Free His Rebel Bride (Brothers in Arms Book 3) by Shayla Black, Shelley Bradley Page A

were closing about him, squeezing him off from air and light. He shuddered, wanting it to stop, wanting to be free.
    Holding in a curse, he turned to one of his own captains, who had arrived in Ireland with Colm, and bade him to continue instructing the deplorable castle soldiers.
    He needed to be away!
    In minutes, Kieran sat atop Lancelot, aimlessly heading east as if for the sea and England, or anywhere else that might bring freedom.
    The sun’s zenith came. He passed the River Slaney, pausing only to sip from its cold waters as it babbled across mossy green rocks.
    As he traveled on, the landscape turned mountainous. The sun began a sharp descent from the sky. Rock-strewn glens and bogs abounded, covered with dormant heather of muted purple. And green everywhere, budding shades of it, beginning to come alive with the coming spring and cover the hilly land.
    And the land looked hauntingly familiar, like land he had not seen since the days after he had turned eight.
    In the explosion of a colorful dusk, he dismounted before a lough and followed the water’s edge around a gentle slope of a hill.
    He encountered a waterfall, one that looked much like one that had been his favorite place to play as a boy. Chilly water cascaded over craggy granite, seemingly locked together in nature’s hold.
    And suddenly he felt quite certain that beyond the next rise lay the remnants of Balcorthy.
    Nay. He would not see the ruins of his boyhood home. He had no need.
    Settling again on Lancelot’s back, he decided to make his way back to Langmore, to face the task of taking a bride and seeing her birth a babe.
    Instead, he found himself urging Lancelot forward, to climb the next ridge.
    Moments before the sun disappeared behind him, Kieran looked over the pasture. The ruins of Balcorthy sat in stately neglect, utterly abandoned.
    Fire had turned the stone black in places. Battle and disregard had caused some of the walls to tumble down. He would even bet some of the nearby townsfolk had taken blocks from the once-imposing keep and used them to build their own homes with more security.
    Whatever the cause, Balcorthy looked naught like the important, bustling castle he recalled. A sadder monument to the hate with which a husband and wife could hurt each other did not exist, he felt certain.
    ’Twas merely another reason to return to Langmore and complete his duty. He would assess his options, take a damned bride, and be done with the mess. The sooner he left Ireland, the happier a man would he be.
     
    * * * *
     
    The following night, Kieran sat in the middle of the raised dais for supper. Jana sat stiffly to his left. Maeve, doing her best to ignore him, sat to his right. ’Twould be a long evening, no doubt.
    As the servants brought in the meal, Kieran glanced at Fiona, who sat at the next table, close beside his. Flynn rested beside her, looking bruised and malcontented. No doubt the man had taken part in the recent rebellion, but he had not accomplished a thing, particularly not the release of Maeve’s seditious betrothed, Quaid O’Toole. But ’twas no matter, Kieran planned to punish the O’Shea man very soon.
    Looking away from Flynn, Kieran glanced toward Brighid and Colm, smiling shyly at one another, as they sat a bit farther away. Perhaps Colm had taught Brighid to kiss, after all.
    Everyone ate in silence. Kieran was aware of Maeve beside him, smelling faintly of this afternoon’s damp rain. She kept her gaze in the trencher they shared, barely eating.
    He speared a bit of garlic-spiced mutton with his knife. Their arms brushed, sleeves warmed by their bodies. Maeve tensed. So she was aware of him. Kieran felt his blood stir.
    He tossed a bite of meat into his mouth. Maeve reached for her cider and took a small sip. When she finished, her berry lips looked glossy-wet and luscious. Enticing. Edible.
    Then she mopped up the apple-spiced alcohol with her tongue. Kieran knew he stared, knew that Maeve was aware when she stared