Saidh smiled and lay still for a moment, enjoying the warmth of Greer’s embrace. But restlessness soon moved her to raise her head to peer at him. Finding his eyes closed, she tapped his chin. “Are ye sleeping?”
“I am trying to,” he said dryly and blinked open sleepy eyes.
“How can ye sleep after something like that?” she asked with amazement.
Greer arched his eyebrows and countered, “How can ye not?”
Saidh chuckled at his expression and pushed away from him to get to her feet. “I feel most wonderful and wide awake meself.”
“While I am spent,” he muttered, his gaze warming as it ran over her body.
Saidh grinned at his expression and turned to saunter down to the water’s edge, putting an exaggerated sway in her walk as she’d seen a maid or two do to tempt her brothers.
“Oh, lass, yer like to wake the beast do ye keep that up,” Greer warned.
“And what beast would that be, m’laird?” Saidh asked, glancing back with a sassy smile. She let her gaze drop to his groin and arched her eyebrows. The man was well set in that department. At least he was if she was to judge by the glimpses she’d had of her brothers over the years. None of them were shy or overly concerned about being seen in all their glory. If she were to believe their bragging, they were all well endowed, a Buchanan trait. From what she could tell though, Greer was easily their equal. Still, she couldn’t resist pinching his manly pride and teased, “Surely ye do no’ mean that wee thing?”
“Och!” He was on his feet in a trice and rushing toward her.
Laughing, Saidh turned and started into the water. She’d barely taken two steps into the cold liquid when he caught her from behind and swept her up into his arms. Greer didn’t stop there, but carried her quickly forward until he stood knee deep in the cold water.
“Take it back,” he ordered, holding her out over the water.
“Take what back?” she asked innocently, unconcerned. She’d intended to swim after all.
“Wife,” he growled in warning and Saidh’s smile changed, softening with wonder.
“I am yer wife now,” she said softly and when confusion filled his expression, explained, “We’ve consummated the marriage. We’re truly husband and wife now.”
Smiling faintly, he nodded, drawing her against his chest. His voice was a soft growl as he agreed, “Aye. We’re man and wife now.”
They smiled gently and leaned toward each other to share a kiss. Their lips never met, however. The sound of snapping branches followed by whinnies from their horses made them both glance sharply toward the beasts as the mare and stallion shifted nervously away from the edge of the clearing.
Saidh wasn’t surprised when Greer suddenly turned and carried her quickly out of the water. The moment he hit dry land he let her legs drop. Once she was on her feet, he also removed the arm from around her back and then he abandoned her to hurry to his plaid and grab up his sword. Saidh was already doing the same thing herself, snatching up her own sword from where she’d left it. She then moved toward the horses even as he did.
“Do ye see anything?” she asked when he paused at the head of his stallion and peered at a fixed spot in the trees.
“Nay, you?” Greer responded and cast a quick glance her way. At least she suspected it was only supposed to be a quick glance, however his eyes locked on her and stayed, his expression turning from grim concern to flabbergasted dismay. “What the devil are ye doin’ woman? Get dressed!”
Saidh rolled her eyes at his distress. She didn’t point out that he was naked, or that bandits jumping out at them while she was in the middle of dressing would be worse than being seen naked. Nor did she point out that the dress would only hamper her ability to fight. She did think all those things though and mutter under her breath about them as she strode impatiently to her clothes and snatched them up.
The moment he saw that she was doing as requested, Greer turned his attention back to the woods. Saidh scowled at his back, then stabbed her sword into the ground so that the handle would be easily accessible should an attack happen while she was trying to dress, then she tugged on her chemise.
During the brief seconds that her vision was obscured by the soft cloth sliding over her face, Greer disappeared from the clearing.
Checking the woods, no doubt, she thought with irritation as she snatched up the dress next. She didn’t bother doing up stays or even troubling to tug it into place. The moment it was on and had dropped over her hips, she snatched up her sword again and strode after her husband.
When Greer stepped out of the woods as Saidh reached the horses, she paused to run a soothing hand down her still nervous mare’s nose as she peered at him in question. “Anything?”
“Nay. It may ha’e been a stag or some other beastie,” he said with a sigh and ran a hand around his neck as if to soothe tensed muscles.
“Ye do no’ sound like ye think that’s the case,” she said solemnly and he grimaced.
“Me stallion’s no’ a nervous beast. He only reacts as he did to a threat. A simple stag or doe would no’ make him dance away from the woods.”
“Hmmm,” Saidh murmured and peered at her mare. Her horse was well trained and not prone to nerves either. In fact, if Saidh were to judge by her behavior, she’d have said the mare had reacted as if a human had been approaching rather than an animal. Glancing back to Greer, she suggested, “It could ha’e been one o’ me brothers. Or even a couple or more. They all like to swim. They may ha’e come in search o’ the loch, saw that we were here and what we were about and headed away without interrupting.”
Greer snorted at the suggestion. “I suspect yer brothers are no’ the type to discreetly slip away. In fact, I’d venture to say they would ha’e taken pleasure in interrupting us.”