A McMillan Christmas - A Novella: Book 7.5 of Morna’s Legacy Series

by Bethany Claire

  Scampering to my feet, I looked at the bed. Kamden lay sound asleep. My first impulse was to scream at him, to whack him with a pillow and shoo him from my room, but then my brain caught up with my eyes, and I realized that Kamden wasn’t in my room. I was in his.

  Wine was the devil’s poisoned apple. If three glasses of wine got me so wasted that I unconsciously stumbled into Kamden’s room in the middle of the night, I would never touch the stuff again.

  The sunlight continued to ping the back of my head. Twisting on impulse, I turned to look in its direction. When I saw outside the window, I reached out a hand to steady myself against the windowsill.

  As expected, snow covered the ground outside, but rather unexpectedly, the dangerous accumulations of snow, the piles and piles of it, were gone. The sun was out, and any sign of the storm that sent me to the castle for shelter was gone.

  I gripped my head as I fought the overwhelming confusion that gummed up all other thoughts in my mind. How could the snow have melted so quickly? By the time I fell asleep, I was entirely sober. How then had I ended up in Kamden’s bed without memory of it? If I was going to sleep with him again, I sure as hell wanted to be able to remember doing so.

  The sound of footsteps in the hall sent me into a panic. It was only when Sileas barked at the approaching sound that I looked at him for the first time since waking. Just as in my dream the night before, Sileas was young. Remnants of puppy still clung to his little face, and his bark didn’t have the same deep tone that it had now.

  None of it made sense. Perhaps I was still sleeping? Only in this dream I wasn’t frozen in place. On the small chance that it was true, I hurried back to the bed, crawled inside, and pulled the covers all the way over my face and shut my eyes as tightly as I could manage.

  Nothing happened.

  Instead, the footsteps of whomever approached Kamden’s room now stopped right outside the door, and someone was calling for me to answer it.

  “If the two of ye are still abed, I can let Sileas outside. The last day of tours starts in an hour. Ye know how Sileas likes to greet the guests.”

  With Kamden still snoring beside me, I crawled back out of the bed and very hesitantly walked over to the door where I cracked it open. The second I did so, Sileas was off the bed and running down the hall.

  “Whitney? Is that you?”

  I’d not seen the young housekeeper since leaving Kamden, but she didn’t look a day older for it. She looked back at me with an expression of confusion that matched how I felt.

  “Aye, o’course ’tis me. Are ye and Kamden still leading today’s tour together? Alfred said that ye were, and when I told him that the two of ye were still asleep, he almost came up here to wake ye himself. I told him ’twas best if I did so.”

  “Oh. Well, thank you.” Terror dripped down my spine, but I couldn’t see how letting Whitney in on my own insanity would help matters. With as much coolness as my shaky voice could manage, I responded matter-of-factly.

  “Yes, we will lead it.”

  Then, I closed the door in her face and stood there with my hand still gripping the bedroom doorknob until I could no longer hear her footsteps retreating down the hallway. Once she was gone, I locked the door and ran over to Kamden where I gripped onto both of his shoulders and shook him as roughly as I could.

  That’s when I really knew I’d entered the twilight zone. My arms could scarcely lift him even a few inches off the bed. All of my strength was gone. I glanced down at my arms, my legs, and to my horror, my slightly pudgy mid-section.

  “Kamden. Kamden. Wake the hell up. Something…something is going on here and I am freaking out.”

  He stirred, but my nudging did nothing to wake him. I stomped toward the bathroom, reached for the rinsing glass next to the sink, filled it, and then walked back over to the bed. Without hesitation, I threw the water in his face. His eyes flew open as he gasped and sputtered and sat up in the bed.

  “Wha…why do ye keep doing that to me?”

  I’d forgotten all about the wine incident from the night before.

  “Just wake up. Something is happening to me.”

  The panic in my voice must’ve concerned him for he was up and out of the bed in an instant, reaching for my arms as he tried to calm me.

  “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  I pulled away and pointed toward the window.

  “Go and look out the window.”

  I was certain my hands had never shaken so violently in my life. It took me crossing my arms to still them as I watched Kamden move across the room. He looked out the window for a long moment. When he finally turned towards me, unbridled confusion etched his face.

  “How long did we sleep?”

  “I don’t know, but that’s not the only thing, Kamden. I woke up this morning in your bed. I have no recollection of coming in here last night.”

  His brows raised as he sat on the bed.

  “Ye dinna come in here last night. I would remember that.”

  I threw my hands up in exasperation.

  “I would remember it, too, but I’m telling you, when I woke up, I was lying next to you in that bed.”

  Kamden’s fingers moved to his forehead, just as they’d done while reading his letter the night before.

  The letter. Some far off question begged me to acknowledge it, but I was far too shaken up to think about it just now.

  “That’s not even close to being all, Kamden. Look at me.”

  His hand dropped from his face, and he looked up.

  “What about ye?”

  I approached him while motioning to my untoned arms. Then I dramatically pointed toward my gut.

  “I did not go to sleep looking like this.”

  “I like the way ye look. Always have.”

  “That is not the point. You know that I didn’t look like this when I went to bed.”

  For the first time since waking, Kamden smiled. Really smiled. A big, goofy grin that made me want to slap him. I screamed at him in exasperation.

  “What is the matter with you? Do you think this is funny?”

  “Aye.”

  I did hit him then, lunging toward the bed as I whacked his arm in frustration.

  “It’s not funny. Something seriously weird is going on here.”

  “Aye.”

  I felt sick. Dizzy sick. So sick that I feared I would vomit right on top of him if some sort of sanity didn’t find its way into my psyche soon.

  “I swear if you say ‘aye’ one more time, I’m going to throw myself out that window. What is going on?”

  Casually, as if it were the most normal thing in the world, Kamden said, “Morna’s letter was true, lass. Our wishes worked. We went back in time.”

  Chapter 15

  I listened quietly for a long time as Kamden explained to me the contents of the letter he received the night before. I knew that while he’d attempted to explain everything last night, it all derailed after our kiss and my reaction to his confession. Every bit of it was hard to believe, but I couldn’t very well argue with the reality of it as I was living it. By some strange miracle or curse—I guess only time would tell which one it was—Morna’s magical letter sent us back to our last Christmas together.

  “There is only one thing I doona understand. Ye made yer wish whether ye knew it or not. Ye said that ye wished ye could believe me. I made my wish, unknowingly as well, before I went to bed. I wished for my family to help me once again, but we never made a wish together. How then, did we end up here?”

  I replayed the events from the night before over in my mind and I knew right away.

  “We did make a wish together. You just didn’t hear me. I didn’t really want you to. When you told me that you wished we could go back to our last days together, I whispered that I wished so, too.”

  “Ah.”

  That pleased him. I could see it in the way he grinned at me. An unusual feeling of closeness filled the space between us. I expect it was the fact that
whatever this strange turn of events might mean, we were going through it all together.

  “Did your wish come true?”

  He crossed his arms.

  “I’m not sure. In the midst of sleep, I thought aye, but now I see I’m missing one verra special component of the magic.”

  “Meaning?”

  “Much like the dream I had five years ago, I watched events of a past time happen before me. Though, this time, I watched the real time travel ritual take place. We’ve been doing it wrong for a verra long time.”

  “I know.”

  I laughed, panic subsiding with each moment we spent talking through the crazy that was this day. As unbelievable as every bit of it was, I no longer found it worthy of window-jumping panic.

  “How’s it done, then?”

  “First, we must have a magic rock spelled by the same Morna who left us the letter. Then, ’tis really rather simple. There’s no need for climbing up the tower or spinning in circles. Ye simply skip the stone across the water. On the third bounce, ye disappear.”

  Any normal day, it would’ve seemed absurd. Today—not so much.

  “Of course. That’s much more sensible than the way we always did it with the tourists. Problem is, you don’t have a magic rock.”

  He stood and disrobed in front of me without a second thought.

  It should’ve shocked me to see him standing there in his underwear, but knowing the time we were now in somehow made it seem okay. In this time, we were together. In this time, I saw him naked all the time.

  “Precisely. Alas, I doona have a magic rock.” He stepped away and moved into the bathroom where he reached into the shower to turn on the spray. “Would ye like to join me?”

  I swallowed hard as he removed the rest of his clothing and stepped inside. I shouldn’t look, but he just made it too easy.

  “Uh no, better not.” I had to raise my voice so he could hear over the water.

  “Suit yerself. What about ye? Did yer wish come true? Is there any chance that ye believe I looked for ye now?”

  I started to answer him, but he interrupted me as he opened the shower door and leaned outside to speak.

  “I canna hear ye. The glass is all steamed up now anyway. At least come and sit in here and tell me.”

  “Fine.” I walked backwards into the bathroom and stood still just to the right of the shower door. Just thinking about my dream enraged me.

  “Yes, I believe you. I had a similar dream to yours. It was the weirdest experience of my life. You need to fire Margaret.”

  He hesitated and then said rather sadly, “So, ’tis true then? I had hoped there was another explanation.”

  I knew it must pain him to hear of Margaret’s betrayal. He loved her dearly.

  “Yes. I’m sorry, Kamden.”

  “What did ye see?”

  I told him what I could, omitting the parts about Henderson’s transgressions. Margaret had been right about one thing—he would never steal unless something extreme was going on in his life. If Kamden had remained ignorant of it for over five years, I saw no need to deliver one more piece of hurtful news to him now.

  When I finished, Kamden turned off the water. Before I could move away from him, he stepped out of the shower and wrapped his arms around me. I gasped and tried to break free, but he clung too tightly.

  “Kamden!” I shrieked at him. “You’re wet. You’re soaking my clothes right through.”

  He laughed into my ear. My entire body came alive as his warm breath traveled down my spine. His naked body pressed flat against my back, and I had no desire to move away.

  “These are yer night clothes. Ye must shower and change if we are to lead today’s tour. If we are correct and we really are back five years in the past, ’tis the last tour of the year. We gave the group quite a show last time. Let’s not disappoint them this time around, aye? Then once everyone is gone, we will sit down and try to figure all this out.”

  Years of misunderstanding and hurt still lay between us, but two very important things were already healed inside my own heart. First, Kamden loved me and he’d said it. Two, it had never been his choice to stay away from me.

  It certainly wasn’t everything, but it was something. Standing there with him, his arms wrapped around me, my nightgown becoming more see-through by the second, I didn’t have the strength to fight him anymore.

  It was a new day. A new time, even. Perhaps, this was our second chance to get things right.

  Twisting, I faced him and wrapped my arms around his neck.

  “Is it too late to take you up on the shower offer? We have to be downstairs in half an hour. I might be able to get ready more quickly if you help.”

  He groaned as I kissed him. Much to my surprise, he quickly pulled away, though there was a smile in his voice as he left the bathroom.

  “I’m afraid ’tis, lass. Ye know how I hate to leave our guests waiting. Doona worry, I’ll make it up to ye later.”

  I took a deep breath, turned the water to cool, and breathlessly jumped beneath its spray.

  I couldn’t wait to get this tour over with.

  Chapter 16

  Approximately twenty-five minutes later, Kamden and I were both dressed and ready to head downstairs for the tour. I remembered this day well. I could even remember the faces of most of those we would soon see downstairs for the castle tour.

  Most castles in Scotland closed for the winter season. As I knew firsthand, travel wasn’t especially easy in the winter, and it wasn’t the peak of tourist season anyway. McMillan Castle benefited greatly from most other castles being closed. While tourism was definitely down in the winter, there were always some visitors keen to visit the country regardless of the weather or time of year. By decorating McMillan Castle with gorgeous Christmas décor and throwing in some holiday activities with the tour, the castle quickly became a must-see destination if visiting Scotland in the winter.

  “Are ye ready for this? Do ye remember enough to help lead it? If not, I can manage on my own. Ye could experience it as a guest.”

  I knew he meant the offer as a kindness, but I couldn’t help but feel a little insulted. I loved this castle as much as he did. I didn’t imagine that I would ever be able to forget its history.

  “You just wait. You won’t be able to tell that I missed a single tour. I remember everything.”

  I left the bedroom first. I wanted to gather up the guest roster from Henderson before the tour started. It was always nice to have the guests’ names in front of me. More often than not, I could guess the name that belonged to each person just by looking. It was a special talent that annoyed Kamden to no end. It was always my favorite thing about the tour.

  I was keenly aware of how strange it was that all of this felt normal to me. Walking down the castle’s staircases and corridors, gazing up at the Christmas décor as I made my way to the front entrance, it felt as if the last five years never happened at all. For now, I didn’t even really care.

  It was nice to be back in an easier time before everything fell apart. Even if I woke to find all of this was a dream, even if it all went away tomorrow, I could see no harm in enjoying it while it lasted.

  All thoughts of joy went away the moment I stepped into the main entryway. I expected to see Henderson coming through the front door with the list of names. Instead, Margaret stood in his place holding the clipboard and pen.

  “You.” I hurled the word at her like an insult as I stomped over in her direction.

  She couldn’t have looked more confused. Assuming I joked, she mimicked me, pointing a finger in my direction and with a shocked tone she said, “You.”

  I didn’t smile or laugh. Instead, I ripped the clipboard from her grip and stood there angrily.

  I wanted to scream at her, to tell her she was fired and toss her stuff right out the front door, but I knew it wasn’t my place to do so. Margaret was not my employee.

  Kamden was only a few steps behind me. While I expected him to—at th
e very least—treat Margaret with the same icy coolness I had, he instead gathered her up in a big hug and kissed her cheek before pulling away.

  “Good morning, Margaret. Is it not a fine day? What are ye doing in here? I expected ye to be in the kitchen.”

  She smiled at him, and my blood boiled. I knew what traitorous thoughts lay beneath that smug smile of hers.

  “Aye, ’tis lovely. Though it seems the world has gone topsy turvy today.”

  She had no idea.

  Kamden looked around as if looking for something amiss.

  “What do ye mean?”

  “Alfred is in the kitchen watching the scones for me, and I’ve taken over Henderson’s position.”

  “Where is Henderson?”

  “He is helping one of the guests change a flat tire.”

  “Ah. Do ye think he can manage it on his own?”

  Margaret nodded and nudged her head toward the door.

  “O’course he can. The two of ye have a tour to lead. The group is waiting just outside.”

  I couldn’t believe how polite Kamden was being to her. It should’ve upset him even more than me.

  “Margaret, would ye mind welcoming everyone inside while I speak to Harper a moment? We just want to practice our entrance.”

  Margaret agreed, and before I could say a word, Kamden dragged me into a dark hallway on the other side of the entrance hall.

  “What were ye about to do to Margaret before I came in here?”

  I crossed my arms and didn’t blink as I answered him.

  “Fire her sorry ass.”

  He laughed but quickly gained his composure as he lowered his voice to plead with me.

  “Harper, doona ye remember where we are? As of now, Margaret has done nothing to deserve yer hatred of her. We canna verra well punish her for something she hasn’t done.”