Page 77 of Only a Breath Away

I climbed up slowly and curled against his right side with my head on his right shoulder. “Stupid William Wallace.”

He said, “Aye, he was stupid. All the rage and ill-judgment of a young man who needs tae grow up. Which makes me wonder, where is Lochinvar?”

“Ha ha. He’s following your mother around, and General Hammond is giving her the silent treatment about it.”

”Och, I hope they can get through it. Can ye imagine m’mother without the calm influence of Hammie?”

“He is an excellent Lady Mairead wrangler.”

Magnus chuckled.

I said, “So Lochinvar just saved your life.”

“Aye, he did. Twas my blade that killed Domnall and Ormr, but I wouldna hae been able tae do it without him. Twas respectful that he allowed me tae take the final blows.”

“And he is a brother?”

“Aye, yet another bastard son of Donnan, an orphan with nae allegiances. Apparently Donnan had many sons and I am meant tae guard against them or for them. This is m’lot in life.”

“You’re so young to be the patriarch-guardian of this many sons.”

“Young? I am the age of ten men stacked upon each other. I was young when ye met me, but think on it, that time we spent in Edinburgh? That added forty-five years tae my life.”

“True, the time I was abducted in Scotland added fifty years to mine.”

“Ye daena look a day over fifty.”

I laughed. “I will pretend like you were joking.”

“I was, ye are more beautiful than when I met ye.”

“Really?”

“Aye, ye hae rounded verra nicely, ye hae gained stature, and ye are verra much the wiser.”

“Jesus Christ, this is either the greatest compliment I’ve ever received or I’m horribly insulted.”

He chuckled. “Ye would be insulted because I said ye were rounded from havin’ a bairn? Ye hae added pillows upon yer chest, handles tae hold ontae, but inside ye are stronger, ye hae gained stability, strength, and wisdom. I ken I can count on ye. They are all exalted compliments.”

“I suppose so… But you say you can count on me? You couldn’t before?”

“When a man first marries, he daena count on his wife, he only wants tae take care of her, tae protect her, and keep her. It takes some time for a man tae hae her grow tae be his equal, tae be someone he counts on tae keep him safe as well, ye ken — tis normal.”

I chuckled again. “I never thought of it that way, I think when I first met you there was a very protective thing about you and an anger when you couldn’t keep me safe, a desperation, but now I think you know that I am capable, yeah, I can see how that change happened. I think I’ve done the same thing, I grew to trust you.” I nuzzled my face against his skin and kissed there. “We ought to spring you from this place so we can sex it up.”

He said, “My captors mean tae keep me til the morn. We will hae tae wait, but also I am on pain medication and canna feel this whole middle area.” He waved his hand around his crotch. “Ye winna like tae sex me up, I will be boring.”

“Stupid William Wallace.”

“Aye.”

We sat quietly for a moment. Then he said, “Where will we live, mo reul-iuil?”

“No more bad guys?”

“I daena ken if there are more bad guys, but I ken that Ormr and Domnall were made tae die at m’feet in a pool of their own pig blood and I think we ought tae count that as a win against all bad guys everywhere.”

“After all that drama, all we needed to do was bring in one of Donnan’s other bastard sons and have him be your second?”

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