Chapter 2 #2
So that’s fun. The Scot thinks I’m easy. Loose. Handing out affection like candy on Halloween.
You get a Snickers, and you get a Snickers, and you get a handful of Snickers!
It was all for a bucket list, okay? But telling him that now wouldn’t make me feel any better. It’s not the defense I want.
“Shall we discuss something else?” he asks.
“Or nothing is fine, too.”
“You’re cross.”
Am I being childish? The man rejects me, tells me it’s because he’s selective, then has the audacity to tell me I kiss too freely. Stick me in a green suit, because I’m probably Grinching up a storm.
“You are,” he states, almost to himself. “I didn’t mean to be rude.”
“How about we look through the windows for the rest of the drive? You can have the big one with the road, and I’ll take this one on the side here.”
Gavin snaps his mouth closed. He dislikes my idea on numerous levels, I can feel it. I shift away, focusing outside at the scenery as we pass tree after tree.
I rest my forehead against the window as he hits a pothole and my head smacks against the glass. Ouch.
“You alright?” he asks.
“Just dandy.”
Silence stretches in the car for another forty-five seconds, give or take, before Gavin speaks again. “I want to be on friendly terms. Shall we try again?”
“I told you things, Gavin. Things I never would have admitted if I knew you were about to spend the next few weeks with my family. How can I trust you won’t repeat any of it?
” I groan, dropping my face in my hands.
“My parents can’t learn how much I hate school.
You can’t tell any of them about the teacher who doesn’t like me, or the guy who made me hate that Wham! song.”
His eyes widen, his knuckles growing white on the wheel. “I don’t want that pressure.”
“Then you shouldn’t have lured me into thinking you were a safe stranger.”
“I thought you knew who I was!” he says.
“And now you have to keep my secrets.” Karma.
He grumbles, giving me the first real frown of the day. “Fine. I’ll do my best.”
Gavin turns on the radio, and we listen to Christmas music for the rest of the drive.
When we pull off the road onto a bumpy gravel driveway, I struggle to formulate a thought.
The house we’re heading toward is a two-story stone cottage with a slate roof and a deep navy door.
The gabled windows are framed in dark wood, and the entire thing is set against a backdrop of majestic mountains and layers of various pine trees.
Okay, we get it, Scotland. You’re stunning.
The whole, wide open view is incredible. I’m glad Gavin’s car is so clean, because I need to pick my jaw up off the floor mat.
When I glance at him, his smile is wide. “Gorgeous, isn’t it?”
“I guess so.”
Gavin rolls his eyes as he puts the car in park and opens the door. He pulls my suitcase from the trunk and carries it effortlessly to the house.
“I’ll meet you inside,” I say, pulling out my phone and finding Luna’s number. “Just going to check in with my sister.”
Gavin’s blue eyes rake over my face. He gives a soft nod and closes the door with a click.
My exhale is loud enough to shake the earth. This man tests my patience. Or my pride? Probably both.
I watch the blue sky while I circle the house, waiting for Luna to answer the phone.
“Hey,” she finally says. I only had to call three times.
“How far away are you?”
“Callie...”
“In hours,” I say, circling a tree and pacing back to the front drive. “Preferably like one or none.”
“About that…”
A sick, swirly feeling starts in my stomach and stalls my feet. I look down at the loamy dirt between my shoes. “Don’t say it.”
“We haven’t left yet.” Her voice is apologetic, but I barely register it over the panic bubbling in my chest.
“Why would you do this to me?” My voice comes out as a whisper.
“Oliver was difficult this morning. By the time I got everything packed in the car and ready to go, he fell asleep, and I didn’t want to wake the beast.”
She has a nine-hour drive ahead of her…and that’s not counting the extra stops her two-year-old will require. But Luna isn’t the only person driving up today. My brother-in-law’s best friend is the reason we’re at this cottage. “What about Ruby and Hamish and their kids?”
Her pause doesn’t bode well. “They waited. We’re driving up there together. Hamish borrowed a van.”
“Luna.”
“I know you’re mad. We’ll leave soon and get there late tonight. If we can’t make it all the way, we’ll get there early tomorrow. It’s only one day without me. How bad can one day be? Gavin is so ni—”
“Don’t say nice. He’s not nice.” There’s more vitriol in the words than I mean to give them. It’s a little dramatic for the situation, but my pride still smarts with embarrassment every time I picture his face.
Luna can tell. She’s wary when she speaks. “What happened?” She rakes in a sudden gasp. “You kissed him already, didn’t you?”
“No, actually. I didn’t, and I won’t. I’m not interested.” Okay…so that last part might be a tiny fib. But there’s no way she’s buying it.
Luna scoffs. “Yeah, right. I’ve met him, remember? He’s your type.”
“Toxic and self-absorbed?”
“I don’t think we’ve met the same Gavin,” she says.
“Evidently not.”
Rhys speaks in the background, and I can tell I’m about to lose her. Luna says something to him before returning her attention to me. “Well, he’s your host for the day, so make the most of it.”
“I’m taking back your Christmas gift,” I shout into the phone, my last-ditch effort to control the situation.
“No, you aren’t.”
She knows me too well. “Drive safely,” I grumble before hanging up. I drop my head back, close my eyes against the blue sky and moan. Could today get any worse?
It’s official: Scotland double sucks.