It still hurt and pained him that he missed all the signs with Aideen. How did he not notice that his cousin had been scheming behind him all this while?
“I trusted Aideen and shared a lot with him. He had the Norsemen paid to murder me and was behind all the killings in the village as part of his ploy to cause a riot and have the people hate me.”
“It is all over now,” Isla consoled and took his hand so she could link their fingers. Her hands were soft in his, and her skin warmed his. Jack loved having her close… he loved her, he hadn’t been more certain of anything else in his life like he was of this.
“Aideen is dead, and your Clan will be peaceful once more, Jack… the people still believe in you,” she said. “You just need to lead them right.”
In everything that had happened, Jack was most grateful that she was here with him now, and glad that she chose him.
“Isla…” he began and turned her to face him, “are ye sure ye dinnae want to go back?” he asked. “I love ye and I want ye to be happy, but I need to ken that ye will be happy if ye stay here with me.”
Jack held his breath as he waited for her reply. He knew she had given up her chance to return to come save his life, and he owed her for every good luck that had come his way since she arrived on his land, but he could not keep her here if she was not completely happy with the choice.
“This is my choice, Jack,” she told him, then moved closer so their bodies touched. “I want to be here… I choose to be here because I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life here. I do not care what my fates tells me… all that matters is that I spend the rest of my days with you.”
His heart swelled with love for her, and he couldn’t hold back so he leaned forward and kissed her deeply. Their tongues joined in a passionate dance, and he poured his heart and every feeling he had into the kiss.
Jack wanted to her to know how much he loved her, and he planned to spend the rest of his life showing her.
* * *
Days later when Jack was finally strong enough, he traveled back to the bordering Kirkpatrick lands to find the woman who had saved him from Murdock.
He remembered the path to the cottage, and when he arrived there, she was sitting in front of her cottage attending to some children on her porch.
Once she saw him, she scrambled to her feet and curtsied. Jack smiled and greeted her with a small head bow.
“I promised to come back and reward ye,” he said when the woman looked at him again. He looked around her large yard, then motioned for the men that rode with him to come forward with the boxes of gold jewelry and silk.
“This is too much, My Laird,” she said in a hushed tone as she looked into the boxes the guards held open for her.
“This is only a small gift to show my gratitude,’ he told her. “I am Laird Humphreys and ye are welcome at my Castle anytime if ye need my help.”
She curtsied again and he smiled. Jack’s heart felt lighter now that he had kept his word of rewarding her. All that was left was for him to return home to Isla.
The ride back to his Castle was faster than ever, and Isla was waiting out front for him when he arrived. She rushed to hug him, and he wrapped his arms around her waist and let them drift up her back.
“I missed you,” she whispered into his ear before he drew back. Even though he had only been gone a few days, he had missed her too.
He saw Jamie smiling with Moira as they came out of the Castle and Moira curtsied while Jamie bowed.
“Welcome back, My Laird,” Jamie said.
“Thank ye, Jamie,” Jack answered with a smile. Moira and Isla left them to discuss the Clan, and Jack took Jamie into his study so they could talk at length.
“Word came from Calloway. They have agreed to yer earlier suggestion and will let us use their sea borders.”
“Their marriage proposal?” Jack asked.
“It has been dropped. Aideen was the one influencing their decision the entire time and causing the troubles. The Calloways have nay intention of makin’ an enemy out of us.”
Jack rose to his feet and walked over to the shelves in his study to grab a bottle of brandy. He poured Jamie some and they both sat to enjoy the drink.
“I willnae forgive myself for nay noticin’ what Aideen was up to,” Jamie said after a long time of silence had passed between them.
“I am also to blame,” Jack answered. “I trusted him too much and put him in charge of the guards, so he could use them at his disposal.”
“I willnae let my guard down around anyone again,” Jamie continued. “If anythin’ had happened to ye then—”