Page 17 of Wild Scottish Rose

“Does it though?” Sure, I was probably a bit wary on the whole love thing, after watching the revolving door of my mother’s marriages.And my father’s.And if I was honest, my relationships had followed suit. Except without the expense of marriage ceremonies and divorce lawyers.That showed true wisdom in my mind.

“Aw, man, you’re way too young to be so jaded.” Ryan shook his head sadly. I just shrugged. He wasn’t wrong.

“I’m on a sabbatical from dating.” The image of Shona, with that damned pink silk thong peeking out of her jeans, popped into my head.Nope, no. Down boy. Definitely not going there.

“Like that will last.” Ryan snorted.

“I’m tired of it all,” I admitted, tapping my fingers on my leg as I thought about it. “Nobody is honest anymore. The last three, no, four women I dated all wanted something from me.”

“What? Like your time? Attention? Affection?” Ryan laughed when I glared at him.

“No, you dick. A movie role. Meeting famous people. Career advancement.”

“I know, I know.” Ryan waved a hand in the air to stop me as I ramped up. “That’s my least favorite thing about Hollywood. Everyone is using each other to get somewhere. That being said, it’s also my most favorite thing about Hollywood. Connections are king.”

“I just want someone who is real with me. Is that too much to ask?”

“Maybe you need to look outside Hollywood, bro.”

Again, that image of Shona flashed into my head, and I stubbornly pushed it away. The last thing I needed to do was look in the direction of my pretty landlord. She lived in a small town in Scotland. I lived, well, everywhere, really, depending on my shooting schedule. We were worlds apart, and I’d rather not complicate my life more than necessary.

“Moving on,” I said, tilting my head to study his face. “Everything good? The doctor was worried for brain injury. Did they do any tests?”

“Yup. I passed with flying colors. Just a bad concussion.”

“You’re lucky.” My stomach twisted thinking of Ryan knocked out in the frigid waters of the loch. This could have ended so much worse.

“I know it. But, man, you have to look into things here. It was wild, I tell you.Wild. There’s something crazy going on in this town.” Ryan looked around and lowered his voice. “It’s…I don’t even know how to explain it.”

I pulled out my phone and hit the record button. “Tellme everything that happened with your accident. You said some … interesting stuff yesterday, but I can’t help but wonder if it was the drugs talking. If not, I need to know all the details you can remember so I can look into it for you.”

“You’re staying?” A look of concern flashed across Ryan’s face.

“You asked me to investigate.”

“Did I? I don’t remember that.” Ryan shrugged one shoulder gingerly. “What else did I say?”

“You said you were chased, and you think there’s something like Nessie in the loch.”

“I do.” Ryan’s eyes met mine, and they were clear from any medication. “I didn’t make that up.”

“I don’t think you did, but you also had a trauma, potential brain injury, and I have no idea what meds you were on for pain, but I’m asking you now, with a clear head, if you can explain to me what happened.”

“Bro, it was wild,” Ryan repeated as he shook his head. Glancing at the door that was partially open, he leaned closer and lowered his voice. “There really is something in that water.”

“Yes, you mentioned like a Loch Ness Monster of sorts?” I asked. I was careful to keep my face expressionless.

“Maybe. It’s hard to say. It all happened so fast.”

“Walk me through it.” I stretched my legs out and crossed my arms over my chest, my eyes trained on my friend’s face.

“Well, I rented a canoe from a shop by the docks, and it was a fairly nice day. Some rain, but nothing that was all that annoying, you know?”

I nodded, motioning for him to continue. No one intheir right mind would normally rent a canoe in Scotland in the fall.Except for Ryan.He had always loved being on the water, and it didn’t matter what the temperature was. He was almost part fish.

“And I just went for a paddle. You know I love being out on the water. It was easy enough as the water was calm. No currents, nothing. Kind of like our lake back home. Just easy.”

“Then what happened?”

---