Wed to a Highland Warrior (28 page)

Authors: Donna Fletcher

Tags: #Romance, #Historical, #Fiction

T
he sacred grove shimmered with sunlight though snow fell lightly. It seemed that the heavens smiled down on this joyous day. The true king was wedding his queen in Pict fashion. Only the MacAlpin family was in attendance to hear Bryce and Charlotte exchange words of love and commit to each other.

Trey stood with his arm around Bliss, his mum sending him a look that asked if the woman carrying her future grandchild was feeling well. It had been his fault that his mum had found out about the babe. He had been beside himself with worry when he had seen Bliss’s bruised eye and had anxiously asked how she and his son faired . . . in front of his whole family.

Mara had gone wild, then became even more ecstatic when Reeve proudly announced with a firm arm around his wife that he also was to be a father.

Mara had cried tears of joy and repeated throughout the day that her fondest dreams had come true. She would have tons of grandbabies to fuss over.

Trey smiled at his mum to let her know that all was well. Bliss was fine although he sensed she wasn’t, and it had nothing to do with the babe.

He knew what troubled his wife, and he waited until the ceremony was done and his family drifted off, and, with a nod to Bryce that he would follow them soon, he turned his wife around in his arms.

“It was a beautiful exchange of vows,” she said teary-eyed.

Since having realized she was with child, her feelings were more open to him. It proved difficult at times since he thought it was his duty to ease her every worry until she finally explained that she preferred he simply listen to her whimpering complaints and ignore them.

She had not expected him to solve her every annoyance, complaint, and problem, though there was one dilemma he knew he could solve and easily.

“Yes, it was a lovely ceremony for a planned one, but I thought ours was much better.”

She scrunched her brow as if trying to recall. “I don’t remember us having a ceremony here.”

He eased her over to the spot where Bryce and Charlotte had exchanged vows. The sunlight filtered down on them like golden dewdrops. He took her hand.

“Don’t you remember what you said to me here that night?”

She nodded. “The words were meant for the husband I would love.”

“That’s me, the husband you would love, and I recall your words well—‘I take Trey MacAlpin as my husband. I give my heart to him and only him. And I will love him for all the days of my life and beyond.’ ”

“You remember,” she said, surprised.

“Why wouldn’t I? They were spoken with such feeling that they touched my heart and had me eagerly responding.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mumbled something after you, though I didn’t admit to it. Now I will. I spoke words that were meant to seal our fate.”

A tear tickled at the corner of her eye. “Tell me.”

“I, Trey MacAlpin, take Bliss as my wife to love and honor all the days of our lives together, for without her, there is no life . . . Bliss is my life.”

Tears streamed down her face. “I love you, Trey MacAlpin.”

“And I you, wife,” he said, and kissed her, sealing the gift of love that fate had given them.

About
the Author

Part of the fun in writing, DONNA FLETCHER
admits, is doing the research. But it is with her characters that she has the
most fun. She loves giving life to fresh characters and feels their excitement
as they face the pleasures and pitfalls of falling in love. Donna’s own
adventures have taken her to England, Ireland, and Scotland. She has walked the
fields where battles were fought centuries ago, toured haunted castles, stood
where beheadings were commonplace, explored the mystic mounds of long ago, and
collected a plethora of memories and research that will live long in her heart
and mind. She also loves exploring and photographing old abandoned homes, and
she often takes long walks in the woods with camera in hand. She feels her life
is rich and full, having three terrific sons, two fantastic daughters-in-law, an
endless supply of friends, a loving dog, and a crazy, black, one-eyed cat named
Bear.

www.donnafletcher.com

Visit
www.AuthorTracker.com
for exclusive
information on your favorite HarperCollins authors.

By Donna Fletcher

Wed to a Highland Warrior

A Warrior’s Promise

Loved By a Warrior

Bound to a Warrior

The Highlander’s Forbidden Bride

The Angel and the Highlander

Under the Highlander’s Spell

Return of the Rogue

The Highlander’s Bride

Taken By Storm

The Bewitching Twin

The Daring Twin

Dark Warrior

Legendary Warrior

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters,
places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used
fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual
events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely
coincidental.

WED TO A HIGHLAND
WARRIOR
. Copyright © 2012 by Donna Fletcher. All rights reserved
under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the
required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to
access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be
reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored
in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form
or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter
invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

EPub Edition NOVEMBER 2012 ISBN:
9780062034953

Print Edition ISBN: 9780062034878

FIRST
EDITION

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

About the Publisher

Australia

HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.

Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street

Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia

http://www.harpercollins.com.au

Canada

HarperCollins Canada