Page 79 of Gift-Wrapped in a Kilt

"Oh Rory," I said with a gusty sigh. "Why won't you leave the poor guy alone? He adores your sister, and Calli vouches for him being a good man. So does Aidan. I know this isn't meanness because you are not mean. What gives?"

He ran his hand down my thigh with the languor of a man savoring his wife's body even while engaged in a serious conversation. "You meddled first, Em. It's only fair I have my go at it."

"Not an answer."

"You told Gavin he needed to…" Rory winced as if speaking the word pained him. "You told him to 'bromance' me, Aidan, and Lachlan."

I straddled his lap so I could stare down at him properly. "How do you know that? Were you eavesdropping?"

"No, Iain told me." He grasped my hips. "Gavin discussed the issue with Iain, and Iain thought I should be warned."

"Here I thought Iain was trustworthy." I shook my head. "Turns out he's a gossip like the rest of you."

"Iain was certain Gavin wouldn't mind." Rory pinched me lightly. "Are you calling me a gossip?"

"The men in the MacTaggart family blether way more than the women."

"Hmm." Rory drew my hips forward until I could feel his arousal beneath me. "Did ye never think Iain might've done Gavin a favor?"

"I'll consider that when I interrogate him."

Rory chuckled. "Heaven help the man who annoys my wife. Iain's fifty years old, Em, and nothing upsets him."

"Must be something that does, but I'll figure him out later." I dragged my nails down Rory's chest. "Tell me what you're planning for Gavin."

"I'll tell ye,mo gaoloch," he said with a smirk, "after I make you scream several times. We've got to get one up on Jamie and Gavin, after all."

"Give me a hint first."

My husband considered the request for a moment, his expression pensive. "Gavin is the sort of man who needs to prove his mettle in a physical way. I've made arrangements to give him the chance."

"Not sure I like the way that sounds." I rose onto my knees to tower over the naked, aroused Highlander beneath me. "Guess I'll have to torture you for the details."

He skimmed his hands up and down my thighs. "I enjoy your torture."

"Me too." I bent forward to dangle my breasts in his face. "When can we tell everyone we're having a baby?"

Rory groaned and rolled his eyes. "I'm getting the idea you'll be the sort to wake everyone up at a four a.m. on Christmas morning."

"Not everyone. Only you."

"I see." He threw his arms around me and rolled us both over so I lay trapped beneath him. "Donnae be in such a hurry, Em."

I soon forgot all about the Gavin problem and convincing Rory to share our good news. My husband had a way of erasing my memory.

When he finally told me his plan, I had to agree it had merit.

Gavin had a plan of his own, though he didn't yet realize it meshed with Rory's scheme.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Cold rain pattered on the roof of the Range Rover as Gavin pulled up in front of the house Calli and Aidan shared. Two weeks had gone by since the Thanksgiving incident. Iain had let Gavin borrow his Rover but only after giving him a hard time about procrastinating. The older man implied — okay, said it outright too — that Gavin was afraid to talk to his little sister. Maybe he was afraid, of what she might say, how she might react to what he said, how their relationship might change in the aftermath.

Gavin groaned. Aftermath? This wasn't a tornado bearing down on them.

Why did it feel that way, then?

He had to say these things to Calli even if she thought he was a total wuss and a pathetic loser afterward. He needed to work things out with Rory too, but he was procrastinating even more with that task.

---