Epilogue

Three months later, MacMillan Keep

"Checkmate." Lyla scowled at the board as she toppled her king in submission. Daemon smirked. "That makes me twelfth win."

"At least I can still beat ye at cards." Lyla sniffed.

Daemon reached out to reset the board. Lyla was about to suggest they take a turn around the garden instead, when there was a knock on the door. Seconds later, Cai entered, holding a message scroll. "Word from MacLean. The king has made his judgment."

Daemon and Lyla both rose to their feet as Daemon took the message and broke the seal. He unrolled it. Lyla tried to read over his shoulder, but he was too tall. "What is the judgment?"

Daemon scanned the document. "It says that, fer starting the feud and embroiling the Firth o' Lorne in chaos, the king has decided tae imprison Laird Ranald in the royal castle, until such time as other arrangements can be made. A further decision on how tae maintain the peace between the two clans will come later, when the king has more time tae deliberate the matter."

Lyla heaved a sigh of relief. "And what o' Alayne?"

"She has been sent home, under the provisional guardianship o' Laird MacLean and a member o' the royal court." Daemon rolled the scroll back up. "She will be responsible fer overseeing the welfare o' the clan fer now."

"That is fair. She didnae seem tae be involved with the plans against me, or particularly interested in continuing the feud." Lyla smiled. Daemon understood. From their conversations, he knew that she didn't know Alayne well, but she was kind-hearted and generous enough to be glad the young woman wouldn't suffer too much for her brother's grief-stricken madness.

Daemon turned to Cai. "Is there any other information? Or any other messages?"

Cai shook his head. "Naething that I saw."

"Then I'd like ye tae give me a moment alone with Lyla."

Lyla thought she saw a flash of satisfaction or smugness on Cai's face, but it disappeared as he dipped his head. "As ye will, me laird." He turned and left.

Lyla waited until the door shut behind him, then turned to him. "Why did ye ask him tae leave? He could give ye a better game o' chess than I could."

"Aye. But he couldnae give me what I want most at the moment." Daemon set aside the scroll and moved toward her. His shoulders felt tight with apprehension, but his heart was light. He'd been waiting to hear what the king's judgment would be, in case it required further action on his part, to support Clan MacLean. But now that he knew the answer, it was time for him to move on to other matters.

Matters such as his relationship to Lyla, which had only grown stronger and deeper over the past three months.

He reached out and took Lyla's hands in his own. "Lyla MacDougall, I told ye once that when the feud between Clan Ranald and Clan MacLean was resolved, and I was nae longer needed tae aid Laird MacLean, then we would address what's between us."

Lyla looked up at him, her bright eyes full of hope. "Aye."

Daemon took a deep breath. "When I first spoke those words, ‘twas me intention tae ask yer faither fer permission tae betroth ye and court ye formally. But we've spent so much time taegether, and I ken that I'll nae ever find a lass I could love more than ye."

He reached into his pocket and removed the ring he'd placed there some days ago, waiting for the proper day. "Lady Lyla MacDougall, I've already received yer faither's blessing, so I will ask ye: will ye tak' this ring, symbol o' my pledge o' love tae ye, and with it, accept me hand in marriage?"

Lyla's smile was like the sun coming out from behind the clouds. "Aye." She flung herself into his arms and gave him a kiss that seared straight to his gut.

A familiar heat surged through Daemon's loins as the blood rushed to his manhood. His trousers grew painfully tight, his body aching for Lyla's touch.

Lyla's eyes met his, darkening with desire as his stiffening manhood pressed against her body. Her arms twined around his neck, fingers tangling in his hair as she molded her body to his and smiled beguilingly at him. "I am happy tae be yers, me laird. In every way."

Daemon smiled, lifted her slightly in his arms to guide her back to sit on the edge of his desk. Lyla spread her legs enticingly, and Daemon slid his hand between them, his erection hardening further as he felt the damp heat of her, already wet and wanting him.

Lyla's hand slid to his waist to undo the fastenings of his trousers. Daemon groaned as she coaxed his member free of the confining fabric. His body was afire with need, and the touch of Lyla's hand felt like it would drive him mad.

"Come here." He pulled her closer to the edge of the desk. The fabric of his kilt and her dress slid over his heated flesh, drawing a smothered groan from him. "Ye're such a teasing little wench."

In answer, Lyla pulled him forward, her legs going around him as she pressed their bodies together. Daemon shifted his position slightly, aligning himself with her entrance, then slid inside her, pressing deep into the welcoming heat of her velvety folds.

Lyla shuddered around him, her eyes going wide with pleasure and desire. Daemon loved how open and uninhibited she was when they made love. Everything she felt was evident on her face, and in her body's reaction to him, and the evidence of her pleasure only heightened his own.

He began to thrust, keeping the movements slow and gentle to avoid upsetting the desk too much. Lyla rocked with him, their bodies finding a rhythm together with an ease that felt as if they'd been lovers for years.

The heat built higher, pleasure lancing through him with every thrust, from the tips of his toes to the roots of his hair. Daemon felt his belly and his bollocks tighten as he neared his climax.

Then Lyla gave him an impish smile, and clenched around him, her body milking his shaft. Daemon almost collapsed as his release tore through him like a thunderstorm, exploding through his body like a blast from a cannon. He barely managed to stay upright as his release pumped into Lyla's body.

Lyla convulsed in pleasure, sending another shock through him as her own release took her and left her shuddering in his arms. Daemon held her as the pleasure crested through both of them, tinging his vision in white heat and fogging his mind with the intensity of it.

He came to his senses still holding Lyla, both of them slumped across the desk. The papers had been knocked into disarray, but he no longer cared. He could pick them up when he regained the will to move.

Lyla was looking at him with a radiant expression on her face, and a smile that made him think of traders who had just gotten a truly good bargain. Satisfaction that went soul deep was written on her face. Daemon lifted one hand to stroke her cheek. "What are ye thinking, love?"

Lyla's face brightened, and Daemon felt another rush of happiness. Love. It sounded so right. And now he knew he would be able to say it to her every day, for the rest of his life.

Lyla's hand caressed his jaw. "I was thinking that ye're nae more the devil's servant, fer ye're mine now."

Daemon laughed, joy filling him as he wrapped his arms around her. "Aye. I'm yers, now and ferevermore."

***