Chapter 22

CHAPTER 22

" O oh!" Lorna stood back and looked at her mistress with undisguised admiration. "Minna, ye look like an angel." Her voice was husky as she tried to hold back tears of emotion.

Minna's gray-blue velvet dress was stunning. It had a plain round neck and long sleeves that widened into a bell shape at the elbows, and the skirt fell from her hips to the floor. A matching belt encircled her slender waist, and she carried a bouquet of wildflowers. More flowers were tucked into her long wavy hair, which fell to her waist in shining waves.

"Thank you, Lorna." Minna's voice was shaking. She was entering into the biggest commitment of her life and she was terrified, but at least she was not going into the married state in ignorance. Lorna had sat down with her and explained what would happen in the marriage bed, and this had put Minna's mind greatly at ease. Although she had experienced a little of it when Gowan had pleasured her, the rest still sounded extremely frightening, but Lorna had assured that what went on was normal and could be very enjoyable.

"An' I can see that he is a very gentle man," Lorna said kindly. "A good man. He will take care o' ye."

Just before the wedding, Minna knocked on the door of the room where Gowan was dressing, but walked in without waiting to be asked, because secretly, she was hoping to find him naked. She was surprised to see him sitting on his bed, still only half-dressed, with his head buried in his hands.

"Gowan?" Minna asked anxiously. "What is wrong, my love?" She knelt down beside him then gently took his hands away and kissed them and looked up into his eyes. Shadowed by his hair, they looked almost black, and they were full of fear.

"I can't marry you," he replied miserably. "I can't marry anyone, Minna. Look at me. I am ugly and scarred. I am a damaged man. I have nightmares nearly every night, and I am not worthy of you. There is still time for you to walk away. Please do it. You deserve better than me." He closed his eyes, then looked up at her. "I will not let you inflict so much suffering on yourself. I am sorry, but I can't do it."

Minna gently stroked her hand down his shining golden hair. It was so smooth and glossy, the color of sunlight. His first words had stunned her, but as she watched the face of the man she knew she could not live without, she realized that she had to change his mind. Moreover, she found that she was not afraid, for she knew that she could set anything right with the strength of her love.

"You will only hurt me by leaving me," Minna replied, taking his face in her hands. She placed a soft kiss on his lips. "If I don't marry you, I will not marry anyone, Gowan. You say you are damaged? We are all damaged in one way or another.

I have nightmares too, about the time I nearly drowned, but you saved me. We can comfort each other, and that is what makes our union so perfect. If you are worried about your scars, rest assured that I am not, and if anyone insults you because of them then I will stand up for you. Always and forever. I have faith in the man I am marrying, and I am very proud of him."

She brushed his hair back from his face and gazed into his deep dark eyes. "You will marry me. If I have to have four guards drag you out of here all the way to the altar, I will, but please do not make me do that. I love you, Gowan. I love you with my whole heart. I want all of you. I want your children and I want to wake up beside you every day. I never want to be apart from you - not for a single day. Now - will you marry me?"

He looked at her in disbelief. "Minna, my love," he said huskily, "are you sure? I thought -"

Minna put her fingers against his lips. "I know what you thought, Gowan. You thought that since many people look at you and see only a scar, that I would be ashamed of you. Do you really think that I am so shallow? After all this time? After all we have been through?"

"No! No, that is not what I thought at all!" His tone was desperate as he reached out to her and pulled her into his embrace. "I have never felt worthy of you, Minna. I could not believe it when you accepted me."

"You don't want to marry me, then?" she asked teasingly.

He looked at her for another moment as if wrestling with himself, then burst out laughing. "Of course I do!" He stood up, pulled her with him, then kissed her hungrily, sweeping his tongue around her mouth to tangle with hers and taste her sweetness. He pulled away with great reluctance, but Minna pulled his head down to hers again, and began to rub herself against him, hearing him moan with desire.

Presently he pushed her gently away. "Minna, you are driving me mad," he said huskily, taking a step backwards. "We don't have to wait much longer now. A few more hours and we will be husband and wife, then we can do as we please, but you must let me dress, or I will turn up half-naked for our wedding!"

Minna looked at his wide, muscled chest, broad shoulders and the ripple of tiny muscles that ran down his stomach. He was beautiful, his scar was hardly noticeable, and even if it had been much worse she would still have loved him and wanted him. "If you want to come half naked I have no objections," she observed, shrugging, before giving him a wide grin and leaving.

Gowan sat back down on the bed and smiled widely. He had given Minna a chance to change her mind, and she had refused in no uncertain terms. Now he need have no doubts at all. He dressed quickly, and although he tried hard, he could not keep the smile from his face.

Gowan was waiting in the church for her along with the minister, servants and the villagers. The only representatives from the Darroch Clan were Andrew and Flora. There were no Lairds, no squires, and that was just the way Gowan and Minna had wanted it. Gowan would have agreed to anything Minna desired, but fortunately they agreed that they wanted nothing to do with those who had too much money and not enough compassion.

For his various crimes, Jamie had been transported on a long voyage to the Americas for thirty years, so he had been unable to attend, but nobody missed him.

Gowan gazed at Minna as she came nearer, and his eyes shone with admiration and love. What had he done to deserve this lovely woman? She was everything he had ever wanted and more. As he watched her curving hips, tiny waist and full breasts, his body stirred.

‘Oh, god,' he thought. ‘How am I going to get through the day? She is irresistible.'

"Still want to marry me?" Gowan whispered as Minna came to his side.

Minna was about to answer, but then she realized that he was teasing her. "More than ever." she replied, and as she looked into the dark depths of his eyes, she realized that she was looking at her future, and she was not afraid anymore. Minna could never have believed that after all this time she had finally fallen in love.

After all the nightmares she had suffered after her brush with death, she was with the person who cared for her more than anyone else. Gowan would protect her, love her, and give her the children she had always longed for. They turned to face the minister.

The wedding was over, and as they kissed after having said their vows, Minna's heart was overflowing with joy. "At last." she whispered.

"Thank you, Minna." Gowan stood still, gazing down at her, filling his vision with her image and fixing the picture in his mind forever. "Thank you for marrying me. Thank you for loving me."

They might have stood there forever if Lorna had not come to tap on Minna's shoulder. "Time tae go, Milady. We must start the feast, since everyone is starvin'!"

Minna giggled, then took her husband's hand and they moved out of the church to the cheers and applause of dozens of ordinary people. They were all wearing their Sunday best and their most cheerful smiles. They were all able to eat properly now, and they looked healthier and happier than they had done for a long while.

Many of the little girls wanted to be lifted into Gowan's arms for a kiss, and none of them seemed to mind about his scar. It was irrelevant; no-one really noticed it any more, and Gowan kissed the children without hesitation, much to their delight.

They all poured into the Great Hall, where a huge table ran down the center of the room, groaning with food. The children would have jumped on it at once, but they were restrained by their parents, who were also eyeing the feast lovingly. They were all waiting for the signal from Gowan to tell them they could dig in.

Gowan instructed the manservants to pour ale for the adults and milk for the children, and presently they were all in possession of a drink.

"I am so glad that you could all come and celebrate with us today," he announced. "This is the happiest day of my life, and I hope I can say the same for my wife."

At the word ‘wife' a great cheer went up, and Minna chuckled softly.

"Your wife agrees, M'Laird." she laughed.

"So, I say to you all - " Gowan raised his glass high - "Slàinte Mhath!"

"Slàinte Mhath!" came the joyful reply, before everyone took a long draught of their ale.

"What are you waiting for?" Gowan asked, laughing. "Help yourselves!"

The throng needed no second bidding, and surged towards the food, piling it onto the plates and taking no notice of the bride and groom.

"Come on," Minna grabbed Gowan's hand and began to pull him away from the crowd.

"Where are we going?" he asked, puzzled.

"Wait and see." she replied wickedly.

Minna led Gowan along a side passage and began to hurry up the servants' staircase towards their chamber, which was one floor above the celebrations.

"Why are we going this way? What about our guests?" Gowan asked, puzzled. "Will they not think us very rude?"

Minna shook her head. "We are going this way so that they cannot see us making our escape! I have known these people for a long time, Gowan. They love both of us, and I have no doubt they are wishing us well. Anyway, we have never cared what other people think, have we?"

Gowan laughed loudly as he followed her. "No, Milady. That we have not!" With that, he scooped her up into his arms and carried her, squealing and giggling, up to the door of her chamber, which he was surprised to find was standing open. He looked at Minna questioningly.

"I knew you would carry me," Minna explained. "So I decided to make it easier for you."

Gowan shook his head. "You know me too well, Milady," he remarked ruefully. They went into Minna's bedroom and he placed her gently on the bed. After that, he went to close the door. He turned the key in the lock, and for good measure he wedged a chair under the handle.

"Are you afraid I am going to try to escape?" Minna asked, giggling.

"No," Gowan said softly. "I am making sure we are not disturbed, Milady. This is our wedding day, and I want to make sure it is perfect."

Minna raised her eyebrows and pointed to the small table in the middle of the room. There was a small feast laid out there consisting of a little of everything that was spread out on the table downstairs as well as two bottles of excellent French wine. Gowan looked at it then turned away.

"Are you not hungry?" Minna asked, frowning.

Gowan lay down beside her on the bed and pulled her into his arms. "Not for food," he growled. "I have been waiting for this moment since the first time I saw you, Minna. I can't believe you are mine at last."

"And you are mine." she murmured, running her hand over his glossy golden hair. "I want to find out about this mystery that everyone has been hinting about. I want to be part of you, and I want to see you. All of you."

"I have never before fully bared myself to any woman." He sounded apprehensive as he rose from the bed and turned to face her.

"I am not ‘any woman,'" Minna pointed out. "I am your wife."

"My wife," he repeated in wonder, "I like the sound of that!" Then he began to remove his clothes, infinitely slowly, as if to tease her.

It was maddening, but Minna felt her nipples hardening as she saw, first his shirt, then his belt, and finally his kilt landing on the floor around Gowan's feet. At last he stood facing her in all his magnificent masculinity, and her eyes were drawn to that piece of him that was the most masculine of all.

Her mouth dropped open and she covered it with her hand, her eyes widening with astonishment and fear. His erection was proud and stiff, pointing at her like some monstrous weapon. "It - it is too big," she breathed. "It will never fit."

Gowan came over to the bed and gently pulled Minna to her feet. "Yes it will, my love. Trust me." He kissed her lips softly and began to undress her a little faster than he had undressed himself.

Her clothes flew in every direction as he peeled them from her body, tearing her chemise in his haste. When he stood back to admire her, he could barely stop himself from seizing her, throwing her on the bed then taking her there and then without a moment's hesitation.

Although he had seen her before when he rescued her, she had been muddy, disheveled, limp and injured. Now she was healthy, happy, and most important of all, she was his.

Her breasts were firm, round, and topped with erect, rose-tinted nipples. Looking down, he could see a tiny waist that flared out into curving feminine hips, between which was the little thatch of hair that hid the source of her womanhood. Her legs were long and shapely, and he could not wait to lie between them and bury himself inside her.

"Oh, God," he whispered. "You are everything I want and more, Minna. Don't keep me waiting any longer."

With that, he dragged her against him so that she almost slammed into him, but Minna did not care. If this was passion, she loved it already. They tumbled onto the bed and she grabbed handfuls of his thick hair, hearing a little grunt of pain.

For Gowan, the pain was mixed with the infinite pleasure of having Minna, his Minna, his wife in his arms. He had never felt this overwhelming need before, this hunger that could only be satisfied by her.

Gowan's hands and lips were everywhere, and Minna loved it as she began to imitate him, matching him kiss for kiss, touch for touch, moaning her hunger against his mouth, but soon it was not enough.

"Please, Gowan," she begged. "I want you so much."

Gowan looked down into her desperate eyes. She wanted him as much as he wanted her, but this was her first time, and he wanted to make it as special as he could for her. He had to ignore the urge of every instinct that was telling him to plunge inside her and spend himself.

"Just a moment," he whispered. He moved down her body, then spread her feminine folds with his thumbs and swept his tongue between them before gently pushing it inside her.

He spent the next few minutes tasting her, thrusting his tongue in and out of her, imitating the movement he would make soon with his shaft. While doing this, he teased her nub with his thumb, then moved his mouth from her entrance to replace it with his finger, using the same back and forth movement to make her cry out with pleasure.

He teased her most sensitive spot with his teeth, gently scraping and biting it until Minna was screaming. The pleasure was almost unbearable. She wanted to ask him to stop, yet she did not want to end the sweet torture. It was absolutely blissful. When he kissed her lips again, she tasted her own juices on his, and as she opened her eyes to look into his, she saw that they were full of love, the likes of which she had never seen before.

"Now." Minna begged. "I can't stand this torture any more, Gowan. Please."

He kissed her once more before finally guiding himself inside her, closing his eyes in relief. At last.

"Tell me to stop if I hurt you," he whispered.

Minna nodded, unable to speak. A moment later, there was a stinging pain that caused her to tense around him. Gowan stopped moving immediately.

"I am sorry, Minna," he whispered, and made to withdraw, but she wrapped her legs around his hips and held on tightly.

"Don't stop," she whispered. When he moved inside her again, the pain was gone, and there was only a delightful friction as he thrust again, and a feeling of fullness, as if she had not been complete until he was inside her.

Then, she began to tremble. Something was happening to her, something that felt like climbing towards a peak that she could not quite reach. She had to reach it, though - she had to see what was on top, and finally she did.

A wave of ecstasy crashed over her, spreading out from her core to every part of her body, making her scream and cling to Gowan so tightly that she would leave bruises on his flesh. She had thought that nothing could be better than what she had experienced when he pleasured her, but this was better - ten times better.

As soon as he was inside Minna, and her warm wet flesh closed around him, Gowan was where he had wanted to be almost since the first time he had seen her. He held back, waiting for her to set the pace, but when he broke the barrier of her maidenhead, he knew they were free.

He would hold the memory of her face in that first moment of ecstasy forever, and as the waves of his own fulfillment rushed over him, he realized that it was the fiercest and best climax he had ever experienced. This was the difference love could make.

Afterwards, Minna tucked her head between his chin and his chest, and as Gowan wrapped his arm around her, she found herself nestled against him, safer and warmer than she had ever been before. It was heavenly.

"I love you, Gowan," she murmured. "And I will never be tired of saying it."

Gowan chuckled softly. "You saved me from a life of misery, Minna. I will never stop loving you."

They were quiet for a moment, but suddenly the peaceful silence was broken by the sound of a loud grumble from Gowan's stomach.

Minna giggled as she rubbed a hand over it. "We must eat, husband of mine," she suggested, her eyes twinkling. "How can you make love to your wife if you have no strength?"

"I will find the strength," he replied with mock ferocity, then laughed and climbed out of bed.

Minna watched the movements of his trim, muscular buttocks with immense pleasure as he walked across the room to pour them both a glass of wine. When he turned around, his member was flaccid, but he saw the disappointment on her face and smiled wickedly.

"Don't worry," he chuckled, "He will soon be standing to attention again!"

They ate their fill, and drank until Minna felt a little bit tipsy. She looked up into his face and smiled. "Are you standing to attention?" she murmured softly.

Gowan took her hand and put it on his shaft. "What do you think?" he asked.

Minna had never felt anything quite like the object she was holding. It was firm and almost as hard as leather, but it was as soft as velvet on the surface. As she moved her hand she was amazed to see that Gowan was writhing as if in pain. Immediately she stilled, but he took her hand and moved it back to where it had been.

"Don't stop, please." Gowan whispered.

He clasped his hand over hers and showed her how to move it so that she was giving him the most pleasure. As he looked at his wife, seeing the wonder in her face, his orgasm hit him so hard that stars floated in front of his eyes for a moment. He drifted back down to earth then opened his eyes to smile at her.

"Are you all right?" Minna asked anxiously. "Did I hurt you?"

"The only time I have felt better was when I was inside you." Gowan replied, stroking her hair lovingly. "I am looking forward to a lifetime of this."

Minna looked into his deep dark eyes and almost wept with the love she was feeling. Her heart could hardly contain it all, and as she laid her head on his chest, she sighed in contentment. This was her place now, nestled against his heart. This was her destiny, where she was meant to be.

Gowan was drowsy, but he did not want to sleep while Minna was awake. This was the first day of their marriage and he did not want to miss any of it, but a moment later, her steady, even breathing told him that Minna had succumbed to sleep before him.

He laughed softly then kissed her forehead just as she sighed and draped one of her legs over his.

"Minna," he whispered. "Never leave me, for I could not live without you."

"I never will." she mumbled.

Then, sated with food and love, their bodies intertwined, they drifted off to sleep.