Page 34 of The Highlander’s Iron Hold (Kilted Kisses #4)

"The only complication I see here is ye hiding yer true motives!

Colin, dinnae ye dare lie tae me!" Morag's eyes blazed.

"All these days, ye've been waiting fer this delivery, haven't ye?

Waiting fer..." She stopped, pieces clicking together in her mind.

"The consummation. That's why this arrived today, isn't it? "

"Morag, it's nae what ye think?—"

"Then explain it tae me!" she demanded. "Explain why me faither's gold arrives the morning after.

.. after last night. Our entire marriage, everything between us, has been about this.

" She kicked at a chest, sending coins scattering across the cobblestones.

"Did ye laugh at me when I said I was ready?

Did ye think I was a foolish girl, falling fer the man who only wanted her fortune? "

"Of course nae," Colin said fiercely, stepping toward her.

"What happened between us last night was real.

It had naething tae dae with yer dowry." Colin ran a hand through his hair, looking cornered.

"I ken ye ken this, Morag. It's standard practice in marriage contracts.

The full dowry is delivered once the union is. .. complete."

"Standard practice?" Morag's voice cracked with hurt and disbelief. "So last night... in the tent, in the rain, when ye made me feel like the most precious thing in the world... that was just ye securing yer payment? God, what a fool I have been!"

"Nay!" Colin stepped toward her urgently. "Morag, what happened between us had naething tae dae with any of this. Nae all of it, at least."

"Nae all of it, Colin?!" She backed away from him, tears starting to blur her vision. "How convenient that ye suddenly found me so irresistible just when ye needed tae consummate our marriage fer the gold."

"That's nae true," Colin said desperately. "I've wanted ye since the day ye arrived. What we shared was real—is real."

"Is it?" Morag's laugh was bitter. "Or were ye just a very good actor, making sure I'd be willin’ when the time came? Tell me, Colin—if there had been nay dowry clause, would ye have been so eager tae bring me intae yer chamber?"

Colin's hesitation was barely a heartbeat, but it was enough. Morag saw the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes, the way he couldn't immediately deny her accusation.

"I thought so," she whispered, devastation replacing anger in her voice. "I was such a fool. I actually believed... I thought what we had was special."

"It is special," Colin said fiercely. "Morag, the dowry may have been part of the arrangement, but me feelings fer ye are real. What happened between us, Morag that’s real."

"What happened between us," Morag interrupted, "was ye daein’ yer duty tae secure yer clan's future.

Very thoroughly, I might add. I kent ye loved yer clan, and I admired ye fer it.

But I never- never - imagined ye'd go tae the extent of playing the part of the patient husband, the gentle teacher, and the man who could be tender and kind. It was all just a means tae an end."

"Ye're wrong!"

"Am I? Then why didn't ye tell me? Why keep it secret if it meant naething tae ye?"

Colin ran a hand through his hair, looking cornered. "Because I kent ye'd react like this. I kent ye'd think the worst of me."

"And ye were right, weren't ye?" Morag's laugh was bitter. "Because this is the worst. All these days of thinking maybe, just maybe, ye could care about me fer meself, and instead I was just an investment waiting tae mature."

She refused to give him the satisfaction of keeping on seeing just how thoroughly he'd broken her heart. She spun away from him, her chin lifted with defiant pride even as tears threatened to spill.

But Colin was faster. His hand shot out, strong fingers wrapping around her wrist and spinning her back to face him. His grip was firm but not painful, possessive in a way that made her pulse race despite her fury.

"Ye stubborn, stubborn lass," he growled, his dark eyes blazing with frustration and something deeper. "Yer wild nature will not be tamed long enough fer ye tae listen tae yer husband. Will ye stop talking’ enough tae hear the truth?"

"I've heard enough!" Morag spat.

"Nay, ye havenae!" Colin's voice thundered through the courtyard, making the pigeons nearby scatter.

"Ye want the truth? Here it is—aye, it was all arranged.

Every bit of it. And I didn't give a damn who they brought tae me as long as she kept tae herself and obeyed me.

I imagined in a few years she would give me an heir and I would return tae me clan business.

All I cared about was that the clan got the dowry it needed tae survive. "

Each word hit Morag like a physical blow, confirming her worst fears. He had never hoped for a happy marriage or to fall in love, he only needed money. She tried to wrench free of his grip, but Colin held fast.

"I outbid several more prosperous lairds fer yer hand, including Fraser, which is part of the reason he tried tae kidnap ye twice.

" He sighed, his tone turning into a slow whisper.

"But I never imagined," his voice became rougher, more intense, "that the bride I'd receive would be such a stubborn, fiery-mouthed, bewitching lass.

I never imagined I'd fall so hard fer a woman who could bring me tae me knees with a single look.

Ye have tae stay with me, Morag, dinnae ye see?

Ye're everything I need tae make Armstrong great again. "

Before she could respond, Colin hauled her against him, his mouth crashing down on hers in a kiss that was equal parts anger and desperation. His lips were hard, demanding, claiming her with a fierce possessiveness that stole her breath.

"Mo chridhe," he breathed against her lips—my heart—before capturing her mouth again with renewed hunger.

Morag's first instinct was to fight, to bite and claw and show him she wouldn't be so easily conquered. But as his mouth moved against hers with familiar heat, as his hands tangled in her hair with the same reverence he'd shown just hours before, her body betrayed her completely.

The kiss transformed from angry to hungry, from punishing to pleading. Colin's arms came around her waist, pulling her impossibly closer as his tongue traced the seam of her lips.

"Mo ghraidh," he murmured—my love— into another kiss and the endearment sent liquid fire through her veins despite her fury.

Against her will, Morag found herself melting into him, her hands fisting in his shirt as she kissed him back with equal fervor. Each Gaelic word fell from his lips like a caress, weakening her defenses even as her mind screamed at her to resist.

"A stór," he whispered, breaking the kiss only to trail his lips along her jaw—my treasure. The tender words made her gasp, her head falling back to give him better access to her throat.

Her body remembered his touch, craved it despite her mind's protests. The familiar taste of him, the way he held her like she was precious even in his anger, made her knees weak and her resolve crumble.

"Mo rún," Colin breathed against her ear—my secret, my beloved—and Morag felt herself trembling in his arms, caught between wanting to push him away and never letting him go.

When they finally broke apart, both breathing hard, Colin rested his forehead against hers. His eyes were dark with passion and something deeper, more desperate.

"Tell me ye feel naething," he said roughly, his voice thick with emotion. "Tell me what's between us is just gold and contracts, mo chridhe."

The endearment, spoken with such raw vulnerability, nearly broke her resolve entirely. For a heartbeat, she wavered, remembering how those same words had sounded in the darkness of their tent, whispered against her skin with such tender reverence.

Morag stared into his dark eyes, seeing the raw vulnerability there, the desperate need for her to believe him. For a moment, she wavered, remembering the tenderness in his touch, the way he'd whispered her name like a prayer.

But then reality crashed back over her like cold water. She took a step back.

"Me body may betray me feelings fer ye," she said quietly, her voice steady despite the tears threatening to fall.

"But it daesnae take away the fact that ye were using me all along.

I ken what an arranged marriage means, I came here with me eyes wide open.

But what I cannae accept is the kindness, the passion, the way ye made me feel cherished—all the lying ye did just tae get me intae yer bed so ye could claim yer prize. "

She took two more steps back, breaking his hold on her, and Colin's arms fell to his sides like he'd been struck.

"Morag… " But Colin's voice was a cold whisper.

"No," she said firmly, though her voice cracked slightly. "I need tae get away from ye. I need tae think."

But even as Morag turned to leave, another realization hit her like a blow to the chest. She spun back around, her face pale with understanding, her hands clenched into fists at her sides.

"Wait," she said, her voice deadly quiet. She stood with her back straight despite the tears still falling, her chin lifted in defiant pride. "The first night. Did ye make it seem like we'd... did ye tell everyone the marriage was consummated?"

Colin's face went ashen, the color draining from his cheeks as if she'd struck him. His hands fell limply to his sides. "Morag, stop this, Mo chridhe ."

"Dinnae ye dare call me that! It was faked from the weddin’ night," she continued, her voice growing stronger with her fury. Her eyes blazed with hurt and betrayal as she took a step closer to him. "That’s why ye rushed the weddin’ and insisted I move tae yer chambers.

Ye lied about what had happened between us.

Because ye needed them tae think the marriage was real so ye could get yer precious gold delivered. "