Page 22 of Following Her Highland Journey (The White Witch’s Apprentices #2)

EPILOGUE

T he monastery was as beautiful as Adair remembered it, and she could not help the flowing sense of peace that fell over her as she entered her home once again. Because it was home, she knew that for sure now. It didn't matter, perhaps never would matter, where she lived, where she went, or what happened next in her life. This monastery, this den of the White Witches, would always hold half of her heart…and the other half would always be with Henry.

He was with her now, looking nervous as they approached the room where Mor waited for them. Adair had sent a long, detailed letter requesting that they be allowed to visit, and Mor had replied with simply an affirmative and no more. Adair had told Henry there was no need to be nervous, but truthfully, she wasn't sure whether or not that was the case. She loved Mor like a mother, but like a mother, there was always that fear there that disappointing her would ruin everything. And Adair knew that, by disappearing, she had truly been a disappointment.

She expected censure, rage, fury, or perhaps just icy coldness when she entered. But instead, Mor waited with a broad smile on her face and stood to embrace her.

"Ye've come home," Mor said simply. "How we've missed ye. The lassies are all out on jobs, but once they return, they'll be thrilled tae see ye. Though ye may have a bit of a hard time with Fia, all things considered. She took yer disappearance for so long more personally than I think ye'd hoped."

Adair embraced her back, enjoying the warmth but feeling more than a little confused. "Ye're not angry?" she asked. "I thought…"

Mor stepped back to look at her and shook her head. "What reason have I tae be angry, me sunny girl? I trained ye tae heal, and heal ye have. It sounds tae me like ye went out of yer way and put yerself in danger just tae make this world a little better than it was before. How am I tae be angry at ye for doin' exactly as I trained ye tae do?"

Feeling tears prickling in her eyes, Adair hugged the older woman tightly once more before pulling back. "Caiside misses ye," she blurted out, barely knowing why she said it. "All of us, really. She understands she made a choice, and she doesnae expect ye tae go back on yer word—besides, she's too busy rulin' as Lady McLeod these days anyway—but she hopes that one day ye can find it in yer heart tae let her back intae our family."

Mor tutted. "She thinks she ever left? Silly child. Caiside made a choice, aye, a choice tae leave the sisterhood of healers, but not one tae leave us . She resides in me heart, just like every apprentice I've ever had. Just like every one of ye."

Adair thought about this, but before she could comment any further, Mor was speaking again.

"And this is Henry, is it?" she asked, stepping closer to him. He walked with a limp now, one that would perhaps never fade, but he made an effort to stay proud and upright as Mor inspected them. It made Adair's heart swell with pride. "Aye. Well. A fine lookin' young man, and brave as well, from what I hear. I understand ye've saved me girl's life twice now."

"More than twice," Adair corrected. "He…"

But Henry shook his head. "Ye're wrong. That is…forgive me, Mother Mor, but ye're not right in that. I may have been the one tae hold the blade, aye, but Adair is the one who saved me life, over and over again. She freed me from me uncle's tyranny that was all I'd kent me whole life simply by bein' herself. She saved me from a marriage that would have made both meself and Isobel more than unhappy. And she saved me from meself, through healin' and love and laughter. She's the savior here, nae me."

Adair felt her cheeks warm and her heart stuttered as she stared at Henry, her mouth slightly agape. He truly believed every word he was saying, didn't he? He truly cared about her, loved her, worshiped her in a way she didn't think she'd ever understand. Except that…well, she loved him just as much. So maybe it did make sense after all.

Mor chuckled slightly. "Mother Mor, is it?" she asked. "What a polite wee lad ye are. Well, in that case, I suppose ye can have me blessin'."

Adair's eyes widened. Mor had said it flippantly, but Adair knew the older woman well enough to understand the depth behind the choice of words. To marry Henry would be the greatest joy in her life, but to have Mor's support behind it…well, that would be everything.

Henry seemed to understand the impact as well. He bowed his head slightly and said, "Thank ye. I'll do me best tae show that I deserve it. Once we've found a place tae wed…"

"Well, ye'll marry here, of course," Mor said, as though this was the most obvious thing in the world. "Where else?"

"Ye'd have us here?" Adair asked, surprised. "Here, in the monastery?

Mor nodded. "Ye're our family. If ye want tae join in matrimony, I can think of nae better place tae do it. I will even hold the weddin' meself, in the old way, nae need tae get churches and whatnot involved. What say ye?"

Adair couldn't think of anything better. But, with happy tears in her eyes, she knew she had one more thing she had to ask before she could fully agree. "Can…can Caiside come? Tae the weddin'?"

Blinking in surprise, Mor said, "That's yer first thought?"

Henry, though, took Adair's hand. "Caiside and Lorcan are the reason we're here. We willnae marry without them to celebrate with us."

Mor laughed at that, though kindly. "Well," she said, "I suppose I'll have tae see what I can do."

The wedding was like none Adair had ever seen or heard of except in storybooks. She was dressed in a deep green dress, a color which by tradition she had learned to avoid, but Mor had insisted. Women did not wear green as it attracted the gaze of the fae, but Mor insisted that they wanted all the magic they could get for such a special event, and Adair found herself inclined to agree.

They made offerings to the fairy folk and the spirits, little treats of figs and berries and sweet honey, and a special one to Aonghus, the ancient Celtic god of youth and love. Adair wasn't certain she believed in such things, but there was something magical about the ritual nonetheless, and she found herself whispering an old Gaelic prayer song as they moved through the steps.

Adair's hair was intricately braided by her sisters and decorated with flowers from the gardens, each with its own special meaning. She and Henry were married under the arches of a great canopy outside, and Mor bound their hands in a traditional handfasting, proclaiming them one under the eyes of the earth, the sea, and the sky. It was not a traditional wedding with a priest as Adair had always vaguely thought she might experience, but that somehow seemed right. After all, nothing about her and Henry had ever been traditional, not since the very start.

During the feast after the wedding, they received some more surprising and welcome news from Caiside and Isobel, the latter of whom was already settling into her new role as Lady Martin after being married in a private ceremony a few days before.

"Our husbands have returned from the council of local Lairds with news," Isobel explained. "And McNair has been arrested for his attack on Scotland's people. He awaits trial."

"And the man to try him shall be the new ruler of the land he owned," Caiside continued with a glance at Isobel. "We agreed—that is, the Lairds agreed—that Clan Martin was worst hit in the warfare. As recompense, all McNair land will be turned over to the new Laird and Lady Martin."

It was more bright news on top of an already bright day, and Adair was floating with happiness as day turned into night. The music played and she danced with each one of the other healers, with Duncan, and with little Finn. The wine flowed, the laughter and song lit up the night, and Adair knew that this would always be remembered as one of the best days of her life.

But it wasn't over yet.

Adair stood naked in her washroom, taking a deep, shaky breath as she did. She had insisted on disrobing entirely before he saw her for their wedding night; she wanted Henry to see all of her at last. The nerves threatened to overwhelm her, but it wasn't just that. The anticipation, the excitement, was so strong within her that she could barely contain it.

"Adair?" Henry called from the bedroom.

Adair took another deep breath, then nodded to herself in the mirror and walked through the doors. Henry stood there, also naked as the day he was born, and his eyes widened as he saw her.

They stood like that for a moment, just drinking each other in. How could one man be so beautiful? The way his muscles shimmered in the candlelight, the way his strawberry blond hair glowed. She glanced down and blushed deeply at what she saw there, and a new desire shot through her, urging her to move forward, to touch and to taste.

"Henry…"

“Ye are…everything, Adair,” he told her quietly, his hand brushing her cheek. “I hope that one day I can be the man ye deserve.”

“Hush,” she whispered. “Ye’ve always been more than the world.” All fear gone now that they were together, she reached up and pressed her mouth against his. The kiss started slow, but soon that desire came back in force. Their mouths parted, their tongues intertwined, and the two of them were closer now than they’d ever been.

Adair felt Henry’s hands curve around her buttocks, so close to her most private place that it made her squirm, and he lifted her up effortlessly. She wrapped her legs around his waist, still lost in the kiss, and he carried her over to gently lower her onto the bed.

He pulled back from the kiss and hovered over her, and as Adair stared up at him, she couldn’t help but notice the scars, the old and new, some still an angry red, some already healed and shining white. She raised a hand and traced one of the white ones, feeling the rippling muscles of his stomach as she did so.

“Does it bother ye?” Henry asked her in a whisper. “I ken they’re not the prettiest?—”

“No, no,” Adair insisted quickly. “These scars are the signs of what ye’ve done for me, for everyone. They show how strong ye are, how good ye are. They’re yer story, yer life, yer joy. They’re ye.”

“How…how are ye so incredible?” he murmured. “Come here.” He leaned down, pulling her into another kiss, and now his hands roamed her bare skin. She gasped as his fingers lightly touched and teased her waist, her breasts, and the lightest touch of her nipple, which made her squirm and gasp below him.

As he started to kiss the skin of her throat, working down with teeth and tongue close to her collarbone, it was all Adair could do not to fall apart right there and then. “Henry…”

His kisses were spreading lower and lower, down her neck and to her bare chest. She let out a small moan and grasped at his hair, her nails digging into his scalp as his mouth covered her breast. He growled in response, sending pulses of heat radiating through her body, a whole new sensation she'd never experienced before.

"Henry…" she whispered. "Please…"

He needed no more convincing. There was a small silence between them as Henry positioned himself on top of her, never dropping his gaze from her eyes. Adair nervously reached out to help guide him into place, shivering at the strange combination of hard and soft under her hand. His tip rested against her, and she had to restrain herself from bucking wildly immediately, desperate to feel all of him.

“Are ye ready?” he asked her in a low whisper. “Are ye sure?”

“I’ve been sure about ye for five years, Henry. I want ye more than I’ve ever wanted anythin’ in me life,” Adair assured him.

At that, grunting again, Henry carefully pushed forward, sliding inside her like a sword into its scabbard, a perfect fit that seemed to fill up all of her.

“Oh…oh!” Adair gasped. It was unlike anything she’d ever felt before. There was the tiniest bit of pain, yes, but that was soon washed away by an exquisite heat and an even more desperate urge than before for more of it. He pressed down against her, the feeling of his naked chest brushing her breasts while he moved inside her more intense than she’d ever known.

Henry stopped for a moment, though it obviously cost him some effort. “Am I hurting ye? Do ye want me tae stop? I dinnae?—”

In answer, she reached up and pulled his head down into a desperate kiss, mumbling against his mouth, “No. Dinnae ye dare stop.”

He growled in response, pushing in a little more, causing her to gasp and squirm with pleasure beneath him. They were together now, together in body and mind and soul, every part of them pressed up against one another and joined the way that it should be.

“I love ye,” Henry whispered in her ear, his breath hot and wet. Her hands moved to his back, holding him there, her nails digging in.

“I love ye too, husband,” Adair replied in a short gasp.

And then he began to move. His thrusts were slow and almost lazy at first, gauging the movement and her reactions, and though it felt beyond pleasurable, the itch and need within Adair grew with each passing moment.

“More,” she pleaded. “Faster, please, more.”

He complied, thrusting harder, picking up his pace until he found a perfect rhythm. She moved her hips to match his, her body twitching and writhing in this passionate dance, eager to take all of him. He kissed her as they moved, her lips first, then her face, her neck, any part of her that he could reach, and she rolled her head back and arched her back to get closer to him.

“Ye feel so…so…” her words cut off with a sharp gasp. “Henry…”

A wave of pleasure coursed through her, quite unlike anything she had ever felt before, and a greedy need flared as he began to move even faster. Her hands gripped his buttocks now, pulling him in, and she parted her legs more, wrapping herself around him to give him as much access as possible.

“Ah! Yes, there, that’s it,” she breathed as he moved. How did their bodies fit so well together, sing in such harmony? He’d adjusted just slightly, but it triggered something new in her, as though he’d found something she hadn’t known she was missing until this moment. “Henry…!”

Her exclamations seemed to drive him wild, and he grabbed her hips and moved faster, harder, giving her everything he had, grunting her name over and over like a prayer. “Adair…Adair!”

He leaned forward, burying his head in the crook of her neck and shoulder, nibbling and licking as he did, and that tiny little addition was enough to send Adair over the edge. She cried out, the pleasure spilling out of her in waves like the winter seas, crashing hard over her, so much so that she felt disoriented from it. She dug her heels into him, pushing him and holding him deep inside her while she rode the throbbing ecstasy, and felt the moment all of her muscles tightened at once, more than she’d ever known.

Henry let out a sound almost like a roar at that, and soon she felt warmth between her legs as he joined her in that pleasure. And then, as one, their bodies relaxed, and he fell forward onto her in a heap while she sank back into the mattress.

They lay there for a few minutes in each other’s arms, sweating and panting heavily as they recovered. Henry rolled off, leaving behind a small strange feeling when he exited her, but he still held her in his arms. When Adair finally came back to the world, she realized he was gently playing with her hair, curling the golden locks around his fingers.

“Wow,” she mumbled. “I kent…but I didnae expect…”

Henry laughed, leaning over to kiss her forehead. “It was beyond anythin’ I’ve ever experienced. Ye are somethin’ the world has never seen before. That was…”

“Wonderful? Spectacular?” she offered, and he chuckled.

He leaned over, cupping her face. “It was perfect.” He kissed her softly, just a small peck. “Ye are perfect.”

Adair sighed with contentment, then rolled so that her arm was wrapped loosely around his stomach, her head resting gently on his chest.

“And ye’re me husband,” she said. “Who would have thought we’d ever get here?”

Henry shook his head. “Not me,” he admitted. “But I’ve prayed for it. Every day since I met ye all those years ago, I’ve hoped. It’s still hard tae believe I get tae call ye my wife.”

“Well, ye do,” Adair told him. “Because we found each other. And now nothin’ will ever part us. Never again.”

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