in the back of his mind that haunted him.
Morgana shifted and stirred as she settled on her side. Ryder let out the breath he had been holding in and dressed swiftly, the terror from his dream clinging to his skin. He stared at his wife, sound asleep in his bed, as dread pooled low in his gut.
He wrestled with images of her naked body skipping alongside visions of his mother begging his father to stop.
Raking his fingers through his hair, he moved to the door.
“Ye minx,” he growled, disgusted at himself for breaking his vow to never sleep with his wife.
His fists balled at his sides, he stormed out of the room.
32
“Oh my, I’m terribly sorry,” the maid gasped as she stepped into the room.
Morgana smiled sheepishly, pulling the covers to her chest to hide her nakedness. The door closed before she could utter a single word.
The flash of embarrassment was overshadowed by the joy swelling within her. She squealed into the pillow, feeling like she was floating in the air.
Throwing the blankets off her, she slipped out of bed and stepped into the golden beams of light. Their warmth seeped into her very soul as she stretched the sleep from her bones.
She had never thought she could be so content. It didn’t even bother her to find the bed empty; she’d grown accustomed to Ryder’s bouts of moodiness and vowed nothing was going to ruin her day.
She dressed quickly, eager to catch her husband in his study or maybe out on the pitch, practicing his archery. Either way, the thought of seeing him made her pulse quicken and her skin tingle. She craved to feel his lips on hers once again.
“Where are ye goin’ in such a rush?” Poppy called as she passed by the sitting room.
“To see Ryder,” Morgana answered as she paused to hug Poppy the moment she stepped out.
The world felt different to her, as if a light had been turned on. Even the colors seemed more vibrant than before.
“But if ye need me to do somethin’ for ye, tell me.”
“If ye could get me out of my studies,” Poppy complained. She glanced over her shoulder at the young tutor sitting on the couch, patiently waiting for her to return. “That would be fantastic.”
“When did ye get a tutor?” Morgana asked, her heart stuttering.
A wave of confusion and doubt washed over her. Was she spending too much of her time with Ryder? Is that why he hired a tutor?
She felt a pang of disappointment in her chest.
“Today,” Poppy answered. “Eloise is supposed to be here too, but I havenae seen her all mornin’. And it’s nae fair that I’m here when she’s nae.”
“Aye, ye’re right.” Morgana glanced down the hall, expecting to see Eloise poke her head out of one of the other rooms. “It’s nae fair. And as soon as I find her, I’ll let her ken that she’ll be stayin’ later with the tutor to make up for the hours she skipped.”
“Ye mean when the lesson is over, I can leave and she’ll have to stay?” Poppy asked, her eyes widening with hope.
“That’s right,” Morgana answered. “Dinnae ye worry yer little head. I’ll see this made right.”
She planted a kiss on the top of Poppy’s head and nudged her back into the room and to her tutor.
She shouldn’t help but smile. The fact that Ryder had hired a tutor for her sisters thrilled her. And the fact that he did not wait for her to ask made it even more special. Her heart swelled.
She didn’t have a real reason to see him before, but now she was eager to thank him for everything he had done.
As she approached his study, her heart drummed wildly. She felt as if lightning had struck her, causing every nerve in her body to tingle. The excitement and thrill of seeing her husband overwhelmed her as she lifted her hand to knock on his closed door.
