Page 26 of The Dream of Love
He took her hand and entwined it in his. “They will, lass. I love you, Remi. Never doubt that my family will love you as well.” He turned her to face him, taking a moment before the footmen came forward to open the door. “Ye’re my wife, and I meant every word of my wedding vows. I will love ye forever.”
He kissed her softly on the mouth, then laughed when he drew away and saw tears form in her eyes. “My family will think ye regret our marriage if they see ye crying.”
She shook her head. “They will understand it is because I am so happy. Adam, in all my life I never had this sort of acceptance. And now I am to meet your family. I know they will be as wonderful as you.”
She had barely spoken the words before two men and a boy came tearing out of the castle. The eldest threw open the door, hardly giving her a chance to descend before wrapping her in his big arms. “Welcome home, daughter!”
Adam laughed. “Now ye’ve done it, ye old goat. She will never stop crying now.” While Remi hugged his father back, Adam knelt and scooped up his nephew. “Rafe? Ye’ve grown into a strapping lad.”
The boy wrapped his arms around his uncle.
Adam then took a moment to toss Remi a wink.
She smiled back and stared at the two of them through her tears. The little one was a miniature of these Carstairs men, for Adam’s brother, the duke’s heir, had the same dark hair and blue eyes as Adam, and so did his son. This was Gavin Carstairs who went by the title of Marquess of Falkirk. He was slightly bigger and broader, but still quite handsome. As for their father, the Duke of Inverness, his hair may be grayer, but there was no mistaking the resemblance to all these men.
“Welcome to the family,” Adam’s brother said and glanced up at the sky that was now starting to turn a thunderous gray. “Ye made it just in time. Come inside quickly, for the rain here shows no mercy.”
She took his arm when he held it out to her, and they hastened indoors. “What do ye think of this pile of stones, Remi?”
“I think it is heaven. The furnishings are impressive, of course. But it is the smiles on your faces that makes me love this place. I cannot wait to hear all about Adam growing up here as a boy.”
The duke, who followed them alongside Adam and Gavin’s little boy, chortled. “Ye mean he hasna told ye anything?”
“Oh, yes. But I have only his version. To hear him tell it, he was a saintly child.”
The duke gave Adam a good-natured slap on the back. “I thought I taught ye never to lie.”
Adam grinned at Remi. “I may have exaggerated the truth a bit.”
“It’s good to have ye back, son,” the duke said, his own eyes now tearing up. “And Remi, ye’ll have to tell us how ye broke through those thick stone walls Adam built around his heart. Not that I doubt yer ability. It is easy to see why he fell in love with ye. Well, we’ll have lots of time to chat around the dinner table. But thank ye, lass. Ye have no idea the joy with which we received yer letter. Ye worked a miracle on this family.”
Gavin, sober and steady, nodded. “Ye made a dream come true for us, Remi.”
Adam now moved toward her and took her in his arms. “She was a dream come true for me as well. I always considered her beautiful and had a hard time resisting her.”
She cast him a playfully chiding look. “Hah! You hid it very well. None of us had any idea, least of all me.”
“I knew I loved ye for certain when ye ran into the confessional that day with yer fox.” He turned to his father with a smug grin. “Ye see, Remi saves wounded creatures…and she surely saved me.”
Rafe now looked up at her with big, sad eyes. The lad truly was an adorable miniature of his father, his dark hair a little more unruly and a tumble of curls, but his eyes were that striking blue. There was no overlooking how badly the boy missed a woman’s touch. She recognized it, for when had her own mother ever bothered with her?
Of course, Rafe’s mother must have loved him, but she had passed. Gavin was a widower and obviously tried hard to be all things to his son. Remi could see there was love between the two, for it was clear in the way the boy naturally went to his father and the tender way Gavin accepted him.
The duke understood her thoughts. “Remi, lass. Do ye think ye and Adam might settle here?”
Adam chose to reply to his father. “We’ll visit ye as often as we can, that I promise. But Remi and I have made a life for ourselves in Wellesford. We hope ye’ll come visit us, too. Ye’ll always be welcome, all of ye.”
“We would love to have you,” Remi added sincerely.
What went unspoken was the loss of their two brothers. She knew Adam would talk about them to Gavin at some point during their visit. She hoped he would also find the strength to talk to his father, for the old man obviously did not hold him to blame for the death of either of them. The war had taken his sons along with thousands of other young men.
But Adam’s nature was to guard and protect. Even though he was the youngest, he and Gavin must have been the biggest and strongest, and both had always felt responsible for their other siblings.
Once they were alone in their guest chambers, Adam drew her into his arms again and kissed her with deep longing. “I love ye, Remi.”
She caressed his cheek. “I love you, too. I have never been seduced in a Scottish castle. I think I will quite enjoy it…with you, of course. You are the only man who fills my dreams.”
“As you are the only woman in mine.” He emitted a laughing groan. “I should not admit how often my dreams were filled with you before we were married. But now I have you as my bride and I can say for a certainty that having you in my bed and in my arms is far better than agonizing over you in a fantasy.”
