Page 91 of Seduced By the Reckless Highlanders
“You are a monster, woman!” Bernard burst out laughing, then he pulled her back into his arms. “But we have plenty of time. Remember, this is only the beginning of our journey.”
He sighed deeply with satisfaction. Life was perfect. He was exactly where he wanted to be, with the woman he loved in his arms, and he could see a long, sunlit road leading into the future.
“I am truly your wife now,” Janice murmured, as the realization hit her.
This was forever, and she was no longer afraid as she raised her lips for another searing kiss.
EPILOGUE
Two years after their wedding, Janice found that she was with child. Her courses had always been as regular as the moon, but after missing them twice, she consulted Cathy McLeod.
“My god, hen!” she remarked as she saw Janice for the first time in two months. She stood with her hands on her hips, looking the young woman up and down. “Either ye have been eatin’ out o’ the pigs’ trough or ye have a bairn in there.”
“Well, I can assure you I have not partaken of pig swill,” Janice assured her, laughing.
Cathy gave her a short examination, then looked up into Janice’s face. She had no need to say anything; her smile said it all.
Bernard was overjoyed. “I thought it would never happen,” he said in disbelief.
He caressed the first soft swelling of Janice’s stomach and then kissed it.
“When?” he asked eagerly.
“Spring, apparently,” Janice replied.
Bernard laid his head down on the little bump and sighed. “Do you remember when I said I had never been so happy?” he asked.
“Yes, on our wedding day.” Janice was contentedly stroking his hair.
“I think I might be even happier now,” he told her, laughing.
It should have been spring, but the weather had suddenly taken a turn for the worse, and the hooves of Bernard’s horse crunched over the frost-encrusted ground as he rode home. He had been called away to help with the lambing and had left the castle while there were still some daylight hours left. Now night had fallen, and he was weary to his bones. As well as that, the sweat of his exertion was beginning to cool, and he was freezing.
The stables had been warmed by the heat of the animals’ bodies, and the sweet smell of hay and horses smelled like perfume to his exhausted senses. Bernard dismounted from his horse with a feeling of utter relief, then stumbled inside the castle, where he was met by the small slim figure of Janice’s maidservant, Kitty. Her face was flushed, and she was more agitated than he had ever seen her.
At once, a wave of alarm swept over him, and he actually began to tremble with fear.
“What is wrong, Kitty? Is it Janice?” he demanded urgently.
He did not wait for an answer but sprinted to the stairs, taking them two at a time. His heart was beating a wild tattoo as he reached the top of the stairs and ran as fast as he could toward his bedroom, skidding to a halt outside it.
He turned the doorknob, then, as the door refused to open, began to rattle it frantically and bang on it with the flat of his hand.
“Janice! Janice!” he roared. “Let me in!”
The door was opened so suddenly that he stumbled into the room and almost took a tumble onto the floor, but he braced himself with his hands and got to his feet. Then his jaw dropped as he beheld the most beautiful sight he had ever seen.
Sitting in their bed was Janice, holding a tiny swaddled bundle in the crook of each arm. She was flushed and sweating, but there was a glow of absolute joy about her that rendered her more beautiful than he had ever seen her. It took him a moment to realize that the two blanket-wrapped forms were babies—his babies. He was stupefied. His feet refused to move at first as he stared at his new family, slowly shaking his head in disbelief.
Then, suddenly, he moved in three strides to the side of the bed and kissed Janice’s soft lips before looking down at the two tiny red faces of his children. They were both pulling faces and making tiny snuffling moans and grunts. Neither of them looked anything like the beautiful round, soft creatures he had imagined, but they were his and Janice’s. He was overwhelmed by a fierce protectiveness and knew that from this moment on, he would defend them with his life.
“Say something,” Janice said softly, smiling at him tenderly.
He could hardly speak because of the lump in his throat. “I love them,” he said, with a catch in his voice. “And I love you, my Janice. Thank you! Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
“I did not do it alone,” she reminded him, with a weary laugh. “I think I remember you having something to do with it as well.”
“You did all the hard work, though,” he pointed out. Then he chuckled. “And you were very generous. Was one child not enough?”
