by A. Destiny
“So, ya likin’ Scotland so far?” he asked me.
“How could I not? I feel like my brain is exploding from all the things I’m learning.”
He chuckled, and the light sound rolled over me, filled this little place in my chest, and lingered there. There was something addictive about hearing him laugh. And something even more addictive about being the one to make him do so.
“I’ve had fun with ya, Ava,” he said, gaze still locked on the sky above us.
“Me too,” I admitted. A thrill lit in my heart at the realization that I wasn’t the only one feeling this . . . thing between us.
A group of kids ran behind us, screaming with glee as they played tag. Graham tucked his arms behind his head, and out of the corner of my eye I saw the line of arm muscles contract with the movement. I traced the profile of his face with my gaze, let my eyes linger on his eyes, his cheekbones, his lips.
Tomorrow our family was going to tour the city of Stirling. Part of me was excited, of course, but the other part couldn’t help but feel down. I reached over and touched the black bag, and my heart stirred again about the gifts. I knew Graham and I couldn’t go anywhere relationship-wise, but I wanted to keep being around him. Maybe I could convince Mom and Dad to invite them for dinner tomorrow when we got back from Stirling, or at the end of our trip, when we spent our last night in Edinburgh before leaving Scotland.
A puffy cloud passed overhead, and I made myself stop thinking about the end. This vacation was about living in the now. And right now, there was a handsome boy lying only a foot or so away who was humming a pop song under his breath.
When he hit the chorus and I hummed along, he turned his head and shot me a smile that went right to my heart.
ChapterFive
Monday morning I woke up to a face full of sunshine slitting through the window blinds. I’d stayed up later than usual to listen to Graham’s music. The songs were really good—his band had talent, and the drums were dead on. When the flash drive had finished playing I’d listened to the whole thing again, which meant I was a bit tired this morning . . . but it was worth it.
I tiptoed over and peeked through the slats to the morning bustle of downtown Edinburgh. It was another bright, sunny day, and the sky was that perfect shade of blue that made you excited to go outside.
Mom was still asleep, but Dad wasn’t around—probably downstairs grabbing coffee. He was planning to do one last day of ancestry research in Edinburgh. I took a quick shower and dressed, then came out of the bathroom to find Mom holding her head in her hands.
“You okay?” I asked her.
She gave a soft groan. “My head is killing me.”
I frowned. Mom’s migraines were rare, but they did happen on occasion. And when they did, she usually spent a full day hiding in her room in complete darkness. I got up and closed the blinds. “Do you have any pain medicine with you?”
“Already took some.” She slid deeper into the blankets and sighed, shutting her eyes. “My skull feels like it’s been run over by a truck.”
“Well, you definitely should stay here and rest up.” I bit back a sigh. It was selfish of me to be upset at my plans being changed, and my stomach twinged with guilt. She couldn’t help it.
Mom peeked an eye open and looked at me. “I’m sorry, hon. I know you’re excited to see Stirling. Maybe give me a couple of hours and we’ll see how I’m feeling, okay?”
Our plan was to visit Stirling Castle today and learn about William Wallace, one of the most honored men in Scottish history, remembered for his courage in standing up to England. We’d been looking forward to this day for a while, since we both knew how important he was. But I knew even if she did get out of bed, she’d be miserable and in pain.
“It’s okay,” I said as I got up and wet a washcloth. I placed it on her forehead. “I can find something to keep me busy around here today.”
“I have an idea.” Mom grabbed her phone and gingerly punched in numbers. A pause, then in a low tone she said, “Hey! It’s Erica. I have a favor to ask. My head is killing me, and I’m pretty sure it’s a migraine. Are you busy today? Could I bribe you by buying lunch if you’ll take Ava to Stirling Castle?” Pause. “Oh, that’s okay—” Another pause, for a minute or so, and then she gave a small sigh of satisfaction. “That sounds perfect. Thank you so much.” She hung up and shot me a weak smile.
“What’s going on?” I asked her.
“I called Mollie to ask if she could take you around today, but she has to work and can’t get the day off. But Graham is free, and he said he’d be happy to escort you. He’ll be here in about twenty minutes.”
“Oh, I see.” I tried to ignore the excited flutter in my stomach and aimed for a casual tone. “Well, that’ll be fun. Thanks for arranging that.”
Dad walked into the room and pressed a small kiss to the top of Mom’s head. “How are you feeling?”
She tried to smile at him, but it wobbled a bit, and my heart squeezed in sympathy. “I’m okay. I’m just gonna sleep in here for a while, and Ava’s going out with Graham to Stirling for the day. He and his dad are on their way to pick her up.”
“Mom, are you sure this is okay? Why don’t I just stay here with you? I really appreciate you setting this up for me, but I don’t want to leave you alone in pain.” Of course I’d love to hang out with Graham, to have another day to get to know him more, but I didn’t like seeing her suffer and wanted to help somehow. “I’ll be quiet, and I can fetch things for you.”
She reached over and squeezed my hand, and her eyes shone with gratitude. “It’s okay, I promise. I’m just going to sleep. No sense in you staying here bored. You have your phone, right? I’ll send you a message when I wake up. Not to mention your father will be local, so I can always call him if I need something.” She grimaced and touched her head with her free hand. “Now both of you, get out of here. Go have fun today, please. It will help me feel better.”
“I’m coming back at noon to check on you,” Dad said firmly. He got a glass of water and left it on her bedside. He dropped a kiss on her lips and stroked her hair.
She nodded and closed her eyes. “Thanks, Paul.”
I adjusted the wet washcloth and stood, and Dad and I exited the hotel room, me with my camera bag draped across my chest. It would be the perfect day for gorgeous shots of Scotland, though my heart fluttered just a bit in nervous anticipation of seeing Graham again.
Dad wrapped an arm around my shoulders and squeezed me to his side. “She’ll be okay, pumpkin. I’m nearby. The sleep will do her good.”
“Yeah, I know you’re right.” And she would definitely call us if she needed anything.
Dad peered down at me. “So. You’re spending more time with this boy, huh?”
My face flamed. “It’s very nice of him to offer to tour me around.”
“Uh-huh.”
“He’s quite knowledgeable about Scotland’s history, you know.”
“Yeah.”
“In fact, I bet today is going to be like a school lesson.”
“Where the teacher is your age and happens to be super attractive.”
Busted. I tried not to grin. “It’s not my fault that the youth of today are smarter than ever.”
His lips quirked. “Behave, princess. And you’d better check in with me frequently. I want hourly text messages.”
I saluted him, and he rolled his eyes.
Dad waited with me on the side of the street until a pristine white van showed up. When he saw Steaphan wave, he gave a hearty wave back. “Okay, have fun. And don’t forget to check in.”
I pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Go learn more about our heritage. I can’t wait to hear what you find today.”
My hands trembled as I reached for the van door, but it flew open before I could touch the handle. Graham’s smile lit me from the inside, and I coul
dn’t help my own responding smile.
“Mornin’,” he said as he waved me in.
“Thank you so much—,” I started, then stopped when I got inside and saw a guy and a girl sitting in the back row. “Oh. Hi.”
The guy, who had dark-brown hair and a handsome face, grinned at me with bright white teeth. “Good mornin’! I’m Jamison. Graham told us yer visitin’ Stirling, and we wanted to come. Hope that’s all right. This here’s my sister, Kylie.”
His sister, who looked just like him but with delicate features, eyed me with bold curiosity. She nodded her greeting, then turned her focus to Graham, who was settling into the second row.
“Come on in,” Steaphan said in a booming voice. “Let’s get goin’.”
I took the empty seat beside Graham and tried not to think about the length of his thigh pressed against mine. I turned around to face the siblings and hoped my smile didn’t give away my surprise. “I’m Ava. Really happy to meet you guys!”
Steaphan drove off, and the van hummed its way down the road. I peered out the window to watch the buildings and rolling green fields fly by. Why had Graham asked his friends to come along? Did he not want to be alone with me? Had I been misreading yesterday’s interactions?
I shook off this train of thought. He was taking time out of his day to play tour guide with me. The least I could do was be kind and thoughtful. No, I hadn’t made up our moments yesterday, and his friends coming along with us didn’t mean he didn’t want to be with me. In fact, maybe he felt like we were starting to connect and he was comfortable introducing me to his friends.
The thought buoyed my spirits. “I’m super excited to see the castle,” I said in a low tone. “Thank you guys for coming along. It’s going to be a blast.”
“Sorry to hear yer ma is ill,” Graham said. Empathy poured from his eyes.
“Thanks,” I replied. “By the way, I listened to your songs.”
There was a slight flutter at the base of his throat. “And?”
“They were awesome. You guys are so talented! I wish I could see you play live, because I bet it’s even better.”
His face flashed gratitude, and he moved a fraction closer to me on the seat. “Thanks.”
Jamison leaned forward to duck his head between us. “So, this is yer first visit to Scotland, aye? How are ya likin’ it?”
“It’s wonderful,” I replied in a rushed breath.
We spent the rest of the ride to Stirling talking about Edinburgh and the sights I’d seen so far. Kylie was quiet for the most part, but I noticed how often her gaze drifted to Graham. It was so obvious she liked him that I couldn’t believe he didn’t seem to realize it too.
“We’re here!” Steaphan said as he pulled up to a large gravel parking lot. “I’ll be back this afternoon to pick ya up. Behave,” he said with a mock stare at the guys.
“I’ll make sure they do,” Kylie said as she rested her hands on her brother’s and Graham’s shoulders.
Jealousy pinched in my chest, but I made myself keep my chin up as I exited the van. “Thank you for the ride,” I told Graham’s dad.
We made our way to the castle, and I gasped as I stared up at the massive stone facade, wrapped in a stone wall and sitting on top of a large crag. Powerful, dominating, the castle walls were huge and attention-grabbing.
As we walked through the entrance, Graham stood to my right and filled me in on William Wallace and another man named Robert the Bruce, who was also important in Scottish history in its battle for independence from England. I’d done a little studying up on this, so I was prepared for a real interaction this time and brought up what I’d researched online about Wallace.
We all went to the palace first, and I blinked at the opulence around me. Rich tapestries, lush velvet furniture—it was gorgeous.
“I don’t know as much about Stirling as I do about Edinburgh,” Graham admitted. “But everyone knows about the great battle that took place here.”
I nodded as I tried not to stare into those bright-blue eyes. They seemed to sparkle a bit extra today and drew me in. “Yeah. I read about that, too. It was—”
“Graham!” Kylie slipped up to his side and threaded her arm through his. “Jamison and I were just talkin’. Remember our primary school trip here?”
A hearty laugh erupted from him, and he nodded at her. “That wee boy who ripped off his keks and ran across the field in nothin’ but his underwear?”
I giggled at the mental image. That had to be hilarious. “Wow, none of my elementary school field trips went like that. The worst we had was a kid who kept swallowing pennies he found on the ground.” We’d visited downtown Cleveland that day. The trip had ended with him being rushed to the emergency room. He’d come to school the next day all sullen and pasty-looking.
Kylie blinked her long eyelashes at Graham and whispered in his ear, and his grin grew wider. I thinned my lips and tried to fight down the sudden flare-up of jealousy. It was painfully obvious the girl was sending me heavy signs. She liked Graham and wanted me to know.
Message received, Kylie.
Well, I wasn’t about to pick a fight over her actions. I moved to Jamison’s side and struck up a conversation with him, and the four of us drifted upstairs to check out the gallery of Stirling heads, a bunch of carved wooden portraits.
“That man’s beard is amazing,” I joked to Jamison, pointing toward one portrait. I took a picture of it.
His face fell. “That’s me ancestor, Ava.”
“Oh, I’m sorry—”
“Nah, just teasin’ ya,” he said with a wide smirk.
I wrinkled my nose and shoved his shoulder. “You had me going there for a moment. I was afraid I’d offended you.” I eyed the rest of the room and saw Graham standing several feet away beside Kylie. She was talking in an animated fashion with him, but his eyes were locked on me.
I swallowed as a flush stole across my cheeks.
When Kylie finished talking, he strode over to us, and my heart stuttered. His face looked intense, his gaze locked on mine. “Ready to explore the rest of the castle grounds, Ava?” he asked. There was a hint of something in his voice I couldn’t quite identify. But it pulled at me.
“Definitely,” I said, aware I sounded a bit breathy.
Kylie came up behind us and rested her slender fingers on Graham’s shoulder, but he didn’t turn around to face her this time. He peered at me for another long moment, and then with a smile he waved us toward the stairs leading out of the palace.
The rest of the day flew by. An unspoken, multilayered message had passed between the two of us in the Stirling head gallery, one that made me hyperaware of him. He remained pretty close to my side, cupping my elbow to guide me into rooms, resting his hand on my lower back as he leaned in close to talk about exhibits. By the time his dad arrived to load us into the van and take us back to Edinburgh, I was almost on sensory overload.
Graham had completely taken over my mind and senses.
Kylie declared from the backseat, “We should go to Glasgow tomorrow.”
“Oh, aye!” Jamison said in hearty enthusiasm. “I have no plans. Graham? Ava?”
“I’m supposed to go to St. Andrews with my parents,” I said with a sigh. “They want to golf.”
We hit a bump, and Graham’s knee pressed into mine, which set off a round of tingles in my leg.
“Do you golf?” he asked me.
I shook my head and laughed. “Dad tried to teach me, but it went horribly. I think I hit the ball once, and it went twenty feet off to the side.”
His eyes flashed as he leaned toward me, and his warm breath caressed the hairs on the side of my face. “Let’s ask yer folks if ya can come with us instead. It’ll be fun.”
“Aye, what do ya say, Ava?” Jamison asked as he clapped me on the shoulder.
I peered back a
t Kylie but couldn’t read her face. Well, she was the one who’d suggested it in the first place. Maybe she didn’t view me as a threat to her relationship with Graham. A small, stubborn part of me actually wanted to be a threat. Wanted Graham to see me not just as a vacation girl but as something that could be more.
Because every moment I spent in his presence made me want that too.
“Let’s do it,” I said with a resolute nod. “It’ll be fun.”
ChapterSix
This. Is. Amazing.” I snapped a photograph of Doulton Fountain, an ornate brick fountain in Glasgow Green that spurted water from several spots around its circumference. We’d been dropped off by Graham’s dad at the Glasgow park about an hour ago and had spent the morning so far wandering around, soaking in the sunshine of another beautiful day. We’d been blessed by the weather gods so far on this trip.
Jamison nodded toward a brick building off to the left of the fountain. “Over there’s Templeton’s Carpet Factory.”
I chuckled as I shook my head. Even the carpet factory looked luxurious and important.
Glasgow was nothing like I’d imagined. Art and commerce thrived in this city, which intrigued me with its old and new elements mashed together. One sterling example was the People’s Palace, nestled right behind the fountain, with its old brick facade mingled with a glass dome structure. Crazy and fun. Corinne, a classical artist at heart, would probably hate the glass addition. I kind of liked it.
“Ready to go in yet?” Graham asked me with a wave toward the People’s Palace.
I nodded, and Kylie and Jamison stepped behind the two of us as we made our way in. I still couldn’t believe my parents had let me come, but I’d begged them not to make me watch them golf. They’d laughingly agreed, so long as I checked in regularly. I think part of them wanted to have a romantic day to themselves, something I was all too happy to provide.