Chapter 27
The next morning, Lorna was in no fit state to drive Bex to the castle.
Unsurprisingly, one drink had meant starting with one bottle of wine between the pair of them, then one shot, then one of whatever they fancied or someone gave them.
Lorna had come in at two singing and wanting to teach Bex highland dancing.
Insistent was a nice way of putting it, and it had taken a fair amount of persuasion for Bex to convince Lorna that while she would like to learn at some point, it wasn’t the right time.
Finally Lorna had relented and headed to her bedroom where, within a matter of seconds, she was snoring and was still doing so when Bex got up and dressed several hours later.
Lorna had said on countless occasions that Bex could borrow her car, but it didn’t feel right. Not when she was passed out and unable to tell Bex if she needed it or not. As such, she was walking to the castle again.
The temperature had definitely dropped, and swirls of snow were drifting down from dense grey clouds that entirely obscured the sun. Still, it was a light enough flurry that barely settled on her coat as she made her way down the path towards the castle.
Her first instinct was to make a coffee and warm up her hands, but given how Gordon’s car was already parked outside, she headed past the study first to see if he wanted one, too.
Inside, Gordon was already seated in an armchair, not a scrap of paper in his hands.
And considering it was only just gone nine, he appeared absolutely defeated.
His skin was grey, and he looked like he hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in days.
Given how this task of theirs could well go on for months, Bex couldn’t help but think that perhaps Kieron had been right in suggesting that Gordon wasn’t up to the task.
Or at least that he needed to bring someone else in to help.
She would do what she could, of course, but she wasn’t a lawyer.
It was still a mystery to her why Fergus had even wanted her here.
‘I’m grand,’ he said, noting the way Bex was looking at him. ‘Honestly, just been dealing with a lot of questions, you know.’
‘From Kieron?’ Bex guessed.
‘Aye. Wants to know exactly what the hold-up is and why he hasn’t been able to see the will yet. Threatened to get his own lawyers up here, like I don’t know what I’m doing.’
Bex bit down on her lip. Perhaps suggesting he needed to get extra help wasn’t a good idea after all.
‘Well, I spoke to Moira last night,’ Bex said, wishing she could give him a little more positive news.
‘I didn’t take the photos, but she knows who the other woman Fergus was in a relationship with was.
’ Gordon’s eyes widened. ‘She didn’t give me a name, but she knows it.
I’m sure. I think we need to tell her about the will. ’
His lips pursed. ‘I’ll have to draw something up for her to sign. You know, so that she can’t mention it to anyone.’
‘Right,’ Bex said. Legal implications like that hadn’t even crossed her mind.
‘Come on,’ Gordon said, adjusting his glasses as he stood up. ‘I’ve had my wallow. We should get on. The last thing I need is the so-called laird poking his head around the door and thinking I’m not working.’
‘Would you mind if I leave you to it for a minute?’ she asked, still standing in the doorway. ‘I was going to make a coffee. And I need to go talk to Kieron about something.’
Gordon’s eyes flicked up to meet hers.
‘Should I be worried?’
‘Not at all. It’s about London. I’ll be back in a minute,’ she added quickly placing her bag down on the floor. ‘I just need to thank him for something.’
‘Okay,’ Gordon said, returning to his work. ‘Oh, and we’re out of coffee pods. Sorry. I used the last one before I realised.’
‘No worries,’ Bex said, trying to look like she meant it. Any workday without coffee was tough, but one where Lorna had had her up at 2 a.m. was a different matter entirely. She’d have to work something out if she was going to make it until the afternoon.
Like Fergus, Kieron had taken to spending his days in the drawing room.
He had even moved a small desk in there to work at, and she couldn’t help but wonder if it had been a less than subtle hint that he wanted her and Gordon out of the study, or ideally, the castle, as soon as possible.
Though, however brusque he’d been with Gordon, he’d been nothing but polite to her.
And now, with this new promotion, she really did owe him.
She had just reached the grandfather clock in the hallway when the front door of the castle opened. A gust of cold air blew inwards and before she realised what was happening, a red blur came bounding towards her and leapt up at her legs.
‘Oh my goodness, look at you!’ Bex said as she crouched down. ‘You look like a different dog!’
She ruffled the dog’s belly as it rolled onto its back, her tail thumping on the floor as her tongue flopped out of her mouth.
Bex’s cheeks ached as a wide grin and with a slight move of her hand up towards Ruby’s neck, she located the dog’s favourite place for a scratch.
The tail wagging reached a whole new level.
As did Bex’s grin. She knew she’d missed Ruby, of course.
She’d often thought of the dog when she woke up at night, her room notably empty, and not just because of Duncan.
But she hadn’t realised she’d missed her this much.
Happy tears pricked her eyes as she prepared to bury her face in the dog fur when a throat cleared above her.
‘She just wanted to come and tell you she’s feeling better,’ he said.
With one more rub of her fur, Bex rose to her feet and found herself face to face with Duncan.
‘Is that right?’ she asked, still unable to stop her smiling.
‘It really is,’ he replied. ‘We started walking past the castle, and she began barking. So I had a suspicion you were here. You were right. The eggs worked wonders. I mean, I guess it’s not too much effort, just cooking extra for her in the morning.’
‘Look at you,’ Bex said, beaming at the dog. ‘I’m so glad you’re feeling better. I was worried about you.’
She was about to crouch back down when Duncan spoke again.
‘So you’re working here again today?’ he said.
‘You must have a lot to do. I hope it’s going all right.
And staying with Lorna is okay, I hope? I hear she had a bit of a late one last night?
Hope she didn’t disturb you too much?’ There was something about his tone.
The multiple questions. As though he were searching for something to say. A reason to stay there talking to her.
She shrugged. ‘It’s all good, thank you. Busy.’
‘Right. Okay. Well, if you’ve got a lot to do, I should probably leave you to it.’
‘I do have a lot to do,’ she admitted, wishing her responses hadn’t been so blunt. She wanted to talk to him. Though what they had to say, she wasn’t sure. She wasn’t sure if she even needed to talk to him, or just being like this, near him, was enough.
‘What is that animal doing inside?’
Bex snatched her gaze away from Duncan to find Kieron standing there, looking at Ruby with a mixture of disbelief and disgust on his face, though even when his eyes moved to Duncan, his expression remained the same.
‘Sorry, this is my fault. Not Duncan’s,’ Bex said.
‘Really, I find that hard to believe,’ Kieron muttered. ‘She’s not your dog, is she?’
‘No,’ Bex admitted. ‘But we have a special bond, from when I was here before. And she wasn’t feeling very well when I saw her the other day, and I was worried about her. She just wanted to say hello. Show me that she was better.’
‘She started barking when we passed the house,’ Duncan added. ‘An inseparable pair. That’s what they were.’
There was something about the way Duncan’s eyes shifted to Bex that told her he was no longer talking about her and Ruby, and it caused her stomach to tighten.
‘Is that right?’ Kieron asked, raising an eyebrow.
‘Yes, yes. Inseparable,’ Bex replied, not sure if she was talking about Duncan or Ruby, either.
Silence swirled around the three of them, awkward and almost incomprehensible. Bex knew she had to break it, but she wasn’t quite sure what to say. Somehow, though, after clearing her throat and forcing a smile to her lips, she managed to find the words.
‘Well, thank you for bringing her to see me. I really appreciate it,’ she said, looking at Duncan, before twisting around to speak to Kieron. ‘Do you have five minutes? I was hoping I could talk to you about something.’
A slight smile lifted Kieron’s mouth. ‘You should know, I always have time for you, Rebecca,’ he said, gesturing towards the drawing room. ‘Come on in. I’ve just put some logs on the fire.’
Kieron turned and walked a few steps, but hesitated at the doorway and turned back.
‘Unless you need something else, Duncan?’ he asked. ‘I assume the animals can be removed from my home now?’
It was only when Duncan flashed Bex a final smile, then turned and left the castle, that Bex realised Kieron had said animals, not animal. Did he think Duncan had brought another dog into the house? No, she realised with a pang of guilt. That probably hadn’t been it at all.