Page 57 of Highlander of Steel
“I didnae have much of a choice,” Ailis replied, a touch too bluntly. “Now, before everyone thinks I’m nae comin’, I should put on the dress.”
Before Paisley could say anything else, Ailis took the dress and disappeared behind the wooden privacy screen. And as her nerves began to jitter, she thought not of the icy water to chase them off, but of Killian kissing his way down her body.
Even laced with anger and confusion, that memory was more potent than anything else, leaving no room for tormenting thoughts.
Besides, as we speak, Killian’s man-at-arms is on his way to Castle Ainsley to bring Skye home.
She frowned, uncertain of when she began to think of Castle MacNairn as her home.
Killian stood in the doorway of the quaint chapel, his hand on the pommel of his sword as he surveyed the scene outside. Guards were stationed all around, some in full view, some hidden, all anticipating an ambush.
“Anythin’?” he asked the nearest man, a soldier named Rourke, who was his second-in-command in Peter’s absence.
Rourke shook his head. “Nothin’, me Laird. The scouts said they’d blow their horns if they saw any movement over yonder. Havenae heard a peep out of ‘em.”
“Doesnae mean they havenae run into trouble,” Killian pointed out. “It might just mean they cannae sound the horns.”
Rourke grimaced. “Aye, ye could be right. But the lads who came back this mornin’ said there wasnae movement from Castle Ainsley.”
“I’m nae sure that means anythin’ either,” Killian muttered, mostly to himself.
He couldn’t let himself forget what a crafty devil Laird Ainsley was. After all, nobody had noticed Murdock crossing the river to their side, when thereshouldhave been guards at every possible crossing.
That remained a mystery, all of his stationed soldiers claiming it was impossible, but Killian had left four dead bodies in the woods that argued otherwise.
Agitated, he went back inside, where a small congregation waited to bear witness to the unexpected union: a few of his councilmen and their wives, two of the maids who had been tending to Ailis, and the priest.
His gaze fell on the front pew as he moved to the altar. It was empty of all the people who shouldhave been there to witness his wedding: his mother, his father, his brother, and his friend Peter.
Faither, if this is the worst idea I’ve ever had in me life, would ye send me a sign?
Just then, the thud of hoofbeats and the rattle of carriage wheels drew his attention to the half-open door. Everyone inside the church sat up straighter, their heads whipping around, the mood tense.
An attack? Is this it?
Feminine voices relaxed his tight shoulders, the silence of the soldiers stationed outside allowing him to expel the breath he had been holding. Itwassomeone from Clan Ainsley, but it wasn’t a threat.
His bride had arrived, and only half an hour late.
Clearing a throat that refused to be anything but dry, his mouth sapped of moisture, Killian straightened up and waited for his bride to enter.
The doors swung wide to reveal a vision in jeweled red, dark as blood, her copper locks half pinned up by intricate braids and ornate hair slides, while the other half cascaded down her back in fiery waves.
She was breathtaking. Beautiful and fearsome, all at once. Not a pale and frightened damsel who needed saving, but a warrior queen who could fell a whole army with one vicious look.
When her eyes met Killian’s, however, they were neither warm nor frosty. Her gaze was almost resigned, the autumnal green dull instead of harboring its usual spark.
If ye’d allowed me to explain, ye wouldnae be lookin’ at me that way.
He knew he was responsible, knew that the way he had behaved that morning had given her the wrong impression, knew that he had hurt her with his distance. He had wanted to run after her, to reassure her that he didn’t regret what had happened, but he knew that nothing he had said at that moment would have gotten through to her.
So he had given her the space she had asked for. And now, here she was, walking slowly toward him, with Paisley at her side instead of her father.
“Ye look beautiful, lass,” he said as his bride stopped before him, Paisley putting her hand in his.
Ailis made a small sound that might have been a laugh. “I thought I’d wear somethin’ befittin’ the occasion.” Her throat bobbed. “Nay one will see any injury in this color.”
“Daenae say that,” he urged, his brow creasing.
