Chapter 4

Annella was lying on her side, peering out the window of her bedchamber when she heard her door open. The sound made her immediately

close her eyes to feign sleep. She wasn't yet ready to get up and face the day, and not just because she hadn't slept much

in the night. She'd spent the better part of it reliving the walk from the blacksmith's back to the castle, the shared dinner

on the steps, the walk through the gardens and the kisses with Graeme. She'd spent the other part with Graeme's words running

through her head.

I would wonder that yer father would be willing to take from yer brother's inheritance to arrange another marriage fer ye.

Annella had never considered where the money for a new dower would have to come from. In truth, she hadn't even considered the matter of a dower. All she'd been thinking was that she would marry again, and this time to a man who would see her before signing the contracts, and therefore would most assuredly be willing to bed her and give her the children she'd always wanted. Otherwise, he wouldn't agree to marry her.

Graeme's words, however, had widened her focus to include how her father would manage to get her another husband. A dower,

and no doubt a rather hefty one. Not only did most people not know that her husband had left in the night after marrying her,

but absolutely no one except her knew that he hadn't even consummated the marriage.

A sigh almost slipped from Annella's lips before the rustle of movement as someone crossed the room reminded her that she

wasn't alone. Opening her eyes little more than slits, she saw Florie reach the washstand and pick up the empty pitcher there.

She quickly closed her eyes again as the maid started to turn back, then listened to her return to the door and pull it softly

closed.

Heading down to fetch water for my ablutions , Annella thought as she opened her eyes once more. Her gaze returned to the window where sunlight was just starting to reveal

the cloudy sky outside, but her mind immediately returned to what had been occupying it all night. In all good conscience,

she couldn't expect her father to take from MacKay and its people to pay a second, hefty dower for her. It would be terribly

selfish of her even to ask that... and Annella wasn't that selfish.

But where did that leave her? That was the question that she'd been pondering through the night. She'd only come up with two solutions. The first option was that she should confess that William had not consummated the marriage, but instead had cut his hand and spread the blood on the bed for proof of consummation before leaving their room. If she did this, her father could have the marriage annulled, and demand her dower back, allowing him to arrange another marriage for her using her original dower and without touching her brother's inheritance.

Of course, this would be a humiliating ordeal all the way around. Not only because the whole of Scotland would then know that

William had found her so unattractive that he hadn't been able to bring himself to bed her even once before fleeing on his

"pilgrimage," but also because she would have to be examined to prove her claim. Annella wasn't sure who would be appointed

to the task, but the King's doctors were all men and she cringed at the thought of the lot of them kneeling between her naked

thighs to poke and prod to find her maidenhead. Actually, the idea made her feel positively ill.

That left the second option, resigning herself to never having a proper husband or those children she'd always wanted, and

instead, living out the rest of her days as a widow at MacKay. Annella had no doubt that her parents would welcome her back

and allow her to remain. She was equally sure her brother, Payton, would let her remain after their father passed and he became

laird. But if she chose this option, it would not only be a husband and children she would need to give up on but experiencing

the passion and bedding that other wives and mothers enjoyed.

That was something Annella had never concerned herself with ere last night. But just the memory of those few heated moments with Graeme in the garden made her body tingle and shiver. It seemed terribly unfair that she would never experience those sensations again. What would have happened if he hadn't stopped? Where had the mounting passion been leading? Of course, Annella's mother had prepared her for the marriage bed, telling her what would happen. She knew the mechanics of it. But she wanted to experience the delirium and passionate explosions she'd heard about when she and her sister, Kenna, had listened in on the chatter between their cousin Jo and her friends some years ago. She'd thought it had all sounded silly and exaggerated at the time. Surely nothing could feel as good as they'd been waxing on about, she'd thought.

She'd been wrong, Annella acknowledged. She had been in something of a delirium last night, forgetting where and who she was

and that this wasn't proper at all, just craving more. It seemed incredibly unfair to her that she'd been six years married

and never experienced any of it. William hadn't even kissed her properly on their wedding night.

Sucking her lower lip into her mouth, Annella closed her eyes as she relived last evening's brief moments of passion.

Could just any man stir that passion in her, or was Graeme exceptionally skilled? She had no idea, but what if it was only

Graeme who could make her tremble and moan? It meant that once she left here for MacKay, she'd never enjoy it again. The thought

made her frown unhappily.

Perhaps she should try to get him to kiss her again... or even more. His touching her had been amazing and—Annella smiled crookedly at her thoughts, because the truth is she wanted to experience more... all of it. She wanted Graeme to bed her fully. That admission to herself was only a little shocking. After all, she was a married woman. Well, a widow now, she supposed. Whatever the case, no one thought she still had her maidenhead, so what matter was it if she lost it? Aye, she suspected she'd enjoy being bedded by Graeme, and at least then she would have memories to hold close over the next decades.

Of course, if it was as grand as she suspected it would be, Annella would rather experience those things more than once. But

she vowed not to be greedy. Just once would have to be enough. Or mayhap two or more times depending on how long she remained

here.

Now the issue became how to get Graeme to bed her. He'd certainly been very ardent in the garden. At first at least. But then

he had brought an end to the kissing relatively quickly, and apologized. However, in his apologizing, he'd also claimed that

once he'd tasted her, he hadn't been able to resist, or words to that effect. It was hard to recall his exact words. She'd

been in something of a state at the time. No matter though, the point was this suggested that he'd only stopped because she

was a lady, and that he was attracted to her.

Wasn't he? Annella bit her lip as she pondered the matter. Sadly, her husband's complete lack of interest in her on their wedding night had damaged her esteem terribly... and in a way that all her successes at running Gunn and its people could not mend. Which meant she had trouble believing that Graeme might find her attractive enough to bed.

Maybe he'd only been interested in her because it had been dark in the gardens, and he hadn't been able to see her properly.

Would he still find her attractive in daylight? Or had he even really found her attractive last evening? Perhaps he had said

what he had to be kind and he hadn't really enjoyed the kisses at all. Perhaps that was the real reason he'd stopped.

If that was the case, he'd hardly trouble himself to kiss her again, let alone bed her. Annella scowled at the possibility

and briefly considered the merits of blackmailing him into bedding her. She could threaten to seek an annulment and demand

her dower back if he didn't.

Having run the castle and worked the books these last six years, Annella knew that Gunn had been in a bad way when she'd married

William. Her dower had brought some desperately needed coin to the clan. It turned out that Gaufrid Gunn, William's father,

had not only not enjoyed being laird, he had, in fact, not been very good at it. Aside from some bad luck with inclement weather

damaging the crops two years in a row, he'd also made some very poor decisions that had left the Gunn coffers seriously depleted.

In fact, Annella's marriage to William when it happened, had basically saved the people of Gunn. That was part of the reason

that Gaufrid had stepped down and let William take on the mantle of laird a week before the wedding. Everyone had felt sure

the son would do a better job than the old man, including Gaufrid himself.

Of course, in the end, William hadn't been there to do the job, and Annella had performed it in his stead. Fortunately, she'd been damned good at it. She'd managed to bring things around so that if she reclaimed her dower, it would not leave them in dire straits right away, but it would leave them in an uncomfortable situation that could easily become perilous if anything unexpected happened before they could build up coin again.

That being the case, blackmail might actually work, she considered. Or at least it might have if her conscience didn't immediately

set up a squawking at the very idea of it. How could she even consider something so appalling? Did she really want to force

a man to bed her? Where was her pride?

Sighing, Annella rolled onto her back and stared at the material over her bed. She was taken with the idea of Graeme bedding

her. She really wanted more of those kisses. But blackmail did seem a step too far. She'd probably roast in hell did she dare

it.

Perhaps rather than blackmail, she could seduce him. The thought was a tantalizing one. The only problem was she had no idea

how to go about it. That wasn't something she'd ever even considered doing before. Heck, she hadn't even been kissed before

last night.

A married woman six years, and only now that her husband was finally known to be dead had she been kissed. That just seemed

to be her luck. Although that hadn't always been the case. She'd been very lucky growing up. She'd had wonderful, loving parents

in a powerful and wealthy clan. Her childhood had been quite happy.

It was only once she'd come to Gunn that everything had gone to hell. Between her absent husband, her miserable mother-in-law and feeling so alone, life had been wretched here. At least at first. Over time, successfully carrying the burden as chatelaine, laird and healer had helped her grow confident and self-assured enough to be able to deal with it all, including her bitchy mother-in-law. The question was, would that confidence and self-assurance aid her in seducing Graeme? Because she really did want to experience more of the pleasure he'd shown her last night before she returned to the bosom of her family.

Aye, she would seduce him, Annella decided firmly and tossed the linens and furs aside to sit up on the edge of her bed. She

was supposed to help Graeme take up his position as laird and make the transition smoother. It was why she couldn't leave

right away. Annella had no idea how he expected her to do that, but supposed she would find out. Besides, she had to face

him sometime, and it would be good to know how he reacted to her in daylight. She was afraid he wouldn't find her attractive

at all, which would make her seducing him more difficult. Not impossible perhaps, but it might call for large quantities of

uisge beatha and darkness to get the task done. Still, it was better to know so she could plan.

Nodding, she stood and walked to her chest to begin searching for a gown to wear.

"I think we'll stop and rest here a bit."

Annella glanced around at Graeme's comment to see that they were in a pretty little clearing at the side of a river. A spot she'd never seen in the six years she'd lived at Gunn. She had no idea where it was, exactly. She'd been deep in thought since leaving the last villein's cottage, trying to sort out whether Graeme might be attracted to her or not. The aid he'd wished from her this morning had been to take him around and introduce him to the villagers and villeins on his land. Something Angus had done for her after she'd married William and he'd left. Actually, it was something Angus could have easily done for Graeme too, but she hadn't said as much and had simply gone along with the request.

They'd ridden out after breaking their fast to start the tour, and had been at it for hours. By her guess it was around the

nooning now and she still had no idea whether Graeme found her attractive in daylight, or last evening in the gardens had

just been a moonlight-induced aberration.

He'd barely looked at her and had been quiet at the table that morning, leaving his friends Teague and Symon along with her

brother, Payton, to carry the conversation. They also hadn't talked much as they'd ridden out, and each time they'd stopped,

he'd concentrated on the individuals she'd introduced him to, so it was hard to tell what he was thinking or feeling in regards

to her.

"Lass?"

Pushing her thoughts away, she glanced around to see that Graeme had dismounted and was now beside her horse, holding his

arms up to help her down.

Managing a smile, she released the reins of her mare and dismounted. He caught her as she dropped toward the ground, and eased her landing. Annella murmured a soft "Thank ye" for it, then reclaimed her mare's reins and followed him to a tree to affix them to a branch. Graeme did the same.

"I'm afraid lunch'll be a rehash o' yester eve's meal," Graeme said apologetically as he moved along his horse's side. "Cook

did no' ha'e time to make aught ere we left. Except the bread. That's fresh made this morn. It was just finishin' when I collected

the meal."

Annella's eyes widened as Graeme moved to retrieve a sac she hadn't noticed hanging from his saddle. She was a little vexed

for not thinking of it herself. "Thank you fer thinkin' o' it. I myself did not even consider what we would do about the nooning

meal ere we left."

Graeme waved her thanks away. "I expected as much."

Annella glanced at him sharply. "You did?"

"Aye," he said with amusement as he now retrieved a rolled fur and led her to the edge of the river. "I was told ye ha'e a

tendency to ferget about things like the need to eat and sleep when yer about yer day."

Automatically taking the sac he handed her, Annella frowned with dissatisfaction at what felt like a criticism as she watched

him lay out the fur for them. But when he gestured for her to sit on it, she dropped onto one side and asked a bit irritably,

"Who said that?"

"Angus," Graeme answered promptly, taking up position across from her.

Annella scowled at the name. Angus was always acting an old woman around her. Fussing that she needed to eat and sleep more, that she'd make herself sick and so on. Or at least he had when he was her first. Now he was Graeme's first, she supposed... and telling tales on her like a child.

"And Tavis, Florie, Cook, Aiden, Brodie, Silas..."

Annella's mouth dropped open as he listed off name after name of the soldiers and servants who had carried tales about her.

But once he reached Silas, the blacksmith, she sat up straight and asked, "You talked to Silas?"

"Aye. This morn. I went down to the loch to clean up ere breakin' me fast, and stopped in on the way back to check on him."

"How was he?" she asked at once.

"Good, I think," he said reassuringly. "He was awake and talkin'. Had some color in his cheeks, but no sign o' fever. His

wife, Mary, said he was much improved and she's hopeful."

Annella nodded and relaxed a little. She'd meant to check on him this morn, but hadn't had the time. Graeme had told her of

his plan to have her take him around and introduce him to the villeins and serfs at table, and he'd wanted to leave the moment

she'd finished breaking her fast. She was glad to know the blacksmith was doing well. Still, she'd want to check on him for

herself when they returned.

"Mary and Silas are both very grateful to ye, and wished me to tell ye so," Graeme added softly.

Annella waved that away with a touch of embarrassment. It was her place to see to their welfare. She was their laird. Or had

been, she corrected herself with a sigh and then set down the sac he'd given her to hold.

They were both silent as they worked together to set out the fruit, chicken, cheese and bread. But when Graeme produced a skin, her eyes widened as she recalled the coughing fit she'd had the night before and what had followed.

"Mead," Graeme told her with a faint smile that softened as his eyes dropped to her lips and stayed there.

Annella swallowed. While his gaze was only on her lips, she was suddenly feeling overwarm and aware of every inch of skin

on her body as it all seemed to prickle under his attention. Despite her decision to seduce him, that wasn't her intention

when she suddenly licked her lips. It was purely because her mouth had suddenly gone dry.

In fact, she hadn't considered that the action would have any kind of effect on him until Graeme suddenly groaned and closed

his eyes, saying, "Oh, lass, ye're killin' me here. 'Tis hard enough no' touchin' and kissin' on ye without ye—"

His words died abruptly when Annella leaned forward over the food between them to place her lips on his. She just couldn't

help herself. His words proved he did want her in daylight too, and the memory of his kisses the night before, combined with

that fact just unleashed her impulses. Sadly, though, she had no idea what to do next. How to kiss him as he'd kissed her.

For one moment, they were just frozen, her lips pressed to his mouth unmoving, but then he let his breath out, caught her

by the upper arms and drew her to him across the food, even as he turned her so that he could press her down onto her back

on the fur.

Annella went willingly, her arms slipping around his back when he released his hold on them to brace himself as he came down on top of her. Then he was kissing her as he had the night before, his mouth devouring hers, and tongue exploring. Annella moaned as the remembered pleasure from last evening roared through her body. It was as if it had just been waiting on the edges to make itself known. It was also overwhelming and so delicious she wanted it to never end.

Recalling how he'd stopped their kissing the night before, she clung to him now, her body arching up into his even as he pressed

down into her. When she felt his knee nudge hers, she let her legs fall apart, and then gasped and writhed when he rested

between her legs and pressed his hardness against her very core through their clothes. The excitement that sent charging through

her was heady and she thrust back, thoughtlessly rubbing herself against that hardness.

Graeme broke their kiss to growl, "Lass," but that's as far as he got before she caught him by the ears and dragged his mouth

back to hers. He resisted for a heartbeat, and then kissed her more passionately, almost violently, his body thrusting against

hers, and one hand moving over her body. He found and caressed one breast through her gown, then released it to tug at the

neckline of the dress until her laces gave way and her breasts were exposed. Annella felt the warm breeze brush over her hardening

nipples, and then his hand was there, claiming first one and then the other.

Groaning, she wrapped her legs around his waist to pull his hips tighter against her as he caressed her bare flesh, then cried out when he broke their kiss to claim one erect nipple and draw it into his mouth. The sensation was so overwhelming that she almost missed his hand now dragging her skirts up, baring her legs then hips so that he could squeeze his hand between their bodies and find her center.

Annella froze then, gasping for air as he began to caress her core, his fingers moving cleverly over her wet warmth and drawing

more moisture from her. It was as if her body was weeping for his attention, she thought—and then lost all ability to think

when something began pushing into her.

This was it! Dear God! Her mother had told her what to expect from the bedding, and she knew this must be his manhood she

was feeling. He was going to claim her as her mother had said would happen. Her mother, however, hadn't told her how good

it would feel. In fact, she'd said it might hurt the first time, but there was no pain here, just pleasure. Graeme was still

caressing her at the same time, and her body was responding as it wished, writhing and shuddering even as her warmth closed

around his firm manhood, drawing him in and egging him on. Her hips were moving now too, thrusting into him, trying to urge

him deeper, and then all of the passion and heat that had been building in her suddenly seemed to pull tight before exploding.

Crying out, Annella clutched at Graeme and nearly wept as pleasure poured over her. Almost mindless at that point, she was wholly unprepared when something much bigger than what she'd thought was his manhood suddenly thrust into her. Her cry then was one of shock and startled pain as he broke through her maidenhead.

Graeme froze at once, fully planted in her and panting. He raised himself up slightly to peer at her stunned face with concern.

"Sorry, lass. I thought—I mean ye—William did no' e'en...?"

Annella shuddered slightly and shook her head. Humiliation flowing through her that he knew her secret, she closed her eyes

in shame.

Graeme pressed a kiss to first one eyelid and then the other, and when she reluctantly opened her eyes again to meet his gaze,

he smiled crookedly and said, "Lucky me."

Annella was still blinking at that when he slid one hand between them again and resumed caressing her. Her eyes widened with

surprise when the pleasure she'd thought killed by the brief pain of the breaching began to stir and stretch within her. When

he kissed her again, she responded tentatively at first and then with growing need. Graeme remained still otherwise, and simply

continued to kiss and caress her until she herself began to move, her hips shifting against him as her excitement returned

to full force. Then he too resumed moving, sliding himself out and then thrusting back in as she lifted her hips in time with

his. Soon, her humiliation of a marriage was forgotten and they were moving together, struggling toward the passionate explosion

she now knew waited at the end of this growing need and tension.

Annella broke their kiss and screamed her pleasure when it happened, a sound that was quickly drowned out by his shout when

he joined her a heartbeat later.

Annella was weak, trembling and as limp as a cloth doll when Graeme finally collapsed. Dropping onto his side next to her, he drew her with him as he rolled onto his back and arranged her so that her head rested on his chest and she lay half on top of him. He then wrapped one arm around her and kissed the top of her hair before letting his head fall to rest on the fur.

They lay in silence for a moment, each trying to regain their breath and then Graeme opened his eyes and peered at the sky

overhead. It had been gray all morning, but was more so now with the clouds darkening and threatening rain. He was thinking

they should probably head back to the keep, but wanted to sort things with Annella first. He hadn't planned to seduce her

today. He'd hoped to woo her a bit, and mayhap even kiss and caress her some more too, but not to take her as he had.

Graeme supposed he should have known better than to think he could play with fire and not get burned. It had been hard as

hell for him to stop their encounter the night before. He should have heeded that and kept his hands to himself today. Instead,

he'd taken her on a fur in the woods... and he'd taken her maidenhead too. That had been something of a surprise, although

considering what he knew of William, perhaps it shouldn't have been, he thought, and then moved on to thinking about the future

instead of a past he didn't understand.

The future was that he and Annella would have to marry. He'd breached her maiden's veil and poured his seed into her. She could be with child even now. Neither of them had a choice, which made him feel a touch guilty, because he was getting what he'd wanted. He wasn't sure how Annella felt on the topic. But Graeme knew she didn't like his mother and had been eager to escape to MacKay to find another husband. He may have just forced her into doing the very last thing she would have wanted. None of which mattered now, he told himself firmly. She could be carrying his son or daughter thanks to what they'd done.

That possibility in mind, he rubbed his hand over Annella's back and murmured, "We'll ha'e to marry, lass."

Annella stiffened on top of him and then pushed herself up to peer at him. "Nay."

The word surprised Graeme and he scowled at it. "Aye."

"Nay," she repeated insistently. "There's no need fer ye to marry me. I seduced ye."

A short huff of laughter slipped out that Graeme quickly cut off. He didn't want to upset or embarrass her, but found her

claim ridiculous. The lass had proven to be as inexperienced as a babe, though her enthusiasm and responsiveness had made

up for it. Still, he was the one who had done the seducing. "Lass, ye didna—"

"Aye, I did," she said firmly. "I kissed ye and seduced ye in the doin'"

Graeme peered at her with interest, as much for her accent as for the words. He'd noticed that her speech became more Scots than English when she was excited or distressed, so her slipping into Scots now told him how distressed she was. But that just made him smile. While it was true she'd pressed her mouth to his first, that was all she'd done. He was the one who had urged her lips open and turned it into a proper kiss, coaxing the passion to life in her. But before he could say as much, she spoke again.

"And then when ye tried to stop, I jest pulled yer head back and kissed ye again, stopping ye from stopping."

Graeme's smile widened at the claim. He supposed she meant when he'd stopped and growled "lass." It was true, he'd had a momentary

twinge of guilt that had urged him to bring an end to what was happening, but...

"And the seducing was even planned ahead," she announced.

That caught his attention, and he eyed her sharply as she continued.

"I mean, I had no idea that we'd be here in the clearing today, so I suppose 'twas no' fully planned," she qualified. "But

this morn as I lay abed, I did decide to seduce ye and get ye to bed me so I could experience a proper bedding before taking

on me widow's weeds and living out me days at MacKay."

"Widow's weeds and livin' out yer days at MacKay?" he echoed with disbelief. "What happened to ye wantin' to marry again and

ha'e bairns?"

Annella shrugged a shoulder carelessly. "As ye pointed out last night, I'm far too old to be desirable to wife. 'Twould take a lot o' coin to convince anyone to have me at this late stage, and that would be unfair to me brother. So, I've decided to tell me da I'm no' interested in marrying again and wish only to be allowed to live out me days in me childhood home in the bosom o' me family."

Graeme was sure his eyes nearly leaped out of his head at this news. Those comments hadn't been meant to convince her not

to marry, but in the hopes that she might think her options were not as vast as she might hope and to look more favorably

on him for husband. Obviously, that hadn't worked as he'd hoped.

"So ye see," she continued now, "this was all planned. I wanted ye to bed me, and there's no need fer ye to marry me. I'd

no' make ye do that. In fact, I do no' e'en want it."

"What the devil diya mean ye do no' want it?" he barked with outrage.

Annella appeared taken aback at the way those words exploded out of him. She considered him warily for a minute before reasoning,

"Well, ye do no' really want me, and I'd no' like to marry someone who was forced by circumstance to make the offer. Besides," she added quickly

when he opened his mouth to argue, "I truly do no' like yer mother. And yer brother Dauid is quite annoyin' too." She shook

her head. "I'd rather go home to MacKay, thank ye verra much."

Graeme scowled at her words. Truthfully, he also disliked his mother and found Dauid annoying. He considered saying so and

offering to have both of them moved to a cottage outside the gate, but before he could, Annella shifted on him, tugged the

neck of his shirt aside to reveal part of his chest, then bent her head to lick one of his nipples. The action, and the fact

that it actually affected him, startled Graeme so much that the words got caught in his throat.

"Mmmm," she murmured watching his nipple pebble from the attention. "There's no reason we canno' enjoy our time ere I leave though, is there?"

Graeme actually found himself feeling offended and glowered at her for the suggestion. Did she seriously think she could just

bed him and leave without consequence?

"Lass," he said firmly, catching her arms and holding her up and away when her tongue slid out and she would have licked him

again. He then just held her like that, scowling as he noted that he hadn't even removed his clothes, or hers either for that

matter. Her gown was gaping open on top leaving her breasts bare, and her skirts were presently caught around her waist and

hips, but she still wore it. He'd tossed up her skirts in the woods and had at her like an animal.

Clucking with irritation, Graeme sat up, taking her with him before saying firmly, "We ha'e no choice, lass. Ye could be carryin'

me bairn e'en as we speak."

When Annella's eyes widened at his words and her hand moved protectively to her stomach, he knew for certain that she had

not even considered the possibility of getting with child when she'd plotted this seducing business. He, on the other hand,

had. Though he'd hoped to convince her to marry him with his kisses, caresses and passion, and not have to resort to her possibly

being pregnant to push the point.

She was silent so long that Graeme began to relax, thinking he'd won the argument. But when her gaze returned to his, Annella

shook her head.

"Nay. There's no need to panic. 'Tis possible yer seed'll take, but it may no'." Urging him to lie back again, she sprawled on top of him once more and added huskily, "I suggest we just wait and see."

"Wait and see?" he asked with disbelief.

"Aye." She began to run her fingers lightly over his chest, exploring it with interest. "Ye wanted me to help ye take o'er

as laird, and I agreed, so no one will think anything o' me staying two or three weeks until I ken fer sure." She paused and

then lifted her head to peer at him solemnly. "Chances are I'm no' with child, and as I was the one doin' the seducin' I'll

no' make ye marry me fer it."

"Ye would no' be makin' me, lass," he assured her, fighting not to laugh. The idea was amusing, especially since he too had

been plotting to get her bedded. The only difference was he'd intended on it being followed by a wedding.

"I would," Annella argued, "and ye do no' ha'e to lie to spare me feelings. I ken I'm no' much o' a prize. Me own husband

could no' be bothered to e'en consummate our marriage. I'll no' make ye—" Her words ended on a gasp as he suddenly sat up,

forcing her up with him.

Graeme took a moment to shift her to sit in his lap, then tipped her head with a finger under her chin so that she met his

gaze. "I do no' ken what happened that night, but I can tell ye truthfully that William found ye more than appealin' and wanted

very much to bed ye on yer wedding night."

Annella's eyes narrowed with obvious doubt and she asked him, "Then why did he no' bed me? And why did he ride off with the

village lightskirt?"