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  When the two men departed and one of them shut the doors firmly behind him, Cainnech approached Lucia. Her gaze widened and she backed up a bit. He rolled his eyes.

  “For the love of the saints, woman! I am no’ goin’ tae kill ye!”

  She hesitated, as if not altogether convinced, yet not altogether certain she was about to die either. “If that’s true, then why do you insist on marrying me?”

  He frowned. Well, more so than he usually did. “What does no’ killing ye have tae do with weddin’ ye?”

  “I don’t know!”

  “Ye dinna?”

  “No!”

  His head was getting the ache. “Ye are makin’ no sense tae me, lass.”

  She plopped down onto her strange bed. All of her things were strange, but he’d ask about them later, when she was calm.

  “This isn’t how things are done…” She cleared her throat. “Where I’m from.”

  He quirked an eyebrow. She frowned at his lack of understanding.

  “You don’t force a woman to marry you, let alone after you just stole her damn house!” She shrugged. “We marry for love in my world.”

  “Aye? And ye are no’ wed so ye have never loved a mon.” For some reason that conclusion cheered him a bit. He inclined his head. “Ye will come tae love me.”

  “Love,” she bit out, “is not like laying siege to a fortress! You don’t just decide it will be because you happen to have the upper hand at the moment.”

  “I dinna ken yer meanin’, but ’tis a vow ye will come tae love me.”

  She buried her face in her hands. “You can’t know that,” she mumbled.

  “Aye, I can.”

  “How?”

  She sounded so pitiful it was all Cainnech could do not to grin. “Because I will be kind tae ye. And because we will be stuck taegether for life so ’tis wise do we both make the best of it.”

  Lucia finally looked up at him. She was so bedamned beautiful. His cock was nigh unto ready to burst.

  “I will never find ye ugly,” Cainnech thickly admitted. “When ye are old, I will be tae.”

  Her expression gentled. As if realizing he’d taken a chink out of her armor, she frowned severely.

  “Are you a cheater?” Lucia asked.

  “Eh?”

  “A cheater.”

  Cainnech tried not to be offended. “I dinna cheat any mon.”

  “I mean women. Do you have sex with other women?”

  “Oh. Aye.”

  ’Twas mayhap the wrong thing to say. Her beautiful face fell. And then it dawned on Cainnech exactly what she’d meant. “Or are ye askin’ if I will take another wench tae bed after I wed ye?” When Lucia stubbornly didn’t answer, the laird clarified, “Nay I willna.” A thought he didn’t like at all struck him. “And I dinna care what freedom a wench has in yer future—ye will no’ fuck any mon but me in this time!”

  She stilled. Her green eyes widened. “That’s the sweetest thing a man has ever said to me,” she breathed out.

  His face colored. He wasn’t accustomed to such talk. Yet her pleasure at his words caused him to grunt with satisfaction. “I dinna ken ye, but am I certain ye will wed me on the morrow.”

  She grunted back. “You really know how to ruin a moment. For a second there I felt like I was living in a Lifetime Christmas movie!”

  Cainnech had no idea what he’d done wrong now. Or what in hell she was talking about. “Ye think tae vex me.”

  She was quiet for a moment. “I’m sorry,” Lucia eventually said. “Perhaps I was.”

  The laird’s eyes widened. This wench would forever catch him unawares. For some daft reason, he liked that.

  “Change intae a modest gown,” Cainnech ordered. At her narrowed gaze, he qualified, “Please.”

  Her face lit up a bit. He frowned, realizing she was training him like a bedamned dog.

  “I give ye leave tae speak tae me as ye will whilst we are alone.” His expression broached no compromise. “But ye canna gainsay me in front of another. Ye ken?”

  Lucia seemed to mull that over for a moment. “I will agree to that if you agree not to bark orders at me in front of anyone as though I’m one of your soldiers or servants.”

  Cainnech grunted. “Then we have struck a bargain. Be down in yon great hall for the nooning meal in an hour’s time.” He turned on his heel to leave, then paused. “And dinna tell any mon where ye herald from. If asked, say only what ye first told me—that ye are Lady Lucia Ingegärd of Oz.”

  At her nod, he turned to leave. That bluidy priest better have arrived, he thought. Even one bedamned eve was too long a wait to fuck her.

  “I have one more question,” Lucia said as he opened the bedchamber’s doors.

  Cainnech came to a halt. He crooked his neck and raised one eyebrow. She looked a little embarrassed, which puzzled him.

  “I was wondering…”

  “Aye?”

  “Do you think you will ever come to love me?”

  Cainnech stilled. It wasn’t like him to let his guard down, yet something in her gaze told him she needed to hear the truth. “Nay.” When her expression fell, he answered honestly, “Because I already do.”

  Her lovely eyes widened. He shut the doors and continued to the great hall.

  Chapter Six

  She spent most of the next hour wondering what in God’s name had come over her engaging in such a conversation with a man who was a stranger to her. After changing into what she hoped was a more modest gown, Lucia left her bedroom and headed toward the stone stairs. Her heartbeat accelerated with every step she took. Her earlier conversation with Laird Pompous Kilt had thrown her for a loop. Truthfully, and despite his dictate to the contrary, she would have stayed in her room if she weren’t so hungry.

  What had she been thinking, asking him if he’d love her one day? Uggh! She wasn’t the needy type of female and could only hope that question hadn’t made her appear to be one. Of course, he had replied that he already did love her, which was a vulnerability she suspected the giant warlord wasn’t accustomed to showing either. Now, whether his declaration was true was another matter altogether.

  This entire sordid situation was getting to her. Her brain continually reminded her of the obvious—she didn’t know Cainnech MacKenzie from Adam. Her soul, on the other hand, felt like… She didn’t precisely know how to explain it. Every time she looked at the Highlander she had this inexplicable feeling, as if she’d known him all her life.

  Was it even possible for him to love her within a few hours? Physical attraction takes the blink of an eye, but love? In her world she doubted it was likely, but maybe in this time and place it was. Lucia didn’t know the answer and she certainly didn’t want to dwell on the subject. At this point all she wanted to do was eat. She would worry about forced marriage and all that entailed after she got some protein in her system and could think clearly.

  As Lucia descended the staircase, all eyes—and there were quite a lot more pairs than she’d expected!—turned to her. “Great,” she muttered under her breath, “no pressure at all.” She took care not to fall down the steps as every person in the great hall stood in deference to her. Once safely at the bottom, she hesitantly smiled at them and continued walking toward the huge, long table in the room’s center.

  Once upon a time only she and Gabhran had occupied that table. Now it was completely full save the seat next to Cainnech. Four more tables had been dragged in from who knows where to accommodate everyone.

  She blinked. There were female servants in here. Not to mention a ton of food, men and women who had to have been villagers seated around the other four tables, and…her tree.

  Lucia came to a halt and stared at the beautiful Christmas tree Gabhran had acquired for her. It wasn’t decorated—yet—but it was breathtaking nonetheless. One of the female villagers approached her with a smile. “If’n I may speak tae ye, milady?”

  The great hall was quiet enough to hear the proverbial pin drop. She
wasn’t accustomed to so much attention and didn’t know how to react. “Of course.”

  “On behalf of me entire clan I wish tae say we are proud tae belong tae ye, Great and Powerful Viking of Oz. And tae have ye join such a strong laird in marriage that we may all know his protection and take his name…well, ’tis honorable, that.”

  Lucia tried not to show her surprise. Cainnech had allowed her to save face by claiming she’d agreed to the marriage for them rather than having been conquered. She couldn’t bring herself to look at him. It was the nicest gesture in this time and place that he could have made.

  “Thank you…?”

  “Cadha,” the pretty, young villager replied. “Me name is Cadha, milady.”

  Lucia inclined her head. She had no idea how a noblewoman was supposed to behave so she was more or less winging it based on period pieces featured on the History Channel. “Thank you, Cadha. I’m certain your new laird will keep you safe.” When Cadha smiled like a giddy girl and returned to her table, she supposed she’d done it right. Thank God for those few nights when she’d been bored enough to watch those shows!

  A woman somewhat older than Cadha stood up and walked to where she stood. Lucia felt like a trembling leaf inside but managed to retain a dignified exterior. This was all a bit overwhelming. And her blood sugar was raging to be fed.

  “Milady, I am Brae, mother tae Cadha.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  “Oh my!” She turned to the villagers and back to Lucia. “Ye are as beautiful and kind as Gabhran said.”

  Lucia didn’t know what to say to that. Luckily the older woman—who was probably her own age!—had more to say.

  “Gabhran told me Cadha aboot yer Christmas and if it be tae yer likin’ we’d be honored tae help ye in the decorating of yon tree.”

  Lucia stilled. Her heart skipped a pleasurable beat. These people were going to make her cry yet. “Thank you,” she breathed out, steadying herself. “I would like that very much.”

  Brae smiled proudly and returned to her table. Lucia looked at the sea of new faces reacting to her as though she was…family. It was a feeling she hadn’t experienced in a long, long time. It was a feeling that was going to make her cry like a lunatic if she didn’t reel it in already.

  She cleared her throat. “I want to say…” Lucia swallowed. She could tell they were expecting her to say something, yet she had no idea what. Instead of telling them what she thought they most likely wanted to hear, she spoke from her heart. Lucia raised her voice. “I want to say that Laird Adaidh has been dispatched for good and that you will never live under such tyranny again.”

  The great hall broke into shouts and clapping. She was glad the villagers had been freed by her appearance, even if she’d only recently discovered as much. They were treating her with the doting reverence Dorothy had been showered with in Munchkin Land after she’d killed off the Wicked Witch of the East without even knowing it. She realized she wasn’t worthy of this adoration, but also hoped that if she was stuck here…well, she prayed one day she would make herself worthy of it.

  “And that,” Lucia said resolutely, “is a promise from the Great and Powerful Viking of Oz!”

  Louder clapping and shouts of joy. “I hope ye turned bluidy Adaidh intae a toad!” one old man shouted.

  “Or intae a demon ye cast back intae hell!” another chimed in. “Take his mon parts and give him wench parts!”

  Lucia couldn’t help but smile. She gave them more information because they obviously wanted it. Besides, Gabhran had told her about some of the wicked things they had suffered at the former laird’s hands so they also deserved it. “The sheer sight of me caused him to faint.” At their laughter she continued, “He ran from the castle like a frightened child, piss running down his leg.”

  Even Cainnech began to laugh so it must have rated as a good story. She decided to quit while she was ahead. “Thank you all for being here,” Lucia said. She smiled. “I will take my seat so we can begin the meal.”

  Lucia walked to where Cainnech stood, the demurest smile she could muster painted on her face. He should have warned her she’d be facing the better part of a village at his “nooning meal”! She was simply too hungry to even goad him about that injustice though. She was certain he could see the daggers in her gaze, which would have to suffice for the time being.

  “Milady,” Cainnech murmured, a glint in his gaze. “Please be seated.”

  Lucia narrowed her eyes. He was up to something. Remembering the deal they’d made not even thirty minutes ago, she inclined her head. “Thank you…” She had to force out the next words. “My laird.”

  His arrogant expression made her want to “vex” his ass again, but a deal was a deal. Smile still painted on, she took her seat. Everyone but Cainnech followed suit, sitting down after Lucia did.

  “I am Laird Cainnech MacKenzie, first Baron tae Eilean Donnain!” he bellowed, earning him the crowd’s cheering applause. “Yer lady and I will accept yer fealty as one after we speak our vows!” Louder, roaring applause.

  Lucia’s eyes widened. Was he getting ready to…? No, she decided. Hunger was making her paranoid.

  “Bring the priest forward anon that we may be wed!”

  Lucia’s plastered-on smile evaporated into a mixture of shock and fear. The roar of the crowd reached deafening heights as she tried not to make a fool of herself by running, screaming or fainting.

  Ohhhh that bastard had planned this before she’d even left her room! Her nostrils flared as she glared daggers at the one laird she wished she could turn into a toad.

  “Smile, Lucia,” Cainnech muttered as he extended his arm for her to take, “lest they ken ye were conquered and ye cease tae be so powerful in their eyes.”

  It felt like an eternity had come and gone afore Lucia forced a smile to her lips, but ’twas like as naught mere moments had ticked by. Cainnech had known she wouldn’t be pleased with this new development, but he was taking no chances by delaying. The priest had arrived afore he’d returned to the great hall, the villagers had gone to great lengths to prepare a feast in a few hours’ time, so he saw no need in forcing them to repeat it for a wedding feast on the morrow.

  Later he would explain. For now he would ignore her icy glare.

  In truth, Cainnech realized he wanted the marriage sealed for selfish reasons. Not just to bed Lucia, but because he hoped the more bound she was to him, the less desirous she would feel about fleeing from him to yon future. ’Twas mayhap daft of him to hope for, yet ’twas all he truly had to hold on to.

  Lucia at last took his proffered arm and stood at his side. “What an incredibly terrible trick to pull,” she said while still pretending to smile. “And after getting me to agree not to ‘gainsay’ your wretched ass in front of others no less.”

  Cainnech grunted. “I did what I had tae.” His answer was truthful, just like as naught in the way she was thinking.

  “I am not having sex with you tonight,” she said under her breath, fake smile still in place.

  She allowed him to lead her toward the back table, though he doubted she kenned the why of it. The villagers quickly moved the trenchers that had been set out to one side of it so their lady and laird-to-be could stand upon it, permitting all to see their nuptials.

  “Ye will be my wife and ’twill be yer duty tae accept me inside ye.”

  “Not in my world.”

  “Yet ’tis mine ye are livin’ in.”

  If looks could turn a mon intae a toad, he’d be croaking out “ribbit” instead of “aye” when the priest asked him if took this wench as his wife. Praise the saints, the murderous gleam in her eye dinna wield such a power.

  When they reached the table, Lucia’s expression was but half murderous for the other half was exceedingly baffled. There was no dais for her to walk up to so Cainnech placed both his hands around her waist, lifted her up, and set her on the table in one motion. She yelped a wee bit, but the thunderous clapping drowned out th
e sound. He jumped up on the table next to her and watched as two of his men raised the aging priest and set him on it aside them.

  Lucia might not have been a happy bride, but she kept that bedamned fake smile on her beautiful face. That bluidy expression was mayhap necessary for the sake of the villagers so it shouldn’t have irritated him, yet it did. Cainnech supposed ’twas too much to ask that his unwilling wife-to-be feel true happiness at her forced marriage ceremony. He’d have to settle for what she could reasonably give.

  As the priest took the ceremonial cloth and loosely but symbolically wrapped their hands together with it, Cainnech decided he could live with Lucia’s anger so long as she belonged to him in the eyes of God and all men. For now, ’twas enough.

  Nay, Lucia was not a happy bride, yet she was the comeliest of any who had ever lived. Her royal gown of red was less modest than he had a care for, yet bespoke of nobility nonetheless. She was a bride no bastard could ever hope to call his own. And yet here he stood aside her, more than ready to claim her as his.

  Niall had the right of it—forget the land and titles for ’twas Cainnech’s bride any mon would most covet. A few wee minutes more and she would belong to him irrevocably. The knowledge sent a hot rush coursing through his blood.

  “Do ye, Laird Cainnech MacKenzie, Baron tae Eilean Donnain, take Lady Lucia Ingegärd, formerly of Oz, tae wife?”

  “Aye.”

  When ’twas time to give her aye, Cainnech’s entire body tensed. Lucia hesitated for a brief moment. He could see Niall gnawing at his bottom lip all the way from across the great hall.

  “Yes—aye.”

  Cainnech quietly and slowly exhaled. Despite the circumstance, she hadn’t tried to back out. He suspected ’twas more so for the villagers than herself, but he had all the time in the world to make her love him.

  “Ye are husband and wife from this verra moment until death separates ye. Milady,” the priest instructed as he unwound the cloth, “’tis time tae kneel afore yer husband and master in submission as ye finish yer vows.”