“There’s our bonny bride!” called Melissa. “We’ll be sure she’s sleeping like a rock, Brother!”
Willow balked slightly before it broke into a laugh. If Melissa was seeking to prevent the consummation of the marriage by only making Willow exhausted, she had bad news for her sister-in-law. Keegan was hardly one to let a little tiredness stand in his way if her time on the road with him was anything to go by.
“Ye are all mad! Let me rest!” Willow grinned, laughing heartily.
It struck her that Lilith did not appear to be there, but Willow was hardly about to make a fuss over it. It was one fewer person to suffer through during the beddan, and the lass could very well be relieving herself or taken to bed.
The last in attendance spun Willow around in a wide circle and then plopped her down into the bed. Sure enough, it was Rodrick who’d deposited her into the bed, which she was finally able to piece together when the room stopped spinning.
“Whiskey!” Rodrick held out a hand, and Melissa handed the liquor to him along with a bit of bread. “Och, good lass! And to ye, Lady Willow.”
Rodrick handed her the items, along with a bit of cheese that he pulled from his pocket, where it had been kept safe by being wrapped in a cloth.
“To me kind and valiant guests.” Willow raised them up in the air before handing out a dram and a broken piece of the food to each person there.
“Yer foot, if ye please, lassie.” Melissa grinned from ear to ear as she held out her hand for Willow’s left ankle.
The bride did as requested, sticking out her left foot from beneath the covers and laying it in Melissa’s grip. Her sister-in-law yanked off her stocking, and Willow laughed as the cool air instantly caused her skin to erupt in goosebumps.
“Over with it!” The room called out, and Willow took the stocking from Melissa, then turned her back to the crowd.
Flinging the thing over her left shoulder, Willow tossed the bit of fabric into the gathered guests, and they all began to fight over who might claim it as theirs.
“Och, keep it friendly, lads,” Keegan called out with a laugh, and Willow faced them all again, watching everyone scramble over each other in an attempt to snatch up the stocking for themselves.
It was chaos until, in a low thump, the men crashed together, and the only one left standing—holding the toe end of the stocking so it dangled over the fallen clansmen—was Rodrick.
Willow’s brows rose, and she smiled. “Well, now, it looks like Rodrick will be our next clansmen to wed. Congratulations!”
He smirked, clearly not believing in the validity of the tradition over much. But he shrugged a shoulder and laughed as the other men crowed out discordant boos before all devolving into fits of giggles.
“I shall look forward to another wedding.” From the back of the room, the priest who’d married Willow and Keegan stepped forward from where he’d steered clear of the tangle. “For now, me laird and lady, a blessing.”
Everyone quieted at once, allowing the clergyman to step forward toward the marriage bed. He smiled in that practiced way that priests were so good at, and Willow swallowed hard as Keegan sat next to her. It was suddenly quite challenging to keep the thoughts of what came next from her mind.
“May ye be blessed in all ways, Laird Keegan Aragain of the Brahanne. And to you, Lady Willow, now Lady Brahanne.” He clasped his hands together, bowing his head to them as he closed his eyes; the entire room did the same. “May green be the grass where ye tread, may blue be the skies over ye and this bonny castle, May lasting be the joys around ye, and may true be the hearts that love ye.”
Willow’s heart was a hammer against her ribs, and she fought the urge to look over at Keegan. She was able to resist, though, and the priest started with the next of his passages in Gaelic.
“A thousand good evenings to ye with yer marriage. May ye both be happy and healthy all yer days. May ye be blessed with longevity and peace for the whole of Clan Brahanne, and may ye grow old together, surrounded by goodness and with riches.”
With a clap, the priest bid them all to look up once more, and he smiled as he raised his hands over Willow and Keegan as they sat in the bed.
“May ye ken only happiness from this day forward. May ye see yer children’s children. And may the line of yer name prosper in this the marriage bed!”
The whiskey was raised once more, and both Melissa and Rodrick called out, “Slàinte Mhath!”
Cheers returned the call, and everyone drank a hearty pass of the whiskey before they all filtered out of the room, leaving Willow and Keegan alone at last.
The silence felt absurdly heavy on her shoulders, and Willow was too aware of her heartbeat as she stared down at the bed. She could hear Keegan breathing, and the bedding dipped down as he adjusted.
“Ye are quiet, Willow. It’s quite the change.”
Her attention flicked to him instantly, and Willow narrowed her eyes with a playful smirk. It seemed her new husband knew just what to say to take her out of her head.
Me husband…
“It’s been a rather raucous day, Keegan.” She teased with a glare. “I thought perhaps it would be a pleasant change to have a moment of quiet.”