Chapter 13

Chapter

Thirteen

L aura woke the next morning, not to the sound of little birds singing in the trees or the plaintive cry of gulls, but with a high-pitched whistling sound coming from the window ledge.

The eagle was back. Laura eyed the large bird speculatively.

"Yes. You see that I am where I should be. But stick around because I am not sure where we go from here."

After preening its feathers and giving her a piercing side look, the eagle dove off the ledge and disappeared amidst the rugged rocks.

Being careful not to wake Altair, she tiptoed out of bed and went down to the Nurse's bedchamber to ready herself for the day ahead. Laura took some pains to wash and dress herself. She wanted to look pretty for Altair when he woke up.

Freeing her hair from the braids, she used her fingers to untangle the thick, black ringlets. After washing her face in a bowl of cold water, Laura ran her fingertips along her eyelids to make sure her lashes were straight. For one frozen moment, she allowed her hand to caress her cheeks and lips lightly. The tremulous touch thrilled her because she knew the sensation was only a small taste of what was to come.

After belting her beloved black arisaid around her waist, she left the back part down and did not pull it around her shoulders. Her chemise was made of the finest lawn and had a lace collar around the neckline. Under the thin flounce of lace, the swell of her generous breasts could be seen. Laura pinned the collar so that it stayed fast over her bosom.

When she finished dressing, Nurse Mildred was still fast asleep. The dear lady had trekked with Laura all the way up the mountain path yesterday. Both women were very much aware of how invigorating the climb was now that they knew no murderous brigands were chasing after them. Still, it had been worrying to watch the sun sinking under the earth and know there was still quite a rigorous hike left ahead of them.

It helped that they had carried no baggage. Laura believed she had some kind of premonition about the future when she had taken the talisman out of her little bauble box and kept it in her locket instead. Sometimes, during times of stress, she would find herself clutching the locket under her chemise, as if it were her very own personal good luck charm.

For some strange reason, she believed the talisman held more sentimental value than her mother's trinkets. Laura knew that her mother would be happier knowing that Laura had married the man she loved. She could always buy more jewelry, but she could never replace Altair in her heart.

Mistress Berenson was in the kitchen. It seemed like no time at all had passed between Laura's departure and her return, but maybe that was just because of the magic at beinn na h'Iolaire.

"I am pleased to see ye finally came to yer senses and came back," was how the housekeeper greeted her.

Laura rubbed her hand over her forehead and sighed. "The Laird does not look well-kept. Has he been eating?"

Mistress Berenson gave a short laugh. "Ha! He's been drinking, that much I can tell ye. Sitting in the dark hall every night getting steamin' pished. But what could I do aboot that? A man takes it hard when the rules get in the way of his inclinations."

Gnawing the end of her thumb, Laura had to agree. "It's a salty problem indeed. My father needs the money the Donaldssons gave him, but it was agreed on both sides that if Ethelred and I did not get along together, the marriage contract would be voided."

The housekeeper scoffed. "Pah! That's what all those great men always say, but at the first hint of ‘not getting along' from the bride they will have her locked away in the tallest tower until the ring is on her finger, you mark my words."

"That is what I also thought," Laura agreed. "It was best that I made my own way back to Beinn na h'Iolaire before the locks and keys were brought out."

"Yer Faither will have to bite the bridle and think of a compromise, dearie. In the meantime, I have a surprise for ye."

Beckoning her with one finger, Mistress Berenson guided Laura to the pantry and larder. Flinging open the door, she showed the young woman all the delicious foodstuffs inside.

"See? He sent Andrew and Stephen all over to get the stuff ye like. Ham hocks, cheeses, sugar loaves, barrels o' honey, white flour, and dried sausages. They are all here!"

Laura laughed, shaking her head she allowed the housekeeper to show her the fully stocked spice cupboard and flagons of oil. "You realize that all of this would have gone to waste if I had not returned?" she chuckled, but Mistress Berenson crossed her heart and said a silent prayer. "I kent ye would come back, lassie. Ye belong here."

"I belong here," Laura repeated the words like a chant. "But I must take the pony and ride down to the village. I need to pick up some ointment from Agnes. Poor Nurse Mildred's muscles will ache terribly when she wakes up. A nice salve will soothe it."

"Agnes? She's upped sticks and gone, no one knows where."

Mistress Berenson seemed unconcerned, but Laura wondered why the healer would abandon her decrepit old cottage so quickly.

"Let's put all this food to good use," was all she said out loud. "Altair will likely be starving when he wakes up."

The housekeeper sniffed and rolled her eyes. "More likely he'll be as green as a Christmas goose and twice as galled. He turns up his nose at oor tasty salted porridge and water as if it's nae good enough for him."

Smiling to herself, Laura promised Mistress Berenson that Altair would not do that to the breakfast she intended to serve to him. Her first stop was the larder. Looking at the racks of smoked pork hanging from the ceiling hooks with a critical eye, she chose a large hock and asked one of the Berenson men to bring it down for her.

Next came the hen house. A few scrawny hens scratched in the straw, looking for scraps of turnip peels. After finding four small eggs and shooing the broody hens out into the herb garden, Laura asked Andrew to ride down the mountain and buy some barley kernels. "Bring back a sack of kernels and make sure they are not musty."

A large copper pan was heating over the flames when she came in. After setting Mistress Berenson to churn butter and slice bread, Laura cracked the eggs into a bowl and began beating them. Using the mortar and pestle to grind the salt and a few precious corns of pepper into fine grains, she sprinkled them into the bowl with the eggs.

Calling the housekeeper to bring the butter, she sliced the smoked ham into the pan and began to fry it. When it was cooked through, she flung in the eggs.

"I'm sorry there are not enough eggs for the whole family," she told Mistress Berenson, "but when Andrew comes back with the chicken feed, we will start getting more eggs."

Choosing the most succulent pieces of ham, Laura spooned the eggs over the top and placed the two plates on a tray. The first plate went to Mildred. Just as she thought, the nurse could hardly move from stiffness. "Eat, I will make a concoction from lavender and pine needles later and then come and rub it on your limbs."

Very aware that the breakfast was cooling with every step she took around the castle, Laura tripped daintily up to the tower on light feet, pushing open the door with her shoulder.

Altair was awake, but still lying in bed with his back propped up by the bolster. It looked as if he had made some effort at making himself presentable by shaving and washing, but the traces of neglect were still clear to see on his face. His eyes were sunken in the sockets and his high cheekbones sharply etched because of this. His expression was deeply troubled as he stared out of the window at the puffy white clouds floating past the blue vista.

He turned his head when he heard Laura putting the tray down on the table.

"Last night—I though ye were a dream."

Laura giggled. "More like you thought I was a hallucination. If that is how you have been spending your time since I left, it goes a long way to explaining your appearance."

Running a hand through his tangled hair, Altair gave her a rueful grin. "Och aye, sure I was wasted-like, but sometimes it helps, ye ken?"

Laura nodded. "My father was the same after my mother died in childbirth. He did not even have the strength to look for her replacement."

Altair shot her a dark look. "Some women are irreplaceable, Sonsie. Ye take after yer Mither in that regard."

When he spoke like that, Laura found him more irresistible than when he was actively trying to seduce her. Clearing her throat, she patted the stool next to the table. "Come and break your fast, Laird. You could do with a little sustenance."

"I could do with a lot more than that," he grinned as he placed both feet on the water stained floorboards. "But food is a good place to start." Tying his plaid in a knot around his waist, the laird came to sit next to her.

"Sometimes, food is a nice place to finish, too," Laura replied with a smirk. "I find well cooked food so comforting. It puts me in a good mood and makes me forget my troubles."

Tucking into the eggs and ham with gusto, Altair shook his head to show he disagreed. Lifting her eyebrows, Laura wanted to know why.

Rapidly chewing and swallowing, the laird took a swig of ale before continuing. "Ye say that because ye are a maiden. And because ye have never been in love."

She objected to this. "You are wrong! I am…" Laura could not finish. She was too shy to tell him how much she loved him.

Altair understood the reason for her sudden silence. Placing his knife down on the table, he reached over and cupped her cheek with one large hand, using his thumb to stroke her skin gently. "I ken, Sonsie. I should have told ye sooner, but then I would have had to shift me arse to make sure ye dinnae leave me—and I was nae ready for that yet."

"Are you ready now?" linking her hand with his, she waited, breathless, for his reply.

"Aye," he growled, "but the first part o' me statement still holds true. Food is well enough, I'll grant ye that, but sex is incomparable. A good tupping might nae sustain ye. In fact, quite the opposite! But give a lover the choice between a warm bun to eat or a bonny lass to swive, and he'll choose the lassie every time."

Looking down, she could not meet his gaze. "You are right. I do not yet have the experience to make a comparison, but after that small taste of lovemaking you gave me before I had to leave, it is easy for me to see how—how superior it is."

He smirked. "I cannae believe ye're here, Laura. I keep wanting to rub me eyes in case I've gone mad and just imagining all o' this." Leaning forward, he hugged her close, inhaling the fragrance of her hair as he kissed the top of her head. "I should have told ye how much ye mean to me a long time ago. Is it too late to tell ye noo?"

Laura adored how lover-like he was. "No, it's never too late to tell someone that. I mean, I felt we had a connection, but we never properly connected. We were so rudely interrupted!"

Their eyes met and then they laughed. "Has that been weighing heavy on yer mind, Sonsie? Well, I've been thinking aboot it constantly, too. What d'ye say we carry on where we left off?"

The change in conversation was so quick it nearly took her breath away.

"W-what about the pain in your head? And does your tongue not feel as if it is coated in fur? That is what my father always told me happened after a hard drinking session."

Altair shouted his laughter, tipping his head back. "Have ye forgot aboot me healing sleep? It does nae just work for wounds. I have nae felt this good for a very long while, lass." Grabbing her hand, he pressed it against his lower stomach. Laura could feel the hard muscle throbbing under her hand. "So, what d'ye say?" he wanted to know, to hear her say the words.

"If you want me to say that I love you, Altair, I think it is obvious that I do."

"Aye, dearheart, and I hope it is clear that I love ye, too. Will ye let me show ye?"

This was it. Her heart's desire was to give herself to the man who had rescued her from the mountain top and given her a home. He was more than a brave hero to her; he was her friend and confidant. Now, Laura wanted him to be her lover too.

Following his glance to the bed, Laura made up her mind. She had planned to ask him about a wedding and marriage first, but the urgent tugging sensation in between her thighs pushed that discussion right out of her head. "I say yes," she said with a shy smile.

"When ye are me wife, Sonsie," he murmured in his deep voice, "I will teach ye how to say ‘aye'."

Pushing the table away, he swept her up into his arms and carried her to the bed. They needed no words to describe their feelings for one another—only the act of love would explain their fascination for each other from the start.

Firstly, just the thought of lying with the Laird of Iolaire was enough to make her heart quicken and the intense nub hidden in the folds of flesh between her legs to throb with desire. He was devastatingly handsome, but the kindness he had always shown her made him lovable, and that was what mattered the most.

And with every move he made, Altair let Laura know that he adored every inch of her body.

He made her stand in front of him as he unpinned the arisaid. It fell to the floor, leaving her like Venus standing in a puddle of plaid. "Lift yer arms," he commanded her, and when she did, he pulled the chemise over her head. Shy, Laura covered her breasts with one hand while the other hid her cleft.

"Ye look even more beautiful, I see," was all Altair said as he pulled her hands away gently. "I dinnae think it was possible for ye to improve upon perfection, lass, but somehow ye were able to."

"You think so?" she whispered, too embarrassed to say much more.

As a reply, he pulled her down onto the bed and propped her head up with pillows so that her dark tresses spread over the bolster like black comet tails. "Does this answer yer question, lass?"

When he kissed her, all Laura's shyness disappeared. Her body was set aflame from his tantalizing embrace. It felt as though this was what she had been waiting for all her life, and now she was finally living for the first time.

He could sense that her body was ready for him, but he did not rush. Laura watched as he kissed the palm of her hand. She sighed with pleasure as his tongue teased her nipples before sliding down her belly to dart lightly over the crease in her mound. It was hard to hold back the gasp of delight when he replaced his tongue with a finger, massaging her in such a way that it felt as if warm water was flowing out of her.

"Mmm," Laura writhed on the bed, arching her back towards his mouth and then pulling away before her grinding hips could bring her rapture to an end, "I love this so much. Is there not anything I can do to please you in an equally intimate fashion?"

He smiled at the formal way she offered to satisfy him. "Och, Sonsie, we're goin' to have to work on yer bedchamber chat a wee bit. D'ye want to touch me?"

When he put it that way, Laura discovered that she did want to touch him, very much so.

"Can I?"

Reaching out her hand, she ran her fingers over his beloved face, down his neck, and over his shoulders. It utterly thrilled her to feel how hard and masculine he was compared to her. Altair lay on his side next to her, allowing her hands to wander freely.

At first, Laura was too shy to look or touch lower than his hips.

"Are ye blate? I promise to nae bite, sweetheart. Keek all ye want."

"Blate?" Summoning her strong sense of daring and adventure, Laura prepared to gaze at his body to her heart's desire.

"Bashful," he explained, and when her hand reached the most rampant part of him and gripped it hard, he kissed her fiercely. "Alright, I take that back. Ye're awfully brave for a Sassenach maiden."

Suddenly, Laura became serious. "I want you, Altair. Take me, take me now. I'm ready."

When she realized how much she loved him, her emotions swept to high tide inside her. The excitement was already so acute, she was willing to bear the discomfort in order to reach the ecstatic release that had been building up inside her for so long.

"I never knew how amazing this would be," Laura gasped with joy at the tender way he touched her. "Will it always be like this, do you think, Altair?"

"I will never stop loving ye, so aye." His warm mouth pressed hot kisses over her eyelids, cheeks, mouth, and chin. He even kissed the end of her nose. It was the first time Laura saw that affection and love went hand in hand, and she reveled in it.

"How did this happen to me?" she whispered, swooning with joy as his kisses moved down her neck. "I feel unworthy to be chosen by you. I am an ordinary girl, nothing special."

He gave her ear a wee nip. "I dinnae want to hear ye say such nonsense again, Sonsie. To me, ye are the most extraordinary woman, and it was me damn good luck that ye came this way."

He showed her how much she meant to him, raining kisses on her plump belly and then turning her over to kiss all those sweet spots she never knew to be so sensitive, like the small of her back and her dimpled buttocks. "I feel like I'm being devoured," she giggled, "but in a good way."

"Ye're relaxed and ready for it," Altair growled. "And that's the best way to be."

Only when he was satisfied with her eagerness to accept him did Altair allow himself to climax. And if Laura shrieked like an eagle in full flight when it happened, neither of them noticed or remarked on it later when they lay spent in each other's arms.