Page 104 of The Empire and the Wolf King

I said, “Me too, and we had Arlo with us, up all night, traveling, different hotels — I know it sounds fun, but it gets old, doesn’t it, babe?”

Finch said, “Aye.”

I said, “So, Blakely, you don’t regret giving up your career as an agent?”

“Nope, this has been all-consuming; we have construction projects, forest management, landscaping. I’m doing the bookkeeping, we have a whole staff to manage, and then my side hustle — historical research.”

Finch narrowed his eyes. “Ye are lookin’ intae how Lady Mairead can be a lady from the seventeenth century and also a lady in the twenty-first century?”

I said, “Finch, you promised you weren’t going to bring up all your questions.”

He shrugged, “The mysteries of m’brothers and their wealth intrigue me.” He leaned forward. “What hae they told ye about how they make their money?”

Liam said, “What hae they told ye?’

Blakely laughed. “Looks like a deadlock.”

I said, “Finch, you have been told that it’s secret and you don’t believe it anyway.”

Liam chuckled. “I am also told tae keep the secret I know from outside the family.”

Finch said, “Iamfamily. Ye tell me yer secret I will tell mine.”

“True, ye are family. I was told tae give ye the run of the house, nae one told me I needed tae keep a secret from ye.”

“So ye ken the secret… dost ye believe the secret? How do we ken it’s the same secret?”

They both clicked their beers together and drank.

I laughed. “So this is fun, what happens if we say ‘one, two, three, tell the secret’ and it’s two different secrets?”

Finch said, “The secret I ken, I daena believe.”

Liam said, “The secret I ken, I only believe because I hae done it.”

Finch and I met eyes. He asked, “Do ye think we’re talking about the same thing, Ree-ro?”

I shook my head. “I have no idea.”

Blakely said, “Here’s a hint about ours. We did it and we ended up in Florida, with no money and no passport, and had to make our way back home.”

Finch said, “Och, how could the secret hae taken yer wallets? It daena make sense, none of it makes sense.”

I raised my brow. “All I know is your brother told you not to tell anyone… what if he doesn’t trust you anymore?”

“Och, I already told ye about it, I already broke m’promise.”

“I am your wife, of courseyou told me.”

Finch pointed at Liam. “And he is a cousin, and he already knows the secret — but ye are right, Ree-ro, I canna break their trust. I wouldna want tae cross Magnus.”

Liam said, “Lady Mairead might be far more formidable.”

“But all the rest of m’brothers were in on it, it daena seem fair that I daena ken if it’s true or no. I canna decide if they were playin’ me for a fool.”

Liam said, “They arna playin’ ye for a fool, it’s true.”

Finch leaned forward. “It’s no’ bullshite?”

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