In Due Time

by Bethany Claire

  Jane groaned and reached a hand up to shield her eyes. “No, Jeffrey, I can’t do it. My head hurts so much I think I’m going to throw up any minute. You have to go with her. You just have to. She’s already waiting in the car and probably has been for some time. She won’t mind you taking her, she’ll appreciate having the help.”

  It wasn’t that I didn’t want to be around Kathleen, exactly the opposite, and that was the problem. I didn’t need to be around Kathleen. Not when I knew I’d only like her more after spending time with her; it would only leave me more disappointed when we returned home. Still, I couldn’t very well leave her sitting out in the car waiting for Jane when she clearly wasn’t going.

  “You,” I threw an angry finger at Jane and then turned it on my son, “and you, are in very big trouble. You both need to learn to stay out of other people’s business.”

  I turned, leaving them. No doubt Jane would bounce out of bed minutes after I pulled out of the driveway.

  I couldn’t let anything happen between the two of us, not even a friendship. I only had one choice, and I hated it. I would have to be an ass.

  CHAPTER 8

  It was only nine in the morning but the warmth of the sun against Kathleen’s eyelids as she leaned back in Jane’s convertible, waiting for her friend to say her goodbyes, left her feeling quite sleepy. Not only that, but she had been waiting out in the car for close to an hour now. What on earth was she doing? Jane knew how much they still had to get done before they left for Scotland.

  Sleep continued to tug at her. Just as Kathleen finally allowed her eyelids to close, the driver’s side door opened and slammed shut before the engine roared to life. Kathleen’s eyes flew open but Jane was nowhere to be found. Instead, she found herself riding away from the Mitchell estate with Mr. Messy-eater himself…Jeffrey.

  Kathleen raised her seatback, turning to look at Jeffrey as he sped away from the house. “Umm…can I ask you what you’re doing?”

  He didn’t bother to look at her while he answered, instead keeping his eyes on the driveway in front of them. “I’m taking you to Jane’s. That’s where all of your stuff is, right?”

  Kathleen nodded, her confusion only growing. Had she fallen asleep and just didn’t realize it. “Yes, that’s where all of my stuff is, but where’s Jane?”

  He didn’t answer, only pointed back toward the house. Kathleen had to squeeze her hands together to keep from smacking him on the head. What was it with men and their inability to have a conversation? She didn’t understand it—how he could possibly get in the car, start it, and take off with her inside, all the while acting as if there was no need whatsoever for him to give her any sort of explanation? She barely knew him after all.

  Kathleen reached out and slammed her hand on the dash to get his attention. “Hey buddy, stop the car right this instant or I swear I’m going to unbuckle my seatbelt and throw myself out into the road.”

  He turned his head and laughed as he spoke, the tight line that had been his mouth cracking into a large, handsome smile. “You’ll do no such thing. You’re a smart girl, and I don’t think you’d risk breaking a leg—not so close to your big Scottish adventure.”

  “Fine, you’re right. Of course I’m not going to throw myself out. Still…stop the car.” She said it with as much authority as she could muster and, much to her delight, the car did slow. Once he placed it in park, she unbuckled to face him. “What’s the matter with you? Are you always such a pain in the ass? I don’t know you. You can’t just crawl in the car and take off with me and expect not to at least have to explain what you’re doing. Why are you taking me instead of Jane?”

  Kathleen watched as his shoulders relaxed from their stiffened posture. He exhaled as he faced her. His eyes were apologetic, but he gave no verbal apology. “Jane’s incapable of driving right now, so I was instructed to take you and help you start boxing things up. I’ll help you through the day and then head back here tonight so that she has her car this evening.”

  “Incapable of driving? What exactly does that mean?” He made it sound like Jane was intoxicated, which clearly wasn’t the case. She couldn’t have even been awake for more than a few hours.

  Jeffrey turned from her and placed the car back in drive. “She has a migraine.”

  Kathleen rolled her eyes and buckled as she faced the front, crossing her arms as she did so. Jane was scheming and, by golly, if this day was any more awkward than the laundry room had been the night before, Kathleen would make sure that Jane paid for it dearly the next time she saw her. “Jane doesn’t get headaches.”

  A long span of silence ensued between them as the Mitchell estate disappeared from sight. Finally, Jeffrey spoke so quietly she barely heard him.

  “I know.”

  * * *

  Unfortunately, my biggest concern had been entirely accurate and as the day went on, I only found Kathleen more attractive. For most of the morning, we worked side-by-side in silence. She placed items in boxes and I taped, labeled, and stacked them as she instructed.

  The silence made things tolerable. It was after lunch that things took a turn, and I knew I was in real trouble.

  It must have been out of boredom, for I could see no other reason for her to begin talking as she did when I’d given no indication that I was interested in conversation, but talk she did. And talk. And talk. For hours on end. It should have been annoying. It wasn’t.

  Every tale she told was infectious. She should have been a performer; her ability to deliver a story astonished me. The excitement she showed when talking about her childhood or stories of the trouble she and Jane got in during college was enthralling. Her smile made her skin glow with a warmth that seemed to swim over me, lodging somewhere deep in my gut, making me aware of her every movement, every sway of her hips as she walked.

  It wasn’t only what she said, or how she said it, but the way her voice sounded as she spoke. Her voice was rare for a woman—deep, a bit raspy, almost masculine. It sounded like an old Hollywood vixen in a black and white film. It was incredibly sexy. If I had to wager, I’d side with Cooper—I bet her singing voice was amazing.

  It was stupid and dangerous for me to be here with her. The more she talked, the more I found myself wanting her. I couldn’t have her. Even if she’d take me, all that would ever come of it was a one-night fling and, no matter how in need I was of some female companionship, I liked Kathleen too much already to treat her in such a way. She deserved better. Frankly, so did I.

  Still, if the evening continued as it was, with each new story, each tiny grin or little bit of laughter becoming more intoxicating than the last, I wouldn’t be able to make it through the night without touching her.

  I needed to leave here—to bid her goodnight and be on my way back to the Mitchells’.

  I tried to find the perfect time to interrupt her so I could take my leave. There was no perfect time.

  “Do you usually talk this much?”

  For the first time in hours, the room fell silent as she set down the pile of books she’d been about to box and moved to lean against the built-in bookshelf along the back wall.

  “No, actually, I don’t. Never really.”

  “Then why are you doing it now?” It came out sounding much more harsh than I meant it, and I wanted to punch myself for being such a jerk.

  For a brief second she looked wounded; then, as if realizing she owed me no explanation, I watched as her face grew angry.

  “Are you kidding me? You’re going to give me a hard time for talking? For trying to be friendly when you’ve looked nothing more than silently miserable for pretty much every second since I’ve met you? I was talking because you make me nervous!”

  “Nervous? Why?” I couldn’t understand it. No one ever found me intimidating.

  “Because I don’t understand you. For years, I’ve heard such wonderful things about the man who stepped up to become Cooper’s dad—the man who has been a better friend to Grace than most people ever get
in their whole life. I’ve heard nothing but wonderful things about you, always. Then I meet you, and you are nothing but weird and short with me and frankly, right now, you look angry. You do not know me well enough to be angry at me.” She paused and threw her hands up in exasperation, her pale cheeks flushed in her agitation. “So yes, I’ve been speaking up a storm, distracting myself from the miserable weirdness radiating off of you!”

  I wouldn’t have thought it possible, but I thought her even prettier when angry, making me unable to take a single step toward the door. Instead, I took a step toward her.

  “I’m sorry.” My chest grew tight as my breathing came quicker, my body betraying what my mind knew I needed to do, which was leave. “I shouldn’t have been so unfriendly toward you. It’s only that I didn’t want to be here with you. I didn’t want to bring you here today and help with all of this.”

  She took a step toward me. For a moment I thought she would slap me. I almost hoped that she would. Instead, her lower lip trembled causing my lower belly to tighten instantly as lust surged through me. When she spoke again, her voice cracked.

  “You call that an apology?”

  “No.” I moved two paces closer, until only inches lay between us. “To hell with it,” I could scarcely breathe. My hands shook with how badly I wanted to touch her. I’d reached my limit—I couldn’t always be the good guy everyone expected me to be. “No, that wasn’t an apology,” I gripped both her arms, pulling her against me, “but this is.”

  I bent to touch my lips to hers.

  CHAPTER 9

  One Week Later

  “Bye, Coop! Bye, Jeffrey! We’ll see you two in Scotland. Have a safe trip!”

  As the door to Jane’s apartment closed behind Jeffrey and Cooper, Kathleen allowed herself to exhale as she slumped against the bathroom door. Finally, she could get on with enjoying her last evening in the States.

  She took a moment to look herself over in the mirror, her eyes lingering on her lips as the memory of Jeffrey’s kiss flooded her. It had been so unexpected, such a shock to her senses, that she still didn’t know what to make of it, but she’d dreamt of his touch every night since.

  The sound of the blender stirred Kathleen from her thoughts, and she shook her head to clear it. She couldn’t allow herself to think on the kiss—not tonight. Tonight, all that mattered was a celebratory evening with Jane—a way to mark the end of one chapter and the start of a new one in both of their lives.

  Kathleen made her way to the kitchen slowly, stopping in the living room to rummage pointlessly through her suitcase, hoping the gesture would make her sudden absence as soon as the doorbell had rung less noticeable. Jane still knew nothing about what had happened with Jeffrey.

  Although Jane had thoroughly interrogated her, Kathleen had relentlessly insisted that her and Jeffrey’s day together had been one filled entirely with packing. With mounds of boxes left as evidence of all the work they had done, Jane had been forced to begrudgingly believe her.

  Kathleen entered the kitchen to find Jane manning the blender as she extended a drink in Kathleen’s direction.

  “You drink every drop of that up, because after the second one, I expect you to tell me just exactly what the hell that was.” Jane pointed to the hallway bathroom. “Why did you avoid Jeffrey?”

  “What?” Kathleen nearly choked on her first gulp, trying to feign ignorance at Jane’s question. “I wasn’t avoiding anyone. My stomach just seems to be bothering me a bit.”

  Before Kathleen could protest, Jane snatched Kathleen’s margarita from her grasp. “You didn’t tell me you were sick. If your stomach’s hurting, you probably shouldn’t drink this.”

  Jane knew exactly what she was doing, of that Kathleen was certain. She glared at her friend, knowing everything was about to be out in the open whether Kathleen wished it or not. If Jane was suspicious, she wasn’t apt to drop it until she’d received an explanation that satisfied her.

  “I feel much better, Jane. Give me the damn margarita.” Kathleen reached for the drink, but Jane stood removing it from her reach.

  “You’re being very defensive, Kathleen.”

  Kathleen wanted to slap the smirk off Jane’s face. “I’m not being defensive. I just don’t want to talk about it. Give me the drink, Jane.”

  Jane raised her eyebrows but moved to give Kathleen her drink. “Do you really think I’m going to let this go just because you don’t want to talk about it? You tried to make me think that nothing happened between the two of you, but something did, didn’t it? You don’t even like tequila and you just jumped up after that margarita like a parched man in the desert. Something is seriously bothering you. Fess up.”

  She should have just stayed in the living room and plastered on a smile while attempting to act as non-awkward as possible while Jeffrey was here. Then, Jane would have had no reason to be suspicious. Deep down Kathleen had known locking herself in the bathroom would make Jane suspicious. Perhaps, subconsciously she was ready to talk about it with someone. She still struggled to make sense of it on her own.

  How could he have kissed her so thoroughly, only to jump away a moment later as if she’d slapped him away? If anything, she’d tried to pull him closer and been rejected almost instantly. The contradiction in his behaviors gave her whiplash, and she remained too embarrassed and rejected to face him as if nothing had happened.

  “Fine.” Kathleen slumped in her seat at the table, waiting until Jane re-seated herself. “I don’t even know how to explain what happened.”

  Jane leaned forward against the table, resting her head in her palms as she spoke. “Why don’t you just start at the beginning?”

  “Well, he was weird and rude from the moment he got in the car. And although he did help me all day—moving and labeling packed boxes—he hardly said a word, which made me nervous. And he had the most awful look on his face, like he couldn’t have been any more annoyed with everything I said which, of course, only made me talk more.”

  Jane smiled sympathetically. “You always do that when you’re stressed.”

  Kathleen nodded as she continued. “Anyway, eventually he just came out and asked me if I usually talked so much. There was so much venom in his voice, I nearly cried. Instead, I sort of lost it on him.”

  “Is that why you avoided him? He hurt your feelings and you were embarrassed you yelled at him?”

  Kathleen wished that it was all. If it had only been an argument, she wouldn’t be so confused.

  “No, that’s not why I avoided him. He kissed me. And then he left.”

  “What?” Jane’s bottom flew out of her seat as she danced around the room, triumphantly. “I knew it. I knew he would like you. Why are you avoiding him if he kissed you? That’s a good thing.”

  “No.” Kathleen stood, tired and ready for their conversation to reach a end. Jane wasn’t helping at all. “It was not a good thing.”

  Kathleen turned to leave as Jane stopped moving long enough to ask one last question. “Was the kiss not good?”

  It had to be impossible for a better kiss to exist, but Kathleen couldn’t tell Jane that, not when she knew Jeffrey didn’t feel that way.

  “It doesn’t matter. He had no right to kiss me, not if he was just going to leave without another word or explanation. I hope I’m never in the same room with that man again.”

  Kathleen stepped from the kitchen, effectively ending their conversation, but she knew Jane didn’t believe her lie.

  She didn’t even believe it herself.

  CHAPTER 10

  Morna & Jerry’s Roadside Inn—Scotland

  “Are you really not going to tell me what happened, Dad?” Cooper pulled on his dad’s hand as they waited outside Morna and Jerry’s door. For the last week his dad had been out of it; he acted like he didn’t hear him at all. “Dad…hello?”

  “What? Son, I already told you, nothing happened.”

  Cooper sighed, sad and frustrated. He wasn’t used to his father lying to him. “
I know that’s not true, Dad. You’ve been upset all week.”

  “Coop…” Dad leaned over to kiss him on the top of the head. “I appreciate your concern but really, there’s nothing for me to tell you. None of it matters.”

  How could his dad not see that it was all that mattered? Cooper didn’t understand it. Why did he not see how much he needed someone to share his life with? Cooper didn’t know just exactly what had happened on the day Dad had taken Kathleen into the city, but he could tell that his dad had done something to mess it up. Typical. He would just have to talk to Morna about it, alone.

  The sound of footsteps approached and Cooper smiled. He’d missed his old friends and couldn’t wait to throw his arms around her and Jerry both.

  “Hey Dad, do you think we should have brought Jerry flowers or something?”

  “Why would we bring him flowers?”

  Cooper shrugged. “I don’t know. He just had surgery, right? Aren’t you supposed to bring people flowers after they have surgery?”

  “It’s a nice gesture, but I don’t think Jerry would appreciate flowers. Some whiskey perhaps, but probably not flowers.”

  Cooper grimaced thinking back on the time he’d been sneaking through the great hall after dinner and been daring enough to steal a sip of the ale that E-o and his brother were always drinking. He’d almost thrown up it was so disgusting. Grown-ups had the strangest tastes.

  The door handle rattled and Cooper pulled away from his dad, rushing toward the opening door with his excitement, throwing his arms around Morna’s legs as soon as she appeared in the doorway.

  “Gosh, I’ve missed you, Morna.”

  Morna pulled him in close before taking his hand and leading him and his dad inside. “I’ve missed ye too, lad. I swear ye’ve grown at least an inch since I saw ye last.”