Highland Strength (Book 3)

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

A loud groan emitted from Aonghus as he realised the pounding in his head. The noise which would not cease and was driving him raving mad, was in fact his heartbeat. Another groan as the first made his head pound harder. Heaving himself over onto his stomach and burying his face in the fur he found there, he squeezed his eyes closed. Muffling the next moan to leave him.

                His memory of the night before was hazy at best. He could remember finding a large ale jar placed before him as Hamish and Cam had left the main hall for their families. He and Artair…he was sure Artair had been there at the start at least, as they had started drinking more and more, he was sure that jar had never emptied. His brow furrowed, causing another moan to rattle around his sluggish, painful brain. Turning his heavy head to the side, he tried to blink his bleary eyes open. Unable to recognise his surroundings in that moment. Not that they were in focus, but he was sure he and Artair did not own a rather delicate looking table placed in the corner of the sleeping chamber of their cottage. He would have remembered if Artair had brought such a thing home. He would have laughed at him for a night, and never let him forget it.

                The thought itself made him want to laugh, which in turn made him want to knock himself out as his head rebelled against the sound he only thought. He tried blinking some more, hoping it would help with his vision. But all it did at that moment was make him dizzy. Which did not help with the state of his head at that precise moment.

                There was a shuffling sound behind him that had him stiffening and opening wide the eyes he had no idea he had closed. There was someone here with him. His warrior instinct was kicking in, slower than he ever would have liked, but it was happening. Tensing his muscles, and trying to ignore the hammering in his mind, he turned slowly. Only to find the rather too sunny smile of one of the kitchen maids. His mind blanked on her name a moment. Which was a feat, to say that everyone knew everyone in this clan. It was going to take a while before his mind started to work it seemed.

                Maggie. Maggie Mai. Yes. He felt a smile tug at his lips as he congratulated himself upon remembering her, but realised his mistake the moment she inched closer to him. He tried to shuffle backwards, but his limbs would not obey his commands instantly, and he found a very insistent Maggie throwing a bare leg over his waist.

                Wait.

                Bare leg?