KADE FILLED THE doorway and Sam rolled her eyes at the dramatics.
“Leave us,” Kade snapped at his sister.
Fiona kissed Sam’s cheek. “Sorry.”
“Think about what I said, okay?”
Fiona nodded and then headed toward the door.
“I’ll talk to you later,” Kade threatened.
“Já, herra minn,” Fiona said, and left the room.
Kade closed and locked the door before making his way to the bed. He slipped off his shoes, stretched out beside Sam, and pulled her into his arms. “You’re supposed to be asleep.”
“And you’re supposed to be in a meeting,” she said, and snuggled against him.
“We’re finished.”
“Really finished, or you called it to a close early because I wasn’t doing what you wanted me to do?”
Kade lifted her chin and gave her a quick kiss. “Finished is finished.”
“Hmm-mm. Fiona said you were meeting with your brothers and the Council. What does that mean? Who’s on the Council?”
He kissed the top of her head. “Nothing you need to worry about, love. Right now, I need you to worry about resting.”
“Is that code for I’m on a need-to-know basis and I don’t need to know?”
Kade chuckled. “No, it’s code for you need to sleep.”
Sam tried to stifle a yawn, but she failed. “Okay, maybe I’m a little tired.”
“I know, love.”
His cell phone rang and he stared at the screen. “It’s yer mum, love.”
“Why’s she calling you?”
“Mrs. Moore?” he said without answering Sam’s question. “I’m sorry about that. Sam’s had a bit of tummy bug, so I turned off her phone so she could rest. She’s right here, would you like to speak to her?”
He handed Sam the phone.
“Hi, Mom.”
“I have been worried sick! What’s going on with you?” she asked.
“I think it might have been something I ate. Not sure.”
“Oh, honey, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Just really tired. Sorry about my phone.” Sam scowled at her mate. “I’m sure Kade was just trying to help, but I’ll turn it on right now so you can get me if you need to.”
“I’m just glad you’re okay… I began to imagine all sorts of horrible things.”
Sam grimaced. “Sorry.”
“How did everything go?”
“Y’all held the secret very well,” Sam said. “I was sufficiently surprised.”
“Did you say yes?”
Sam giggled. “Absolutely.”
“Good. I won’t keep you. Get some rest.”
“I will, Mom. Love you.” She hung up and settled herself back in Kade’s embrace. “No more phone tampering.”
He set his phone back on the side table. “No promises.”
“Brat.” She closed her eyes and kissed his chest. “Don’t be hard on your sister, okay? Her world’s been turned upside down.”
He sighed. “I know.”
“Promise me you’ll give her heaps of grace.”
“Heaps?” he asked. “Do I have to promise heaps?”
Sam giggled, her eyes growing heavier by the second. “Heaps,” she mumbled.
* * *
The room was dark the next time Sam opened her eyes. She felt for Kade, but he wasn’t in their bed. She rubbed her eyes and yawned.
This is becoming a habit, honey. Where are you?
“I’m here, love,” he said from the chair by the fireplace. He rose to his feet and made his way to the bed.
She sat up and sighed. “I don’t like waking without you.”
He sat on the edge of the mattress. “I’m sorry. How do you feel?”
“Better. I’m a little groggy and my muscles feel like I’ve run a marathon, but otherwise I’m good.” She dropped her head onto his shoulder. “Are you okay?”
“Aye.”
She frowned up at him. “Why don’t I believe you?”
He smiled. “Are you hungry?”
“A little. But first, I’d really love a shower.” She slid her legs off the bed and pushed herself up, grasping Kade’s arm when she felt unsteady.
“Careful,” he said as he wrapped an arm around her waist. “Let’s start with food.”
“Seriously?”
He smiled. “Fruit and cheese are perfect in the middle of the night.”
Sam grimaced. “I heard cheese gives you nightmares.”
“So will your mate if you refuse to eat.”
Sam giggled. “Fine.”
She ate as much as her stomach could take at three in the morning and then insisted on a shower. She rose to her feet but still felt dizzy.
“I’ve got you.” Kade took the brunt of her weight as he guided her into the bathroom and set her on the toilet lid. “I think a bath might be safer.”
Sam smiled. “Maybe you’re right.”
He filled the tub and then helped her with her nightgown before lifting her into the cool water.
Sam sighed. “This is heaven. Thank you.”
He knelt beside her. “Would you like me to wash your hair?”
Sam reached out and stroked his cheek. “Nothing sounds better, but first, I’d like you to tell me why you’re worried.”
He grimaced. “I need to learn how to control my emotions.”
“No you don’t. Now, tell me what’s going on.”
“I don’t want to add stress to your recovery.”
Sam snorted. “It’s far more stressful knowing you’re dealing with something heavy and not talking to me about it. I’m here to take part of the burden away, or did you miss that part in mate training?”
He sighed.
“Now, tell me who’s on the Council and what it is to begin with. Then you can fill me in on the rest.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Kade,” she admonished. “You’re either going to tell me or I’m going to “listen” to you. I think you’ll feel better if you tell me.”
“You’re a wee stubborn wench, aren’t you?”
She cocked her head. “Aye.”
He chuckled. “Well done.”
“Thank you. Now tell me.” She handed him the shampoo. “You can wash while you talk.”
He chuckled and squeezed the soap into his palm. “The Council is made up of elders of the Cauld Ane within not only our clan, but a few others in Scotland. Con, Brodie, and I are on it, along with Max and Niall MacMillan, who you’ll meet soon, I’m sure.”
“Wait, Max MacMillan…Fallen Crown Max MacMillan?”
“Aye.”
“Max MacMillan is Cauld Ane.”
“Aye.”
“Holy crap on a stick, no wonder they don’t tour often.”
“They’ve been making music for a very long time, they limit their exposure as much as they can.”
“I bet. Sorry, continue,” Samantha said.
“Angus and his father, Stuart are also on the council, and ten others from five of the larger clans in the country. Individually, we deal with our personal clan business, however, when it comes to Cauld Ane issues, the Council comes together and I make the ultimate decisions.”
“So, you’ve had a Cauld Ane issue, then?”
“A few.”
“Like?”
“The Fraser family for one, my mother for another.”
Sam frowned. “Your mom’s a Cauld Ane issue? How does that work?”
“She kept vital information from her laird and king, committed adultery that produced an illegitimate child, and lied to our people, among other minor infractions; however, the list goes on.”
Sam sat up, the water sloshing around her. “How is that anyone’s business outside of her family?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Then un-complicate it.”
“Rinse,” he directed, and she slid under the water quickly.
“All rinsed… keep talkin’,” she ordered as she wiped water from her face, but quickly pressed on her stomach. “After you get me some more cheese, please. Wow, I’m starving.”
He left her briefly and returned with the food platter. “This is why you need to eat every two hours.”
He set a cracker in her mouth and she hummed in appreciation as she chewed. “This is so good. Everything feels… I don’t know… so intense. Like this is the best cheese I’ve ever had in my life and this water is the most amazing temperature, ever.” She lifted her hand, the soapy water sliding down her arm. “And my skin. It’s flawless. The scar I got from Home Ec is gone and my nails actually look healthy.” She looked at Kade. “Do I look different?”
He shook his head. “You’re as beautiful as you were. Just in stereo.”
She giggled and opened her mouth for another treat. She swallowed and sat up in the tub. “Thank you. Now, tell me about your mom.”
He stood and leaned against the counter. “My mother was joined to the Laird of Gunnach, which is a job within itself. But not only was my father laird of our clan, he was also king of the Cauld Ane, and that meant she had obligations to fulfill, including giving birth to an heir and being the perfect spouse.”
“Why do I have visions of Henry the VIII and his propensity to kill women who didn’t do what he wanted them to do?”
Kade sighed. “You’ve hit the nail on the head, love. My father may not have killed my mother for her indiscretion when he found out about it, but he more than likely tried to drive her mad. According to the elders of the Council, there were rumors that his true mate was murdered by one of his rivals, and I suppose it’s possible that he might have gone a bit mad as well.”
“But no one thought that would be good information for you to have?”
“Hence my dilemma.” He crossed his arms. “So many people were attempting to either shelter us or deceive us; I’m having a difficult time sorting out who had good intentions and who didn’t. On top of trying to work out why my mother did what she did.”
“I guess her actions are somewhat understandable, right?”
“I don’t know.” He frowned again. “Her adultery alone is a beheading offense—”
“What?” Sam gasped. “You can’t be serious! Beheading?”
He raised his hands. “Don’t worry, I have no intention of beheading my mother, but had she been discovered by the Council while my father was alive, she would have been. Now it’s up to me to decide what to do, and it’s a thin line between showing mercy and showing weakness.”
Sam added more water to the tub. “What are you going to do?”
“If you’d asked me yesterday, beheading would have been too good for her. I’m a little calmer today.”
Sam bit her lip. “Your poor mother.”
“Don’t let your heart bleed for my mother, Samantha.”
“Only if you promise not to let yours harden.”
“Samantha.”
“No, Kade. I get that she did some pretty awful things, and I’m not saying you have to be her best friend. I’m not even saying you have to have a relationship with her, but if you hate her, it’s like drinking poison and hoping the other person dies.”
He stared at her for several seconds. “I don’t know what I feel about her, but I don’t think I love her enough to hate her. She wasn’t the most nurturing.”
“Oh, honey, I’m sorry.”
He shook his head. “Don’t be.”
“So, what’s the next step?”
“We have made the decision to exile our mother.”
“What?” Sam sat up again. “To where?”
“We’re working on that.”
“Where do you typically exile your dissidents?”
“Pohnpei.”
She frowned. “Italy?”
“No, Micronesia.”
“Micronesia?” she exclaimed. “You can’t be serious. Isn’t it tropical and really warm there? You send your people to a place where they’re sure to die?”
He shrugged. “They have air-conditioning there, and I have it on good authority there are some wonderful missionaries who will help them mend their ways.”
“Kade!” she admonished. “You can’t do that to your mother… I’m not sure you should do it to anyone, but definitely not your mother.”
“I know. This is why the dilemma is even more confusing.”
“What does the rest of the Council say? What do your brothers say?”
“Brodie wants her beheaded, Con wants her to stay here and for us to deal with it privately, Max agrees with Con, but he usually does. Niall will do what I decide. Angus is concerned about Fiona, so he’s not objective. The older men want her exiled to the surface of the sun.”
“Wow.” Sam sighed. “Why does Brodie want her beheaded?”
Kade grimaced. “My father was abusive to say the least, and my mother wasn’t much better. With me and Con, she’d try to calm my father’s rages, although many times it just added fuel to the fire, but at least she tried. However, Brodie, for whatever reason, got the brunt of her anger. Con and I did our best to protect him, but it’s difficult to do when you’re a child. Brodie was often bruised or worse, emotionally raw. Now his go-to emotion is anger.”
Sam held her hand out to him. “Come here.”
Kade pushed away from the counter and knelt beside the tub.
Sam cupped his cheek. “I’m so sorry your parents were less than what you deserved.”
He smiled. “Thank you, love. Honestly, I haven’t given it much thought in a long, long time.”
“But it’s coming to the surface now, isn’t it?”
“Aye.” He sighed. “For all of us.”
Sam pulled the plug on the bath and then stared up at him. “If I cheat on you, will I be exiled to Micronesia?”
“That will never happen.” He scowled. “You cheating, I mean.”
“Very true. And just so you know, if you cheat on me, no one will find your body.”
He slid his hand behind her neck and covered her lips with his. The kiss quickly turned heated as she slipped her hands into his hair. Kade broke the kiss and Sam tried to catch her breath.
He lifted her out of the tub and wrapped a towel around her. “I will never cheat on you, Sam. It would be a physical and emotional impossibility.”
She slid the towel from her body and let it drop to the floor. “Prove it.”
“You should rest.”
“I will. After you take me to bed.”
He frowned. “I don’t want to overtax you.”
Sam smiled and slipped her hands under his T-shirt. “I need less of the talky-talky, baby.”
Kade grinned and lifted her off the ground. Sam wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him while he carried her to the bed.
He pulled off his wet clothes and tugged her towel from her body, kissing his way up her leg and covering her core with his mouth. He slid his tongue inside of her, then sucked gently on her clit, as he rolled her nipples between his fingertips. Moving his way up her body, he drew her nipple into his mouth and bit down gently. She arched against him and he slid inside of her slowly.
“Faster, honey,” she demanded, and he obliged.
“On your knees,” he said, pulling out so she could shift.
The sight of her heart-shaped arse up and ready to take him was almost too much. He had to calm himself before sliding into her again, lest he fuck her so hard she’d break.
“I’d like to see you try,” she panted out, and he grinned.
“We’ll save that ’til you’re a bit more used to me.”
She pushed back against him, spurring him on, and he buried himself deep inside of her, again and again, pulling her up so that she was straddling him backwards, and she reached her arms behind her, grabbing his hips for leverage as she raised herself up and then lowered again.
“Shite,” he hissed. “So bloody good.”
“Yes,” she breathed out.
He helped her move against him, keeping her steady as she impaled herself over and over, then shuddering as her body took him deeper and deeper. Her body climaxed almost as quickly as his, and he had to hold her tight so she wouldn’t fall forward.
“Holy crap on a stick, that was fun.”
Kade chuckled. “Aye. We’ll do that again.”
“Yes, yes we will.” She lifted herself off of him and flopped onto the mattress. “I want to do all of it again and again and again. I never want to leave this bed.”
He stretched out beside and kissed her. “I can make that happen, love.”
“I bet you can.” She laughed. “How about you feed your mate again and we try another position?”
“You’re on.”