Page 33 of The Wrong Highlander (Highland Brides 7)

“Aye,” Conran said, and he did. He had to erase her memory of the first time with several good memories. It didn’t really sound a hardship. The first time may have been disappointing, but the situation had been unusual. The next time he’d find his pleasure, but not until he’d ensured she found hers several times first. It was a challenge, but now that he was thinking of it, one Conran was rather looking forward to. He could still feel her body closing warm and tight around him as he’d plunged into her. It had felt damned good. So much so that it had taken him a moment to recognize what the brief resistance he’d met had been. Evina’s scream of pain had helped him identify it, and then the whole situation had gone downhill fast, but the warm, wet glove of her body encasing his cock was something he would not mind experiencing again.

“By me guess ye have perhaps two weeks to do it,” Aulay commented, reclaiming his attention.

“Two weeks?” he asked with surprise.

“I should think ’twill take that long for Saidh and Greer, and all of our brothers and their mates, to get here for the wedding,” he explained. “Edith and Murine will need to find wet nurses. Their bairns are far too young for travel.”

“Aye,” Conran murmured thoughtfully, and then pointed out, “It’s going to be hard to woo Evina while she’s stuck in bed though. She was badly wounded and should no’ be up and around.”

“I guess ye’ll have to entertain her in bed, then,” Aulay said with amusement. “I’d suggest strip chess.”

Conran blinked. “Strip chess?”

“Aye, me Jetta particularly likes that one. Every time ye take one o’ her chess pieces, ye get a piece of clothing too, and ’tis the same for her with yer pieces.”

Conran’s eyebrows flew up at the explanation. It was hard to imagine Aulay’s sweet wife, Jetta, playing such a game.

“Come to see me if ye need any other ideas. I have many o’ them,” Aulay said with a grin. Murmuring, “Good luck, brother,” he closed his door.

Sighing, Conran turned away. He started out, headed for his room, but changed his mind halfway there.

Chapter 8

Evina remained silent after the bedchamber door closed behind the Buchanans. She didn’t know what to say. Her mind was awhirl with several different worries and fears.

“A baby running the halls again would be nice.”

Evina glanced up at her father’s words and bit her lip. “Could I really be with child?”

“Ye ken that better than I? Did he breach ye?”

“Aye,” Evina sighed the word.

“Then aye, ’tis a very real possibility,” he said solemnly, and then pointed out, “Ye can no’ let the child grow up a bastard, lass. No’ when the father is here and willing to marry ye.”

Evina closed her eyes briefly, and then opened them and blurted, “But he does no’ want to marry me, Da. I was no better than Betsy for him.”

“He said that?” her father asked aghast.

“Aye,” she said, and then grimaced and admitted, “No’ the Betsy part. I sorted that out on me own, but he apologized and said he was sorry. He’d thought me an experienced widow who would be happy for a dalliance.”

“Hmm,” her father murmured. “Well, I’m no’ surprised. He is a fourth son with little in the way o’ prospects. He probably assumed his suit would ne’er even be considered. That I would be like most lairds and demand a first son with a castle, lands and wealth of his own for ye.”

“Why?” she asked with surprise. “I am yer only heir and we could only live at one castle at a time. If we had two, one would always have to be left unattended.”

“Exactly me thinking,” he said wryly. “But for some, a lot is ne’er enough. They must have more.”

Grimacing, Evina lowered her head and peered at her stomach again, wondering if Conran’s seed had taken root. And if she could bear to have a husband.

“Ye’ll have to marry him, lass,” her father repeated solemnly. “Why do ye no’ give him a chance and see if ye might no’ like him? He seems a nice lad to me.”

“A nice lad?” she asked with disbelief. “He lied about who he was.”

“Did he lie, or did ye just assume he was Rory, and he did no’ correct ye?” the Maclean asked gently.

Evina’s mouth tightened. “He lied by omission, then.”

“He also saved me life,” her father pointed out. “And when he found out I’d told his brothers ye’d kidnapped him, he defended ye, assuring them he was here willingly.”

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