Page 108 of The Laird's Secret Bairn

Lily pouted. “Sorry, Da. He is really hungry, even though I fed him before we came here! I made him promise nae to eat anything, but he didnae listen.”

“It’s all right, Lily,” Skye said, smiling brightly.

If anyone had told Dougal that he would be married to Skye months later and happy, he would not have believed them. Then again, he had never thought anyone would marry him. He had been ready to spend the rest of his life alone, and he had been content with that.

Perhaps “content” was not the right word. Rather, he had just resigned himself to the fact that this was to be his life because of the rumors that followed him no matter where he went.

Then he had met Skye.

When the two of them first met, he was intrigued by her. Neither of them wanted to marry the other. It was all for show. Skye was going to help him restore his reputation, and he was going to help her finish her story.

For lack of a better term, the two of them had been stuck with one another for the month. But things had changed so much and so quickly; sometimes it all felt like a dream.

He no longer kept himself hidden from the world. He was no longerangryat the world, having stopped letting people believe whatever rumors they wanted about him.

Skye was sleeping now, her back turned toward him. He pressed a gentle kiss to her bare shoulder, chuckling when she mumbled something in her sleep. It spurred him to do it again until he was nibbling softly on her neck.

“Dougal, must ye wake me so early?” she croaked.

He laughed. “I must leave soon. There is a council meeting today, and as the Laird, I am expected to preside over it.”

“Of course ye are,” she said with a soft giggle. “Who else but ye would preside over the meeting?”

“Stephen could, as me second-in-command, but I daenae ken if he’d be happy about that.”

Skye giggled again. “Then ye should get up and get ready for the meeting. I’ll be here when ye return.”

“Practicing?”

“Aye,” she admitted.

She had been playing the violin every night of late. It had become a tradition. After dinner, they would all retire to the music room where she would play for everyone.

Dougal had never imagined himself having such a happy life, but he had grown to love every part of it… the chaos of a goat underfoot, the sound of Skye's violin drifting through the halls in the evenings, Lily's laughter chasing away every last shadow the mask had once cast over this house. He thought of the man he'd been seven years ago, certain he'd live and die behind stone walls with nothing but rumor for company, and could hardly recognize him anymore.

He had everything he needed already, right here in this room.

The End?