The Wedding Engagement

Chapter Thirty

Liv concentrated hard on not peering down the top table to look at Arran for the hundredth time that evening. He was so goddamn handsome in that blue-green kilt. The black socks hugged his muscular calves and he’d rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt to reveal the hard contours of his forearms. Now he was lifting an arm to loosen the green cravat at the top of his waistcoat, and she was practically drooling in response.

It was true that a kilt made any man appear at least fifty percent more attractive, but a guy who was already as handsome as Arran? It was stratospheric.

The band were setting up across from the top table, and the other tables had been moved to the side of the long, high-ceilinged ballroom to make way for the dance floor in the center. Portraits of stuffy old lairds and ladies lined the wood-paneled room, watching everyone enjoying themselves with condescending expressions. Evening guests were arriving and taking their seats as Sam and Maya made their way around the room to greet people.

Liv had lost count of how many times she’d looked over all Arran’s lovely messages and photos, trying to analyze every single word. And the photo album was the icing on the cake. She couldn’t get through it without becoming teary. Surely it all meant that Arran, true to his word, wanted to be with her. Something else occurred to her. Over the last several weeks, Arran had started referring to Rory by his actual name, rather than calling him “the boyfriend” in that resentful tone. Perhaps that was another sign that he was finally letting go of his relationship with Jess. And that predated anything that had happened between the two of them, so maybe it all had been completely over in his mind before they’d even kissed. Which would mean that his relationship with Jess would have been over even if Liv weren’t on the scene, and she was not a third wheel by any measure.

She was in no doubt that she loved him, and her little seed of hope that he loved her back had been nurtured and grown by Arran’s sweet and winsome gestures. So only one barrier remained—was she brave enough to take a chance on a relationship with him? The stakes were high. She could lose her best friend, and Jayce, if it went wrong. And the chances of her making a wrong move must be high given her emotional baggage and inexperience with long-term relationships.

The speeches were over and Liv had been impressed at how Sam had managed to give a coherent and touching address, despite having drunk a considerable amount of wine over dinner. Though it was a good thing he’d gone before Maya, because her speech had brought the house down. Nobody would have wanted to follow that little number.

Something tugged at her arm and she startled out of her reverie. Elise was pulling her in. “Listen to me. The band are getting ready for the first dance, so you need to get yourself sorted out before you and I join them on the dance floor with Arran and Nico.”

Liv’s heart rose into her throat and she swallowed, bringing her eyes up to meet Elise’s. “I’m scared, Elise.”

Elise gathered her into a hug. “What are you scared of?”

Her pulse picked up speed. “Of messing up. Of driving him away.”

Elise sighed. “I understand. However, I think you need to look at it this way—you’d have nothing to lose by taking a chance, but a lifetime of happiness to lose if you didn’t. Take Arran and Jess, for example. They’re on good terms, despite a messy breakup, and they have lovely Jayce to show for it.” Elise pulled back to meet her eyes. “But if you want my opinion, you and Arran are the real deal. We can all see it.”

Liv tried to speak, but the lump in her throat hindered her.

Elise took her hand, looking at their entwined fingers. Her voice was quiet. “What could’ve gone more wrong with Harry and me than him dying and leaving me alone? Our son won’t even remember him.”

Liv sucked in a sharp breath, her heart cracking in two. She closed her eyes briefly to squeeze back the hot sting of tears.

Elise swallowed, clearly working hard to keep her voice even. “But I regret nothing. I wouldn’t have missed out on a single day with him, and I will always cherish the time we had together.”

The band announced the first dance, and Sam led Maya onto the dance floor, but Liv couldn’t look at them; she was too caught up in the emotion in Elise’s shimmering blue eyes.

“You have to do it, Liv. Take a leap of faith and trust that whatever happens, your time together will have been worth it.”

The band announced that the best women and men would be joining the bride and groom, and still Liv couldn’t tear her eyes from Elise. Until Nico arrived and held out his hand.

Elise gave Liv a smile, then took Nico’s hand and followed him to the dance floor, where they joined Maya and Sam.

For a moment, her limbs felt heavy and stuck.

Then Arran was there. Taking her hand and lifting her to her feet, guiding her to the dance floor and moving with her in unison to the music. She gripped his strong shoulder and he held her waist securely, her hand in his as they moved across the dance floor to Louis Armstrong’s “We Have All the Time in the World.”

She’d been afraid that she’d prevent him from being happy, because she loved him and Jayce too much to mess it up. Loved him. She was so in love with him. But that meant gambling on him—on both of them—and finally, she realized she was equipped to meet the challenge. She wasn’t going to let the legacy of Douchebag Dave taint her chance at happiness any longer.

The band called the rest of the guests to join the dance, and the floor quickly became packed. Arran pulled her closer, hugging her to him. With her heels on, the top of her head reached just under his chin. They fit together perfectly, in every way. The epiphany that Elise had helped her to reach shone brightly, lighting up her soul and burning away the remnants of her fears. She needed to tell him how she felt.

She lifted her head, intending to ask him if they could go somewhere to talk.

“We need to talk,” he told her, before she got the chance.

“Yes,” she said, and as the song ended, she tugged his hand to lead them from the dance floor and across the stone floor, exiting the ballroom into the bar area. Liv scanned around for where might be quiet to talk, but there were people everywhere.

“This way,” Arran said, leading her toward the spiral staircase that led down to the entrance hall, and sneaking past the “No Entry” sign that blocked the way up. They ascended right to the top, their shoes creating an echo on the stone steps that reverberated ahead of them, as if finding the summit by echolocation.

The stairs gave way to a small room at the top of the turret, containing one small window overlooking the grounds. It was cool up there after the heat of the reception, and Liv wrapped her arms around herself.

Arran pulled her to his chest. “I should’ve brought my jacket for you.”

“It’s okay,” she said, pressing her cheek to his chest and breathing him in. “I prefer this to a jacket.”

He tightened his arms around her in response. Liv lifted her hand to touch his face. “I need to tell you something.”

“Wait,” he said, softly. “I have to say something first.” He took a deep breath. “I’m hoping you’ve guessed by now that I want us to be a couple. A family, with Jayce.” He fingered one of the ringlets that framed her face. “I wish I’d known everything you’ve been going through sooner, so I could’ve been there for you. But I’m here now, sweetheart, and I’m not going anywhere. I’ll give you as much time as you need to work through whatever you have to. I can wait as long as it takes for you to be ready.”

He paused to take another big breath, and she lifted a finger to his lips. They were so soft. “You have exactly zero seconds to wait. Because that’s what I wanted to tell you. I want us to make a go of it. Make a go of us .” She brushed her finger over his lower lip and absorbed the way his eyes darkened in response. “I love you,” she whispered. “That’s what I was coming to tell you that Saturday morning, when Jess answered the door in her tiny undies.”

He laughed softly, closing his eyes. When he opened them again, the moonlight shone on his face, lighting up the gold of his eyes with a silver tone. A smile spread over his features as he brought her closer, resting his forehead against hers the way he’d done that night on Skye. “That is music to my ears. I love you too. I realized after our first time together, but the reality is I’ve loved you much longer than that.” He eased back a little to look into her eyes. “You don’t need to worry about taking a back seat ever again, because you will always come first with me. You and Jayce are my whole world, and I’ve got you. Okay?”

She nodded, tears welling in her eyes as he kissed her softly. But it was mere seconds before the touch of his lips had trails of fire seeping like rivulets down her body, making her breasts tighten and a liquid heat pulse in her core.

Liv buried her fingers in the soft coils of his hair, bringing his mouth down harder onto hers and igniting the tinder that had been gathering inside her all day as she’d watched him in that goddamn sexy kilt.

Arran teased her mouth with his tongue, sliding his hand down her side onto her skirt, his breath hitching as his fingers touched her skin and slid up the outside of her thigh. “I’ve been thinking about this all day,” he murmured. He moved his mouth onto her neck, then lower, kissing and biting the skin of her shoulder. “You look so beautiful. And really fucking hot.”

Something electric shocked into Liv’s core and she pressed closer to him, a hardness digging into her thigh. His sporran, or something else?

Arran shifted her back against the wall and slid both his hands under her skirt and onto her arse, moving them up to where her flimsy underwear rode low on her hips. He hooked his fingers over the fabric and tugged them slowly down her legs, keeping his gaze locked on hers. “Is this okay?”

“Hell yes,” she breathed, and he gave her a wicked smile.

Arran got to his knees, lifting her leg over his shoulder. He brushed his lips slowly up the inside of her thigh, making her shiver uncontrollably. She flattened her palms against the cold wall behind her, willing him to move faster, to reach where she needed his touch. But he kept his movements slow, teasing her until the ache between her legs was agonizingly exquisite.

Arran paused, hovering over her core, the heat of his breath on her skin. Then he buried his face between her legs and she let out a sharp gasp, shuddering in response.

Gripping her backside, he pulled her closer, licking his tongue over the exquisite sensitivity, then driving it inside her. She moaned, hearing the sound echo down the stone stairs and not giving a shit if anybody heard her.

Liv dug her fingers into his hair. Perhaps they’d get caught, but it was too good for her to care. Arran licked his tongue over her, teasing her, kissing her, sucking her. He drove her closer and closer to the edge, until the only word she could remember was his name.

But she needed more. She needed him.

She tangled her fingers into his hair, shifting his head gently away. Then she tugged him to his feet and swung his sporran around to the back, lifting his kilt. “You’d better be a true Scotsman under here.”

“Of course,” he said, his breathing labored as he lifted her against the wall to straddle him. His hard tip brushed against her core and she shivered with anticipation. Bracing them against the wall, he drove into her, catching her gasp with his mouth.

“I’ve never had sex wearing a kilt before,” he breathed.

“Shame,” she said, a smile on her face. “When it’s really rather convenient.”

He laughed softly, then thrust harder, and her smile gave way to an open-mouthed gasp as she was overwhelmed by sensation. The hardness of him driving into her, his hot mouth on her skin, the thrill of sneaking off to have sex at the top of a tower. But most of all, love. She loved him with every fiber of her being.

“Arran,” she cried out, as the ripples of her orgasm tightened around him.

He groaned into her neck, saying her name as he came. He pressed them against the wall, holding her close, her legs still wrapped around him as they both trembled with the intensity of it.

Eventually, he lifted his head to kiss her, before gently untangling them to lower her to the floor. “I could keep those gorgeous legs of yours wrapped around me all the livelong day.”

She laughed. “You can carry me around like that if you want. Cuddled against your front like a koala. I’m probably small enough without the heels.”

He smiled down at her. “I love how petite you are. Petite, but superstrong. A force to be reckoned with in a small package.” He kissed her. “But I have to say, I loved the fact that you kept those heels on.”

She smiled against his mouth. “Noted. And I have to say, I love this risqué side of you.”

He grinned. “The gloves are off now, baby. I’m all yours.”

She nipped his lower lip with her teeth. “Glad to hear it.”

Arran gripped her more tightly. “Careful. Or I’ll need to have you again, then everyone will wonder where we’ve gone.”

Liv laughed. “Come on. We need to get back.” She grabbed her underwear to slide it back on, then tugged him toward the stairs.

He groaned.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “You’re invited to my room tonight.”

He grinned, pausing at the top of the stairs and holding out his hand for her to take. “Awesome.”

They descended and arrived back behind the “No Entry” sign, which made her chuckle and raise her eyebrows suggestively at Arran. There had been plenty of entry, all right.

He tugged her close as they laughed softly, Liv scanning from the shadows so they could time their exit.

Managing to slip out onto the stone landing toward the bar, holding hands, Arran swung their arms while pretending to whistle nonchalantly. Liv dissolved into laughter. Nobody made her laugh like he did. She eyed him, again admiring how devastating he looked in that kilt. The thought that one day he’d wear one to their wedding popped into her head, bringing with it the most wonderful feeling of serenity and contentment, and not an ounce of fear along with it. The only palpitations she felt were those of excitement.

Glancing up, she spotted Nico watching them across the bar. He flashed them a grin and held up his glass.

“Don’t look now, but I think Nico’s rumbled us,” she whispered to Arran.

“Mm-hmm,” Arran replied in a surreptitious tone. “And he’s not the only one.”

She shifted her gaze over to where he was gesturing and spotted Elise, who was giving them a soft smile. Liv raised her hand in a little wave and gave her a big grin back.

—

His entire body was filled with a delicious ache. Like he’d had a vigorous workout at the gym the previous day. Arran opened his eyes, taking in the old-style opulence of the four-poster bed and the tartan-clad room around them.

Except he hadn’t been to the gym, but rather had a personal workout with the lovely Olivia Agnes Holland. All night long.

Smiling, he trailed a finger along her naked thigh and over her waist to where her arm was holding a sheet against her front. He loved this contradiction of a woman. Sweet, empathic, and could probably kill you with her bare hands. Warmth filled his chest, and he realized that the hollow sensation that had plagued him for the past year had disappeared.

She stirred, opening those gorgeous green eyes and pinning him with her gaze. “Morning, you total sex god.”

“Well,” he said, bending an elbow behind his head with a shrug. “I do try.”

Liv shifted over to kiss him, then glanced over his shoulder. “Shit. We’re late for breakfast.”

Arran looked at the clock. “Fuck.”

They both jumped out of bed and had a hurried shower, Arran cursing that they didn’t have time to re-create what they’d done the last time they’d showered together.

“Later,” Liv had whispered when he’d complained, and that was all he needed to hear.

They left the bedroom in a hurry, holding hands and laughing as they descended the large sweeping staircase that led from the bedrooms to the ground floor of the castle. Despite being late, they still found time to laugh at each other’s crap jokes, and it occurred to him, not for the first time, that not only did nobody make him laugh the way that she did, but nobody got his dumb jokes and laughed back like Liv.

The memory of waiting for her to emerge into the wedding gazebo, his heart in his throat, surfaced, along with that random but oh-so-right thought about the piper— when I marry Liv, we’ll have a string quartet instead. Then something that Jess had told him randomly popped into his head. “She’s a good one. Hold on to her.”

Liv went to lead them around the corner, but he tugged her back, watching her eyes widen and pupils dilate as he brought her into a kiss. He broke off to press her gently against the wall. “I need to ask you something.”

Her lips were swollen and her eyes hazy from their kiss. “What is it?”

He took a breath, pulse accelerating. “Just a hypothetical at this point. But what would you say if at some point soon, I asked you to marry me?”

Her breath hitched as she searched his face. “Are you being serious?”

He arched an eyebrow. “Deadly serious.”

She let out a soft laugh, then paused for a couple of seconds. “We only became a couple last night, so that thought should probably terrify me. And yet…” Her eyes sparkled.

“And yet what?” he asked, tucking her hair behind her ear.

Liv smiled. “And yet it feels completely right.” She touched his face. “I was even thinking the same thing myself.”

He gave her his best catalog pout. “Is that because I looked so awesome in my kilt, you couldn’t help but want to marry me?”

She grabbed the front of his shirt to pull him into a kiss, taking his breath away. Then she broke off to whisper, “Yeah, pretty much.”

Arran smiled against her mouth. “So, the answer to my hypothetical proposal is…?”

“Yes,” she whispered, her eyes shining.

“Excellent,” he said softly. He took her hand to lead them down the corridor. “You know what this means, don’t you?”

She shook her head. “What?”

He grinned. “It means we’re engaged to be engaged.”

Liv laughed. “Pre-engaged.”

They reached the door of the breakfast room, and he gave her hand a squeeze. “Do you want to tell the others?”

“About us being a couple? Yes.” She broke into a smile. “But let’s keep the pre-engagement our special secret.”

“No problem, Aggie,” he said, giving her a wink.

The breakfast room was housed in the library, with all the bridal party already in place tucking into full Scottish breakfasts around tables of varying sizes.

Sam eyed the two of them as they took seats next to him at the main table. “Morning.”

Arran ran a hand over the top of his hair. “Good morning. How’s married life?”

Sam grinned, shifting his hand to hold Maya’s. “Awesome.”

Maya turned and leaned across Sam to give them each a kiss on the cheek. “Hello there. You two are looking rather rosy this morning.”

Arran felt heat rising in his face, and as he glanced at Liv, he saw pink was staining her cheeks. He cleared his throat. “Yeah, well. Being in love suits us.”

Maya’s mouth dropped open and she squealed. Everyone in the breakfast room turned to look at them. She waved her hand. “Never you mind, people. Back to your business.” There was a ripple of laughter and Maya shoved her chair closer to Sam’s, sliding an arm around his shoulders to lean over him and address the two of them. “It’s pretty clear that my husband and I weren’t the only ones getting some action on our wedding night.”

Liv laughed, shifting closer to Arran and bringing their entwined hands into her lap. He got the feeling she was reassuring him about the embarrassment of Maya’s teasing. But he didn’t feel embarrassed, simply happy. He looked at her and she gave him a little wink. The warmth of their special secret shone brightly in his heart.

“Well, Mrs. M,” Liv said. “As you once told me, I have to grab my Mr. Darcy by the waistcoat.”

Maya grinned. “Or perhaps, Miss O, by the kilt?”

“Indeed,” Liv replied, smiling up at Arran.

—

“Arran, I swear to God, if I fall and knock over a paint pot, then it’s totally your fault.”

“I won’t let you fall, Liv.”

She felt him guide her into the studio, his hands over her eyes. “Okay…here,” he said. “Ready?”

Her heart was beating hard with anticipation. “Yes.”

He dropped his hands from her eyes to circle her waist, holding her close as she took in the painting.

Her heart nearly stopped. “It’s so beautiful,” she breathed.

Arran kissed her neck. “That’s because it’s of you.”

“I love it,” she said, joy filling her soul to the brim.

Elise called from the hallway. “Can we come and see now?”

“Yep,” Arran said. “Come in.”

Elise and Nico entered the studio, taking in the painting and exclaiming how talented her boyfriend was.

“I know,” Liv said, bringing his head down from behind to kiss him.

“Ugh,” Nico said, smiling as he left the studio. “Get a room.”

Liv laughed as Arran pretended to aim a kick at Nico’s arse, and they all followed him back to the kitchen, where Jayce and Jack were drawing at Jayce’s low plastic table.

Elise smiled as she poured them some tea. “What do you think Maya and Sam are doing right now?”

Nico raised his eyebrows. “Right now ? On their honeymoon? Shame on you for such dirty thoughts, Kowalski.”

Elise shot him a look that would have felled a bear. Though Nico was kind of built like one. “That’s not what I mean. Get your mind out of the gutter.” She sipped her tea, muttering, “Though I’m aware that’s where it permanently resides.”

A smile tugged at the corner of Nico’s mouth, and Liv couldn’t help her mind drifting to that enemies-to-lovers suspicion again.

Arran tugged her hand to bring her onto his knee. “I reckon they’ll be carving up the slopes in the Alps, then having a bit of après-ski.”

“I hope they’re having an amazing time,” Elise said, staring off wistfully.

“They will be,” Nico said, giving her a smile that was decidedly softer than the usual wry one he aimed at her.

Liv hadn’t been at all surprised when Maya and Sam had opted to find a resort at enough of an altitude that skiing in June was possible. The pair were ski obsessed.

Elise and Nico started debating the merits of skiing in the French Alps. Well, it was more of an argument than a debate.

Arran leaned in to brush his lips against her ear, sending a tingle down her spine. “I need you to do me a favor later,” he said in a low voice.

“What’s that?” she murmured.

He gave her a wicked grin. “Pin me to the bed and screw me senseless, karate kid.”

Smiling, she kissed him, the tingling sensation firing into every nerve ending in her body. “Your wish is my command.”