The Highlander's Accidental Marriage (Marriage Mart Mayhem) by Callie Hutton

toast to yer wife later?”
    “Aye.” He might as well drink to the occasion. Then as he watched Munro walk away to join his friends, he thought it would be best to keep Sarah’s mistake from her for a while. Given what he knew of her reluctance to marry, the lass might not take it well. And considering the state of her nerves earlier today, who knew what her reaction to being accidentally married would be?
    He knew very few lasses who would have dealt so well with all the mishaps they’d suffered in the past few days. Revealing this disaster could wait until tomorrow.
    Braeden made his way through the crowd and up the stairs. He hesitated for a moment, then knocked on the door. Sarah responded, hiding behind the door, her head peeking out. “What do you want?”
    He rested his hands on his hips. “I want to come into my room.”
    She opened the door wider and stepped back. “Very well. But do whatever it is you need to do and then find where you will sleep.” The lass drew herself up like the best matronly chaperone he’d ever encountered.
    “Excuse me, lass?”
    “Well, certainly you can’t sleep in here.” She swept her arm around to indicate the area.
    “And why not?”
    “Don’t be ridiculous. We can’t spend the night in the same room. It’s not proper.”
    Little did the lass know how very proper it would be for him to spend the night here with her. Just the thought of climbing into the bed alongside her, pulling her warm soft body to his side, and making slow, sweet love to her drove his heartbeat up which, in turn, pumped all his blood to his lower parts.
    “Ye just told the innkeeper we’re husband and wife. Do ye not think the man will consider it strange if I go traipsing out to the stable to sleep with the animals?”
    “I’m so sorry, Braeden. I didn’t think about anything when I said we were married. I just wanted to get a room before they were all gone. I guess we could have taken the room for me and you could have stayed…”
    “With the animals?” He shook his head. “Aye, ’twas a lot ye dinna think about when ye blurted out that we were married.”
    She waved her hand in dismissal. “It doesn’t matter. We don’t know anyone here, so we can tell a little bit of a lie.” She chewed her lower lip. “Can’t we?”
    He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. ’Twas still a better idea to keep Sarah from knowing what she’d done. The lass had suffered one hardship after another, and what she needed now was food and a full night’s rest. “Dinna fash yerself, lass. I will sleep on the floor, or the chair, but right now I will ask the innkeeper to send up a bath and some food. Ye need yer sleep.”
    She sat on the edge of the bed, her shoulders slumped. “There won’t be a bath tonight, there are too many people here, and from the sound of the women I followed up the stairs, they are all wanting special treatment.”
    “Aye, I’m afraid yer right. I will go to the kitchen to get yer food and bring it up. That will give ye time while I’m gone to undress and climb into bed.”
    “Very well. I am too tired at this point to argue or wonder what everyone thinks.” She gave him a slight smile. “Thank you. I appreciate your kindness.”
    “Aye, lass. Anything for my wife .”
    She picked up the slipper she’d just taken off and made a halfhearted attempt to toss it at his head.

    “B efore you go…” She twisted her fingers, embarrassed to ask the favor, but with the overflow of guests and the commotion they were causing the staff, she had no choice. “Can you help me out of my gown?”
    Braeden’s throat worked up and down, his features paling. “ Ach , lass. Yer making things difficult for me. More so every minute.”
    She walked up to him and turned. “Please?”
    What was she doing? She was in a room in the company of a man not her husband, with the door closed, and he was about to undress her. Instead of fear, she felt an odd sort of excited