Chapter 29
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
ROBBIE
Cat brings her car to a halt outside the Bannock Hotel, and I frown, suspicion prickling at the back of my neck.
“Why are we stopping here?”
We managed to scrub off the worst of the horse smell at the stables, but I’m not in the mood for a social call, especially not at the Bannock Hotel. This is McIntyre territory, and I’m about as welcome here as a fox in a henhouse.
Cat grins, her hazel eyes sparkling with that unmistakable look, the one that’s got trouble written all over it. “Trust me on this. Come on.”
I don’t move. My fingers drum the door handle. “I’m not sure this is a good idea. Lewis runs this place, and while he doesn’t hate me as much as Ally does, he’s not my biggest fan either.”
“Please?” She turns to face me fully, head tipped just so, giving me her best pleading stare. “For me?”
Damn it, Cat McIntyre could probably convince a nun to rob a bank.
“Fine! But if Ally throws me out on my arse, I’m blaming you.”
She grins triumphantly and hops out of the car. I lumber after her with considerably less enthusiasm. Warm lights glow in the stone building’s windows. To anyone else, I’m sure the place looks welcoming. Just not to me.
Cat pushes open the door and strides in like she owns the place—which, I suppose, in a way she does. I trail behind her, feeling oversized and out of place in my leather jacket and boots. She leads me through to the hotel’s small restaurant, and I stop dead in my tracks.
It seems the restaurant is closed to the public tonight. Instead, a long table has been set up in the middle, and it’s crowded with people. The McIntyre brothers are all here with their partners. Elspeth Stewart, her cheeks flushed the same colour as her wine, is chatting away with Bryce from the Pheasant. Aidan Stewart sits with Grace—his girlfriend and David’s twin sister—while their toddler does laps around the table. Even the dog is here, curled up on the floor, blissfully snoozing through all the noise.
It’s a fucking family dinner, and Cat’s dragged me right into the middle of it.
“Cat!” Elspeth calls out, spotting her. “I was wondering where you’d got to.” Her eyes flick to me, and her smile wavers for a moment before returning, polite but uncertain. “Oh! Robbie!”
Conversations stutter to a halt, and suddenly the whole room is staring at us—well, at me . Ally glares at me from across the table like he’s weighing up which window would be easiest to toss me through.
I’m about to back out when Jamie stands, walks over, and extends his hand to me.
“How are you doing, Robbie?” he asks, as if my presence here isn’t completely bizarre. “Take a seat. Join us.”
I shake his hand, too surprised to do anything else.
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea.” Ally sets his glass down hard enough to make it—and a few plates—rattle. “Robbie was arrested just yesterday, and there are children present. Impressionable ears and all that.”
“Ally,” Emily murmurs soothingly, resting a hand on his shoulder, baby Ciaran nestled in the crook of her other arm.
Before anyone else can protest—or before I can make my escape—a tiny figure darts straight at me. It’s Aidan’s wee lass, Callie. Without a hint of the wariness the adults are showing, she ducks between my legs then peeks out from behind me, giggling. From across the table, wee Ru watches her with wide-eyed fascination.
I freeze, unsure what to do, then glance down at her with a raised eyebrow. “Er... hello there.”
She giggles some more.
Cat smirks at Ally. “Looks like Jamie and Callie don’t mind Robbie joining us.”
Just then, the dog gets up and ambles over, his tail wagging. Cat gives him an affectionate scratch behind the ear, then he noses at my leg and gives me one of those soulful looks Labradors specialise in. I hold out my hand, and he gives it a cautious sniff, followed by an approving lick.
“Bruce doesn’t seem bothered either,” Cat observes. “What about the rest of you?”
A few forced smiles appear around the table, but the atmosphere remains strained.
“Look, I should probably go?—”
“No,” Cat interrupts firmly. She slips her arm around my waist, and even with all these eyes on me, I can’t help but relax a little at her touch. “Look, Ally, you’ve got your partner here, Emily. And Lewis has Iona. And Jamie has Maisie. Aidan has Grace, and Elspeth has Bryce. So it’s only right that I’ve got my boyfriend, Robbie.”
Boyfriend? I nearly choke. When the hell did that happen?
Iona actually does choke, sputtering into her wine glass. “Your what ?”
“Boyfriend,” Cat repeats sweetly but firmly, squeezing my waist as if daring me to contradict her.
I don’t. Partly because I’m too stunned, and partly because... well, she does mean more to me than just someone I’ve been sleeping with. She’s had my back through all this shit. She’s been growing on me, creeping into places in my head I thought were locked up tight.
“When I bumped into you two the other day,” Ally says, “you assured me, Cat, that Robbie hadn’t so much as laid a finger on you.”
“And he hadn’t,” Cat says smoothly. “At that point. But things change, Ally. Get with the times.” She turns to Maisie, who’s next to an empty seat—Cat’s spot, apparently. “Mind budging up a bit so I can squeeze in an extra chair and Robbie and I can sit together? Elspeth, is there enough food for Robbie too?”
Elspeth, clearly relieved to have something practical to focus on, brightens. “Of course! You know me, I always make enough for seconds. Let me go serve you both a plate. Lewis, could you grab some cutlery for Robbie, please? And pour him a glass of wine while you’re at it.”
Lewis just shrugs, gives me a sort of “well, here we are” smile—more resigned than hostile—and heads off to fetch cutlery. Maisie shuffles over to make room, and before I can come up with a convincing excuse, Cat is herding me into a seat at the table.
“So, Robbie,” Maisie says, leaning in with a gleam in her eye that reminds me of Cat, “how long have you and Cat been official?”
Christ. If I had to choose between another police interrogation and this, I’d take my chances with the police.
“Er...” I glance at Cat, who’s watching me with a little too much amusement. “It’s... recent.”
“Very recent,” Cat adds. “But we’re happy. Aren’t we, Robbie?”
I do my best not to look like a man cornered by wild animals. “Aye.”
Iona, sitting across from us, flashes a sympathetic smile. “Don’t mind us. We’re just surprised. Cat mentioned she was interested in you, but we didn’t realise things had progressed quite so fast.”
“You told your friends you were interested in me?” I ask Cat, raising an eyebrow.
She has the grace to blush slightly. “Maybe.”
“She called it Project Bang a Bad Boy,” Maisie whispers.
“Maisie!” Cat hisses, her cheeks now flaming red. She glances around to make sure no one else at the table overheard, but they’re holding their own conversations, thankfully.
A chuckle escapes me despite the awkwardness of the situation. “Project Bang a Bad Boy, eh?”
Cat looks mortified. “That was before I got to know you. It sounds terrible now.”
“It does,” I agree, but I can’t help smiling at her discomfort. Serves her right for ambushing me with this dinner.
Elspeth returns with two plates of beef stew with mountains of mashed potatoes and veg. The smell alone just about undoes me. She sets them down with a warm smile. “Eat up while it’s hot!”
I mumble my thanks and wonder again why the hell Cat brought me here. I’d rather be back on that bloody horse than sitting at this table with every McIntyre and Stewart staring at me like I’m a bomb about to go off. But then I remember how I felt earlier, alone in my cottage, the weight of everything crushing down on me. Maybe Cat knows exactly what she’s doing. Maybe some company is what I need, even if it’s awkward as hell.
I take my first taste, and God, it’s delicious. Suddenly realising how hungry I am, I gobble up some more.
After a few hearty mouthfuls, I glance around the table. The strained silence that fell when Cat and I arrived is long gone. These people are finishing each other’s sentences and sharing inside jokes. Elbows bump, everyone comfortable in one another’s space. It’s a language I’ve never learnt to speak. After Maw left, dinners between me, Da, and Johnny... well, they weren’t like this. Not even close.
Cat gives my thigh a light squeeze under the table and shoots me a reassuring smile. I return it. Even if I’m still not too sure about being here at a McIntyre and Stewart family dinner, I can’t deny that the food is good.
“You know, Robbie,” Elspeth says from further down the table, “it’s long past time we had you over for a meal. We’ve never said an official thank you for what you did all those years ago, saving Jamie’s life.”
The chatter hushes again—not tense this time, but thoughtful.
I clear my throat, uncomfortable with everyone turning their attention back to me. “I just did what anyone would have done.”
“Maybe so,” Elspeth says, “but we’re grateful for it all the same. I lost my best friend that night—Mairi was like a sister to me—and we lost her wonderful husband, Angus, too. But thanks to you, Jamie is still with us.”
“And look at me now,” Jamie says with a grin, clearly trying to lighten the mood, “healthy enough I won a hill race recently.”
“Aye, but daft enough you ditched your kilt before the finish line and flashed half the town,” Lewis adds drily.
“Only thanks to your poor sportsmanship, Lewis! Seriously, grabbing a hold of my kilt because you couldn’t face not being first?”
Cat shudders dramatically. “Enough! I’m still traumatised by that particular memory. Please let’s not talk about it anymore.”
Despite it being a sensitive topic for Cat—I can’t imagine she much appreciated her brother bearing all—smiles break out along both sides of the table. Jamie grins too, apparently perfectly happy being the butt of the joke, so to speak.
But then Ally says, “Speaking of traumatic experiences... being arrested must have been quite the ordeal, Robbie. Especially for something you claim you didn’t do.”
And just like that, the tension is back.
“Ally!” Cat warns.
“What?” He raises his hands in exaggerated innocence. “I’m just making conversation.”
I take a sip of wine and weigh my response. “Let’s just say the hospitality at the police station leaves a lot to be desired. But I didn’t steal those items, and I’ll be pleading not guilty.”
Ally just gives a noncommittal “hmm”, but Cat’s had enough. She turns so sharply towards him her chair lets out a squeak.
“Seriously? You’re going to sit there and interrogate Robbie at a family dinner? I know you think you’re protecting me, but maybe try trusting me for once. Robbie is innocent. He’s been framed, and instead of judging him, you could try supporting him—or at the very least, supporting me.”
It’s as if someone’s hit pause. Forks hover halfway to mouths, everyone waiting to see where this will go next.
Cat takes a deep breath, her eyes softening as she looks around at her family. “I know I haven’t always been the easiest wee sister. I went a bit wild in my student days, and I might’ve begged you, Ally, for cash more times than I care to admit. It was Robbie who pointed out to me how lucky I am to have three big brothers who’ve always watched out for me. So... for what it’s worth, thank you.”
Ally, Lewis, and Jamie exchange surprised glances, clearly not used to such gratitude from their sister.
Cat takes a shaky breath. “I think part of the reason I enjoyed partying so much was because it was an escape from grief. But now I’m interested in moving forward to a new stage in my life.” Her hand finds mine under the table. “Robbie’s been doing great work in my flat. When it’s all finished, I’ll have you all round to see it. It might be a tight fit, but we can have fizz and cakes and a bit of fun. And maybe”—she shoots Ally a side eye—“a night without any arguments?”
I look around at the faces watching Cat, some surprised, some touched, all attentive. She commands people’s attention in a way I’ve never been able to, with an openness I’ve never mastered.
Something loosens inside me—a knot I didn’t realise was there—and before I can talk myself out of it, I’m speaking.
“Look, Ally...” My voice is gruffer than I mean it to be. “I owe you an apology for... well, for being a bit of a dick when I was younger.” I glance at Aidan. “I owe you one too.”
Ally blinks as if he’s not sure he heard me right.
“I was angry, a stupid kid with too much attitude and not enough sense.” My mouth twists ruefully. “That doesn’t excuse anything I said or did, of course. But... aye. Sorry.”
Cat squeezes my hand so tightly it almost hurts.
“And just to be clear, aye, I’ve made my fair share of mistakes over the years, but the thefts at the Glen Garve Resort? Not me.”
Ally doesn’t jump straight in with another barb or accusation. He just stares at me like I’ve sprouted antlers. Then he gives his head a bewildered shake and manages, “Right. Well.” He clears his throat awkwardly and glances down at his plate as if hoping for some guidance from the mashed potatoes. “That... er... that’s appreciated.”
But then, recovering his composure, he jabs his fork in my direction so hard a few peas fly off his plate. “But if you break my sister’s heart—if you so much as make her cry—you’ll answer to me, MacDonald.”
“Ally!” Cat and Emily exclaim in unison.
“What? I’m just making sure we understand each other.”
I almost smile. This, at least, is familiar territory. “Understood.”
The meal continues, Aidan launching into an animated tale about a rafting trip he and Ally organised for a stag party today. It feels like he’s working up to a punchline, but before he can reach it, the restaurant door swings open.
“Sorry we’re late!” David announces. “Bit of a last-minute dash, but we got here as fast as we could.”
Heads whip towards the doorway, where David stands grinning, Johnny smiling shyly behind him. Judging by the stunned expressions around the table, I’m not the only one who wasn’t expecting these two to crash dinner.
“Johnny?” I blurt. “David?”
I push my chair back, but before I can stand up properly, Johnny strides over and pulls me into a hug so tight it nearly knocks me off balance.
“Robbie! I’ve been so worried about you. I hated not being able to speak to you.”
I pat his back awkwardly, acutely aware of everyone watching us. Ally, in particular, is surprised by this display of affection between Johnny and me. I suppose he’s never seen this side of me before—the protective older brother rather than the troublemaker.
“I missed you too,” I tell Johnny, keeping my voice low. “It’s good to see you, but is it okay that you’re here?”
“Aye.” Johnny releases me. “Da said it’s fine now the police have completed their investigation. I can’t believe they charged you. I’m so sorry.”
David, who’s already given his sister a squeeze, now scoops Callie up. “And here she is, the princess of Bannock!” Callie squeals with delight as he spins her around.
“So, er...” Jamie gestures between Johnny and David with his fork. “Great to see you guys, but what’s going on here? Do we need two more chairs?”
“I can explain.” All eyes turn to Cat, who smiles sheepishly. “I thought it’d be a nice surprise for Robbie to have his wee brother here, and David’s practically part of the family anyway. So... I fired off a quick text to David before Robbie and I got here. Hope it’s all right that I invited them, and aye, we’re going to need a couple more chairs.” She turns hopeful eyes to Elspeth. “You were able to rustle up an extra plate for Robbie... any chance of two more?”