Page 108 of Kilt Trip

“Edinburgh has a way of slowly revealing her secrets. She’ll captivate your imagination, make you want to uncover the depths of her past.”

Addie’s breath tripped at the words meant just for her. Not the first moment Logan tried to share his heart, but the first time Addie felt brave enough to reach for it.

The video faded into a montage of pictures. Castles, cairns, Keith the driver with puffed-out cheeks playing the bagpipes. Logan in a kilt in front of the tour bus with a sly smile that threatened to undo all the lovely work of Addie’s eye masks. His wide shoulders intent on bursting his sweater seams with a group of starstruck tourists gathered around him.

“You’ll fall in love with not just her beauty but also her heart,” Logan said, right into the camera. Right to her.

She loved him so much.

Addie hit the Replay button another three times.

Below the video was a note: I miss you! I’m writing with important news about the future, and I want you to be a part of it!

Her breathing stopped and started like traffic on the freeway. That future tugged on her heart more than her mom’s pictures had and promised a connection that would go on forever.

Join us for heritage tours and discover your place in the fabric of Scotland. Bookings open now!

Her heart came to a screeching stop.

Oh, fuck.

This was a business communication.

Addie covered her eyes with her freezing fingers and practiced a shaky version of yoga breathing. The raging desire for those words to be a sign of Logan’s outstretched hand coursed through her like a flash flood.

Memories flickered in her mind. His dimpled grin. The way he cupped her head when he held her tight. His low voice that slowed the rushing world.

There was no convincing herself she’d made the right choice getting on that plane. And no assurance he would forgive her and offer her a place to set down roots a second time.

She was the worst kind of coward.

She should have supported him, shouldn’t have made him doubt. Shouldn’t have left him to do it alone.

More than that, she should have shared her past, her dreams for the future.

Her heart.

He’d hurt her with his surrender and dismissal, and she’d pretended he failed her. But he’d always wanted all of her, always pushed her to give in to the love between them, and she’d always kept part of herself back.

She was like her dad. She’d clung to her resentment, freezing Brian out, and anyone else who tried to get close. Pretended random sparks of connection with the woman in seat 24B or the elderly man on a tour of Athens were enough to sustain her.

Out on the moor, she’d resolved to live fearlessly and then retreated at the first sign of trouble.

She proved she was a flight risk in the moment when staying meant the most.

Logan was taking a big chance on something he loved. Pride blossomed in her chest for his courage. He wasn’t the same as the person she’d first met, so staunchly opposed to risk and change.

She wasn’t the same, either.

She was stronger and braver. Because of him.

For the chance to love Logan fully, she could risk her heart. It was absolutely worth it.

The clicking sound of high heels on tiled floors snagged Addie’s attention, and she glanced around the stark lobby. The hearth at the center was supposed to look fancy and a bit aspirational—to inspire the same feeling in weary travelers—but in reality, it was devoid of love or community or family.

What the hell was she still doing here?

Addie grabbed her phone and called Marc, reciting the words I want to work out of Edinburgh like a mantra.

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