WolfeStrike (De Wolfe Pack Generations #2) - Kathryn Le Veque Page 0,123

there cheering happily because Edinburgh is saved.”

Isalyn turned in his arms, her face alight with joy. “They did like it, didn’t they?” she said. “I think some of those men have been here every single night.”

Tor snorted. “Of course they have,” he said. “Some of them are Scotts, from Matha’s clan. They know this is a de Wolfe production, so they have come to support their English branch of the family.”

“And that is why I let them have a Scots hero part of the time.”

Tor leaned forward to kiss her but, suddenly, they were surrounded by other de Wolfes, all of them congratulating Isalyn on a job well done. Scott was the first one to hug her tightly. He adored his daughter-in-law, who had been the perfect match for his strong, silent, and brilliant son.

“Another success, Isalyn,” Scott said. “Tonight was positively magnificent. I thought we were going to have a battle, however, when you brought out the knight to save Edinburgh. There were a few men from Clan Kerr out there and they took particular exception to that.”

Isalyn started laughing. “I know,” she said. “I was watching from the shadows. They started throwing things. Did you see them?”

Scott laughed. “I did,” he said. “They were throwing pieces of jerky. Did you not see the knight pluck one that had hit him on the chest and eat it?”

They all started laughing. It had been an eventful night, a moment for the House of de Wolfe to bond over something other than a battle. Times such as this, with laughter and joy and pleasure, were rare. Troy de Wolfe, Scott’s twin, who had also married into Clan Kerr, pushed his way to the front so he could kiss Isalyn on the cheek.

“You are lucky that is all they threw,” he said. “If the Kerrs become enraged, they’ll start throwing knives.”

“There is always tomorrow night,” Isalyn said, a twinkle in her eyes. “I’ll put my knight in real armor so he can protect himself should the dirks start to fly.”

She was joking. Sort of. The Scots and the English in the same amphitheater had been dicey from the start, but Isalyn had been determined to use a theater that the Romans had once used and unite the border through entertainment. It somehow gave validation to her dramas, performed in the same space that had once been a backdrop for Greek and Roman tragedies.

All she knew was that she was happier than she had ever been.

Thanks to a certain provincial knight.

But the hour was growing late and they needed to head back to Castle Questing, which was about ten miles to the southeast. It would take them little more than an hour to get there, traveling beneath the light of the half-moon during a summer’s night that had been mild and calm.

The de Wolfe men helped Isalyn shut down the amphitheater for the night, collecting costumes and props that were being stored in a livery across the road, one that bordered the River Tweed. Fraser was hauling things particularly quickly because he wanted to get back to Castle Questing where his wife was waiting for him.

At nine months pregnant, Isabella was round and rosy, hungry and grumpy, and ready for the child to be born. She had demanded to come to Castle Questing when Isalyn’s drama opened and they had been at Castle Questing for two weeks. But they were also there for another reason – Isabella had been born at Castle Questing and she wanted her baby to be born there as well, so everyone, including Blayth, was playing a waiting game for his first grandchild to be born.

“Come on, now!” Fraser was clapping his hands to get men moving. “Hurry up. We must head back to Castle Questing.”

That made Will drag his feet. Big, dark, and handsome, Will was the image of his grandfather, William de Wolfe, but he had a touch of the de Norville sense of humor thanks to his mother, the eldest daughter of Paris de Norville. He had a pillar made of plaster in his hands as he crossed the avenue to the livery, pausing next to Fraser.

“Do you think you’re the only man who has a wife he wants to return to?” he asked, incredulous. “She has probably already had the child.”

Fraser frowned. “She promised not to have it while I was away.”

Scott and Troy heard him and started laughing. Even Will grinned. “She may not have a choice,” he said. “Women have babies when they