by Phoebe Conn
His chest tightened with sorrow, for he had made the journey home burdened by one anguish only to meet another he dared not share. Defeated in his search for peace, he stretched out across his bed and willed himself not to weep over what he feared might become an endless string of unfulfilled desires.
Egan dreamed that he and Oriana were floating in a magical sea, the waters of which were as warm and fragrant as a scented bath. The ebb drew her from his arms to create a nearly unbearable longing before the swell of the next wave carried her back to him. He quickly tired of that torture, and with her clasped to his side, rode a cresting wave to the shore.
They arrived in too lazy a mood to stand and lay nestled in the damp sand while the waves’ lacy foam teased and caressed their bare bodies with gently lapping tongues.
Egan wanted to make love to Oriana again, to dip into her luscious heat a thousand times. As before, she welcomed him, and on each thrust took him higher, until he could neither see nor hear the thunder of the ocean. He could only feel Oriana’s heart beating within his own chest, her blood coursing through his veins, and her dazzling thoughts whirling through his mind.
It was more than a passionate coupling. It was the glorious essence of life itself played out in an ageless dance. It stole his breath and left him gasping in a splendor brighter than any flame. When he could at last open his eyes, he was amazed to find himself still in his chamber, where the tapestry had been rolled back to admit the first blush of dawn.
Swathed in furs, he yawned, stretched, and made no move to contain the width of his smile when he found Oriana was already awake. She was cuddled close but lay studying him with a speculative frown he found most disconcerting. “Please don’t say that you were disappointed,” he urged. Almost afraid to touch her, he sat up and brought her hand to his lips.
In return, Oriana brushed his knuckles with a kiss and laced her fingers in his. “I’ll never be disappointed with you,” she swore convincingly.
Still, her smile remained wistful rather than joyous, and Egan could not abide that. “Then making love was not what you’d hoped. It will be better for you the next time though, or the next,” he promised. “You must give me another chance.”
Oriana sat up to face him, her curls wildly bewitching, but she kept a thick fox fur pressed to her bosom. “You’ve misunderstood my mood completely,” she scolded softly. “I’ve lived such a solitary life, and then there you were insisting upon becoming my husband.”
She dipped her head a moment to gather her thoughts. “But I didn’t even imagine what a true marriage entailed. Oh, I understood how the bodies of men and women fit together, but not how it felt. Now I just want to weep for all the years I didn’t know you, but at the same time, glory in the wonder we’ve finally found.”
That was much more complimentary than Egan had anticipated, and he drew her into an exuberant hug. “There is a magic in you, Oriana.” He caught himself before he blurted out what brief pleasures he had shared with other women. He had known only the rising physical tension and bliss of release, but nothing he had experienced had prepared him for loving her. It had been fleeting shadows, while she was a blinding light.
“I do love you, my lady. My wife,” he quickly amended. He leaned back to seek the truth in her eyes. “Will you finally admit that we’re wed?”
Oriana felt as through their shared passion had fused their very souls, and she did indeed feel wedded to him. “Aye,” she admitted shyly, “but I’ve still no magnificent dowry to offer a king.”
“True, but I’ve not had to pay your father an exorbitant bride price either. So in my mind, we’re even, just as though you had brought a fine dowry, and I’d had to pay dearly to call you my own. We’ll have the feast to celebrate later, but we are now wed.”
His eyes were more gray than blue in the dim light. Oriana was confident he possessed keen eyesight. There were just some things he adamantly refused to see.
“I’ll not argue while Kieran poses such a vexing threat,” she said, “but mark my words, beloved, those who’ll oppose me as your queen will not be easily defeated.”
Egan tilted her chin with his fingertips. “Is it simply impossible for you to trust in my love?”
Eager to avoid such close scrutiny of her thoughts, Oriana lay her cheek upon his shoulder, and he immediately enveloped her in a possessive embrace. “I trust you with my heart and life, but I’ll always be an outsider here and it creates a danger for us both.”
“Not once Kieran is defeated, it won’t.” Egan rested his chin atop her curls. He wanted to make love to her all day, and it pained him to have to leave her now. “Albyn is as great a worrier as you. He’ll come to fetch me soon.”
As Egan reluctantly relaxed his embrace, Oriana pushed away. She had not watched him shave, nor seen him dress, and suddenly understood why. “You’ve been using your father’s chamber, haven’t you?”
“Aye,” Egan admitted slyly, as though she had caught him in a trick. “I meant to avoid you at first, and then to give you the privacy a lady deserves.”
Oriana nodded thoughtfully. “You’ve been wearing his clothes?”
Uncertain where their conversation was leading, Egan turned away to swing his legs off the bed. “We were the same size.”
As is Kieran, Oriana did not offer aloud. “It should bring you continued good luck. Do so again today.”
Egan grabbed his pants from the floor before entering the privy. He always awoke hard, but that morning he had to fight the urgent need to make love again. He wanted Oriana so badly, if he started he would not be able to stop should a hundred men come knocking at his door, so he dared not even begin. But denying his need was a worse torment than any Kieran posed.
He was surprised he was so steady on his feet when he felt giddy clear to his soul, but he did not think it a good day for climbing mountains. Recalling his dream, he decided a swim would be a better choice, but first he would have to find the strength to leave the chamber he shared with his bride.
Oriana returned Egan’s adoring kiss, but made no move to stop him as he strode toward the door. When she’d had such a vague notion of the rapture of making love, she now wondered how she could have offered such confident prophecies. She felt foolish for having been so incredibly naive.
“I knew nothing before meeting you,” she said to him sincerely.
Egan paused with his hand on the open door. “You mustn’t dismiss your talents so lightly, my lady. You read the future with magical stones, and it was your gift that drew me to you. Now rest here if you like, or come join the others and watch, but I’ll wager today’s challenge will be over quickly.”
He was gone before Oriana could admit her Stones of Tomorrow were nothing more than pretty rocks. In the chamber’s sudden silence, the fanciful deception swiftly became a hideously convoluted lie, and she vowed to tell Egan the truth at her first opportunity. That newfound guilt compounded by anxiety over the challenge prompted her to leave the bed in a hurried leap.
Her hands shook as, unable to make a quick choice, she sorted through Adelaine’s pretty garments. There were the new brown gowns she had set aside for travel, but she hated the sight of them now. She would have tossed them in the fire had the fabrics not been so fine; they ought to be passed along to some farmer’s wife or shepherdess in need of new clothing.
Finally dressed in a soft green-gray gown, Oriana was about to comb her hair when Myrna appeared with fruit, freshly baked bread, and cheese. “Egan insisted I remain to watch you eat, my lady, but I’d rather make myself useful. Hand me your comb, and I’ll tame your curls. Adelaine’s were every bit as wild, and I learned to begin at the tips to gently coax them into obedience.”
Grateful for her help, Oriana handed over the comb, broke off a bit of bread, and moved toward the chair. “I doubt I shall be able to eat much or sit for long. I don’t want to miss the day’s challenge and am eager to hear what it will be.”
As soon as Oriana was seated, Myrna stepped behind
her and began to expertly untangle her curls. “I’ve missed having a pretty mistress to tend. Ula has her own maids and never has any need for me.”
“Is she troubled over the challenge?” Oriana inquired.
Myrna pursed her lips thoughtfully. “Not that I’ve seen. But then, she expects Kieran to win.”
Oriana waited for Myrna to separate another handful of hair before she murmured, “A mother should be loyal.”
Myrna clamped her jaws shut, but quickly lost her battle to keep still. “Ula is loyal only to herself, and Kieran is quick to do her bidding.”
“Egan would not treat her badly,” Oriana argued. “He’s too fine a man to banish his stepmother from her home.”
“He is a fine man,” Myrna agreed, “but like his sire, blind to the dangers in his own household.”
Intrigued, Oriana sat up a little straighter. “Have you recalled something more about Adelaine’s death?”
Myrna appeared to concentrate on a difficult snarl, but her expression betrayed her sorrow. “I’m an old woman, and my memories are as tangled as your pretty curls. Adelaine’s death has always been a great puzzle I can’t solve.”
With a soft sigh, Oriana abandoned the hope that Myrna knew more than she was telling, but at the same time, she remained firmly convinced there was still far more to discover. Fidgeting nervously, she feared the only person who could reveal the truth had either shoved, or thrown, Adelaine to her death.
“This fortress is haunted,” Oriana whispered more to herself than Myrna.
“Aye, that it is, and when so many poor souls died while laying the massive stones, it’s likely it always has been. But no ghost killed my dear Adelaine.”
“No, for if there were a murdering ghost, he or she would have tossed others to the cliffs, and that hasn’t happened, has it?”
“No, my lady. Men have died here in battles and brawls, and some like Cadell in their beds. Countless women have also died here, but none as tragically as Adelaine, or without a single witness.”
Oriana could accept a natural death, but the day’s likely prospect of a murderous brawl forced her from her chair. She smoothed out her curls, and taking the comb, pressed Myrna’s hands between her own. “I must go now, but thank you. I may call on you again. I should not want anyone to blame me for careless grooming and laugh at Egan.”
Pleased to be needed, Myrna glowed with pride. “He calls you his wife.”
“Yes, I know. Now let’s hurry to see what the day will bring.”
Easily distracted, Myrna had forgotten her promise to make Oriana eat. She shrugged as she led the way out into the corridor. “It can’t bring much until Kieran is pried from his bed.”
Oriana cared little whether it was drink or pleasure that kept him there, but with Egan clear-headed, he was bound to have the advantage. “Husband,” she murmured under her breath, and though the word sounded strange on her tongue, she loved to hear it.
Egan had discussed the advantages of a swim over a mountain climb or archery competition with Albyn, but as the crowd began to gather in the courtyard, he cared little what form the contest took. His only interest was in bringing their challenge to a swift end so that he might spend all his time making love to Oriana.
He scanned the faces of his relatives for his bride, but if she was there, he could not find her. He had not expected to miss her so badly and regretted not insisting that she be at his side.
Much to his disgust, he saw Madi making her way toward them. He doubted her intentions were good, but knew she would only lie if he inquired as to her true purpose. He greeted her with a curt nod, while Albyn barely glanced her way.
“What is it to be today, my lord?” Madi pressed close to Egan’s side and gazed up at him through provocatively angled lashes. “You have a fine horse. Will there be a race?”
“Raven is swift,” Egan offered agreeably, “but were I to win on his back, he’d doubtless claim he deserved the crown.”
Madi attempted to wrap her hands around Egan’s biceps, but her fingers failed to meet. “I’d not heard you owned a talking horse. Would you ask him to say something to me?”
Albyn turned away, but Egan could see his shoulders shaking from the effort to contain his amusement. He was tempted to swear Raven spoke only to the pure of heart, but making love with Oriana had left him in so generous a mood, he swallowed the insult.
“Nay, my lady,” he responded in a fine imitation of Raven’s whinny, and Albyn erupted in a furious fit of laughter.
Madi stepped back, but if Egan had told a joke, she failed to see the humor in it. As for Albyn’s behavior, she thought him rude to the extreme. “What is it you find so amusing?” she asked pointedly.
“Merely the whimsy of a talking horse, my lady,” Albyn assured her, but the dancing light in his eyes revealed otherwise.
Madi thought him lacking in manners, but she dared not voice a negative opinion to a Druid. Instead, she licked her lips and again focused her attention on Egan. “I wanted only to wish you luck,” she said.
“Thank you, but I doubt that would please Kieran,” Egan replied.
Madi lowered her voice to a suggestive purr. “I no longer care what pleases Kieran. Perhaps we can discuss my current desires more fully after tonight’s feast.”
Astonished she would be so brazen, Albyn’s expression instantly sobered, but Egan’s studied indifference betrayed none of his surprise. “I’m sorry to disappoint you, but the only desires I’ll fulfill tonight are my wife’s.”
“Surely you’ve not claimed your traveling companion as your wife,” Madi protested loudly, and a hush fell over the surrounding crowd as his curious kin strained to hear.
“Aye, that I have, but here’s Kieran, and we’ve a challenge to set.”
Madi bristled at Egan’s cool dismissal, but holding her head high, she smiled as she moved toward the crowd and hoped everyone would believe their parting had been cordial. As for his taking a stranger as his wife, that was as disastrous a mistake as Kieran’s brutish demand for her body.
After Myrna’s comment, Oriana was surprised to find Kieran a few steps ahead of her as she left the fortress. His step was steady, and if he’d had difficulty leaving his bed, his confident posture hid it well. Had she overtaken him on the stairs, she would have offered a word of encouragement for the future, but with the crowd closing in around them, there was no such opportunity.
After having avoided crowds all her life, she would never have pushed through the gathering to reach the clearing if Egan had not been waiting there. He noted her arrival with a wicked grin, and nodded toward Kieran to urge him to begin.
“It is your choice today, brother,” Kieran announced for all to hear, but there was no mistaking his lack of affection for Egan.
Egan glanced toward the cloudless sky as though he were still contemplating his choice. “It is a fine day for a swim,” he replied just as loudly. “Let’s walk down to the end of the bay, and swim back to the cliffs below the fortress. A boat can await us there.”
Kieran appeared incredulous. “You want to swim?” he asked. “The chill water will turn us to ice long before we reach the cliffs.”
Egan folded his arms over his chest and shot Kieran an indulgent glance. “If you refuse to swim, which is your right, then the challenge ends here.”
Oriana stood facing Egan, but she could tell from the tightening of Kieran’s shoulders that he was not nearly as at home in the sea as was his half brother. Most men avoided water deeper than their ankles, but she had seen Egan swim and thought this a brilliant challenge, until Kieran began to laugh.
“Have you not heard that I put the fishes to shame?” Kieran bragged when he had caught his breath.
Egan gestured toward the sea. “We’ll let the race decide who is shamed.”
Ula stepped to her son’s side and ran her tiny hand over his broad back. “So that there is no misunderstanding the result, the Druids should serve as judges.”
Averse to the i
dea, Egan’s brows dipped menacingly. “I doubt it will be such a close race, my lady, but by Druids, do you mean those loyal to you?”
Ula did not glance toward Garrick, who was already smirking. “There is a Druid by your side as well, and I have no objection to Albyn also calling the winner,” she stated graciously.
Albyn acknowledged her comment with a curt nod, then added a warning. “I am no more impartial than the Druids loyal to you, my lady.”
Garrick approached to take Ula’s side. “Despite our loyalties, we are honor bound to make unbiased judgments and can be relied upon to do so today. Three will be the perfect number, and I’ll call upon Neal to assist us.”
A young sandy-haired Druid of ample girth moved forward with a rolling gait. He appeared inordinately pleased to have been asked to serve. “I have a keen eye,” he boasted.
“It won’t even be close,” Egan swore.
“Close or not, I’ll serve as judge,” Albyn agreed, but he did not trust Garrick to decide in Egan’s favor unless he beat Kieran by more than an arm’s length. Equally confident Egan could do just that, he broke into a grin. “Let’s walk down to the bay then.”
Oriana felt the crowd surge forward, and might have tripped and fallen had Egan not come to her side. She tried to return his confident smile, but while she thought he would win, she was frightened for him all the same. “Please take care,” she whispered.
“I’m as at home in the sea as you are in the forest,” he assured her confidently. “Watch the race from the bluff where you admired the view.”
Oriana chewed her lower lip thoughtfully. “I’d have an excellent view there, it’s true, but I’d be too far from the finish and unable to greet you.”
“Then stand wherever you please,” Egan offered. “It won’t affect the outcome.”
