Page 37 of The Beast of the Highlands
“Mary!” Keira said shrilly. “I am quite exhausted. Take me to my chambers.”
Autumn feigned disappointment. “You are not going to attend the feast? But it is in your honor. One cannot have a feast for someone if they are not present.”
Keira glared at her. “I have lost my taste for feastin’.”
“Then I will look forward to our next meeting.” Autumn smiled. “And I wish you an excellent rest. You look weary, Lady Keira.”
Without another word, Keira stormed out of the bedchamber, trailing her monstrous skirts behind her. Mary hurried to follow, but not before Autumn’s hand shot out and grasped her by the wrist, stalling her swift exit.
“I thought you were my friend, Mary,” she whispered coldly. “I relied upon you.”
Mary kept her head down. “I daenae ken what ye’re talkin’ about.”
“I think you do,” Autumn pressed, showing considerable strength.
Mary finally lifted her gaze. “If ye want to blame someone, ye should look in the mirror. I’ve a duty to uphold and, much as I like ye, my duty isnae to ye.”
“And what of me?” Flynn cut in, his eyes darting to the door to make sure Keira was not eavesdropping.
Mary smiled sadly. “Iamupholdin’ me duty to ye, M’Laird. If ye want to keep the respect and adoration of yer clan, ye marry Lady Keira. A Scot. Have all the distractions ye like—I willnae say a word—but daenae lose sight of the future of yer people. And that future rests on Lady Keira’s shoulders… and within her womb.”
Autumn released the old woman as though she had burnt her fingertips on an open flame, flinching violently. Mary did not linger to be grabbed again and shot out of the doorway before Flynn could prevent her. It seemed Keira was already making allies, and Flynn did not want to make enemies.
“I knew she had discovered us,” Autumn said quietly, closing the door behind her. “I asked Leighton to watch her and send word to me if he found anything untoward. Mary must have concealed it well.”
Flynn tilted his head. “What do ye mean?”
“After… the evening in the library, Mary knew I had not slept in my own bed. I feared we might be exposed, so I asked your brother to help me. He must not have seen anything peculiar,” she explained. “But we must be more cautious. Evidently, Keira also suspects something, or she would not have ambushed me like this. There will be eyes upon us wherever we go.”
Flynn longed to pull her into his arms and press his mouth to hers, stripping her damp clothes away from her body until she was naked before him. He wanted to caress her, and hear her call his name, and feel her take hold of him and bring him into her slick warmth. He would have given anything to lock the door and carry her to the bed and make love to her until the sun came up. But her words made him fear what she would say next.
“What do ye want us to do?” he asked.
Autumn sighed heavily. “We ought to keep away from one another, for the time being. I will tend to my duties and you must tend to yours. We must maintain a façade of indifference, or Keira’s anger may be unleashed upon us. Certainly me.”
“I cannae,” Flynn urged. “I willnae.”
She lifted a hand to his face, stroking his cheek with her thumb. “You must, my love. And when the suspicion has eased, just as you promised, you may come and find me again, so we may resume where we left off.” She paused. “For if Mary finds my bed empty again, you may rest assured that I will meet Keira here again, and she might not be so restrained the next time.”
Her hand moved instinctively to the dagger at her waist, and the motion all but broke Flynn’s heart. For though Autumn could easily win a battle of words, he did not know how she would fare against the raw, unbridled physical rage of Keira Cranach. Nor could he guarantee he would always be around to defend his beloved.
But one thing was for sure; the enemy had come to his gates and he lacked the power to send them away.
24
Having never lain with a man before Flynn, Autumn was not prepared for the maddening frustration of abstinence. Every time she spotted him across the courtyard, or in the hallway, or standing outside Leighton’s study, she wanted to throw herself into his embrace and drag him down to the library.
As such, by the time three days had passed, almost a week since they had coupled, Autumn had taken to pacing and fidgeting. She had retired to her bedchamber early, as it was the easiest way to avoid bumping into Flynn or Keira, but she could not sleep without memories of that one night of exquisite pleasure coming back to taunt her.
“I ought to go home,” she told her reflection. “Or I should request a chamber in the chapel, so I may pretend I am in a nunnery. If I am on my knees praying, I will have no time to think of… Goodness, I doubt a woman should pray while she is blushing and thinking of her husband in such a carnal fashion.”
Whirling around in exasperation, she walked to her bed and flopped down onto the blankets. Her hands trailed across the soft material, imagining it laid across Flynn’s broad, bare chest. The two of them cuddled beneath it, their limbs entangled, their breath still harsh from the lovemaking they had just enjoyed.
I would have him spill his seed within me, this time. I do not care if my children are illegitimate, as long as they are ours, and they are loved.
Of course, she knew that was a foolish notion. Now that she had encountered Keira, thankfully only on the one unpleasant occasion, Autumn had managed to get a sense of the woman. Temperamental and quick to anger, there was every chance Keira would see any potential children cast out from this castle… if not something worse.
Indeed, if Flynn kept his promise to lie only with Autumn, then witnessing her pregnancy would likely drive Keira to the brink of insanity.
