Page 5 of Be With Me (Adair Family 4)

Arran did not fail to make fun of my car at every opportunity.

I mock glared at his fancy Range Rover. All the Adairs drove Range Rovers because of the deal Lachlan got for using the cars as the estate’s official fleet. Lachlan had offered to provide one for me, but he’d done enough as it was.

“How do you even fit? Your gorgeous legs are longer than the entire car.”

Not true. But okay, it wasn’t the best car for a tall person. And Arran was even more flirtatious this morning than usual—it was discombobulating.

“I’m hanging up now.” I reached for the End Call button on my steering wheel.

“No, I’ll stop, I’ll stop.”

“Arran, I’ll see you in ten minutes.”

“But I like your voice.”

He said it with such seriousness that for a second, I wondered if he was being genuine or if it was just his usual flirting.

Nah.

Arran couldn’t help himself.

“See you soon.” I hung up, my music filling the car once more.

I didn’t know how I allowed this friendship to develop into something I’d come to rely on, but I did know that believing Arran’s flirtations to be real was a surefire way to hurt us both.

2

ARRAN

Months of waiting and waiting for planning permission to come through, and finally, we had holes in walls and an addition going up in the back of the Gloaming.

I strode through the construction site that was the old restaurant, bar, and hotel, my hard hat in place, my hands itching to do some demo. However, I’d promised Lachlan I’d leave it to the professionals. As such, I served as the project manager to liaise with our contractor instead.

My phone rang, and speak of the devil. I grinned as I answered. “Checking up on me?”

Lachlan chuckled. “Just wanted to see how things are going.”

“So, checking up on me. It’s looking good. I’m sure we’ll run into a problem at some point today, but we’re making nice progress.”

“And the windows?”

We had to special order windows to replace the old ones. In Scotland, you could only replace sash-and-case windows in historical buildings like the Gloaming if they were beyond repair. Unfortunately, all of them were, which meant replacing every single window with as close a match to the originals as possible. That was expensive business. We also had to match the new windows in the rear addition. I wanted to make sure we found the right people to do it. “I’ve narrowed it down to two companies.”

“We need to order them pronto, so try not to take too long deciding.”

“You said you trusted me to do this,” I reminded him, my tone teasing, but truthfully, I needed to know my big brother had faith I could manage this renovation.

It had shocked me when Lachlan proposed buying the Gloaming together. Gordon Wallace owned it for years, his father before that, so it had become a staple of Ardnoch, a much beloved local haunt. I knew a few people in the village were uncertain about my family taking it over and renovating, but I was determined to prove we were honoring the old girl. That Lachlan even considered me for a joint business venture, too, was humbling.

He was finally treating me as the man I’d become versus the reckless wee shit I’d once been.

I wanted to prove that his faith in me was not misplaced.

But I also needed him to prove he trusted me.

“I do, I do.” He sighed. “I just know what renovations are like after doing it with the castle. Time pulls away from you. Coordinating a renovation on a historical building is a juggling act.”

“I know. But I’ve got this.”

“Good. Well, call me if you need anything. You coming to dinner Sunday?”

Lachlan and Thane took turns hosting weekend dinners every other week. “I wouldn’t miss it.”

It was true.

I couldn’t believe it was true, but coming home had turned out to be exactly what I’d needed all along.

We hung up and I pulled out my tablet to mull over the window companies before my contractor, Bill, found me to ask about the plumbing in the addition.

* * *

Eredine leaned against the side of that ridiculous car, staring up at the Gloaming as if lost in thought. I hadn’t been joking this morning when I told her that sometimes the very sight of her dazzled me. She was the most stunning person I’d ever met, inside and out. There were many things I didn’t know about Eredine, things my curiosity itched to discover. She discomfited me a wee bit.

Yet, having met so many people on my travels, I could say with certainty that despite her many secrets and mysteries, Eredine Willows oozed a goodness, a kindness, a gentleness that renewed my faith in humanity. She reminded me of the softness and light in this world. Even if she hadn’t been stunning to look at (which she was), Ery would still be the most beautiful woman I’d ever met because of that light inside her, a glow never diminished by the haunted look in her eyes.

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