That certainly put a different complexion on things. She couldn’t put off the decision about how she was going to move forward from here. She had a very big choice to make.
Chapter 9
Brodie had been disappointed that Fiona had refused to stay at the Big House for Sunday dinner. She had promised she would come back after dinner and they could spend the night together again, hopefully uninterrupted. Fiona had reminded Brodie that it was he who had pushed for her to make it up with her dad and encouraged her to spend more time with him.
Dinner was steak pie, roast potatoes, and vegetables and Fiona, John and Bella sat round the table discussing the wedding.
“Why do you two not get married?” Fiona asked suddenly. John and Bella looked at each other and then at Fiona.
“Er, well, we...”
“You obviously love each other. It seems crazy.”
“Well, you see, we didn’t want to upset you,” managed her dad.
“Oh!” Fiona scowled at this news. Then she straightened her shoulders and spoke. “I’m sorry. I’ve been such a brat to both of you for years. You shouldn’t put off your own happiness for me. I love you both and I think you should have the chance to be happy. You only live once. You could get married in weeks. Why don’t you start organising it tomorrow? I’ll come up from Glasgow for it.”
Her father and prospective stepmother looked at each other and John shrugged. “I’d love to marry you, Bella. Will you marry me?”
“Of course,” said Bella, wiping a stray tear from her eye.
“Then my work here is done,” said Fiona, putting down her knife and fork and getting up to leave.
“Where are you going?”
“Brodie’s.”
“Fee, there was something you said a few minutes ago that I think you should take heed of yourself.”
Fiona stopped and stared at her dad, wondering what he meant.
“You said you only live once. And that’s true. Brodie might not wait around forever and he obviously cares about you.”
“I know, Dad. I’m working on it. Before I go, I’ll explain my plan.”
She sat back down and told Bella and her father what she hoped to do about her future.
~* * *~
The week flew by far too fast for Fiona’s liking. She split her time between Brodie’s apartment in the Big House and the croft. She also helped Bella organise the wedding in six weeks’ time.
One morning after breakfast, Fiona was alone in the main kitchen of the Big House while Brodie had nipped out to deal with a small delivery emergency. The Laird walked into the kitchen and smiled at her.
“Fiona, it’s lovely to see you.”
“It’s nice to see you too.” Fiona responded to his warm smile. It was a mirror image of Brodie’s smile. Her lover looked like a young version of his dad, though the Laird was slightly shorter and wider than his son.
“I’m glad I bumped into you. I wanted to ask about something.”
~* * *~
The night before she was due to return to Glasgow, Fiona lay once again in Brodie’s arms. They had made love three times and Fiona was sated but unhappy as she committed to memory the contours of his stomach.
“Brodie, I think we should at least try a long distance relationship.”
“And what happens when we want to move things on? When we want to live together or marry?”
“Some bridges don’t need to be crossed until you get to them.”
“Hmm, I’m not convinced but I don’t want to give you up. I’ve had a great time this last fortnight.”
“Then don’t give me up. Give long-distance a try. I’ll be up for my dad’s wedding in six weeks and you could maybe come down for a weekend in Glasgow in between.”
“That would be nice. Besides, I’d miss these.” He lowered his head captured one nipple in his mouth and sucked on it. Fiona sucked in a breath as his tongue flipped around the sensitive bud.
“You only want me because you like my breasts?” she teased.
“Oh no,” he muttered, placing his hand between her thighs and stoking the fires of want that had only recently been doused. “I want every part of you.”
“You are insatiable, Brodie MacNeil.” She rolled onto her back and pulled him on top of her. It was going to be awful leaving him here and trying to resume her life in the city. She was going to miss him like crazy and the three weeks until he visited would drag. Her heart ached at the very thought and the stinging feeling at the back of her throat started. She swallowed and blinked back the unshed tears.
~* * *~
Fiona stood on the passenger deck of the ferry as it pulled away from Kilrigh. She had told Brodie not to accompany her to the pier, it would be too difficult. She'd wanted to say goodbye to him in private. Besides she would see him again in three weeks when he visited Glasgow.
As she leaned on the railings, her gaze swept over the island of her childhood—her home! Small hills on one side, a quaint village on the other, and tiny croft houses dotted the rest of the island. The Big House was hidden from view.
She scanned the beach and recognised a solitary figure. Although he was far away, she would know Brodie MacNeil anywhere. Her heart lurched and she wondered if her plan was fair to him. He was clearly heartbroken to see her go. She blew a kiss in his direction and moved away to the other side of the ferry, unable to see for the tears in her eyes.
Chapter 10
The hall door clicked closed behind them and they took no time at all in shedding their clothes. Brodie picked Fiona up and asked where the bedroom was. He placed her down on the bed and she opened her legs, pulling him into the cradle of her thighs. Their mouths met—an urgent mess of lips, tongues and teeth. They were each trying to consume the other as they rocked their hips in unison. She ran her fingers through his hair as he tangled his fingers in hers and trailed warm, wet lips along her jaw and down her neck.
“Oh Fee, I’ve missed you.”
“I missed you too,” she managed, and then hissed as his thumb found the sensitive nub between her folds.
“You feel ready,” he noted.
“I’ve been ready since I saw you walk through the barrier at Queen Street Station. Why do you think I didn’t touch you all the way home? I didn’t trust myself.”
Fiona bent her legs, ready to accept him. He leaned down and kissed her again before grasping himself and entering her moist heat.
Fiona groaned at the pleasurable agony of him filling her again after three weeks. He had been constantly on her mind and she had been horny since the day she had left. She rocked her hips in time with his, enjoying the feel of his thumb caressing her clitoris and knowing that she was going to reach climax pretty quickly. The smell of his aftershave was driving her insane with desire. She lifted her face to his and inhaled deeply.
Her climax was roiling up from her toes and she pressed harder against him, digging her fingernails into his butt cheeks, encouraging him to go faster. She closed her eyes as a kaleidoscope of lights flashed under her eyelids and her body pulsed with its release.
Brodie growled and pumped harder and faster into her. As her orgasm abated, she opened her eyes. Listening to him muttering little swear words under his breath, she revelled in the sight of his body stiffening and his jaw clenching. He roared in release and she felt the warmth fill her. She rubbed her hands, gently and soothingly, up and down his back. As he came back to himself, he looked down and grimaced.
“Sorry,” he said. Fiona frowned and wiped some sweat from his brow.
“For what?”
“Well, it wasn’t really the tender lovemaking I had imagined.”
Fiona chuckled.
“We probably needed to get rid of three weeks of pent up frustration before we could focus on the tender lovemaking. We’ve got all weekend and I’ve got loads of food so we don’t have to leave the flat.” He grinned and climbed off her. Settling himself under the duvet, he looked around the room.
“Fiona, why
are there boxes everywhere?”
She sighed. Lying didn’t come easily to her.
“This is my mum’s flat. She bought it and rents it to me. After what she did to my dad and me, I can’t stay here. I’m looking for another place.”
“She’s still your mum.”
“I know and one day I’ll get around to forgiving her. But not today. Not when I’ve got the cutest guy in Kilrigh in my bed.”
Fiona climbed under the duvet and snuggled up to him, clasping his hand and placing it on her breast. It was probably best to distract him than answer any more awkward questions.
~* * *~
The day of Bella and John’s wedding was a complete contrast to Sarah’s wedding. It was typical West coast of Scotland weather: high winds and horizontal rain. It didn’t deter any of the inhabitants of Kilrigh since they were used to bad weather.
Fiona, Brodie, the Laird, and the Lady Laird arrived together in the Laird’s Bentley. Fiona had stayed with Brodie the night before to give her father and Bella some privacy.
The wedding was a low key affair–or as low key as anything could be when all the residents of the island knew everybody else’s business. She still could not believe that this group of islanders had kept her secret so well and Brodie was still none the wiser.
As they sat at the wedding meal, tucking into a plate of poached salmon, potatoes, and vegetables, Fiona asked, “Have they got a new vet for the island yet?” She glared at Sarah, who made a slight snorting noise at the innocent sounding question.
“Yeah, apparently,” grumbled Brodie. “Some chick from the city. I bet she doesn’t know one end of a cow from the other.”
“Oh, she might surprise you. Everyone learns about farm animals as well as pets at vet school these days.”
“Well, forgive me if I wait to see how good she is before I pass judgment.”
“Seems to me like you’ve already judged her and found her wanting. Do you even know her name?”
“No.”
“Then don’t be so prejudiced. Give the girl a chance. It’s only fair. Otherwise she might take one look at you and decide you’re a boorish, sexist teuchter.”
“Hmph!”
~* * *~
“Where are Mum and Dad?” Brodie glanced around the small group standing outside the village hall.
“I told them to go on and that we’d walk.”
“Walk? It’s three miles.”
“Well, it’s three miles up to the Big House, but not to where we’re going.”
“And where are we going?” he asked suspiciously.
“Just trust me and you’ll find out.”
They walked a few hundred yards down the main street of the village, and then turned down towards the old harbour. They were nearly at the water when Fiona stopped and pulled a set of keys out of her bag.
“This is the vet’s cottage.”
“Yeah it is,” she agreed.
She unlocked the door and led him in to the small living room, furnished with her own things from Glasgow.
“You’re the city girl vet?”
“Yep! Still want to know if I can tell one end of a cow from another?”
“Are you going to make me name all my cows?”
“Probably.”
“And you’re here to stay?”
“I think so. It depends on how things work out between us. This was just a fling, remember? But, since I’m being honest, I love you too.”
Brodie pulled Fiona towards him and brushed his lips across hers. Fiona knew that she had come home for good and that her days of dancing the solo Highland fling were over. She was in his arms, where she intended to stay, dancing a slow sensual waltz though the rest of their lives.
About the Author
Krystal Brookes lives in a small village on the West coast of Scotland – a mere 300 yards from a 14th Century Castle. She lives alone, apart from the giant spiders that like to come in for a heat. She loves sci-fi and is a diehard Trekkie. When she’s not visiting her nieces, going to conventions or at her day job, she can be found writing in a little corner of the living room or in a coffee shop overlooking the beach.
Website: http://www.krystalbrookes.com
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Well Traveled by Jasmine Aherne
Temporarily living in London to care for his ailing father, travel writer Wade is torn between his urge to globe trot and his love for his dad.
Enter broken hearted but free-spirited Kiersten. After a spilled cup of hot chocolate brings them together, Kiersten shows Wade that he doesn't need to get on a plane to find places to explore. The city opens up before his eyes, and he starts discovering things about London - and about himself - that he never expected...
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When Kiersten Saunders’ hot chocolate arrived, she didn’t expect the cocoa sprinkled on top to be shaped into a heart.
It figured, though. She had come to the one bar in London that didn’t seem to be completely fixated on Valentine’s Day, and she had received her comeuppance.
She stared down into whipped cream and chocolate shavings, then cupped her hands around the tall, white china cup, warming her palms.
Looking around at the couples who sat at various tables and booths in the bar, she sighed and went back to studying her drink. It seemed like everyone and their dog were in love today. The people of the fair city of London had put on their rose-tinted glasses and had done everything except exchange hugs and puppies on the underground. There was even a guy standing outside Paddington station handing out little cookies baked in the shape of hearts.
And to cap it all off, Kiersten wasn’t even supposed to be in London today. Or in the country. Not today, or tomorrow, or even the day after.
“Guess it serves me right for having a relationship anniversary the day before Valentine’s Day,” she muttered into her mug.
Just yesterday she’d rushed home from work to pack, stupidly excited about her romantic weekend with her fiancé Billy. They had planned to fly out to Rome, where the weather would be blissfully warm, for a few days of relaxation, food, sunshine, and sex.
Unfortunately for Kiersten, Billy had skipped ahead—he'd been having the sex part with someone else when Kiersten got home.
As she’d stood in the bedroom doorway, gaping as if she were slow, Billy had said, mechanically: “You told me you wouldn’t be home until after five.”
“My boss let me off early,” Kiersten had replied woodenly, on auto-pilot, barely registering the slender, naked curves of the woman in her bed. Billy’s bed. The bed they’d shared for almost three years.
Billy had said nothing, and so Kiersten had finally managed to order her feet to move and escape the apartment.
She’d made it down two flights of stairs before collapsing in a sobbing heap, strands of hair clinging to the dried tears on her skin, eyes red and achy from weeping.
When she got back up, she stormed back up the stairs and chewed out Billy and his other woman. Then she ordered them both to go to Rome. Together.
She didn’t want to go anywhere with Billy, and she didn’t want him to stay home. It was the best solution.
So off he’d gone, like a dog trotting eagerly towards a nicely presented meal. So much for her pathetic hopes that he might have crawled over to her pleading, “But it’s just sex, Kiersten, it's y
ou I truly love.”
An hour after he’d departed, Kiersten had fed his favourite ties down the garbage disposal. She took his only genuine Hugo Boss suit to charity.
Elation had bubbled inside her for a satisfying five minutes of victorious revenge.
And then, when it passed, she hadn’t felt any better.
So now here she sat, staring miserably into a heart-topped mug of hot chocolate, wondering what else of Billy’s she could boil, burn, or give away.
“Perroni, please.”
Kiersten stirred slightly at the sound of the stranger’s voice. Pleasantly deep. Canadian, or northern New York state, she guessed.
“Bottle or tap?” the bartender asked.
“Tap.”
“Coming right up.” The female staff’s voice had taken on a distinctly silky tone.
Curious to see who had spoken, Kiersten looked up and around.
The stranger stood just over six feet tall, lean, and rangy. A few stray locks of his dark, mocha-brown hair fell across his forehead. The rest of his hair was short and attractively tousled as if he ran his hands through it a lot.
Dark brows arched over a straight nose, which led down to lips that quirked upwards in a charming, not-quite full blown smile. His fog-grey eyes were framed with thick lashes.
He wore a soft-looking, cherry wood brown leather jacket over a travel-crumpled white shirt, open at the neck to reveal a tantalising few inches of lightly tanned skin. Belted, dark-wash jeans led to what looked like walking-worn, black boots.
“Help you?”
With a horrified jolt, Kiersten realised she’d been staring. Her startled movement tipped her mug over, and hot chocolate spouted forth, across the bar and down on to her own worn jeans.
“God!”
Highland Fling Page 7