Page 136 of Take Her from You

Then they were gone, and I needed to get on with my plans.

Several hours later, and midway through my stringing up lights, my phone buzzed with a video call. I swiped to answer to my mother.

“Ma, please tell me you’re on the move.”

“We are! Gordain just picked us up. It’s so lovely being back in Scotland, and even better for what you boys have planned.” She beamed, my father leaning across the car to peer at the phone.

“Ben,” I called into the depths of the house. “The old folks are on the phone.”

Ma muttered outrage, and Gordain complained from elsewhere in the car. Ma and Gordain were old friends from when Ben was a bairn, but that was a story from a lifetime ago.

While Ma filled me on how Kelly had recently quit their inn and left town to elope with some previous boyfriend, my brother jogged down Castle Braithar’s broad staircase.

He joined me, throwing an easy arm over my shoulders. Sweaty fucker that he was from the work he’d been doing. “Hey, Ma. Da, did ye bring what I asked?”

Our father beetled his thick eyebrows, his frown deep. “Of course I did. We’ll be an hour then I’ll help out.”

I sucked air through my teeth. “I don’t know. Wouldn’t want ye popping out a hip through anything too strenuous.”

Ben twisted away, hiding a laugh. As kids, we’d plagued our father with teasing like this. He always took the bait.

On cue, Da glared. “I’ve been working my arse off daily since before ye were born. Harder than ye could imagine. I built a house from the ground up?—”

“Bull, hush now. You know they love to antagonise you.” Ma stopped him with a kiss.

We both made faces of disgust.

“Leave your father alone,” our mother chided. “We’ll be there soon, and I can’t wait to see Daisy again, Benji, and meet Mia and Tobi, Valentino.”

We let them go and got back to work.

“Benji,” I said with a snort at the nickname no one used but Ma.

“Shut up, Valentino,” Ben countered.

We shared a moment. We were really doing this. It had been such a perfect plan, but fuck, it was getting real.

By six, the work was done. Braithar’s hall was thick with people, almost all families, our kin, and I’d driven out to lead Molly, Mia’s friend, back with me. She’d brought her three kids and her aunt, and had got hopelessly lost in the remote mountain roads.

Only a few key people were missing. Mia and Daisy, plus Ariel who was our wingwoman and an essential part of our evening.

Elise and her family entered the big space, Tobi with them. The little lass I wanted to call mine spotted me and ran, leaping into my arms.

“Why are you dressed like that?” She tugged at the lapels of my suit.

“If I tell ye, it means you’ll know a big secret.”

Tobi nodded, entirely serious. I carried her to the side of the room. Not that anyone else in the room was ignorant of the events, but I needed a moment with my girl.

“I’m going to ask your ma to marry me. Think she’ll say yes?”

Tobi’s mouth fell open. “Ohmigod.” She hugged me, ducking her face.

To my horror, she sobbed.

“Hey, hey. It’s okay. Dinna cry,” I hushed, rubbing a hand up and down her back.

Tears slid down her pink cheeks, soaking the sleeve I wiped them with. My heart ached and expanded all the more.

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