“I know,” I rolled over to face him, my body still humming with aftershocks. “You said something about that the other night.”
He grinned, kissing my fingertips that lay loosely between our faces. “Ach, I said many things I no should have.”
“Why not?”
“Mayhap ’twas no so much that I shouldn’t have said them, only that I would no usually say them.”
I nodded, agreeing that was most definitely what it had been, and slowly my eyes started to drift closed. I was happy, and loose, and exhausted. Just as I’d begun to dream, Eohganan wrapped his arms around me and pinched me on the rear.
“Oh no, ye doona get to sleep yet, lass. Do ye no remember what I told ye?”
I opened one eye, leaving the other closed. “What’s that?”
“Twice does no equal ‘over and over.’ I am no done with ye yet.”
He had to be kidding. How could he possibly have the energy? “Let’s at least take a cat nap first.” I scooted in to him, moving my head to his chest and draping one of my legs across him.
“Ye are mad if ye think I’ll be able to sleep with ye lying naked across me.” He pulled his head back to look at me. “Grace, what is a ‘cat nap’?”
I yawned, stretching into him. “It’s an expression, it just means a short nap.”
He shook his head, rolling me off him so that he could face me. “A short nap would turn into a long sleep.”
“Mmmhmm…” I allowed my eyes to drift closed once again. This time he didn’t argue, instead standing to pull back the blankets.
“At least get in the bed, lass.”
I did as he asked, rolling to the open part before tucking my legs inside. He joined me, pulling me close to him.
“Thank you,” I whispered, planting a kiss on the side of his cheek.
“For what?” He grinned into my lips.
“For not allowing me to talk myself out of this.” Voices travelled down the hallway outside his door and I spoke to him, my voice teasing. “See? Everybody is going to bed. It’s time to sleep.”
“Aye, our guests are being shown to their rooms.” He paused, his eyebrows scrunching up in the middle.
“What are you thinking?”
“I’m counting. I doona think we have enough bedchambers.”
I smiled, laughing into his chest. “You didn’t, but you do now.”
“Did ye build us one, Grace? ’Tis a talent I dinna know ye had.”
“No. Your mother kicked me out of my room.”
“She what?” The covers flew back and he tried to leave the bed, but I jumped up to stop him, grabbing his shoulders and pulling him backward.
“Cool your jets. She assigned me to another room.”
“Aye? And whose room is that? I doona think Baodan will make room for ye in his bed.” He paused and grinned, “Actually, he’d be a fool to no allow two women inside it, but his wife would put a stop to that.”
I rolled my eyes. It didn’t matter what century they were from, men’s minds still thought in much the same way. “No. Your mother asked, no instructed, me to sleep in your room.”
“No, she dinna?” Eoghanan’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Yes. I promise you she did. I was rather surprised myself.”
“Aye, I doona know what to say. I doona think I’ve ever been so surprised.” He laughed a moment before reaching over and pulling me on top of him, pulling my head down to meet his kiss. “Ye wouldna want to disobey me mother, would ye?”
I laughed but remained straddling him, no longer feeling so sleepy. “No, but I think the word she used was “sleep” not…not this.” I swept my hand downward to motion to the both of us.
“Oh, we’ll sleep lass. ’Til midday if I have anything to say about it, but no just now.”
Chapter 29
True to his word, he exhausted me so entirely that I did sleep until midday, only to find myself alone in his room when I woke. He meant it as a courtesy—rising before me so that we would not appear before the new guests at exactly the same time, coming from exactly the same direction. I’d been worried about it all night, so I relaxed upon finding myself alone.
I would be able to greet the Conalls without it being quite so apparent what Eoghanan and I had been up to all night, although if their rooms were close, I had no doubt some of them knew well enough.
“Mom! Hey, which room are you in, Mom?”
The little voice sent my heart pattering a million miles a minute, and I leapt from the bed in a panic looking for my dress so that I could slip it on before Cooper burst through the door. I managed it with not a second to spare, reaching for the handle just as the door flung open.
“There you are, Mom! You missed breakfast by a long shot. Dad said you were around here somewhere.” He peeked his head inside. “Isn’t this E-o’s room?”
I was suddenly very warm. “Umm…yeah, with all of the new people in the castle, I had to give my room up for their guests.”
He shrugged. “Oh, okay, cool. Did you sleep on the floor or something?”