Page 41 of Summer Escapes on the Scottish Isle

‘I don’t look glum,’ he protested. ‘This is my normal expression.’

‘Aye, right-o. Is it because she’s got a boyfriend? If so, Tara got the impression it wasn’t serious.’

‘Why’s that?’ he asked, knowing he’d regret asking, but curiosity getting the better of him.

‘Apparently, she’s not too bothered about rushing back to London, so itcan’tbe serious, can it?’

‘That might be the case, but she’s not staying on Skye. As soon as Vinnie’s better, she’s away. She’s been offered a job in New York.’

‘She’s moving toNew York?’

He shrugged. ‘Or back to London. She’s not decided yet.’

‘You sure talked a lot on the way home.’ Jinny waggled her eyebrows.

‘We were on the loch for a wee while,’ he hedged.

‘From what I heard, the pair of you didn’t actually speak much when you were on the boat, but you were sniffing around her like a stag after a hind.’

‘You paint a lovely picture. Who did you hear that from? Was it Angus?’ Mack would have his guts for garters.

‘Never you mind.’

‘It was either him or Graham.’

‘Does it matter?’

‘I don’t want my crew yammering about my private life.’

‘I thought you were doing Cal a favour? I didn’t realise taking Freya Sinclair out on your boat wasprivate.’

‘I was, and it wasn’t.’

‘So you can’t have a go at Angus or Graham for saying anything, can you? Besides, I thought you would have been proud to be likened to a stag.’ She placed her hands on her head, fingers spread wide, and wiggled them. ‘What would you be, a fourteen-pointer? A sixteen?’

‘Since when do you know so much about red deer antlers?’

‘I know lots of things. Did you know that the stags with sixteen or more points on their antlers are called monarchs?’

‘I did, actually. Can we talk about something else?’

‘We certainly can. Why don’t we talk about how you managed to find the time to have an in-depth convo with Freya?’

Mack groaned. Carter always said that Jinny could be like a dog with a bone, so he decided to come clean, and it wasn’t as though he had anything to hide.

‘She had some Thai curry at mine afterwards,’ he admitted.

Jinny’s eyebrows shot up so fast that Mack was surprised they didn’t escape Earth’s gravity.

He said, ‘I cooked while she sorted out the photos. It saved me a job.’

His sister-in-law’s smile was knowing. ‘Is that how you’re going to play this?’

‘I’m not playing anything.’

Abruptly, she sobered, her gaze fixed on his face. ‘No, I don’t believe you are. It’s about time you found someone special, Mack.’

‘I don’t need anyone special. I wish everyone would stop trying to marry me off! I’m fine as I am.’ It came out as a growl.

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