Epilogue
Two Moons Later
“I will not tell you again, Alastar.” Lying in bed, Aislin sighed and looked at her husband warily, then back down at their new son.
“Tell me once more, mo chroí. I must hear it. Say you shall never leave me.”
“One day, I may leave you. But that day is not today.” As Alastar’s face turned ashen and his mouth dropped open, Aislin laughed and pushed his lips back together with her thumb and forefinger. “Listen to me, love. I will say it once more. I am hale. I am not dying. I am a strong woman and I have birthed you a strong lad. The blood loss is normal… and I told you to leave when my waters broke. I knew you could not handle it.”
“I would never have left you while you birthed our babe, Lin.”
“Nay, you have proven that. Och! When you climbed behind me on the bed and molded your body to mine, I thought you had gone mad.”
“I had gone mad. I was mad with worry for you. Are you certain you are well?”
Their son made a soft cooing sound just as he awoke from sleep and instantly began to wail, searching for a breast to suckle. With a soft murmur of reassurance, Aislin cradled their wee son into the crook of her arm and watched in awe as he instinctively took hold of her nipple, making satisfied gulping sounds. “Aye, I am more than well, husband. I am a wife and a mother. Two roles I once thought I would never want. Now I cannot imagine the loss of either of them.”
“You shall never lose us. I will protect wee Conor with my life, and I swear to never leave you.”
Aislin looked up at Alastar’s face and saw the raw truth in his words. He was a large man and strong warrior, but his heart was soft and his devotion was unwavering.
“My thanks for naming our son after my brother,” Alastar added, giving their lad a soft kiss on the crown of his red head.
It had been several hours since her waters had broken while she and Alastar walked around the village with Branwen at their heels. The pains had come on hard and fast, causing her to clench and scream out at the unexpected onslaught. Branwen had gone into protective mode over her mistress, running circles around Aislin and snarling at anyone, except Alastar, who dared get close to her.
Fortunately, Flynn had been close by and, having heard her roars of pain, followed by the water puddling on the earth beneath her feet, fled quickly to Maggie’s home to alert her of Aislin’s impending labor, followed by an announcement to their family.
Within what must have only been moments, her entire family surrounded her as Alastar carefully carried her home. Labor had not been without its scares. After several hours of intense cramping pains causing her to scream and sweat profusely, Conor finally began to crown, only his head would not pass.
Maggie and her mother informed her that her babe was upside down, but that meant nothing to Aislin, who was drowning in a pain so fierce, it had threatened to tear her in two. When Alastar launched himself onto the bed behind Aislin, grabbing her knees and shoved them almost painfully up into her rib cage, she had cursed him in the most creative ways for having planted his seed in her and thus causing her such pain. He had sworn to never plant his seed again, but even in the moment, she knew it was a lie. If the man had his way, he would plant his seed again within months and, gods help her, she would wish for nothing more, even knowing what pain she would surely face.
After another few hours of endless pushing and a many tears, screams, and curses, Conor came into the world with a wail loud enough to wake the dead. Then, all the blood came. Gushes of blood that she could not see, nor did she care to see as the most beautiful lad with her bright red hair and his papa’s big blue eyes was placed on her heaving chest, skin on skin. The bond was immediate, powerful, and life-altering. Never again would Aislin be the same.
Though she heard Alastar’s worried voice and pleading words, her mother’s carefully steadied commands and Maggie’s whispers about the blood, Aislin knew she would survive. No force on earth was going to tear her away from the new life she had just brought into this world.
Conor was quickly cleaned and swaddled, all while Alastar continued to lie behind her. Soon exhaustion took hold and she fell asleep, knowing her son was safe and she would be of no use without some rest.
When she awoke, her mother and Maggie had gone, the blood had been cleaned up completely, and Alastar sat on the stool near their bed while cradling wee Conor in his arms, a concerned look on his face.
When she asked him why he looked so worried, he began to cry and begged her not to die. She had been bewildered by his sudden outburst and assured him she would not die, but apparently his fear was much too deep to simply vanish with her constant reassurances, and he continued to ask her every several minutes if she was hale. For love of the man, she calmly told him repeatedly that she was well, and would not die on him. Only time would soothe his nerves, she supposed, but his concern for her, while unneccessary, was endearing and she loved him for it.
“He is a dear lad,” she whispered as she ran her fingers through his soft tuft of red hair. “I cannot believe we created a wee human.”
“’Tis an unbelievable feeling,” Alastar agreed and joined her in awe of their son as he stroked their child’s head. “He is perfect, just like his mother.” Conor sighed as he detached from Aislin’s breast, milk dripping down the side of his mouth.
“I am far from perfect. Only, somehow you see past all my flaws and love me, regardless.”
“To me, you are perfect, and I shall tell you so every day of your life… as long as you tell me one more time that you are hale.”
“I am hale.”
“You relent much easier these days, wife.”
“’Tis because I have learned that being stubborn, where you are concerned, only causes more problems. Best to give in to your ridiculous whims and be done with it.”
“In that case…” Alastar looked down at her engorged breasts and back up to her face. “May I taste your milk?”
Aislin swatted him carefully without jostling Conor and smirked. “Mayhap one day soon, but not now. I am concerned I am not making enough and wish to save all I have for him.”
Alastar feigned disappointment, but then his eyes grew wide and a huge grin spread across his face at her promise.
“I shall keep that thought in the back of my mind. For now, I wish to lie here with my son and wife, and ponder how I became so fortunate.”
She scooted over carefully, wincing at the pain below, but trying her best to hide it so Alastar would not worry. Her heart thrummed with so much love, it actually ached. How had she ever thought to live without so many blessings? Aye, she would still hunt with her bow, climb mountains with Branwen by her side, and roam freely, but she would do it with these two lads by her side. Life was so much better than she had ever hoped, and all because Alastar refused to give up on her. He refused to give up on most things, it seemed.
“One more time, Lin,” he whispered as he climbed into bed next to her, draping his left arm over her shoulder.
“Aye, Alastar. I am well,” she sighed. And she truly was.