Chapter 26
Bex wasn’t sure if she had hung up the phone or if Gordon had.
She wasn’t even sure whether she had said goodbye to him.
All she knew was that the line was now dead, meaning that at some point, someone had ended the call.
Not only that, but Ruby had crawled onto the end of the bed and was now lying with her head on Duncan’s lap, though there was no way Bex was going to move her.
She couldn’t. She didn’t even have it in her to speak.
And, by the silent shock that shrouded Duncan, neither did he.
Their hands were still clasped together, but he was staring down at Ruby.
Bex needed to say something. Needed to ask how he was feeling, but what kind of answer did she expect him to give?
She hardly expected him to be happy, finding out that two of the people he respected most in the world had lied to him his entire life, but what about being laird?
Highland Hall? His home was safe. That had to be a good thing, didn’t it?
Finally, she bit the bullet.
‘How do you feel?’ she asked, hating the sound of the question on her lips.
Rather than responding immediately, Duncan rubbed behind Ruby’s ears.
‘Honestly?’ He shook his head, still not looking at her. ‘I don’t know. It doesn’t feel real.’
‘I can’t imagine.’
His gaze finally met hers, and the sheen that had glazed his eyes before had transformed into two single tears that trickled down his cheeks.
‘Do you think she ever knew? My ma. Do you think she ever had any idea?’
‘I don’t know,’ she answered truthfully.
‘How could he not have told her? He was her pa. She had a right to know.’
Bex tried to swallow down the tears that were filling her throat.
‘She knew she was loved,’ she said. ‘She may not have known Fergus was her dad. But your grandfather— I mean, your great-uncle, the man that raised her,’ she corrected herself. ‘She knew he loved her. She probably knew Fergus loved her too. Just like you did.’
Duncan nodded, and Bex couldn’t hold it back any more.
She dropped his hands and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him as close to her as possible, squeezing him as if she could squeeze all the hurt away and replace it with love.
If only that were possible. Duncan’s chest shuddered as he released a breath, but it was only when he inhaled again that Bex noticed how much he was trembling.
‘It’s going to be okay. I promise you.’
When they finally broke apart, a faint smile graced Duncan’s lips. ‘Thank you. Thanks for being here.’
‘Don’t be silly,’ she said. ‘I guess this might have been part of why Fergus wanted me up here too.’
‘Aye, I think you might be right.’
As silence settled around them, one of the other things Gordon had said flickered into her mind.
‘You and Kieron are cousins,’ she said. ‘Oh my God, you and Kieron are cousins!’
‘First cousins once removed is the technical term, I think.’
‘Like that makes a difference.’
Duncan let out a hollow laugh, but it faded almost as quickly as it started. ‘He’s gonna be furious. Not that I’m thrilled an’ all.’
The conversation reminded Bex of when they had finally decided to break up.
Not just because of the tears they were both trying to stop from falling, but because of the constant silences perforating their words.
Silence, during which you could almost hear the cogs of the other person’s mind whirring away, with things they weren’t sure whether they should say.
‘So… what does this mean now?’ Bex asked. ‘Can you just move into the hall? Do you think Gordon’s spoken to Kieron already?’
‘I dunno.’ He rubbed the back of his neck.
‘I should have asked. I should’ve asked Gordon.
There are prob’ly things I need to do. Things to sign.
I should’ve asked all that. I should have thought.
I need to get things sorted. Folk need to know things.
Need to know about their jobs ’round the estate.
There’s stuff to do.’ He dropped his head into his hands in clear exasperation. Bex placed her hand on his shoulder.
‘I don’t think anyone expects you to start working immediately.
And Gordon will let you know what you need to do on the legal side of things.
Right now, what matters is you getting your head around this.
What do you need? Tell me. Do you want to call your family?
Do you want me to call them? Or do you just want some space? ’
‘Honestly? I don’t know.’ He turned his head and gazed out of the window. ‘Some air, maybe. Aye, some air would be good.’
‘Okay. Why don’t you go outside for a bit? Take a breather,’ she suggested. ‘Go down to the loch? Take the dogs for a walk.’
He nodded, as if he were only half listening. ‘Right. Yes. That’s what I should do. The dogs need letting out. They’ve been in the lodge all night. Kenna’ll need feedin’ too. I should go, do that.’
A spark of relief flickered in Bex; the dogs needed letting out. Duncan wasn’t going to let a small thing like inheriting millions of pounds distract him from something like that.
He got up and pulled on the clothes from the night before, moving over to the door. When Bex followed to see him out, he swept his arm around her waist, pulled her into him and planted a kiss gently on the top of her head.
‘Just so you know,’ he said as he stepped back. ‘I ain’t forgotten where we were before Gordon rang. We’re going to have that conversation again. You understand?’
Bex nodded, her heart skipping a beat as she pushed up onto her tiptoes and kissed him lightly on the lips.
‘Good. Because I want that too.’ As she dropped back down, she squeezed his hand.
‘I know it might not feel like it at the moment, but this is a good thing. I promise you. You know the truth. That’s a good thing. ’
‘Aye?’ He didn’t sound convinced. ‘I guess we’ll just have to wait an’ see.’