Chapter 37 Taran
Guilt gnawed at me all day as I busied myself in Pages & Perks.
I’d been treated to a visit from Tierney, then London, then Cammie, and in between all that a visit from Leth Sholas Police.
They informed me Eoghan McCall was out on bail, paid by his elderly father, but had admitted to the dangerous driving and vandalism offenses.
He refused to admit to having anything to do with my attack in Oban.
I hated that even as I snuck out of Quinn’s house that morning, my heart had raced in my chest as I walked back to my place.
I was like a frightened rabbit, glancing over my shoulder at every rustle of wind through the trees.
My hands shook as I let myself into the bungalow, hurrying to slam the door shut behind me.
London was already gone because she had to get an early start on breakfast at Tierney’s inn.
Would this be my life now, always looking over my shoulder?
Then, of course, there was the aforementioned guilt of having crept out of Quinn’s house without waking him after our delicious night together.
The thought of waking up with him, however, starting our day with each other on the island, felt more intimate than Oban. It felt routine-like. Like it was something we’d do together every day going forward, and I just wasn’t ready to contemplate that kind of relationship with him.
Still … if he’d snuck out on me like that, I’d feel like shit.
Quinn hadn’t replied to my text, which made me feel even worse because clearly, I had hurt him.
This was such a clusterfuck between us.
It was a shock, then, just as Ewan, Paisley, and I were closing for the day that the bell rang over the door and Heather McQuarrie strolled in. She wore her long hair up in a ponytail and it bounced as she skip-walked toward the barista counter where I stood.
“Hi, Taran.” She stopped before me with a beaming smile.
“Heather … hi. How are you, sweetheart? What are you doing here?”
“Weekend with Dad.” She shrugged and gave Ewan and Paisley a polite nod of hello before turning back to me. “We just got off the ferry. Dad and Angus are picking up fish and chips for tonight’s dinner.”
“That’s nice.” I wasn’t sure, but I think I might have been staring at her like a deer in the headlights. Did her dad know she’d come to speak to me?
“Anyway, tomorrow we’re taking a wee jaunt around the island. Kind of goodbye for now for me since it’s the last time I’ll be here before heading to Glasgow.”
“Right. Of course.”
“We’re taking another picnic with us. And the fishing rods.”
“Great.”
“So, you’ll be at our place for ten?”
I blinked slowly. “How? What?”
“You’ll spend the day with us, right? I really want you to be there. Dad needs some grown-up company and I need some female company.” She grinned innocently, but I saw the devious wee twinkle in her eyes.
“Did … did you run this by your dad?”
“Of course! Okay, I have to go, but be at the house tomorrow at 10 a.m. See you then!” She waved and hurried out of the shop, her ponytail swinging from side to side with her speedy departure.
Ewan sidled up next to me. “When the kids approve of you, that’s when you’re in trouble.”
“Aye, thanks for stating the obvious.”
“You’re welcome.” He patted me on the shoulder with a chuckle and walked over to the door to lock up.
Heart racing, I strode into the staff room and pulled out my phone. I had a text from Cammie inviting London, Tierney, and me to dinner at hers. I shot a quick “I’ll be there” before finding Quinn in my contacts.
Heather just invited me to spend the day with you tomorrow.
It was only as I approached Cammie’s house twenty minutes later that my phone buzzed. I pulled in behind Tierney’s brightly colored Suzuki SUV and switched off the engine before I yanked my phone out of my purse.
Quinn had replied.
What did you say to her?
My heart sank. Not the reply I was hoping for.
I was so confused.
She didn’t really give me much of a chance to say yes or no.
Three dots bounced on the screen.
Do you want to say no?
Scowling, I replied,
Do you want me to say no?
Don’t put that on me, Taran. You know where I stand.
Shit.
Shit shit shit.
I don’t want to disappoint her.
Then we’ll see you tomorrow.
Cheeks flushed with guilt, I quickly texted back,
See you tomorrow.
Drizzle peppered my windscreen as I parked outside Quinn’s house the next morning. The skies above did not look like they were in the mood to oblige a road trip around the island, never mind a trip to the beach or a fishing expedition.
By the time I even made it to Quinn’s front door, my hair was wet from the density of the drizzle. I glanced over my shoulder as I waited for someone to answer the door and shivered at the sight of the ginormous rain cloud sagging off the coast of Glenvulin.
The door opened as I turned back and stood face-to-face with a grim Quinn.
“Hi,” I offered quietly.
He searched my face with that familiar intensity before he stepped back to let me in.
“The weather isn’t looking great,” I murmured, trying not to stare at the wall we’d had frantic, scrumptious, animal sex up against.
“There’s a storm coming in. We’re not going anywhere today.”
“Oh.” I frowned. Why hadn’t he texted me? “Do you want me to leave?”
“Do you want to leave? Because you know it’s easy to just tell someone that.” He cut me a dark look. “Rather than sneak out like you’re ashamed to be there.”
I kept my voice low, not knowing where the kids were. “You know it wasn’t like that.”
“Do I?” Quinn shook his head. “It certainly felt that way.”
I winced. “Quinn—”
“Taran, you’re here.” Heather appeared in the hallway out of a door on the left.
Forcing a smile, I nodded. “How are you?”
“Annoyed about the storm.” Heather crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes narrowing as if she sensed the tension between me and her father. “But we haven’t done a family game day in ages, so we thought we’d spend the day doing that. We’ll have the picnic inside. Sound good?”
“Sure.” I followed her as she gestured me down the hallway.
A glance into the room she’d come out of revealed a bedroom.
Heather’s bedroom, by the looks of the pink and purple bedding and custom shelves filled with books.
Quinn’s daughter guided me into an open-plan kitchen and living room where Angus was already lying on the couch watching what looked like anime on the TV.
He waved but didn’t get up. “Hiya, Taran!”
I still hadn’t quite gotten over how much Angus looked like Quinn at that age. “Hi, sweetheart. How are you?”
“Weather’s crap.” He pouted. “Wanted to fish today.”
“Aye, but we’re going to play board games.” Heather ruffled his hair as she passed on her way to the dining table. “We’re playing Do You Really Know Your Family? first.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Tough shit, you’re going to.”
“Heather,” Quinn warned as he stalked into the room. He flicked me a look. “Tea? Coffee?”
“Coffee. I brought doughnuts.” I raised the bag in my hands.
“Yes!” Angus bounced off the couch and stumbled at my feet. “Please.” He beamed up at me.
Laughing, I handed him the bag, but Quinn quickly took it. “One,” he warned his son.
I feared I had put Quinn in a foul mood for his last weekend with Heather.
Biting my lip, I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room.
The front window took up almost the entire wall, giving a panoramic view out over the field across the road.
You couldn’t see the sea from here, but you could from Quinn’s bedroom upstairs.
The kitchen was clearly custom, which didn’t surprise me considering Quinn’s profession. It was beautifully made with light oak cabinetry, a massive island, and white quartz countertops. All the appliances were hidden behind matching oak doors, except for the big range cooker along the back wall.
He had a huge U-shaped sofa in dark brown leather.
No cushions, no frills. The dining table was a sturdy oak number that seated eight.
There were photographs on the wall, some of the family, some of local scenery.
Otherwise, it was basic and masculine. Very few touches of feminine softness, which surprised me because this was the house where Kiera had lived for years.
I wondered if she’d taken lots of stuff with her.
What she hadn’t taken was the wall of bookshelves behind the dining table.
I let their family chatter filter into the background as I walked around the table to study the shelves.
They were filled to the brim with tattered, used paperbacks and hardbacks.
As I scanned the titles, I saw the genres ranged from thrillers to autobiographies, to epic historical, even some high fantasy and sci-fi books.
Muddled in the mix were children’s stories, middle grade, and some YA.
I remembered Cammie telling me Quinn had gotten into reading after researching the books I was studying at uni.
Emotion thickened my throat as I stared at a wall of books that represented all the time lost between us. We’d become different people while we were adrift.
“If you’re looking for some romantasy, those are in my room.”
I startled, turning to meet Heather’s curious gaze. She’d snuck up on me while I’d been spiraling.
“No.” I shook my head, heart racing. “I was just … your dad wasn’t a big reader when we were kids.”
“Hard to believe. He practically forced me and Angus to become readers.”
“Aye?”
“Dad said we needed books because we live in such a small place with such a narrow view of the world. Books open the rest of the world to us.”
It was such a wise Quinn thing to say.
“He’s right.”
“We know.” She tapped my arm. “Come get your coffee and doughnut before we start the game.”
Quinn’s gaze was assessing as I followed his daughter over to the island. Angus was up on a stool, almost finished with his doughnut, his lips crusted with sugar.
“Just admiring your books,” I explained as I took the coffee Quinn slid toward me. “Are you reading anything good at the moment?”