Hope Everlastin' Book 4

by Mickee Madden

  She stood on tiptoe and kissed him tentatively on the lips, and brushed her brow against his chin. "You're not responsible for her madness. You brought me here because you loved me." She smiled in earnest as she met his teary gaze. "Had I not come here, I wouldn't have met you and we wouldn't have the twins. I was a miserable, lonely woman in the States. If I don't regret what brought me to this point in my life, you sure as hell better not."

  "Ma Beth," he choked. He snuggled her tighter within the powerful bands of his arms and nestled a cheek against the top of her head. "I dinna deserve you."

  "I know." She sighed and released what sounded like a chuckle.

  "The good news is," said Winston, hoping his cheery tone would help to lift their spirits, "Beth's trust fund and home should be intact."

  The couple's eyes turned to him. Beth was elated. Winston could hear her mind churning with possibilities. But although Lachlan put on an admirable front, his apprehension about leaving Scotland wafted off him in waves Winston easily absorbed.

  "Lachlan," Beth said excitedly, "we could go to my home in the States until all this nonsense with the press calms down."

  A strained smile ticked along his mouth as he nodded. "Aye. Twould probably be best."

  Beth's face clouded thoughtfully and she turned to Winston. "He doesn't have any identification, though."

  "It's in the works."

  "How? He'll need a passport."

  "I purchased a camera this morn to take his photograph. I also called a man I know in Ayr. He worked for the Shields Agency but was forced to retire five years ago. One o’ his many talents is an ability to create worldwide legal documentation. He's done quite a bit o' work wi' the Witness Protection Program in the States, in relocating persons ou' o' tha' country. When I told him abou' your predicament—"

  "The truth o' it?" Lachlan gasped.

  Winston grinned. "He's an ardent fan o' yours. He was in the hospital for a week last Christmas and was unable to attend your..." He made quotation marks in the air. "...'miracle' Christmas, but he has toured your home whenever possible over the years. He said you once complimented him on his mustache."

  A knowing grin appeared on Lachlan's face. "Is this mon short and round, wi' white hair?"

  "That's him."

  Lachlan laughed then said to Beth, "Fegs, lass, the ends o' this mon's mustache went past his collar bones, no' a hair ou' o' place. I dinna usually speak to the people on the tours, just maistly moaned a wee and flitted in and ou' o' sight to give them a thrill. But when I saw this mon, I had to inquire abou' tha' masterpiece on his face." He flashed Winston a broader grin. "Does he still have it?"

  Nodding, Winston said, "It's his pride and joy."

  "And he's willin’ to help me?"

  "Said he was thrilled to help. He's in Dublin, but has to be in Edinburgh tomorrow for another client. We've arranged to meet in the morn. I plan to take Deliah along." He grinned. "On a shopping spree. Tha' should prove interesting."

  "Aye. So this mon...he can really produce the documents tha' quickly?"

  Winston bobbed his head in admiration of James Grayson and glanced at his watch. "Which reminds me, I'd better get on the move. I want to leave for Edinburgh in abou' an hour. Lachlan, do you have the gems you want me to have appraised?"

  "I have some in a pouch in ma room."

  Again, Winston checked his watch. "I'll have to take several Polaroids o' you, Lachlan, which means you'll have to borrow two or three shirts from Roan."

  "Wha's wrong wi' ma own?"

  Winston grinned dubiously. "You need to look like a twentieth century mon."

  Releasing a woeful sigh, Lachlan nodded with blatant reluctance. "I'll do wha'ever I must."

  "Chin up," Beth laughed, and kissed the cleft in that area. She looked at Winston and asked, "Is Deliah excited about going to Edinburgh?"

  "She's nervous but I think she'll have fun. Oh, and Lachlan, Reith—"

  "Fegs! I forgot to thank you for takin’ his breakfast to him this morn."

  "No problem. We had a nice chat."

  Lachlan grimaced. "Do you still no' trust him?"

  With mocking affront, Winston placed a hand over his heart. "Far be it for me to doubt your instincts. He is a likable lad. Almost too polite." He shrugged. "I just wanted you to know the money you gave him was well spent. He opted to purchase clothing at the secondhand store in town."

  "Why secondhand?" Lachlan asked.

  "Because, and I quote, 'I prefer the texture o' tried cloth.' Unquote."

  "That's cute ...'tried cloth'," said Beth. "Actually, I like pre-worn clothes, too. Especially jeans."

  "In ma day—"

  Beth placed a forefinger against Lachlan's lips, silencing him. "I have so much to teach you," she sighed airily, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "And you have so much to learn."

  Lachlan winced. "One day at a time, lass."

  Walking to Lachlan's side, Winston clapped him on the back. "Ready to smile for the camera?"

  Lachlan wilted with resignation. "Aye, but as a good friend is fond o' sayin’, damn me."

  For the next hour it was a scramble to get everything ready for Winston and Deliah's departure. Begrudgingly, Lachlan suffered through four shirt changes and listening to the boys howl with laughter at his attempts to pose with a semblance of dignity for the camera. Beth and Laura found a calf-length skirt of navy blue and a beige sweater smaller than the others for Deliah to wear. Footwear wasn't so easy. In the end, she donned three pairs of thick socks to keep Laura's boots from flopping on her feet.

  Everyone made up a short list of what they would like Winston to bring back from the city. Finally, the Audi pulled out of the driveway and out of sight.

  "That was almost exhausting," Laura commented as she closed the inner door.

  "Can we go out and play?" asked Kahl. He and his brothers were still wound up, their energy level at critical mass.

  "Stay in the south yard," Laura said, issuing them a look that warned they had better obey this time. "If I see any of you—"

  A bloodcurdling scream rent the air. Everyone in the hall stood frozen with shock until, a moment later, a higher pitched scream followed.

  "Taryn!" Lachlan gasped, and was the first to run for the stairs. He burst into Taryn's bedroom, the other adults and the boys at his heels.

  Another scream ejected from the young woman's throat, but it was not the ear-piecing sound that was responsible for the men and boys' paralysis. It was Taryn, herself. She stood atop her pillows at the head of the bed, her eyes wide with horror and gaping at nothingness at the foot of the bed. Her exercised-firmed body was clad in a red satin cami that barely covered her large breasts, and a red satin thong that only just covered her pubic hairs. Unbound, her light brown hair fell nearly to her waist in soft waves, benefit of the braid she'd worn for the past two days.

  "H-he was here!" she squealed, her eyes darting from the group back to the foot of the bed. "The sicko was leering at me!"

  Her male audience didn't respond to her outburst. They were entranced by her lack of clothing, and her sculptured build. She normally wore clothes that concealed her figure. Gymnastics and weightlifting were her spare time activities, and she worked out mornings and nights to keep in shape. She thought her one flaw was her chest, which was far too large in her opinion. Her waist was nineteen inches, though, her rounded hips lean, and her legs and arms muscular.

  "Lachlan!" Beth snapped, forcing his gaping mouth to close by putting the heel of a hand beneath his chin and giving it a shove upward. His teeth clacked as his glazed eyes swung to stare at her as if he didn't recognize who she was.

  Her face flushed with anger, Beth pinched his right cheek and smirked with satisfaction when he swore in Gaelic. "Pull your eyeballs back in your head," she warned, and his face turned crimson with realization.

  To avoid looking at Taryn again, he turned his back to her.

  Roan jerked from his stupor and hastily said to the boys, "Ou'! You wante
d to go ou' and play—go!"

  "What a babe!" Kevin gushed, his eyes wide with appreciation for the vision atop the bed. "I want to stay and keep her company."

  "Ou'!" Roan fumed, an outstretched arm pointing to the door.

  On the way out of the room, Kahl winked at Taryn then grumbled, "We never get to have any fun."

  Alby just quietly left, a bit dazed by all the hoopla. No sooner was he in the hall than Roan closed the door and returned to stand alongside Laura, whose arms were folded against her middle, a look of disapproval riveted on his sister.

  "For the love o' God, Taryn," Roan muttered heatedly, "cover yerself."

  Taryn's face was ashen, her eyes still wide and glassy with fear. After a moment she glanced down at herself and cast the remaining group an indignant glare. "Get a life! I wake up to find a freaking ghost drooling at my bedside, and you're all worried about my state of dress?"

  "I think that red satin has gone to your brain," Beth said testily.

  "You saw him?" Laura asked Taryn. "Glasses, short hair—"

  "Black raincoat," Taryn completed then jumped down from the bed and stood in front of the blonde. She ignored Lachlan when he turned, glanced at her, and grunted before placing his back to her again. "So you saw him, too?"

  Nodding, Laura stated, "I saw him from the corner of my eye when Roan and I were—" She cut herself off and cleared her throat. "Let's just say his timing was lousy."

  "Bloody lousy," Roan grumbled. Stepping to the bed, he pulled off the top quilt and draped it over his sister's shoulder. She shucked it off, glaring at him to back off.

  "Is she decent yet?" Lachlan asked.

  "I'm always decent!" Taryn barked.

  Dryly, Beth countered, "That's debatable. Please, put on a robe. At Lachlan's age, I don't know if his heart can take another shock." She roughly patted him on the shoulder and added, "Right, Lannie old boy?"

  "Aye," he said, in a tone that said he didn't dare contradict her. "But I have a few questions."

  "She can hear just fine," Beth fumed.

  He sighed, "All right."

  "Dammit," Taryn ground out. She flipped open one of the suitcases and removed a short red satin robe. "Satisfied?" she asked Beth with hostility.

  Before she could respond, Lachlan turned. His eyebrows peaked and a lopsided grin twitched at one corner of his mouth. Beth looked askance at him, but decided his obvious appreciation of Taryn's build wasn't worth another comment. She turned her attention to Laura, who was frowning.

  "This man—"

  "Beth, he wasn't a man!" Laura interjected. "He was translucent."

  "I could see the fireplace through him," Taryn said.

  Lachlan and Beth exchanged a look of concern, which Laura misread as skepticism. "Beth, why would I make up seeing a ghost?"

  Beth started to speak, faltered then forced the words out. "How could there be another ghost here? Are you sure you didn't recognize him?"

  "No! I've never seen him before!"

  "Taryn, what about you?" asked Beth.

  She stared peevishly at Beth for a time then shook her head. "No. Look, I was wide awake and just lying there. Thinking. You know. Debating whether to get up or not. I closed my eyes for maybe a minute or two. When I opened them, he was standing at the side of the bed, literally leering down at me."

  Lachlan glanced at Roan, who shrugged noncommittally.

  "Where exactly was he standin’?" Lachlan asked Taryn.

  She pointed to the right side of the bed. "He was there, but then he moved to the foot of the bed. I-I thought I was hallucinating, at first. Then he-ah...well, he jumped on the mattress and then had the nerve to open his arms to me. He stood right there on the foot of the bed, gesturing for me to come closer. All I wanted to do was smack that hideously smirking grin off his face!" She shivered and drew in her shoulders. "I didn't start screaming until he started toward me. Like hell was I going to let a dead pervert touch me!"

  Lachlan walked along the foot of the bed and stood where she had first pointed. After a moment, he said to the others, "Someone was here."

  "No shit, Maynard!" Taryn spat.

  "Taryn!"

  "Shut up, Roan!" Taryn sucked in a ragged breath, her face nearly the color of her robe. "The last thing I need from you is another lecture."

  Roan, his own face mottled with anger, took a step toward his sister. "Dinna think ye're too big to put across ma knee!"

  "Hold it!" Beth boomed. She looked at Roan with dark impatience. "I'm not a big fan of your sister—"

  "I love you, too."

  Ignoring Taryn's sarcasm, Beth went on, "—but she has every right to be upset. We should be focusing on how this spirit came to be here, and nothing else."

  Roan gestured his frustration and released a sigh of resignation. "Fine."

  "Stephan Miles," Lachlan said in a monotone. He stared off into space, his expression oddly rapt.

  "I've heard that name," Beth murmured. At first, she couldn't remember when or where. Then her expression brightened and she snapped her fingers in the air. "He was the guy who came here last July. Remember, Lachlan? He said he was interested in buying the estate."

  A mild frown settled on Lachlan's face.

  "You did something to him," Beth said. "Remember? He had green mist coming out of his ears."

  "I remember now." Lachlan bobbed his head as he played the memory through his mind. "A persistent mon. You asked him to leave, and he wouldna budge."

  "Green mist?" Roan grimaced.

  "Tha' and a wee green slime in his gullet," Lachlan chuckled.

  "You mean this guy has died and his spirit decided to come here?" Laura asked, appalled by the idea.

  Lachlan and Beth's gazes locked, while Roan released a scoffing laugh. "Oh, come on. If everyone who'd ever set foot on this property died and their spirits came here, the livin’ would have to move ou' to make room. Besides, Borgie died shortly efter his fall here, remember. His spirit crossed over."

  "Maybe because he was terrified of Lachlan," said Beth.

  Roan considered her statement and nodded reluctantly in agreement.

  "Oh, God," Laura groaned, putting a hand to her brow. "I have this terrible image of Baird House becoming Hotel Layover. Forget the afterlife. We have the perfect room for you!"

  "Well, guess what, guys?" Taryn said in a flippant, singsong tone. "I'm outta here first thing in the morning."

  "No' sooner?"

  Roan's hateful remark stunned both Laura and Beth, but Taryn merely looked at him with cool hauteur. "It's too late for me to drive to London, or I would be outta here within the hour. Now, if you all wouldn't mind, I'd like to get dressed." She shifted a coy look to Lachlan and said in a sultry tone, "You can stay and watch if you like."

  With a grunt of disgust, Roan led Laura from the room. Lachlan looked wide-eyed at Beth and gave a shrug that as much said, "I havena said or done anythin’ tha' would give her the idea I would even consider it!"

  Beth gestured for him to come around the bed and join her. He passed the amber-eyed woman a harried glance as he walked around the foot of the bed.

  When he was at Beth's side she calmly said to Taryn, "The boys are more mature than you are."

  Smug satisfaction and the hardened gleam in her eyes detracted from Taryn's lovely features. "You really should learn to curb your jealousy. In my experience, men like Lachlan don't appreciate the proverbial leash."

  "Taryn," Lachlan warned in a low growl.

  "I don't think it's so much jealousy," said Beth. "Your behavior is insulting, Taryn. Not only to your victims, but to yourself. Roan is one of the finest men I have ever known. It's really hard for me to believe you're his sister."

  A caustic laugh burst from Taryn, while Beth grew more somber.

  "I would have given anything to have had a sibling, which is why it's so sad this animosity exists between you and your brother." Beth linked an arm through one of Lachlan's and rested her head against the curvature of his shoulder. />
  "Do yourself a favor, Taryn, and try to mend the rift before you leave."

  Taryn's nostrils flared. "Beth, drop dead. Again."

  A disparaging sound rattled in Lachlan's throat. Before he could say anything, Beth said lightly to Taryn, "At least you're a consistent pain in the ass."

  * * *

  Although the ghost wasn't seen again the rest of the day, Taryn's presence had everyone but the boys on edge. She griped about the steaks and tattie scones Roan had cooked for dinner, and griped about the fact there was no deck of cards or television in the house. Her penchant to provoke tempers during even the most innocent of conversations wore on the adult's nerves, and their crankiness made the boys willing to go to bed on time, without the usual argument.

  Roan and Laura were the first to say they were retiring for the night. Taryn cocked a challenging eyebrow at Beth and Lachlan, daring them to desert her as well. Beth, too tired to care what the woman thought, told Lachlan she was going to feed and change the babies, then go to bed.

  "I need to bring Reith his supper," said Lachlan, rising to his feet. "I'll be up in a bit."

  Beth cast Taryn a sour look and kissed Lachlan on the mouth before heading out of the parlor.

  As soon as she was out of sight Taryn crossed one leg over the other and quipped with equal sourness, "She's so charming."

  "Haud yer wheesht!"

  She batted her heavily mascaraed lashes at him and twisted her mouth in a mocking grin. "Did you just swear at me?"

  "I told you to hold yer noise—or shut up, whichever you best understand."

  "You're going to miss me when I'm gone."

  A strangled laugh escaped him. "Miss Ingliss, when I say I'm lookin’ forward to seein’ yer backside, I dinna mean tis because I fancy it."

  Her features clouded with pique. "Not one of you even tried to get to know me, especially that egocentric brother of mine."

  Lachlan sadly shook his head. "I know there's mair to you than you let people see."

  She laughed bitterly. "Okay, tell me what."

  "Reith—"

  "He can wait," she clipped, rising to her feet from the settee and positioning herself close to him. "I want to know what you really think of me. We're alone. You can be honest."