Page 34 of Charlie

I pedal back to the house as fast as I can. I shiver through an ice-cold shower and pick out the ugliest clothes I own: a pair of boyfriend jeans and an oversized t-shirt. A swipe of mascara, Chapstick and my trusty combat boots complete the look. I smirk at myself in the mirror. I don't feel sexy at all. Success.

I'm waiting outside, sipping on a mug of coffee, when Jack pulls up.

He laughs when he sees what I'm wearing. "I know what you're trying to do. It won't work, Sassenach. Besides, you look fucking adorable." His grin sucks the oxygen from the air. "Here." He pushes a foil packet into my hands as I get into the truck.

"What's this?"

"Just in case you haven't eaten."

"I haven't. Thank you." I peel it open to find a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich. My mouth immediately starts watering. I take a huge bite, my eyes rolling back. "This is so good."

Jack is frozen with his hand on the back of my headrest. He had started to turn to back up, but he hadn't made it past my face.

"God, Charlotte."

"What?"

"Don't fucking do that."

I want to pretend like I don't know what he was talking about, but I'm in the middle of slowly licking a drop of egg yolk from my finger, my eyes on him. I swallow hard. "Yes, sir."

His eyes darken. "Good girl."

20

Iadmire his effortless driving over hills and hairpin turns, loving the fact that I'm able to enjoy the scenery. And by the scenery, I mean the veins riding over the back of his hands and up his forearms.

"What brings you to Stornoway?" Jack asks, breaking the silence that has settled over us like a warm blanket.

"More research," I say, making a face. If I'm not able to wrap it up today, I'm going to scream. Now that my artistic side has a chance to create again, it's raring to go. As great as it is to feel that part of me come alive after so long, it makes it feel like the research is dragging on forever.

"Not quite the same as the pub, is it?" His lips twist into a tiny smirk, and I know he's thinking about that night. I can still feel his hand spanning my back, his thigh anchored between my legs. I clench my thighs against the visceral response the memory invokes and try to concentrate on the view outside my window.

"Not quite. They could at least serve beer if I have to spend all day in that cramped space."

Jack laughs. "Why don't I help you? We can go there first, get twice the work done, and then we can run my errands."

My heart rate ticks up. "Really? It'll be boring," I warn.

"Being in the same room as you – breathing the same air – will never be boring."

My face heats under his gaze. I know he's right. There's no possible way it'll be boring when we're elbow to elbow in that tiny room.

"Deal," I say just as we pull into the parking lot.

I smile at the woman at the front desk as we pass. Her face is pinched in disapproval; she's probably still hung up on Isla's non-stop chatter the day before.

"Now what?" Jack asks as he shrugs his broad shoulders out of his jacket, draping it over the back of the chair.

"Now I find the microfiche for the dates in question, and we look through it until our eyes bleed."

"Sounds like fun," he deadpans, sitting at one of the machines.

The microfiche is filed by date; each year consists of scanned pages of births, baptisms, marriages, and deaths. It's an enormous amount of information to sift through, but I've narrowed down the dates through online research, so now I just have to confirm everything and go back a couple more generations if I can. I pull out six different years and place them between our machines, setting down my list in front of them.

"These are the names we're looking for and the approximate dates," I explain, pointing to the information I had jotted down in my notebook. "We need to confirm the years and then try to find the full month, day, and year if possible. If you see any records that show the parents let me know; I'd love to add a couple more generations to the tree even though I probably don't need them. I'd love to give Arty the best tree possible."

"He sounds like a great man," Jack says as he loads the first film into the machine.

---