Page 4 of Heirs and Graces at Highland Hall
She shook her head. ‘Sorry. Ignore me. I’m talking nonsense.’ Her cheeks flushed red. She was talking absolute nonsense, and she had no idea why. She had spoken to plenty of attractive men in her life and quite often they had been the ones who ended up babbling in front of her. But there was something about this man’s sparkling eyes that was utterly mesmerising. And it didn’t help that an aroma of expensive citrus-based aftershave eddied from his body. She could breathe in that scent forever. What the heck was wrong with her? she chastised herself. Was she really that desperate for a man’s attention? Then again, before Duncan, she had gone from one guy to another, always searching for Mr Right, and each time they’d broken up, she’d bounced right back, ready to continue the search. But this was different. This was the first time she’d even found a man attractive after breaking up with Duncan. And from the way he was continuing to keep the conversation going, he thought the same about her.
‘Well, I’m not sure if I’ll ever need a money launderer, to be honest,’ he said. ‘But then again, you never know. Those offshore accounts sound good.’
‘Until you get found out and slammed with an even heftier bill,’ she countered.
‘Maybe you’re right.’ He grinned again. Yup, he was definitely flirting with her. And what the hell? It was time she got back in the game, anyway. A little flirting practice would probably help her. ‘So, are you travelling up to Scotland for something special? To see a boyfriend, maybe?’
Any thought she had of flirting evaporated as her stomach sank. ‘No, actually, a friend has passed away. I’m going up there for him.’
‘Oh God. I’m so sorry.’ It was his turn to look embarrassed. ‘I-I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.’
‘Don’t be silly. Why would you have known that? It’s fine, honestly. And I might actually bump into my ex-boyfriend while I’m there, too.’
‘Ex?’ His voice lingered on the word as he tilted his head to the side, that twinkle returning to his eyes ever so slightly. ‘Well, if he’s the one who ended it, he’s a fool.’
He wasn’t, Bex wanted to say. Duncan would have probably carried on as they were forever, not caring how resentful they’d grow of each other. Not seeing that it didn’t matter how much they loved one another, it wasn’t going to be enough to make it work. And God, she really did love him, more than she’d have ever thought it was possible to love someone.
As she looked back at the man, whose eyes were still looking straight at her, something heavy pressed down on her shoulders. Sure, it was nice that he was interested. Probably interested enough to give her his number if she wanted, but this wasn’t the right time for that. Her heart was nowhere near ready for anything else. Even anything casual. In fact, casual had kind of lost its appeal now she’d had the real thing. And she may not have known exactly why Fergus had requested she went up there, but it was going to be work related. Something told her that dealing with the accounts of an estate the size of Highland Hall after a death wasn’t going to be free of drama, and that was before she added Duncan into the mix. She couldn’t deal with another complication right now.
‘Well, I should leave you to board,’ she said, flashing him a smile. ‘It’s a little while before they let the rest of us on at the back of the plane. Enjoy your flight.’
4
The flight was cramped, and Bex’s mood wasn’t helped when a man with a chronic cough took the seat behind her. As the crew were getting ready to take off, said man alternated between kneeing her in the back and coughing loudly as he lent forward so that his mouth was practically by her ear. In an attempt to block it out, she slipped in her AirPods and put on her eye mask and, as such, was surprised when what felt like only minutes after she’d closed her eyes, her body jerked upwards as the wheels hit the tarmac.
Not wanting to keep Lorna waiting, she was on her feet and pulling her suitcase down, ready to leave as quickly as possible.
As much as Bex knew that even taking a man’s number would complicate her life more than she could deal with at the moment, she couldn’t help but keep an eye out for the handsome stranger. But, as always, first class was long gone by the time she stepped outside. Part of her wondered if he’d linger a little, waiting for her to catch up. But then why would he when she’d made it very clear that she wasn’t interested? This was better. Flirting could wait till she was back in London and her wounded heart had finally healed.
As the automatic doors opened and she stepped into Inverness Airport, a familiar face with piercing green eyes framed by long red hair waved at her.
‘Oh my God, I missed you,’ Lorna said, wrapping her arms around Bex and squeezing tightly. And for a moment, Bex let herself breathe in her friend. Lorna gave really good hugs. Not that her other friends didn’t, but there was something about Lorna’s that completely engulfed you, which was even more incredible when you considered how petite she was. Bex always thought it had something to do with her half-American side, though she’d never said as much.
‘How are you doing?’ Lorna asked when she finally let Bex go.
‘Shocked. Definitely shocked. And you?’
‘Same.’ Lorna nodded. ‘The village is in mourning, as you can imagine. I mean, it wasn’t a surprise, but I think so many of us just thought he’d go on forever. You know what I mean?’
‘I do,’ Bex agreed.
She couldn’t possibly have imagined that the last time she hugged Fergus goodbye, while he’d sat in his chair by the fireplace, would be the last time she’d ever see him. If she had known, she was sure there were things she would have said to him. Even if it was just thanking him for accepting her into his home.
‘Where are you staying tonight?’ Lorna asked as she made a motion towards the exit, with Bex stepping in line with her.
That was a good question. It seemed silly that she hadn’t even thought about it until now.
‘Well, my plan was just the castle. My old room, I guess.’
The way Lorna’s eyebrow rose implied this probably wasn’t as straightforward as she’d thought.
‘I don’t know if you’ll be able to,’ she said, an apology in her voice and expression, not that it had anything to do with her.‘The castle’s locked up. They’ve been waiting for Kieron to arrive. I’m not sure when he’s getting here.’
‘Of course, I didn’t think about that.’
Kieron was Fergus’s nephew, and heir to the estate, but despite all the time Bex had spent at Highland Hall, she’d never met the man. It was safe to say that Duncan hadn’t been his biggest fan, and from what he’d said, the feeling was mutual, and so any of his visits had conveniently coincided with Duncan coming down to London to visit her, rather than her heading up and meeting the source of his dislike.
‘And to be honest, I’m not sure you’d want to stay in your room,’ Lorna continued. ‘The fires won’t have been lit, and the weather’s really turned these last couple of weeks. It’s biting at the castle.’
