“Beatrice Whitmore is bound in marriage,” he announced.
Gasps rose from the crowd.
The air around Beatrice thickened, her vision narrowing to a point. She rested a hand on the top of Effie’s head as the girl dug her fingers into Beatrice's leg.
“Bea, I willnae let ye leave,” Effie whispered. “I daenae care about any sill old decree.”
Beatrice left her hand where it was but felt a weight shoving her heart back against her ribcage. The faces in the crowd were starting to change, and the sadness with which they looked at her stabbed and slashed as bad as the blade Allistair had tried to kill her with.
I am too late. Everythin' I have done has been for nothin'.
Leo kept reading, his voice growing steadier with each word. “Nay, nae Beatrice Whitmore.” He turned to her, his eyes lighting up. “Ye’re nay longer Beatrice Whitmore, lass. As per this decree, ye are now Beatrice MacSween.”
Beatrice's lungs deflated, and her body went loose, as if all her bones had suddenly disappeared. She wanted to cry and scream and celebrate in one fell swoop, wanted to take off running into the wilds without a stitch on and with Leo chasing behind her, following her wherever she went.
“It is true then, Leo,” she breathed. “We have done it.”
Leo brandished the parchment in his fist like a sword he was handing to her. “We have made our own fate, Beatrice,” he said, then dropped the parchment on the ground with a laugh. “Nay, I have said it already. I am ready to use it again.” He touched her shoulder and swallowed hard as if trying to hold something down. “Bea, ye are Bea.”
“And I am yers. As I should be.”
He swept her up in his arms and carried her into the castle, the crowd behind them chanting in celebration. Beatrice cast a quick glance back over his broad shoulders to see her parents still standing at the edge of the throng. Her father’s features were twisted in derision and disappointment, but her mother met her eyes and placed a hand on her chest as she watched her get carried off by Leo.
I’ve done it.
Beatrice touched her fingers to her lips and extended her hand briefly toward her mother.
What we lasses think we cannae do for ourselves, I have done it.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
With her arms around Leo’s neck and a tingling sensation blossoming from her feet, through her thighs, to the pit of her stomach, up her spine, and across her chest, Beatrice let the world drop away from her as she was carried through the corridors of the castle.
Leo’s expression was one of ardent determination, a man set on a mission but with a spring in his step to do it.
The torches along the hallway had been lit, and their glow led the way to the chambers that Beatrice had hardly seen during her entire stay at the castle.
Leo’s chambers. Leo’s bed.
She hadn’t allowed herself the fantasy of being with him in such a place. Even when she had started to feel the tide change within, she hadn’t been able to bear the idea of becoming tangled in her daydream of being cradled and loved in his bed. She hadn’t beenable to fathom the notion of Leo whispering sweetly to her as they lingered in the afterglow.
“I didnae think there was a lass out there for me,” Leo admitted as they approached the door to his chambers. “I didnae think experiencin' love like this would ever be part of me life.”
“We’ve both seen the worst of marriage,” Beatrice agreed.
“But we daenae have to end up that way.”
“Nay, our fate is our own.”
Leo opened the door and crossed the threshold, Beatrice still in his arms. He gently set her down and then stood in front of her, his hands rising as if he didn’t know what to do with them. Beatrice reached out and took them into her own.
“Would ye stay with me, Beatrice?” he asked, leaning towards her. “Would ye stay with me, share this bed with me? Share this life with me?”
“Aye, Leo. It would be me honor.”
His hands knew what to do then. He tangled one into her hair, pulling her towards him with a zeal that powered every inch of their bodies. The kiss was deep, intense. It took Beatrice's breath away, and she pressed herself against his chest, trying to get as close to him as possible.
Leo’s mouth trailed down her neck to the base of her throat. She felt goosebumps prickle along her arms and legs, then spread across her entire body as he tore down her bodice, her breasts heavy under his hands and her nipples erect.
