Page 125 of Some Like It Scot
So I sighed out the dream and willed, unsuccessfully, my heart to stay in one piece.
“Okay,” I whispered. “We can see how it will work out.”
***
Graeme
“You said what?” Mum’s voice took on the sort of edge that usually sent me running to my room as a lad.
Calum buried his face in his hands.
Dad grimaced and looked away.
I’d fallen into trouble and I didn’t even know how or why. “What pushed Allison away two years ago was me holding on too tight. Not giving the freedom to grow and not supporting her dreams, so I told Katie those things. The things she needed to hear. Nothing serious. Free to pursue her dreams. No strings.”
“You have a good heart, lad.” This from Dad, who recovered the fastest. “But you’re fair dafty sometimes when it comes to women.”
“You’re not alone, brother.” Calum sighed as if he understood from experience. “All men are when it comes to women, especially the right one.”
I raised my arms in defeat and slid down in the nearest kitchen table chair. “What else was I supposed to say? I didnae want to suffocate her or scare her away. And I didnae want her to think she had to change everything for me to care about her.”
Mum stared at me as she poured a cup of tea, her expression doubting any intelligence behind my eyes.
“What do you want, lad?” This from Dad, who relaxed back in the chair and crossed his arms. “Do you want a serious relationship with Katie or no?”
I scanned the faces at the table in front of me as if they were the ones who’d lost their minds. “Of course I do. If I had my way, I’d have asked her to stay forever. I dinnae love by halves, ye ken. It’s all or nothing. I nearly choked on the words as I said them to her anyway.”
“Och, Graeme.” Mum took a large drink of her tea.
“She’s not Allison.” Calum leaned forward, hands folded on the table, his attention intent on me. “Not even close.”
“I know that.” I wasn’t that much of a numpty. “She’s better. Worlds better.” Why did romance have to be so tricky? “For me anyway. For Lachlan too.”
“Exactly.” Mum placed her cup on the table with a clink. “But think about her past, Graeme. It’s been filled with people who treated her as if love wasn’t serious. The strings she needed to tie her to a place were cut. She’s spent years looking for somewhere or someone to keep her. A place to belong. And I believe she saw that in you.”
Mum’s words barbed through my chest.
“Strings dinnae have to mean tangles or knots.” She shook her head. “They can be the threads to help her find her way home.”
The implication, the realization, knocked the air from me. In my attempt to make things right, I’d gotten it all wrong. Blundered like the clumsiest man on the face of the earth.
I groaned and planted my face in my hands. How did I not see it clearly? What had happened to my head? Katie may stumble on her feet, but I’d caused her heart to stumble. And that was a thousand times worse.
“Does being in love make every man an eejit?” I mumbled, looking back at my family.
“Aye,” Dad answered, putting his hand on my shoulder in solidarity. “But we improve with age.” He shrugged. “Most of the time.”
“In love, is it?” Mum’s grin lit her eyes as she raised her tea in salute. “Now I see your brains starting to move in the right direction. What do you plan to do with all the sudden brilliance?” Mum folded her arms, a challenging tilt to her chin. “Because I know you’re smarter than what I’ve seen today.”
“I think I need you to keep an eye on Lachlan for a few days.” I stood from the table.
“Is that so?” Her grin grew. “And why is that?”
I met her stare for stare and raised my chin. “Because I need to go catch me a very particular lass.”
***
Katie
