Chapter 19
MAIRI
Mairi wearily made her way down the hallway that led to her bedroom after dinner.
She hadn’t seen Jed for the rest of the afternoon.
She’d tracked down Scott after he’d finished hoovering and encouraged him to help her with the decorations.
The dining room had been filled with sparkles and glitter by the time she, Scott and Douglas had served the evening meal. Even Greer had mustered a half smile.
Mairi had hung mistletoe over all the doors, hoping to capture Jed when he came downstairs, but he hadn’t appeared. Even the promise of shepherd’s pie hadn’t drawn him out and she wondered if he’d ever stop avoiding her.
Perhaps he really didn’t care? Was she kidding herself that they had a future together? He’d talked about having to wait – but was that really just another excuse?
She let out a sigh as she passed his bedroom, wondering whether she should knock and shook her head. She’d run after Jed too many times – now she had to wait for him to come to her. If he wanted her, he would eventually. If he did blame her for the accident, she’d know soon enough.
As she drew closer to her room, she heard the thunder of feet and the sound of yipping from Jed’s bedroom and heard him shout. ‘Midnight, you eejit, give it back. You’re going to ruin it!’
There was a scuffling sound and a loud crash and Mairi quickly retraced her steps before hammering on Jed’s door. ‘Are you okay?’ she yelled, as something fell onto the floor with a loud whump.
Her heart pounded. She knew she was overreacting, but the thought of Jed being hurt again had every cell of her body shrieking with fear. She pressed her ear to the door and heard another clatter.
‘Jed!’ Mairi tried the handle. She wasn’t expecting the door to open, and let out gasp when Midnight came flying through the small crack, before hurtling down the corridor clutching something in his mouth.
‘Come back!’ Jed yelled from inside the room. ‘Why did you open the door?’
‘What’s he got?’ Mairi shouted, watching the dog sprint away. She turned and squinted into the dimly lit room, widening her eyes when she realised Jed was standing next to the bed. He was half naked and clutching a tiny white towel around his hips.
There was a lamp on the ground along with a pile of golden ski trophies and clothes which were strewn across the floor. It was mayhem. ‘You need to catch him,’ he said urgently sprinting to the doorway and glancing into the hall, wincing and tugging the towel as it began to drop.
Mairi tried not to look at him, but she could feel the low hum of awareness making itself known.
After what they’d started in the dining room earlier, it was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
‘I’ll get him,’ she promised, her voice rough, just as she heard the cheeky puppy thunder down the stairs that led to the reception area.
She’d started to follow when she heard the crash of paws on the stairs again.
Then Midnight appeared at the top clutching his prize.
He stopped when he saw her and crouched, his blue eyes alight with mischief.
Then he wriggled his bottom and started to sprint towards her, ducking from side to side as if expecting her to tackle him.
‘Just drop it!’ Jed ordered. ‘You’re going to damage it.’ He sounded upset.
‘I’ll get it, don’t worry,’ Mairi said softly and when she turned, she saw the towel had slipped down Jed’s hips, exposing the dark dusting of hair that arrowed downwards. She moistened her lips.
‘Stay there,’ she rasped, fighting the desire to reach out and whip the towel all the way off. ‘We can’t risk Greer seeing you.’
The woman had practically filled her notebook with complaints – if she saw Jed naked, there was no telling what she’d write.
‘I need to put some clothes on,’ he muttered and when she glanced over her shoulder, she saw he’d grabbed a pair of jeans.
‘Stay back,’ she told Jed as he tugged them on, followed by a T-shirt, before heading towards the hall. Then she got onto her knees and waggled her fingertips at the puppy, encouraging him to come closer. ‘I’ve got treats,’ she sang, hoping Jed would have some in his room.
The puppy crept closer, swaying this way and that. Now he was nearer, she could see his prize was sparkly – and looked a lot like…
Her insides jerked, and her blood went hot. Was that her missing wedding shoe?
She wanted to ask, but was worried about distracting Midnight, so she gradually crawled backwards, encouraging the puppy to follow.
‘Hide behind the door,’ she instructed, keeping her voice low.
‘Once I get him inside, shut it and we’ll catch him together.
’ She paused and heard the soft sound of footsteps.
‘Midnight,’ she cooed, crawling backwards on her hands and knees.
‘Come here, baby,’ she sang, inching further into Jed’s room.
The puppy cocked its head and gave her a long look, before he sniffed and trotted inside.
As soon as they were both fully in the bedroom, Jed slammed the door. ‘You dafty, wee numpty,’ he grumbled, dropping to his knees beside the dog and shaking his head. Then Jed offered him a bone that he must have found while Mairi was coaxing him inside.
Midnight immediately dropped the shoe and grabbed the new prize. Mairi stared before looking up and meeting Jed’s eyes. He blushed, then bent and scooped up the shoe, clutching it in his hands, glancing around as if he were considering hiding it.
‘I know what it is…’ she murmured.
The flush on Jed’s cheeks travelled south and she swallowed, taking in the damp T-shirt and half undone jeans that he’d scrambled to pull on. A powerful surge of lust washed through her.
‘Mairi,’ Jed said as her gaze dropped to the hard curves of his thighs, tracing the familiar bulge in his trousers.
Her breath hitched. ‘It’s my wedding shoe.’ She rose to her feet and stared at him.
‘Aye, well…’
‘I thought I’d lost it.’ She could feel the warm burn of tears but didn’t know if she was happy or sad. Why had Jed hidden the shoe from her? What did it mean?
He shook his head. ‘You need to go. Now.’ He sounded desperate.
‘Why have you got my shoe?’
She watched as he squeezed it in his hands. The glitter caught the light, throwing sparkles on the walls and she felt a sharp spark of hope slice through her.
‘It’s nothing.’ Jed shook his head. ‘My coach packed my stuff when I was in hospital. They shipped it to the lodge, and when I opened the bag a few months later, I found it…’
‘And you kept it?’ Delight, confusion and hope coloured her voice.
His shoulders slumped.
‘The kiss wasn’t a mistake. What happened earlier in the dining room wasn’t either.
’ She paused as joy flooded through her.
There were so many signs that he cared – she should have seen them before.
But she’d been so worried about being hurt or left again that she hadn’t wanted to fully believe or trust the trail of clues.
‘You want this to happen as much as I do.’ She wagged a finger between them, then held out her palm. Jed stared at it for a beat before handing her the shoe. It was a little beat up but otherwise perfectly intact. A lot like her heart.
‘I’m still trying to do the right thing—’ Jed didn’t move, but he didn’t tell her they were making a mistake either. Maybe he couldn’t? Besides, they both knew it would be a lie.
‘What if I don’t want you to do the right thing?’ She stepped closer. ‘What if I said I want more than a kiss?’
His chest deflated. ‘I told you downstairs. It’s not a good idea. At least, not yet.’
She held up the shoe. ‘This proves you’ve been thinking about me.
All this time…’ All those nights when she’d lain in bed, wondering if he blamed her, and if he did, whether he’d ever felt the same way.
If their whole marriage had been a fantasy, a way for her to feel wanted, her own Cinderella fairy tale.
He shut his eyes. ‘I need to win the ski championships first.’
‘I don’t care about that.’
She saw the words hit. Watched him lick his lips as his muscles tightened. ‘I’m not asking you to wait forever.’ His voice was rough.
‘Are you worried I’m going to distract you?’ she asked, holding her breath because if he said he was, that was the one thing that would make her leave.
‘No,’ he said simply. ‘I just…’
Mairi pressed a finger to his lips and rose onto her tiptoes so she could stare into his eyes. This was her moment, the one she’d been waiting for and she wasn’t going to let him back out again.