Page 12 of Surprises on the Scottish Isle

‘What was her name?’

‘Um, Tara.’

‘What was the prince’s name?’

‘Calan.’

‘That’syourname! You’re not a prince.’

‘Are you sure I’m not? I live in a castle…’

‘You do not.’ Bonnie was emphatic. ‘You live in a tiny house.’

‘It’s not that tiny,’ Calan objected.

‘It’s not as big as Coorie Castle.’

‘True, but not many places are.’

‘So youdon’tlive in a castle.’ Bonnie narrowed her eyes. ‘Is Mhairi a queen?’

Calan hid his smile. ‘No, Bon-Bon, she isn’t a queen. But she does own the castle.’

‘She must be very rich.’

Calan wasn’t prepared to discuss his employer’s finances with his daughter – or anyone else, for that matter.

He began to get to his feet, saying, ‘You obviously don’t want to hear my fabulous story,’ but Bonnie pulled him back down onto the bed.

‘I do! I do!’ she cried, and he tucked her in once more and continued the story.

‘As soon as the prince saw Tara, he fell in love and wanted to marry her. She loved him too, despite his squinty eye, but he didn’t know that his good looks and charm had also made someone else fall in love with him. And that someone was a witch!’ He paused for dramatic effect.

Bonnie had the covers up to her nose and was peering over the top of them. ‘What happened next, Daddy?’

‘The witch had a dragon, and the dragon threatened to burn him to a crisp unless he married her instead of the princess. So, do you know what he did? He challenged the dragon to a duel! But this wasn’t any old duel, because a mere sword couldn’t kill a fire-breathing scaly dragon. The prince suggested avirtualduel on a computer, and because he was a modern prince who had played loads of computer games, he won! The dragon was defeated, the witch was banished, and the prince married his princess and they lived happily ever after.’ He ended the final sentence on a triumphant note, feeling smug.

‘Daddy, that was…’ Bonnie had a mischievous twinkle in her eye. ‘Awful,’ she finished.

Calan pretended to be hurt. ‘Are you dissing my story-telling skills?’

She giggled and nodded, and he swept her into his arms. God, how he adored this child! He regretted many things in his life, but Bonnie wasn’t one of them.

Later, though, as he sat quietly on the back step enjoying a peaceful few minutes before his own bedtime, he couldn’t help thinking back to the story he’d told his daughter.

It hadn’t been a complete work of fiction. Tara had been very real. And he had fallen in love with her. But he hadn’t married her. He’d married someone else instead, and the happily ever after had ended in divorce and heartache.

After a hectic few days of entertaining Bonnie at the adventure parkand go-karting, Cal was more than ready to do something more sedate, sowhen his tired-looking parents suggested a trip across the city to WhinPark, he was all for it.

While his mother made a picnic (with Bonnie’s help), Cal and his dad had a root around in the garage for a ball and a frisbee. To his delight, Cal also unearthed a stunt kite that he’d had when he was around Bonnie’s age. His dad must have packed it away because the strings were remarkably tangle free – if Cal had done it, the poor thing would be a messy nest of knots.

‘Do you think this still flies?’ he asked, holding it up.

His dad peered closely at it and said, ‘There’s only one way to find out.’

Bonnie was just as excited about the kite and the thought of playing football in the park as she had been about the more high-profile things she’d done this week, and it gladdened Cal’s heart to see his daughter able to find a similar degree of enjoyment in simpler – and less expensive – activities.

But he didn’t care if he had to spend a fortune, because he was determined that she would have the best time ever to make up for her not going abroad on holiday with her mother and Lenn. Bonnie hadn’t said anything, but he suspected she might be disappointed. After all, two weeks in Inverness couldn’t compete with two weeks on a Mediterranean island, even if Inverness was experiencing sunny weather.

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