Mending The Billionaire Brother (MacLachlan Brothers Romance Book 3)

by Bree Livingston

  He chuckled. No, she wasn’t stupid. “Thank ye.”

  She straightened her tiara and smoothed out her dress. “I think adults make things too complicated. If I like a boy, I just tell him.” She picked up the pitchfork and started working again. “Not that I’ve liked any boys yet, but that’s what I’d do. If they don’t like me, well, at least I’d know.”

  Oh, to be a kid and see things so simple. He wished things weren’t complicated. He wished things were straightforward and easy. “I dinnae know why we make things so hard either.”

  She stopped raking and looked at him. “Then stop.”

  It was easier said than done, unfortunately. “We need to stop talkin’ and get back to work before we get into trouble. “

  Freddy rolled her eyes. “Grown-ups,” she muttered and started raking again.

  He couldn’t argue. They were making things too complicated. Why couldn’t they stop and be honest? Because it wasn’t that simple. Sarah kept pushing him away. No matter what he felt for her, admitting it would only hurt. He’d stayed, knowing that there was a chance he’d get his heart broken, but now that it was a real possibility, he wasn’t feeling very courageous.

  * * *

  Sarah pumped the air with her fist. She’d spent days working to figure out the finances, and today it had clicked. She’d worked on it so hard that she’d barely been outside of the office. The feeling of accomplishment coursed through her, and all she could think was that she wanted to tell Taran.

  She’d fallen asleep on him again. Only, when she woke up, she was tucked into her own bed. The disappointment had lasted the entire day. He’d even gone to bed before she got to the house, so she didn’t see him that evening either. In fact, it had been nearly two weeks since she’d spent any time with him. It made her wonder if he was trying to keep his distance so she didn’t get too close again.

  Her victory felt hollow now that she wasn’t sure she’d get to share it with him. She loved him .

  She covered her mouth with both hands. There it was. She’d thought it, and now it was a neon flashing arrow pointing in Taran’s direction. She loved him. Oh, how she loved him. Wholeheartedly. She loved the way he smiled and laughed. He gave her goosebumps just by being near. When he held her, it made her feel warm and secure. Just a look from him made her heart race.

  She put her face in her hands and groaned. What did it matter? She’d made a commitment to her mom, and he was going back home. Would he stay if she asked him to? Would it be fair to him? She missed Penelope and Paige so bad it hurt. How much worse would it be for him if he stayed? Everything he’d ever known was there. Asking him to stay would be selfish and wrong.

  One of the things her mom had taught her—or, well, shown her by example—was that when you loved someone, you thought of them. You took their needs into account. Taran belonged with his family. She knew that without a doubt.

  Trudy’s words came back like a punch to the gut. Truths Sarah was desperately pushing away since she’d heard them. She closed her eyes and took slow breaths in and out. Sarah knew what she wanted and where she was needed. Nothing had changed. Emotions were just that, emotions. She couldn’t let them make her decisions for her .

  She loved Taran, and admitting it didn’t change anything. All it did was make her painfully aware of how much she’d miss him when he was gone. When he left, he’d take her heart with him. Even if by some chance someone else came along, they’d never measure up to him.

  Longing for a life she knew she couldn’t have wouldn’t fix anything either. She shook her head and stood. This was life, and life wasn’t easy .

  Her mom’s words marched like soldiers in her mind. Nope, it wasn’t easy, but she’d handle it just like her mom.

  * * *

  Showered and dressed, Taran had decided he’d had enough of hiding. Plus, he was craving that seafood restaurant in Fort Walton Beach, and walk on the beach after wouldn’t break his heart either. As long as Sarah didn’t kiss him and then run away like he had the plague.

  The door handle turned, and Sarah pushed through the door. “Taran? Is everything okay?”

  “I’m hungry. Can we go back to that restaurant in Fort Walton Beach?” He crossed his fingers behind his back and hoped like crazy she’d say yes.

  She looked weary and happy at the same time. “Actually, yeah, that sounds great. I can celebrate.”

  “Ye got it?” He grinned wide. He knew she would.

  Her cheeks turned a light pink, and she nodded. “Yeah.”

  He grabbed her and swung her around. “I’m so proud of ye. I knew it was only a matter of time.”

  She hugged him, and it sounded like a sigh escaped. “Thank you for not letting me give up.”

  “Never.” He squeezed her one last time before setting her down. “Do ye want to shower and change before we go?”

  “If I shower, I’ll fall asleep. Now that I’ve got it, I think my brain wants a two-week vacation.” She laughed.

  He hadn’t seen her so happy in a while. Her spirit seemed renewed. “All right, let’s go. By the time we get there, I may need two of everythin’.”

  * * *

  “It’s just as good as I remember it. I guess I need to come here when I’m nae starvin’ to see if it’s actually any good.” Taran patted his stomach and leaned back in the chair.

  Sarah laughed. “I think it’s safe to say it’s good by the way you inhaled it.” She still looked tired, but she looked lighter. Succeeding had lifted much of the weight off her shoulders.

  “I told ye I was hungry. I wasna kiddin’.”

  She glanced around. “I feel underdressed. I should have taken that shower and changed.”

  “Naw, ye look beautiful. In fact, yer glowin’. Accomplishment is a good accessory for ye.” He winked.

  “Stop that.” She covered her pink cheeks with her hands.

  “And why would I do that? I told ye my new favorite thing was makin’ ye blush, and I havenae done it in a while.” He stretched his arm across the table and took her hand. “Or maybe I just like ye.”

  “You are such a charmer. I swear you MacLachlans must have stood in line twice when it was being dished out.” She laughed.

  What he noticed most was that she didn’t pull her hand back. Instead, she curled her fingers around his. “I know the last time we walked on the beach, it didnae end the best, but I promise to be on my best behavior. I promise I willna kiss ye.”

  She lowered her gaze and looked at him through a fringe of lashes. He knew Sarah well enough to know that she wasn’t trying to make him regret that promise, but he was wishing he’d have used a different word now. “Okay. I promise I won’t kiss you either.”

  After he paid, they stashed their shoes in the Jeep and struck out for the beach. Taran enjoyed the feel of the sand under his feet and between his toes .

  Sarah sighed. “It’s beautiful tonight. I love it when it’s a crescent moon like this. You can see, but it doesn’t hide the stars.” She’d pulled her hair back and bound it at the nape of her neck. “I don’t mind the breeze either, especially when I’ve got my hair back and it’s not beating me in the face.”

  “Up or down, yer beautiful either way.”

  She bumped him with her shoulder, and he stumbled sideways. “Stop being so charming.”

  He threw his head back and laughed. “What? Ye want me to be mean?”

  “No, just stop making me blush. My face is going to catch on fire.”

  They walked a bit in comfortable silence, and she got a stoic look on her face.

  “What’re ye thinkin’?” he asked.

  Sarah glanced at him and smiled. “Nothing, really. It’s dark, quiet, and peaceful. It’s nice.”

  “Why do ye look so serious, then?”

  Shrugging, she said, “I didn’t mean to be. What are you thinking about?”

  “I cannae tell ye.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “I’d get into trouble.”

  Her lips parted, but the corners tipp
ed up. “How would you get into trouble?”

  He shook his head. “Oh, no. That would get me into trouble too.”

  Sarah stopped and put her hands on her hips. “You better tell me, or you’ll get into even more trouble.”

  “Naw, it’s nae possible.” He dodged her hand as it shot out to smack him on the arm, and he took off running. He stopped a few feet away. “Still nae tellin’.”

  She dashed after him, and he weaved along the beach. “Stop that!”

  “Naw, I’ve learned that when I’m in trouble, it’s best to run until I’m nae anymore.” He stopped a second to look back, and Sarah was nowhere in sight. “Sarah?” He turned in place, looking for her. “Sarah?”

  She charged from the side, and before he could react, he hit the sand with an oomph. “Now, tell me.” Her chest was against his, and her face was inches away.

  Breathless, he said, “Ye cheated.”

  “That would mean there were rules, and I don’t recall hearing any rules.” She didn’t sound winded at all.

  He knitted his eyebrows together. “Everyone knows in chase that the person has to run to catch ye. Ye dinnae toss a fella on the ground. That’s cheatin’.”

  “You had a head start. Doesn’t that count as cheating?” She narrowed her eyes.

  “Ye smacked my arm, and ye looked menacin’. I was protectin’ myself.” He tried to keep the smile off his face.

  Her smile was sweet and seductive. “Menacing? Little ole me? I’m harmless.”

  “Nae harmless to me.” He tucked an errant strand of her hair behind her ear.

  In an instant, the playfulness shifted, and the air around them felt charged. If he hadn’t promised not to kiss her, he would be. In the moonlight, she was looking down at him, wisps of her hair floating on a current of air, looking like a siren. He could definitely drown in her.

  “Kiss me,” she whispered.

  “I promised I wouldna,” he whispered back. He wanted to, more than anything, but he wouldn’t have her run away crying again.

  “Please.”

  He shook his head and hated to tell her no. “I dinnae want ye to run away from me.”

  “I promise I won’t.”

  “Ye promised ye wouldna kiss me either.” What was he doing? She was begging him to kiss her, and he was reminding her that they shouldn’t.

  A tiny little smile curved up on her lips. “I was crossing my fingers behind my back when I promised. It doesn’t count.”

  He didn’t know how, but he was keeping his word. Wherever he was pulling the will to say no from didn’t have an endless reserve. If she didn’t stop asking, he would do it. “I wasna. I made a promise. I cannae break it.”

  For a second, she looked like she was warring with herself. In the next breath, she palmed his cheek, and her lips found his. Every nerve he had was tingling. His heart was beating against his ribs so hard it almost hurt .

  At first, she kissed him in such a delicate way it was more like feathers touching his lips. In a heartbeat, the feathery-like touches turned demanding. “Kiss me, Taran. Kiss me like you mean it.”

  A groan came from deep in his throat. If she wanted him to kiss her, he’d kiss her .

  He rolled her over and covered her body with his and did exactly what she asked, kissing her like they belonged to each other more than just on paper. His lips probed hers, and she responded by deepening the kiss.

  Her fingertips ran up his jawline and into his hair. If he’d been using any restraint at all to start with, it had been used up. She was intoxicating. That was the only word he could think to use. Together, their lips worked in harmony, almost like notes in a songbook.

  He loved her. There was no one else. There never would be anyone else. He kissed her harder as the realization hit him. There was no possible way she didn’t feel they had something worth a lifetime .

  They kissed until his lips felt bruised, and he leaned back. “If ye run, ye will break my heart.”

  “I won’t.” She took his face and pulled him back down to her. Her hands held him still as she kissed him. The demand hadn’t lessened, but the desperation he’d sensed from her had eased .

  Soft and slow, she brushed her lips across his like she was trying to soothe them. “I could kiss you forever,” she said as she continued to kiss him.

  He put his arms around her and rolled onto his back. “Do ye mind if we just stay here a while?”

  She nuzzled his neck with her nose and then kissed him. “No.” Then she laid her head on his chest.

  Hours went by as they lay in the sand, clutching each other and kissing. She didn’t run. There were no tears, and he couldn’t have been happier. He loved her. He loved her enough that he’d give anything to be with her, even if it meant visiting his family on holidays. He loved them. Loved the farm. He was even sure he’d be homesick for years and long for them, but he loved Sarah more. She was his other half, and he’d do anything to keep her.

  Chapter 28

  To Taran’s way of thinking, the following weeks after their night on the beach were bliss. Anytime Sarah saw him, she’d race to greet him, throw her arms around him, and kiss him like she was baring her soul to him.

  It was how he pictured being married, and now he had that with Sarah. He hadn’t told her he loved her yet. Mainly because he didn’t want to say it and scare her. When the time was right, he’d tell her. He’d scream it to the world if that’s what it took, but she’d know without a doubt he loved her.

  Freshly showered and dressed for bed, Taran swiped his phone off the nightstand and flopped down on the bed on his back to call Angus. Hopefully, he’d still be up.

  “Taran, you were supposed to be calling me more often. When you get back here, I’m gonna wallop you,” Angus said.

  Taran chuckled. “I dinnae even get a hello first?”

  “Hello. I’ll beat you within an inch when you get here.” Angus shifted the phone. “Penelope said not to listen to me, but you should.”

  “Tell Penelope I’ll be hidin’ behind her when I get there.” He wasn’t sure how to break the news that he wouldn’t be living there anymore.

  “I’ll still get you.”

  “I’m younger and quicker.”

  “I’m older and wiser, and I don’t play fair.”

  Taran laughed deep and low. He’d missed Angus. All of them. “If yer nae playin’ fair, I’m nae either.”

  “Well, then I guess we’ll see who comes out on top when you come home.”

  This was it. Taran found it hard to breathe. Would Angus be disappointed that he’d be staying? They had wanted him to go to Florida, but what if they’d assumed he’d be too chicken to stay? “I think I’ve found my home. Here. With Sarah.”

  Angus didn’t speak for a second. “You’re not coming home?”

  “I love her.”

  “I knew you did. I knew you loved her.”

  “Aye, right. I do.”

  Angus shifted the phone again. “I had to tell Penelope. I couldn’t keep it from her. She says you’re not married until she attends the wedding.”

  “The piece of paper says otherwise.” He twisted his fingers in the hem of his shirt.

  “Aye, I dinnae have to keep it from Rory and everyone now?” No matter how many lessons Angus took, his Scottish accent had a way of breaking free when he was excited .

  Taran chuckled to himself. “Naw, I want to come home. I need to come home.” He needed more than a few weeks of clothing. There were a few things he wanted to bring back to the States. Things that would ease the move for him.

  “One last time?”

  “Aye. I need to see Banner and that ewe.”

  Angus laughed. “Penelope says, ‘That’s right, you’re coming home again. You’d better bring Sarah and be prepared for another wedding. And it’ll not be some courthouse fiasco. It’ll be a good and proper wedding.’”

  “Is she waggin’ her finger at me?”

  His brother snorted. “Aye.”

&nbs
p; “Are ye sure ye and Rory can handle it?”

  “Along with the hired hand.”

  Taran sat straight up. “Oy. I forgot about the kid ye brought onto my farm.”

  “Your farm? He’s young, but he’s catching on quick. I wanted Rory to have seasoned help before I need to get back to work.”

  Taran supposed that was okay. Rory would be good for him. He’d gotten into a little trouble a way back. There’d be none of that with Rory watching him.

  “You still there, Taran?”

  “Aye. Just processin’ it.”

  Angus shuffled the phone. “Besides, with us both off in the States, Rory was going to need help. At least I had the forethought to get it started.”

  “That ye did.”

  “I’m happy for you, brother. I’ve wanted you to be happy.”

  Taran smiled into the phone. He loved Angus. Love all of them. He could already feel himself grieving the loss of being so close, but it was overshadowed by the happiness he felt when he pictured Sarah next to him. “I am.”

  * * *

  Sarah hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but when she heard Taran’s laugh, she’d instinctively gone to him. Before she could announce her presence, he was telling Angus he was coming home. That he needed to come home.

  Her heart had shattered. She’d been planning to tell him she loved him after dinner while they watched the sunset together. She figured he was waiting on her since she was the one who had said she didn’t want a relationship with him. She’d planned everything. What she was cooking. What she was going to say. She’d planned to pull him into her room and tell him that it was time to start acting like they were married.

  She hugged herself and curled her legs under her as she sat in the chair in the arena office. Was he ever going to tell her he still planned on leaving? She had been the one to push him to kiss her that night on the beach. The last few weeks had been wonderful. He’d held her and kissed her. All of it felt like a dream. She’d found her prince charming.

  Fresh tears streamed down her cheeks. She couldn’t hate him for wanting to go home. He’d never hidden how much he loved his family or said he could leave them to be with her. She’d just assumed that things had changed. It was a stupid thing to do.