George hesitated, then inclined his head slightly. “Ye are certain this will nae create tensions?”
Ian’s expression did not waver. “I am certain it will not.”
No further objections were given.
By the following morning, the carriage was prepared.
The sky stretched wide and pale above the Highlands, the air crisp as the horses were harnessed and the journey began. Ian sat across from Arianna within the carriage, his posture steady though his thoughts remained restless. The rhythmic sound ofthe wheels against the earth filled the silence as the castle faded behind them.
Through the small window, the land unfolded in sweeping beauty.
Rolling hills stretched into the distance, their green softened by the faint mist that clung to the earth. Clusters of ancient trees stood scattered across the landscape, their branches swaying gently in the breeze. A narrow river wound its way through the valley below, catching the light as it moved like silver through the land.
Arianna watched it all in quiet reflection. “It’s been some time since I’ve seen it this way,” she said softly.
Ian followed her gaze. “Aye,” he replied. “The land looks different when ye’re not ridin' through it with sword in hand.”
A faint smile touched her lips. “I imagine it does.”
Silence settled between them again, though it was not uncomfortable. Ian studied her for a moment, noting the calm in her expression, the absence of fear that had once lingered there. Still, he knew there were things left unsaid. Things he would not leave unspoken any longer.
“I didnae marry ye to betray yer family,” he said at last, his voice steady but deliberate.
Arianna turned to look at him. “I ken that now,” she replied gently.
“I want ye to ken it fully,” Ian said. “Not just here, between us, but before yer brother, before anyone who might question it.”
“I will stand before him,” Ian continued, “and I will speak the truth plainly. There will be nay shadow left between our clans when I am finished.”
“Thank ye,” she said quietly.
The sincerity in her voice struck him more deeply than any grand declaration could have.
“I should have done it sooner,” he admitted.
She tilted her head slightly. “Perhaps,” she said. “But ye are doing it now.”
Ian let out a small breath, “Aye,” he said. “That I am.”
The carriage continued on, the landscape shifting as they traveled farther from McGuire lands. The hills grew steeper, the forests denser, the air carrying the distant scent of pine and earth. Time seemed to stretch, each mile placing distance between what had been and what was yet to come.
“Will he be angry? Yer brother?” Ian asked after a moment.
“Likely,” she said honestly.
She let out a quiet breath. “But he will hear ye out,” she added. “And I will nae leave until he does. Me brother is fair. There is somethin' reassurin' in that,” she said.
Ian met her gaze, a faint, steady confidence in his expression. “I mean to set this right,” he said simply.
And this time, there was no doubt that he would.
He looked at her, sitting opposite her in the carriage, though every instinct in him urged him closer. The gentle sway of the wheels and the quiet rhythm of the journey seemed only to heighten his awareness of her presence. His gaze drifted, unbidden, to the curve of her bosom, the soft fall of her hair over her cleavage, the way her hands rested so calmly in her lap. A memory stirred, unwelcome in its intensity, of another carriage, another moment, where restraint had not stood between them.
I want her.
The truth of it burned low and steady within him, not merely desire, but something deeper, something that had only grown stronger since nearly losing her. He remembered the heat of her, the way she had responded to him, the fragile trust that had begun to bloom between them before it had been shattered. And now, though that trust was mending, he knew it was not yet whole.
I willnae take what is not given freely. She has nae granted permission to consummate the marriage.
