Page 29 of Wild Scottish Fortune

“Mr. Thompson.” I enjoyed the annoyance that flashed in his eyes and turned to the window, neatly changing the subject. “I need to ask you about this window. I’m told this room needs to be tightly regulated when it comes to humidity and temperature. As it stands, this window is drafty at best, which, naturally, we’d refit and seal with a new one. However, my question is, would it be best to seal it completely? I’m told the botanicals are stored in opaque containers to help keep desired freshness, and I’m just wondering if this could be a potential failure point for your storage?”

Finlay moved toward the window, and I shivered as he passed me, his arm lightly brushing mine. A spark jumped between us, energy ricocheting up my body, and I had to force myself to ignore this response I was having to him.

It wasn’t like I hadn’t been with a man before.

But something about Finlay just captured my attentionin a way that I wasn’t remotely comfortable with. He made me feel almost skittish, like a newborn foal finding its legs, and I couldn’t say that I was a fan of this disconcerting feeling. Finding stability and centering myself was an equilibrium that I’d fought for, and my goal was to maintain that for as long as I could. A stable foundation, one that I’d built myself, was integral to me finding peace. Finlay, with his fancy galas and dominating manner, was not a part of the future I’d built for myself.

Finlay tapped a finger on the window, and then ran his hand along the seams, his lips pressed together as he studied the glass. I’d noticed he did that, gave any questions serious thought, and I appreciated that he genuinely listened to the crew when they came to him.

“While I hate to lose the light, as I love the character of this building, it might be best to seal it up.”

“I could build shutters, on the interior, that you could open while you were working in here. Double-glazed window, a new sill, and you’d have this sealed nicely. I could foam pad the backside of the shutters, almost like you would for soundproofing, and that would help. If you really wanted to keep the window, or at least the aesthetic in here.”

“I just wonder if that’s being excessive for a small window, when it is likely easier to seal it up.”

“Could be. But I agree, it is nice to have in here. Do people spend a lot of time in this space?”

“They will, yes. We’re constantly adding new stock, monitoring, sorting, and rotating old stock. Everything is dated and inspected regularly to ensure the freshness of ingredients.”

“Your employees could open the shutters while they worked and then close them up when they left. If they wanted the natural light.”

Finlay squinted up at the ceiling.

“We’ll do warm light in here. Not fluorescents. I hate working under florescent lights.”

“Aye, they’re a touch annoying, aren’t they?”

“Horrible. I used to work in an office that only had that type of lighting. I swear I went home with a headache almost every day.”

“I can imagine. It serves its purposes, but not for in here.” I wanted to ask him about his job, the one he hated, and if he was happier now. But I didn’t, not really knowing how to strike up a casual conversation with him, because what if I asked about something that was a bad memory in his life? It was one of the reasons I hated being asked questions about my own past. Difficult life experiences didn’t always make for fun conversations, I’d learned, and I was now an expert at diverting to other topics.

“What the…” Finlay’s body tensed, and I felt the magick before I even turned.

A unicorn stood outside the small window.

Let me repeat that.

A unicorn stood outside the window. A glorious pearlescent horn jutted from her head, white mane flowed in the wind, and her coat shimmered as though she’d been dipped in opalescent paint. She snorted, tossing her head, and dipped her horn toward the window where Finlay and I now crowded together, our shoulders touching. I held my breath, my thoughts scrambling, as I witnessed the most beautiful being I’d ever seen before. It was as though heropal eyes held untold galaxies of knowledge, and a warm balm of love and acceptance washed through me, tears springing to my eyes.

“We have to see her!” Finlay grabbed my hand and tugged, dragging me from the room and out through the front door, racing around the side of the building together. But by the time we reached where she’d stood, the unicorn was gone.

A glimmer of a moment now lost.

I felt bereft, as though something beautiful, a piece of my soul, had been taken from me. And in the same instance, as though an incredible gift had been bestowed upon us.

“I’ve never…I’ve seen some strange things in my life, but that was incredible. Och, lass, did you see her?” Finlay whirled and I jerked as he lifted me into his arms, twirling us both in excitement. My body froze, my typical reaction to uninvited touch, but Finlay was too ecstatic to notice.

Once I recovered from the initial shock of his arms around my waist, I realized that I didn’tquitemind having him touch me. He held me out of sheer excitement, and I couldn’t blame him. The unicorn had been extraordinary.

A shared moment. That was all this was.

“I did.” I laughed at him, little bubbles of giddiness rising in me like a shaken bottle of champagne. “Unbelievable.”

“Incredible. Just incredible.” Finlay twirled us once more, and I enjoyed this unfiltered look at him, when he wasn’t in “boss” mode. His excitement was palpable, like a child’s on Christmas morning, and I didn’t want to poke a hole in his joy by insisting he put me down. It didn’tmatter, not really, since I knew he wasn’t a threat to me. I wasn’t sure how I knew that, but I just did. Years of fending for yourself gave you a pretty good radar on who was out to hurt you.

“A fecking unicorn. Of all things.” Finlay’s gaze dropped to my face, and our eyes held, something deepening between us. The air grew thick with tension, the kind that made me squirm and wish for a moment alone with the toy in my bedside table, and his gaze dropped to my mouth.

Nowit was time for me to get down.

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