Free Taming the Highland Bride by Lynsay Sands Page A

she watched the men lift her new husband up off the floor and hold him upright to undress him.
    She watched his clothing slip away, noting a little distractedly that he really had a fine physique. It was easy to believe the man had been at battle these last three years. He had none of the bloating and flab her father and brothers had from their main pastime of drinking. His shoulders were wide and muscular, his waist trim, his…Merry’s thoughts died. That definitely didn’t look like a chicken neck to her, she decided as she stared at the erection jutting out from between her husband’s legs.
    It seemed to her the kiss, kiss, squeeze, squeeze would not be needed to excite her husband. He was already sporting an erection that was large, full, hard, and angry-looking. She wasn’t the only one to notice. The men had taken note and were grinningwidely and making ribald jokes, and Edda suddenly relaxed beside her and patted her shoulder as she breathed out, “All will be well. The whiskey has not affected his ability to consummate.”
    Merry suddenly wasn’t sure that was a good thing. Honestly, it looked more like a small log than a chicken neck, and the idea of being stabbed with it was not exactly inspiring either pleasure or relaxation in her right then.
    She stopped worrying about that for the moment, however, when she realized the men were done undressing him and were now carrying her husband forward to place him in the bed beside her. Merry steeled herself against what was coming, but still felt her face flush and her teeth grind together as the linen was lifted and she was briefly revealed to all before her husband was in bed beside her and the linens allowed to fall back over her as well as him. And then it was over and the men and women were moving out of the room, leaving them alone.
    Merry watched them go, managing an uncertain smile when Edda glanced back encouragingly before walking out. Her brother Brodie was the last to leave the room. Merry released a breath of relief when he went out pulling the door closed behind him, but then just as quickly frowned when the door slid back open a crack, and she realized he hadn’t pulled it to.
    She wasn’t the only one to notice. Her husband muttered a soft, slightly slurred curse before he tossed the linen aside and rose to close it. He staggered a bit as he walked to the door, but made it there fine. It was on the way back that he ran intoproblems. Merry was so distracted staring at the part bobbing about between his legs that she, too, was taken completely by surprise when he stumbled over the clothing the men had left strewn on the floor. Eyes widening, she sat up just as he crashed into the upper end of the straw-stuffed mattress. At least his lower body did. His upper body was bent forward as he struggled to get back his balance and he was at an angle so that his head slammed into upper post of the bed.
    Alex didn’t cry out in pain, but a low moan slid from his mouth and then he collapsed, his chest and arms on the bed and his legs hanging off.
    Merry stared at him, wide-eyed, waiting for him to lift his head and speak, but nothing happened. He just lay there. After a moment, she cleared her throat and said tentatively, “My lord?”
    When that got no response, she reached out to poke at his arm.
    Still nothing.
    Merry tossed the linens aside and shifted to her hands and knees to see his face, which was turned in the opposite direction. She had to lean far forward to get a look at it. The man’s eyes were closed, his face slack. Worried, she gave his arm a shake. “Husband?”
    When there was no response and his eyelids didn’t even flicker, Merry sat back on her haunches, unsure what to do. The silly man had knocked himself out. She stared at him for a moment, but was starting to feel uncomfortable about sitting there nude and got out of bed to quickly draw on her chemise. She then walked around the bed to get abetter look at him. He was definitely