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Feeling a sudden chill, Fiona pulled the bed linen around her, surprised at the vehemence in his tone. “I’ve endured far worse snipes from the women in this castle and lived to tell the tale. Besides, the men have a right to speculate about the heir to the earldom and the clan.”

“They already know the heir. Since I have no brothers”—Fiona frowned and Gavin hastily corrected himself—“nolegitimatebrothers, Duncan, as the eldest, will inherit my lands and title when I am gone.”

“What of your own child?”

Gavin knelt on the edge of the bed and grasped Fiona’s hand. “I know ye love Spencer as though he was yer own, and I too have come to think of him the same way. But he can never inherit my properties. Duncan is my cousin, the son of my father’s only brother. If fer any reason he cannae follow me as earl, it would be Aidan next and then Connor. The Earl of Kirkland must be a man of McLendon blood.”

“I didn’t know they were your cousins. Why did you never tell me?” Gavin shrugged and Fiona snuggled into the warmth of his chest. “I know that there are some members of the clan who will never fully accept me as your wife, but I was hoping they would feel differently about our child.”

Gavin stiffened. “They might have, but there’s no use wishing fer what can never be. We know a child of our own is an impossibility.”

“Why?”

“Oh, Fiona. Yer barren state was what persuaded me to accept yer scandalous offer to be my mistress in the first place. I’ll not lie and say it doesn’t pain me now, but it brought us together and therefore I cannae be angry.”

“Ah, yes, my inability to bear a child.” Fiona cleared her throat. It didn’t feel like the opportune moment to correct that very erroneous impression; then again, would there ever be a good time? “If memory serves, Gavin, I never specifically told you that I was barren. ’Twas an assumption you made because it suited your needs.”

Gavin squeezed her hand, his expression filled with uncertainty. “The evidence was telling. Ye were married ten years and never conceived.”

Fiona tried not to blush at such frankness. “I never carried a child because I very seldom slept with my husband.”

“I thought ye had a loving marriage?”

“We did. But it was a very different kind of love from the one we share.” Fiona dipped her chin self-consciously. It somehow seemed wrong to discuss her former husband with her current one, yet she wanted no misunderstandings between herself and Gavin. “Henry thought of me more as a daughter than a wife. He showered me with affection, but never passion.”

He swallowed hard. “Are ye telling me that ye might yet have our child?”

Fiona stared at the wonder and hope in his eyes and nearly burst into tears. Guilt gnawed at her heart, for she had kept the news from her beloved that would bring him great joy. Would he be angry? Or worse, feel betrayed by her silence? She pressed a hand against her still-flat belly as a shudder of uncertainty rolled through her.

“We will become parents sooner than you think, the good Lord be praised.”

Breath held, Fiona waited for Gavin’s reaction. He looked shocked for a moment and then he blurted out, “We’ve only been married a few months.”

“Aye. And we’ve spent most of that time in bed.”

“Bloody hell!” Gavin ran a visibly shaking hand through his hair. “Are ye telling me that ye’re with child?”

Fiona nodded vigorously. “All the signs are present. I thought my overset emotions were the reasons for my strange symptoms, but they have persisted. And I’ve missed my courses for the second month, and the smell of freshly baked bread in the morning makes my stomach ache and . . . Gavin, put me down!”

Ignoring her plea, Gavin lifted Fiona in his arms and spun her around in a wide circle. The look on his face was indescribable—shock, awe, and wonder.

“’Tis a miracle,” he yelled.

“Hardly,” Fiona replied as she struggled to control her queasy stomach. “You know, I’ve heard that some men coddle their wives when they learn they are expecting a child instead of tossing them about the room like a rag doll.”

Her words stopped him cold. He set her gently back on her feet, then ran his hand down her side, placing his palm against her belly. “Is something amiss? Tell me.”

“I’m fine and so is the babe. And we shall remain so as long as you promise never to spin me like that again.”

“I promise, my love.”

He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it respectfully, solemnly. They drew closer, and then at the exact same moment broke into luminous grins. Words were unnecessary; their expressions said it all.

Fiona could feel the ache of emotions creeping into the back of her throat. Her sight went hazy for an instant, but was then suddenly brought sharply into focus.

Gavin. Her beloved. This man who held her heart from the moment she witnessed his strength and kindness was the one she wanted, now and forever. A vision shimmered in her mind of a peaceful sun-drenched morning and life filled with endless possibilities.

Their life.