Page 33 of The Curse of McMillan Castle
Duncan had to wake me at sunrise. After being sweetly pulled from sleep by kisses trailed down my neck, I panicked the second I took in the surroundings of the hotel room as my sex-doused brain remembered Rosie in the hotel room two doors down.
Dressing more quickly than I thought possible, I yanked on my pants, reached for my shirt which now lay crumpled up on the floor, bent to give Duncan a quick kiss on the cheek, and fled his room in my rush to try to save face with my daughter.
I relaxed the moment I pushed open the door, and the sound of her soft snoring reached my ears.
The panic returned, however, as I stepped further into the room and the sound of her snore turned into soft laughter.
As I flipped on one of the bedside lamps, Rosie slowly sat up in the bed.
“I knew if I pretended I was still asleep, you’d think you’d gotten away with it.”
My cheeks flooded with heat as I tried to think of something that could explain away the situation.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I just got up to see if there was any coffee downstairs in the lobby. I’ve been here all night.”
Rosie snorted and rolled her eyes at me. “Mom, I woke up at one in the morning and watched television for three hours. You weren’t here at all last night. It’s fine. Just don’t say anything else about it. I promise I’ll throw up if you do.”
She pretended to gag then walked to the bathroom without another word. I heard the shower turn on and, humiliated, I shrunk beneath the covers.
No teenager needed to be aware of their mother spending the night with anyone. She played it cool, but she had to be mortified.
I was officially the worst mom ever.
* * *
Isaid nothing to Duncan on the long car ride to Morna’s later that morning. I was now so cognizant of Rosie’s presence that I worried about anything either of us might say making her uncomfortable.
I still didn’t know where things would lead with Duncan, and until I did, I wanted Rosie’s investment in our relationship to be as limited as possible. While my night with Duncan had been amazing, we’d spoken little about the future, and I couldn’t help but feel like that was likely because he wasn’t planning one.
Why would he be? We barely knew one another, and McMillan territory was not his home. He had responsibilities that would be difficult to manage from this distance. His elderly mother needed him. And whether Duncan wished to admit it or not, I was pretty certain he was the owner of a cat that would surely be missing his care.
Not only that, but each day I watched Duncan and Cooper’s progress on the stone work with interest, and I knew they had little left before the job was done. When the work was finished, he would leave, and any interest he believed he had in me would vanish with his desire to return home.
And that, I supposed, was as it should be. Our short time together was something we’d both needed. I needed to be reminded that I could truly feel something other than numbness and anger at my own life, and Duncan needed to learn that those things that had evaded him in life so far—companionship, a wife, and a family—could be his if he ever decided he truly wished it, even if he didn’t find those things with me.
I wasn’t a child. I could understand that some things are only meant to come into our lives for a season. Perhaps, Duncan was only meant to be just that, a brief respite from my daily routine to remind me that some parts of me hadn’t been buried with my husband.
While it wasn’t what I wanted, I could make peace with that.
I would have to if my suspicions about him were right.
I sighed as I made the last turn onto the gravel road leading to Morna’s inn, and Duncan reached over to squeeze my hand that rested on the gear shift in response. The gesture was an acknowledgment of the realization I suspected we both knew.
Last night was amazing, but it was likely all we were ever going to get.
Chapter 21
Cooper
Cooper’s body all but vibrated with excitement as Jerry pulled the car out of park and began to drive away from the inn. With Morna riding in the passenger seat and his mother allowing him to ride with Morna and Jerry back to the castle, all was right in Cooper’s world once again. He loved it when Morna and Jerry traveled into the past—even if they were only doing so to fix his and Rosie’s mistake.
Even Rosie had been allowed to ride with them. All of his favorite people were in one place for the first time in ages.
In all honesty, he couldn’t even bring himself to feel bad for what he and Rosie had done. While he regretted that Osla’s ghost had frightened everyone—himself included—the fact that their actions had forced them to involve Morna meant that the woman’s soul might finally find some rest after the spell was cast.
How could anyone possibly feel bad about that?
“Morna?”
