Maya Banks - In Bed with a Highlander

Her belly had pooched ever so slightly. It wasn’t noticeable under the full skirts of her dress, but at night, naked, beneath Ewan, he delighted in the tiny swell that harbored his child.

He couldn’t keep his hands or his mouth from the mound. He’d palm and caress it and then kiss every inch of her flesh. His obvious joy over her pregnancy brought Mairin great satisfaction. Her clan’s joy over the announcement warmed her to her toes.

When Ewan had stood during the evening meal and announced Mairin’s pregnancy, the hall had erupted in cheers. The word raced throughout the keep and a celebration ensued, lasting well into the night.

Aye, life was good. Nothing could mar this day for Mairin. She patted her belly, breathed in the perfumed air, and set off for the courtyard, eager to get a glimpse of her husband training.

As she descended the hill, she looked up and caught her breath. Her heart pounded furiously as she watched the distant riders galloping toward the McCabe keep. Unfurled and flying, held by the front rider, was the king’s banner bearing the royal crest.

Her haste was unseemly, but she didn’t care. She picked up her skirts and ran for the courtyard. Ewan was already receiving word of the imminent arrival of the king’s messenger. Word had raced like wildfire around the keep and her clansmen popped from every corner, crowding into the courtyard, the steps of the keep, and the hillside overlooking the courtyard.

The air of anticipation was thick and sparked like fire as the excited murmurs buzzed from person to person.

Mairin stood back, her bottom lip clenched so tightly between her teeth that she tasted blood. Ewan’s brothers flanked Ewan as he waited the approaching riders.

The lead rider cantered across the bridge and pulled his horse up in front of Ewan. He slid off his mount and called a greeting.

“I bear a message from His Majesty.”

He handed a scroll to Ewan. Mairin surveyed the remaining riders. There were only a dozen armed soldiers, but there was no sign of trunks or anything that might signal the arrival of her dowry.

Ewan didn’t immediately open the scroll. Instead he extended hospitality to the king’s men. The rest dismounted and their horses were taken to the stables. The McCabe women brought refreshment to the men when they gathered in the hall to rest from their travel.

Ewan offered them lodging for the night, but they refused, their need to return to Carlisle castle pressing. Mairin died a thousand deaths as she hovered, waiting for Ewan to open the message. Only when the messenger was seated with drink and food did Ewan also sit and unroll the missive.

She whispered to Maddie to fetch quill and ink, knowing that Ewan would need to pen areply if one was necessary before the messenger took his leave.

As his eyes moved back and forth, his jaw clenched and his expression became murderous. Mairin’s chest tightened in dread as she watched anger gather like a storm in his eyes.

Unable to restrain herself, she rushed forward and touched Ewan’s shoulder. “Ewan? Is something amiss?”

“Leave me,” he said harshly.

She instantly recoiled from the fury in his voice. Her hand dropped and she took a hasty step back. Ewan raised his gaze to the others assembled and barked an order to clear the hall.

Mairin turned and left, avoiding Maddie’s look of sympathy when she passed her by.

Ewan read the missive again, unable to believe what was before his eyes. He scanned the signature at the bottom, noting that it was signed by the king’s closest advisor, not the king himself. He wasn’t sure what to make of that.

Regardless of whether it was signed by the king or his advisor, it bore the royal seal and was carried by a contingent of the king’s royal guard. Ewan was compelled to obey, despite the fact that the accusations were laughable and an insult to his honor.

“Ewan, what has happened?” Alaric demanded.

The king’s messenger eyed Ewan warily as he shoved his goblet aside. “Will you be penning a response, Laird?”

Ewan’s lip curled and he barely restrained his urge to wrap his hands around the man’s neck. Only his knowledge that it was hardly fair to slay the messenger for the words of another kept him from venting his rage.

“You may bear my response back verbally. Tell our liege that I will come.”

The messenger stood and, with a bow, signaled his men and beat a hasty retreat.

The hall was empty, save Ewan and his brothers. Ewan closed his eyes and brought his fist down on the table with a resounding crack.

“Ewan?” Caelen’s concern was sharp, as both he and Alaric leaned forward in their seats.

“I’ve been summoned to court,” Ewan began. He still couldn’t believe the contents of the missive.

“To court? Why?” Alaric demanded.

“To answer charges of abduction and rape. Duncan Cameron has taken his suit to the king and claimed that he married Mairin, consummated the marriage, and I abducted and abused her sorely. He put in a claim for Mairin’s dowry that predated my own, and now he demands the return of his wife and the immediate release of her dowry.”

“What?”

Both Caelen and Alaric roared their outrage.

“I’m to bringnsummated in to court, where the king will decide the matter.”

“What are you going to do?” Caelen asked.

“I’m sure as hell not taking my wife anywhere Duncan Cameron is in residence. She’ll remain here under strict guard while I travel to court.”

“What do you want us to do?” Alaric asked tightly.

“I need you to watch over Mairin. I trust you with her life. I’ll take a contingent of my men with me but the bulk of my army will remain here. Mairin’s safety is paramount. She’s more vulnerable than ever now that she carries my child.”

“But, Ewan, these charges are serious. If the king doesn’t rule in your favor you’ll face stiff sanctions. Possibly even a death sentence, since Mairin is the king’s niece,” Caelen said. “You need more support. If you leave the majority of your army here, it puts you at a disadvantage.”

“Perhaps it would be best if you took Mairin with you,” Alaric quietly suggested.

“And expose her to Cameron?” Ewan snarled.

Caelen’s lips tightened. “We would go with the might of the McCabe clan behind us. We may not be as large an army as Cameron’s, but he’s already suffered one crippling defeat against us, and he has to know, judging by the way he tucked tail and ran like the bastard coward he is, that he’d commit suicide by challenging us to a fair fight.”

“ ’Tis too convenient that you’re summoned away, Ewan,” Alaric added. “It divides our might. If you go with too little protection, you could be ambushed and killed on your way to court. If you take too much, it leaves the keep vulnerable and Mairin as well.”

Ewan considered Alaric’s words. As much as it pained him, after his initial vehemence over taking Mairin anywhere Duncan Cameron would be in attendance wore off, he knew that the best course was not to let Mairin out of his sight. If he went, so would she, and he’d carry the might of the entire McCabe clan.

“You’re right. I’m too angry to think straight,” Ewan said wearily. “I will call on the McDonalds and the McLaurens to provide troops to protect the keep in our absence. Mairin needs to be close so I can see to her protection at all times. I don’t like to think of her traveling now that she is with child.”

“We can take a slower pace and bring a litter so that she is comfortable,” Caelen suggested.

Ewan nodded, and then he remembered snarling at Mairin to leave him, when she’d asked him what was amiss. He’d been so furious that he’d needed a moment to process the ludicrous charges that had been laid out against him.