Bound by Song (Cauld Ane Series)

by Tracey Jane Jackson

  Pepper’s hair lightened again, although, it was still darker than was safe. Pepper tried to pull her hand from Connall’s again. “Ekki snerta mig!” she snapped.

  “Elskan, ég verð að snerta þig, annars brennir þú húsið til grunna,” Connall said. (Baby, I have to touch you or you’ll burn the bloody house down.)

  Pepper fell back against the pillows and Samantha checked the monitor. “Contraction’s over,” Sam said, and laid a cool cloth over Pepper’s forehead.

  Pepper’s hair went back to blonde and she took several deep breaths. She burst into tears and grabbed Connall’s shirt. “Ég vil þetta barn út!” (I want this baby out of me!)

  “Bráðum, elskan. Ég lofa.” (Soon, sweetheart. I promise.)

  “Here we go,” Samantha warned.

  Pepper gritted her teeth as another contraction hit her. She screamed as she ripped Connall’s shirt down the middle.

  “Number three,” Kade said.

  “Damn it, I liked that shirt,” Connall complained.

  “Just go bare-chested.”

  Connall shook his head. “And have her rip my skin? No thanks.”

  “I’ll have Brodie grab you a few more shirts,” Payton offered.

  “Connall Jakob Gunnach, ef þú reynir að fá mig í rúmið aftur, mun ég drepa þig!” (Connall Jakob Gunnach, if you ever try to get in my bed again, I will kill you!)

  “Ég veit, elskan,” he said softly. (I know, baby.)

  “I really thought for sure there’d be a lot more swearing,” Samantha said, once the contraction was over.

  “Oh, you’re not hearing what she’s saying here,” Connall said, and tapped his temple.

  Samantha smiled gently. “Sorry, Con.”

  “Hvað ertu að tala um á bak við mig?” Pepper accused. (What are you saying behind my back?)

  Before anyone could answer, another contraction hit.

  Gillian smiled. “Ten centimeters, fully effaced. She’s ready to push.”

  “Thank God,” Connall whispered.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  MAX MADE IT to the stables before Jonesy did any real damage.

  “Oh, Mr. MacMillan, thank the Lord,” Andy said as Max entered the barn.

  “Step aside,” Max directed, and pulled open the stall door. Jonesy obviously saw his exit and took advantage, knocking Max on his arse and galloping outside. “Shite!” Max snapped, and went after him. Luckily for Max, the horse stopped in the courtyard, whinnying and throwing his head around.

  “Jonesy,” Max called. “You daft beast, come here.” Max approached, but Jonesy kicked out at him, something he hadn’t done before. Max was quick, but not quite quick enough to avoid no contact. “Damn it!” he snapped, and grabbed his thigh where Jonesy’s hoof caught him.

  He took a second to heal the bruise and then approached the horse again…this time, from the front, near his shoulder. “Shhh, Jonesy, boy. I’m sorry I called you daft. Come here. Pepper’s going to be really annoyed if you don’t calm down.”

  The horse eyed him, but quit throwing his head around. His tail settled as he lowered his head and let Max approach. “Good boy.” Max stroked the horse’s neck, further calming him, and slid the halter on. “Pepper’s fine. She’s having a baby, but she’ll be ready to ride you again before you know it. If I could, I’d take you up to her room, but I can’t, so you’ll just have to be patient.”

  Jonesy nickered in response and Max smiled. He may not speak “horse,” but he could tell Jonesy understood Pepper’s name, which settled him down further.

  “Good boy,” Max said, and dropped his head on the horse’s neck. Max was suddenly so very, very tired.

  Max? Are you okay?

  Aye, love. Just dealing with a temperamental horse. Go back to sleep.

  I’m sorry we argued.

  Me too, baby.

  Are you sure you’re okay?

  Max smiled. Aye. Just tired.

  I love you.

  I love you too. Go back to sleep.

  He waited a few minutes and when he didn’t hear anything more from Grace, he focused back on Jonesy. “Can I trust you to stay in your stall without destroying the building?”

  The horse let out a snort.

  “I’ll come and see you tomorrow.” Max gathered the lead and started back toward the barn. Once Jonesy was back in his stall, Max hung up the halter and headed back to the house, texting Payton on his way to let her know Jonesy was fine. He climbed the stairs to his bedroom and then straight into the shower.

  As the water washed over him, he felt Grace stir in his mind. He shook his head. You’re supposed to be asleep.

  I can’t sleep. What was wrong with Jonesy?

  He’s worried about Pepper. He knows something’s up with her.

  Has she had the baby yet?

  Max turned off the water. I don’t know.

  What are you doing?

  Getting out of the shower.

  Oh.

  He felt her arousal and grinned. Guard your thoughts, love. I’m amped up enough as it is.

  Sorry.

  Try to sleep, baby. I’ll see you in the morning. He toweled off and pulled on a pair of shorts before heading back to his room. Pushing open the door, he knew he wasn’t alone as he stepped inside. “Hi, sweetheart.”

  “I couldn’t sleep,” Grace said, from the chair in the corner.

  “I see that.” He closed the door and threw the towel on the bed, opening one of the bureau drawers and dragging on a T-shirt.

  “Did you draw these?” Grace asked, pulling a few sheets of paper from behind her back.

  “Aye.”

  “When?”

  Max took them from her and laid them on the bed. He picked one up and handed it to her. “This one I did the night you didn’t come to my show in Portland.”

  She drew her knees up and settled her chin on top. “Wow. Do you see me this way?”

  “Yes.”

  She blinked back tears. “You do?”

  “Aye? What’s the matter, love?”

  “This is just so beautiful.”

  “Baby, you are beautiful.” He stroked her cheek. “What’s going on, Grace? Your emotions are all over the map.”

  “I don’t know.” She shrugged. “I hate that we fought.”

  “We didn’t really fight, baby.”

  “I hate that we argued, then.”

  He held a hand out to her. “Come here. I think you’re picking up on my exhaustion, which is heightening your confusion.”

  She took his hand and rose to her feet, sliding into his arms with a sigh.

  He rubbed her back. “Better?”

  Grace nodded. “Much.”

  His phone buzzed and he kept an arm around Grace as he checked his text. “It’s from Payton. Pepper had her baby boy. Six pounds, one ounce.”

  “Teeny.”

  “Aye. She delivered almost a month early.”

  “Oh,” Grace said. “Not that tiny, then. Man, he would have been huge if she’d carried him to full-term.”

  Max chuckled. “We make big bairns, ’tis true.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “How big?”

  “I’ll tell you when we’re bound,” he retorted. “I really need to sleep, baby. It’s going to be a busy day, what with dinner tonight, and the coronation and ball tomorrow.”

  “You didn’t tell me there was going to be a ball,” she said. “Max! I didn’t bring anything appropriate for a ball. Why didn’t you tell me about the ball?”

  “I wanted to surprise you.”

  Her mouth dropped open. “You don’t lay that kind of surprise on a woman!”

  Max smiled. “I have it sorted, love. Don’t worry.”

  “You don’t ever say that to a woman in crisis, either!”

  “Baby, it’s fine. I promise.”

  She bit her lip. “Can I stay here with you?”

  “Aye. Of course.” He frowned. “What’s the matter, love? Really?”

  She shrugged
. “I’m worried about Mags.”

  “Come on. Let’s try and get some sleep.” Max pulled back the covers on the bed and waited for her to climb in. He slid in beside her and pulled her close. “Maggie will be fine, sweetheart. I promise.”

  “Promise, promise?”

  He chuckled. “Aye, love. Promise, promise.”

  Grace kissed him and snuggled closer, falling asleep within minutes. Unfortunately, Max wasn’t as lucky. He saw the sun peek through the drapes before he finally succumbed to sleep.

  * * *

  Grace came awake with a start, remembering she wasn’t in her own bed, and wasn’t alone. Max’s arm was wrapped around her, and when she tried to scoot away, his hold tightened like a vice. She turned to face him and forced herself not to touch him. He looked so peaceful, his eyes closed and his hair falling across his forehead.

  Are you going to say good morning?

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you,” Grace said.

  “You didn’t.” Max opened his eyes and smiled. “Hi.”

  “Hi.”

  He stroked her cheek. “How did you sleep?”

  “Quite well. How about you?”

  “Fine…once I fell asleep.”

  She frowned. “You obviously need a ‘you’ to sleep on.”

  “What?”

  “I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow of your chest, so you need a you.”

  Max laughed. “Say the word, baby, and I’ll sleep on your pillows any time.”

  Grace giggled. “I guess I opened myself up for that one.”

  He kissed her quickly and reached for his phone. “Shite. Is it really eleven?”

  “Do you have to be somewhere?”

  Max sat up and climbed out of bed. “Aye. I need to check on Jonesy and then Pepper.”

  “Horse before human?”

  Max chuckled and pulled on his jeans. “If I don’t have very specific answers to the questions she will more than likely throw at me, I’ll be in trouble. So, yes, horse before human in this instance.”

  Grace watched in fascination as he pulled off his T-shirt and grabbed a clean one. His chest was perfectly formed, as though chiseled from granite, and she didn’t know how much longer she could refrain from throwing him on the bed and taking advantage of him.

  “Don’t,” Max said. “You name the day, love, and I’ll bind you.”

  Grace groaned and covered her eyes with her arm. “My parents would kill me.”

  She sighed when his lips covered hers, sliding her arm away and returning the kiss. Max broke contact and smiled. “Are you coming?”

  She nodded and sat up. “I’ll just change quickly.”

  “Let me check the hallway.”

  Grace waited for the “all clear” and then ran to her room and dressed as fast as she could, meeting him back at his room within minutes. After a quick bite to eat in the conservatory, Max took her hand and they headed to the stables.

  “What did that used to be?” Grace asked, referring to the building next to the stables.

  Max stiffened. “The carriage house.”

  “Does it still have carriages in it?”

  Max shook his head.

  “You okay?” she asked, but when he clammed up, she made the choice to attempt a look at his memories and gasped when she succeeded. The carriage house was where his sister had been murdered. “Oh, Max, I’m sorry.”

  He dropped her hand. “Don’t ever do that again, Grace,” he snapped.

  “I didn’t actually know I could,” she countered. “I’m sorry if I saw something you didn’t want me to see, but you can’t very well tell me to stay out of your head when you won’t stay out of mine.”“Grace,” he said with a sigh.

  Grace crossed her arms and watched in silence as Max tended to Jonesy. Max’s wall was up and impenetrable, which meant Grace couldn’t reach him. On the outside, he appeared fully in control, smiling and crooning to the horse, conversing quite comfortably with Andy, but when he was done and it was time to head back to the house, his smile didn’t reach his eyes when he held his hand out to Grace. “Ready?”

  Grace nodded, but didn’t take his hand. Max didn’t object as they walked back to the castle and up the stairs to the private quarters.

  Once through the large double doors that cut the royal apartments off from the rest of the castle, a long hallway housed several other doors. Payton was walking out of one of the rooms just as Max and Grace entered the hallway. “Hi. I was just coming to find you.”

  “How are Pepper and the baby?” Max asked.

  “Perfect,” Payton said. “Come and meet Cody Connall Gunnach.”

  “I’ll wait out here,” Grace said.

  “Why?” Max asked.

  “I don’t want to intrude.”

  “You’re not intruding, Grace. You’re practically family,” Payton assured her. “Pepper’s up and dressed and feeling great.”

  Grace followed Payton and Max into the room. Pepper sat with Connall in an overstuffed chair, a bundle in her arms, while family milled around them. Food was laid out along one wall and Niall had already filled his plate.

  “Hi, you two,” Pepper said. “I was wondering when you were going to meet the baby.”

  Max chuckled. “I had to check on your other baby first.”

  “Smart man. How is he?”

  “He’s perfectly fine, Pepper,” Max assured her. “Much calmer today. I’ll ride him tomorrow, if you like.”

  Pepper smiled. “That would be great.”

  “Now, let’s see this little man,” Max said, and knelt beside her.

  Grace tried to hang back, but the sight of the precious little boy drew her closer. “He’s perfect,” she said.

  “I know, right?” Pepper agreed. “We named him after my father, and it’s funny, because he has my dad’s nose.”

  Cody began to fuss and Connall took the opportunity to retrieve him from Pepper. “I think he needs his da.”

  'Pepper giggled. “I’ve held him for all of ten minutes since the last time he ‘needed’ you.”

  “Don’t hog the baby, Con,” Kade said.

  “It’s okay,” Pepper countered. “I’ll get him back when it’s time to feed him.”

  As Max chatted with the new parents, Grace faded into the background in an effort to give them some space and guard her emotions. She was feeling off-kilter and insecure, and quite homesick.

  “You okay?”

  She jumped. She hadn’t heard Niall approach.

  “Sorry, lass. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

  She forced a smile. “It’s okay. I was daydreaming a little.”

  “You look a little sad,” Niall said.

  “I do?”

  He nodded. “Aye. You do. Would you like me to beat the crap out of my brother for you? Any excuse, Grace. I’m happy to sort him out for you.”

  She giggled. “I’ll keep that in mind. But for now, it’s all good. I just wish he’d be a little more open.”

  Niall shrugged. “Read him.”

  “I don’t want to read him,” Grace countered. “I want him to tell me.”

  Niall gave her a knowing smile. “Good luck with that.”

  Grace sighed. “Thanks.”

  “Don’t give up on him.”

  She frowned. “I won’t.”

  Max glanced their way and raised an eyebrow. I can hear you, love.

  I know you can.

  “I think you’ll get a chance to have some fun tonight,” Niall said. “Apparently, Pepper is insisting on attending dinner with the baby and she always livens up a party.”

  “That seems soon,” Grace said. “Is she well enough to do that?”

  “Aye. Our bodies heal quickly, so she’s good to go.”

  “Well, that’s an item for the ‘pro’ column.”

  Niall chuckled. “Aye. It is.”

  Grace chatted with Niall until Max deemed it was time to get ready for dinner. Things between them were calmer, but he was sti
ll guarded. By the time she climbed into bed that night, she felt more confused than ever. He’d bought her a beautiful dress in a blue that matched the ancient tartan he wore proudly, and he’d been attentive and sweet all night, but had blocked his thoughts, only allowing her to see what he wanted her to see.