Someone else? Mia couldn’t bring herself to ask. She had enough weirdness of her own without delving into other people’s.
Conall looked longingly at Mia, making her heart skip a beat. “That’s a kind offer, but I fear I willna be here much longer.” He scowled toward the front of the house. “Indeed, I thought ye might be the scoundrel himself allowing me to complete my quest. I only hope I’ll have enough time.”
Mia was torn between never wanting her ex to show up and wanting to keep Conall around as long as possible. But what was that about enough time? She looked at him and tilted her head to the side. She really didn’t want him to go, quest or no quest.
She’d thought her good night’s sleep despite passing out on the lumpy couch was because she felt safe. Now she knew it was because she also enjoyed his company. They’d had fun the night before, watching whatever film she clicked on.
She didn’t care what they were watching as long as she could enjoy it with him, explain little things he didn’t understand, see old things through fresh eyes. She wanted that to keep going. And fine. She wanted to kiss him more, too. She blushed, remembering those lips against hers.
Her phone buzzed, snapping her back to her kissless state. “Sorry, I really have to get this. It’s Padma at the museum.”
She jumped up and ran to the hall for privacy. Her current situation was enough for Piper to know about. She didn’t want an audience while her jobs were officially revoked.
“Mia? Is this a good time? I wanted to go over your hours with you and send you all the links to the website and such.”
It took Mia a moment to realize she wasn’t hearing a stiffly apologetic dismissal. “Hours?” she asked stupidly. “You didn’t fire me?” Even more stupid.
“Do you mean because of the firearm incident?” Padma asked.
“That’s one way to put it,” Mia said.
“Well, no harm was done. You didn’t shoot anyone and Archie said the gun was fine. I suppose I might have done the same as you if I had a child I thought was in danger.”
The fact that Archie hadn’t ratted her out about shooting the thing made her smile. It made her smile harder that Padma understood, forgave, and she still had her jobs. They hashed out working hours for the website work and what days she would go in to work the till at the gift shop. When she ended the call she couldn’t stop smiling.
Returning to the kitchen she found Kevin was finally awake. She didn’t know what she would do when school started. The kid slept like a log. He sat at the table in his airplane robe, pirate hat firmly planted, cheeks full of toast. As he merrily chatted away with Piper, Conall stood at the counter, cracking eggs into a bowl.
Mia had to pause, her smile fading a little. It was much too cozy of a scene. It was something she’d always dreamed about. Casual conversation with a friend, a kind, loving man making breakfast.
She had never been able to have anyone over to her luxurious house in case her foul ex was in a bad mood. The cook made breakfast and delivered it to their dining room where they all ate in silence.
“Morning, Mum,” Kevin said. “Piper here says I can ride a horse at the castle if I want and she’ll even take me out on the parapets. Nobody else gets to do that.” He took off his pirate hat. “I think I’m going to be a Highlander today. What do ye think o’ that, Conall?”
Conall looked delighted. “I think it’s a fine decision, lad. Have ye a broadsword? An axe? What of your claymore?”
“My husband has all of those things in any size you could ever need,” Piper said.
“Mum, can we go to the castle today?”
“Not today and you don’t need any of those weapons.”
She shook her head at Piper, who looked abashed and then at Conall, who put his head down in mock shame. She knew it was mock because he very clearly winked at Kevin. Kevin laboriously winked back.
Piper rose from the table. “Thank you for the tea and toast, but I better be on my way. The invitation to the castle is always open.”
Mia called out her thanks for the ham as Piper got in her car and drove off. She liked the small, friendly woman but was overwhelmed. It was going to take a while to get used to so much magnanimity.
Back in the kitchen, Conall was frying up the eggs and she pushed him out of the way.
“You’ve done too much already. Let me finish up here.”
“Verra weel, but I dinna mind.”
Kevin begged for French toast and since he’d soon be in school and with her working, there might not be time for leisurely breakfasts in the near future. When Conall expressed interest as well, she knew she had to make it.
As he sank his teeth into the fluffy, eggy bread, liberally dusted with powdered sugar, his eyes rolled back into his head and he moaned long and loud.
“That’s brilliant,” he said. “I could eat that every day.”
She blushed, feeling like she’d won a prize. “It’s Mum’s specialty,” Kevin said.
She plopped a few more slices onto his plate, trying to soak in the warm family atmosphere. She knew it wasn’t real and it couldn’t last, but she wanted to enjoy it while it did.
“Maybe we should go visit the castle today,” she suggested impetuously.
If she was having fantasies about a happy family, might as well include a fun outing. More things she could file away for when he was gone. She sat down and slipped her hand under the table to brush against his. He started but then wrapped his fingers around hers and smiled.
“I’d like that verra much,” he said. “How about ye, laddie?”
Kevin jumped from his chair and whirled like a dervish. “Aye! I’d like it verra much indeed.”
Conall looked at her and they shared a laugh. How could she feel so happy and yet so sad at the same time?
***
The ride in the automobile to get to the castle took much too long.
“Ye drive like a maniac,” he said as he gripped the wee strap that was supposed to keep him in the car should it go flying into the ditch.
She laughed as she zoomed around another of the hilly turns in the road. “How do you know if I drive like a maniac or not?” she asked. “How many people have driven you somewhere?”
She had him there. “It seems as if we’re about to leave the road ye’re going so fast.”
Glancing down at the array of dials and gauges in front of her, she snickered. “A few miles over the limit, nothing out of the ordinary. Why are you scared if you can’t be killed?”
“I’m scared for ye and the lad,” he said. Kevin was in the back with his nose in a book, oblivious that he might be about to soar to his death. “How is no one ever killed in one of these contraptions?”
She sobered and slowed a bit. “A lot of people actually do get killed in them,” she said. She quickly turned to look at him with widened eyes, just as quickly getting those eyes back on the road, to his relief. “That’s kind of you to be worried about us.”
He managed to loosen his grip on the seatbelt now that she was going slower and looked her over.
“Ye’re not so used to people being kind to ye, are ye?” he asked.
With a quick glance to the back seat to make sure Kevin wasn’t listening in, she shrugged.
“My mother was stern and old-fashioned. After I confessed that my marriage was bad, she told me I’d made my bed so I had to lie in it. Her own marriage wasn’t the greatest, though my father was never cruel. I just don’t think it was a lasting love. He passed away when I was ten and he worked so much when he was alive I felt like I barely knew him.”
“My da was much the same. He was alive when I left to join the cavalry. I suppose he’s long since gone now. I hope he had a good, long life.”
She nodded vigorously. “Me, too. Your mum?”
“My ma was a hard worker, same as my da. She passed on when I was seventeen and I never cried so hard in all my days.”
“No brothers or sisters?”
“Nay, my parents were onl
y blessed with me. Or cursed, perhaps.” He grinned at her. “I never had a fair lassie in my life, either, if ye were meaning to ask that next.”
“Never?” she asked incredulously.
He felt his cheeks heat up. “Nothing serious,” he said. “A passing fancy before I left for war, but I think she knew I wasna a good prospect and surely didna wait for me nor mourn me.”
“If it weren’t for Kevin I’d wish I only ever had a passing fancy. What kind of idiot gets married at seventeen?” She made a rounded move with her hand in front of her belly. “Out to here pregnant and so in love. Pfft.”
“So in love, were ye?”
She nodded. “He was good to me until Kevin was born. I think he was barely containing himself all that time, because did he ever let loose after that.” She glanced to the backseat again and continued in a lowered voice. “I started socking away money in a separate bank account and took online classes. I had this big master plan to get away, but only when I knew I could make a good, comfortable life for Kevin. I figured I could put up with it, just hold on a little longer.”
She swiped a hand under her eyes, seeming to be in a trance as she spilled out her heartbreaking story. “But then he dislocated Kevin’s shoulder. He never so much as spanked him before, but it’s like when a wild animal tastes human blood? They have to put it down or it’ll never stop hunting people. I saw it in his eyes, how much he liked hearing that little bone pop. I filed for divorce that afternoon, right after the trip to hospital. But I wasn’t quick enough getting my money out. He drained my not-so-secret bank account.”
He reached over and placed his hand over hers on the steering wheel. She gave him a teary smile. He hoped when he spoke the rage that seethed within him didn’t show.
“It’s all over now, Mia. Ye got your child to safety.”
“I hope so,” she said. “I hope you get to complete your quest.” She chuckled then. “Who should I thank for sending you to me?"
He cringed. “Ah, I dinna want to speak of her, for fear of bringing her early. As it is I think she must be coming for me by end of day. I wish it wasna so, though.”
“I wish it too,” she said fervently, then blushed. “I mean— what will happen if you don’t complete your quest? An extension? Would you get to stay?”
He shook his head, filled with sorrow. But why was that? Shouldn’t he be filled with vengeance? He imagined the prince’s face only seconds before his fist slammed into it. Hadn’t he wanted to hear the man howl in pain as he had done when all that shot from the cannon tore away half his side? The same howls he heard as the men around him dropped one after the other, some of the screams of terror and pain going on for what seemed like hours.
And yet, with Mia clearly needing a bit of a helping hand and the wee lad being so enchanting, he couldn’t muster up the jubilation he felt when he first heard he might have a chance to show the prince what he’d missed out on, failing to lead his men as he did.
As he looked at Mia, her pretty profile to him as she concentrated on the road— or concentrated on not looking at him— he knew it was her who had enchanted him. Of course he wanted to help and protect her, but what he really wanted was to spend more time with her. Watch more daft films, cook more meals, laugh and play with the lad. And he wanted more kisses, more … just more. He wanted it all.
He laughed ruefully. “I suppose I’ll get nothing if I dinna complete my quest. As no one’s returned to the moor yet after they left, I have to assume they either got their moment with Charlie or just plain moved on.”
“Moved on? What does that mean?” she asked, loud enough to make Kevin’s head pop up from his book.
He leaned forward as much as his seatbelt would allow. “It means the afterworld, Mum. You know, go into the light and all that?”
“How do you know about going into the light?” She scowled at him in the rearview mirror.
“Auntie Bismuth. She said she wasn’t going to go into it when her turn came and Grandma scolded her. Then she took a swat at me for listening in, but I was too quick.”
“Sit back and read your book,” she said. “You needn’t worry about such things.”
“I’m not worried,” he said. “Doesn’t a light mean someplace else? I mean, someone had to turn it on.”
“The lad has the right of it,” Connor said, not feeling the least bit comforted.
He determined to be like Auntie Bismuth and kick and scream if Soni pointed him toward any sort of light. He’d go back to haunting the moor until the world ended. Then perhaps Mia and Kevin could visit. If they didn’t know he was there, he’d at least get a glimpse of them once a year or so.
It seemed a very sad existence all of a sudden, although he’d never given it much thought over the last centuries. Now all he could do was think about it. Damn Soni and her curses wrapped as gifts. What did he care about the Bonnie Prince’s treachery now that he’d tasted such happiness? Tasted Mia’s sweet, soft lips.
“If you do see a light, be sure to tell us and we’ll rush in with you,” Kevin said.
Mia gasped and swiveled her head to look at him, making the car swerve slightly. He put his hand over hers again.
“Dinna say such a thing. Ye’ve a long life ahead of ye, same as your ma.”
“But it’s bollocks,” he insisted.
“Young man!” Mia chided.
“Mind your tongue lad, or ye’ll never be given an opportunity to go into the light. It’ll be fiery flames all the way for ye when your time comes.”
The lad’s eyes rounded into saucers and he pressed his lips together in a tight line as he went back to his book. Mia smothered a giggle and furrowed her brow at him.
“That was a bit much, don’t you think?” she asked.
“He might think twice before saying such words again,” he said with a shrug.
“When he has a nightmare tonight, it’s on you to calm him down, then.”
He slumped against the seat, gazing out at the hills and forest. Even the Scottish Highlands in summer couldn’t ease the pain that tugged at his heart.
“Ah, I wish,” he said slowly, unable to look at her for fear of the pain growing unbearable. “Not that the lad has nightmares, mind, but…”
She sighed. “I know what you meant.” There was a long pause and he forced himself to turn to her. She gave him a quick sidelong look, blushing again. “I wish it, too.”
***
The somber mood dissipated the moment she pulled into the winding driveway of the castle. As soon as the castle itself came into view, Kevin could barely be contained.
“It’s bigger than Buckingham Palace!” he shouted.
“Not quite,” Mia told him, his excitement infectious. “It’s huge though, that’s for sure.”
“Conall, there’s sure to be more ghosts in that place, don’t you think?”
“I daresay ye’re right, lad,” Conall said. “Perhaps I’ll be able to see them.”
“I don’t think we should engage with any strange ghosts while we’re here,” she interjected before her two boys got overly worked up.
There she went again, thinking of Conall as hers. Would she ever meet anyone she liked so much as him? Anyone who hadn’t been dead for over two centuries?
She went through the front to sign up for the tour while they rushed around back to see the horses. The young man who was originally supposed to be her babysitter caught up with her and told her she didn’t need to sign up. Piper had called ahead and told him to keep an eye out for them.
“She seemed certain your lad would convince ye to come today,” he said. “I can get Meerkat saddled up for him. Dinna worry, she’s our sweetest horse.”
“Shane, right?” she asked, continuing at his nod. “You don’t have to go to all this trouble. The regular tour is fine with us.”
“It’s no trouble,” he assured her. “I’m glad for a change. Also, the folks on the regular tour have to pay extra to ride,” he said. “And they dinna get to go in the
golf cart to see the goats.”
She really ought to save the money. “If it’s no trouble. Kevin would probably love to see goats. And ride in a golf cart.”
Shane directed her toward the barn, saying he’d meet them with the cart and that a stable hand would help Kevin mount the horse. The place only had a few other tourists milling around, taking pictures and gasping in awe at the place.
Kevin ran back and forth between a pig pen and the stable, his face a study in sheer joy. She caught Conall’s eye and waved at him, surprised at how effortlessly he took her hand when she reached his side.
“Stay off the fence, lad,” he called as Kevin put a tentative foot in the bottom slat of the pig pen fence. “That pig looks plenty mean.”
Shane rolled up in a bright blue golf cart, an intricate crest painted on the back. “Aye, that pig’s got the devil in her. She about knocked me senseless once and bit my brother so hard he nearly lost his thumb. Piper and Lachlan keep threatening to eat her but Piper’s soft-hearted toward it and didna grow up on a farm.”
“Doesna want to know where her breakfast bacon comes from,” Conall said sagely.
“Aye,” Shane agreed. “But the lad really ought to steer clear of the beast.”
“Kevin, get off the fence at once if you want to ride a horse,” she called.
It was difficult to sound menacing when the sky was so clear and the weather as warm as it could get up in Scotland.
They went into the barn, which looked old and rustic on the outside. Once they were inside it was as if they had entered a combination spa and science lab. The stalls had hydraulically controlled doors and individual heating and cooling systems. There was a grooming station with hoses and brushes. Saddles and other tack hung on one wall as neatly as if they were being displayed in a high end shop. She was drawn to some especially fine leather goods that were stored under locked glass. Some of them actually appeared to be studded with jewels.
Alexander: A Highlander Romance (The Ghosts of Culloden Moor Book 36) Page 6
