Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
IONA
Now
“My laird, you can have my body but not my heart!”
“Nae, lass, I’ll take all of ye—mind, body, and soul.”
Slowing the car, I pause my audiobook—and just as it was getting to a good bit! Typical, but I’ve reached my destination: Bannock, a small town nestled in the Scottish Highlands. Its main street has scarcely changed in the nine years since I left, its stone houses and slate roofs simple but charming on this bright August day.
I pull up outside Maw’s house and step out, casting a glance across the road at the Bannock Hotel, with its freshly painted woodwork and pretty hanging baskets. I practically grew up in that building—spent almost as much time there as I did in my own home. Unwelcome memories threaten to surface so I shove them back down and head into Maw’s.
“I’m home!” My voice bounces off the walls of Maw’s hall.
“Oh, Iona!” She bustles through from the living room and wraps me in a hug. She has the same blue eyes and fair skin as me, and her hair, now grey, was once blonde like mine. “I’m so delighted to have you back. How was the journey up?”
“It was fine—same as ever.” Although it’s nearly a decade since I last lived here, I have returned for weekend visits and occasional longer stays.
“Och, but it’s not the same as ever because this time I get to keep you. With Aidan, Grace, and the bairn just down the road, and you moving in with me, I feel like the luckiest mother alive.” She gives me another squeeze and I laugh.
“Why don’t you put the kettle on and I’ll start taking things in?” I suggest, disentangling myself. “We can catch up properly in a few minutes.”
Back outside, I open the boot of my car, which—like the back seat and the passenger seat—is crammed full. Until I had to pack it all up, I hadn’t realised how much stuff I’d accumulated over the years. I really should have done a clear-out before moving home.
To minimise trips, I stack a few of the lighter boxes on top of each other. When I lift them, they wobble threateningly, but rather than put them back down—which would be the sensible thing to do—I stubbornly take a few steps towards Maw’s door. And... the tower begins to keel over.
“Whoa! Let me carry that.”
That voice—deep, melodic, and achingly familiar. Before my belongings can spill out for all to see, the boxes are swept from my hands.
“Welcome back, Iona.” Tall with carefully tousled chestnut hair and a gym-sculpted body, Lewis McIntyre now sports a smattering of stubble, something I’ve never seen on him previously. He suits it, but then Lewis could never look bad. He’s annoying that way.
“I was getting on just fine,” I lie.
His lips curl up, and like the town itself, that smile hasn’t changed—even his dimples remain intact. You’d think he was harmless—a friendly giant—but I know better. We may have been best friends once, but it’s because of this man I didn’t return to Bannock sooner.
He deposits my things inside then strolls back. “Just like old times, eh? Neighbours again.” He nods at the hotel.
“Yes, well . . .”
His casual tone annoys me. Why does he always pretend like everything is okay between us? It’s not.
He reaches into the boot.
“I’ve got it from here,” I say.
“It’s no bother.” He lifts another load, his eyes roving over me. “I like your outfit, by the way.”
Self-consciously I glance down at my fox-print top and faded jeans. “Er... thanks?”
That smile again—then he disappears into Maw’s. Truthfully, with his muscles, he’d make light work of unpacking the car, but I’d rather he just left. I hoist up a heavier box, this one filled with books, but when Lewis returns, he plucks it out of my hands.
“You’ve had a long journey up—let me handle this. If you pop something else on top, I can take that in too.”
He’s not listening to me and I don’t like that. So, in a fit of pique, rather than picking something light, I go for another box of books (yes, I own too many—can’t bear to get rid of them). I dump it on the first, hoping to see Lewis flinch or maybe even stumble slightly, but he doesn’t so much as blink.
As he transports just part of my romance novel collection into Maw’s, I take a moment to gather myself. I can’t let Lewis get to me—I don’t want to give him that power over my emotions. Aye, we’ll be living opposite each other, but I’ll be keeping contact between us to a minimum. I’d hoped he would have understood that without me having to say it.
A car pulls up behind mine then Richard hops out, smiling that goofy grin I fell for a year and a half ago.
“Finally!” I say. “You were right behind me most of the way. What happened?”
“Sorry!” He wraps an arm around me and pecks my cheek. “The scenery was too good not to stop for photos.”
He’s drawing away from me when Lewis returns, and on instinct I tug Richard back to me and give him an especially fierce hug, like I haven’t seen him in weeks. Only after releasing him do I say, “You remember Lewis, don’t you? My... childhood friend?”
“Of course.” Richard shakes Lewis’s hand. “Good to see you again, mate.”
“And you. I’m just helping Iona take in her things.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll get it from here.”
Richard is a friendly sort who’ll get on with anyone, and most people see Lewis that way too, even if I know there’s another side to him. Whenever these two meet, though, there’s a chill in the air.
“All right.” Lewis nods. “See you around.” Shooting one last smile in my direction, he walks across the road to the hotel.
Richard lifts the second-last box from my boot. “Whoa! This is heavy. What’s in here? Books?”
“Er, aye,” I admit, making a mental note to hide some of the spicier ones somewhere Maw won’t find them.
He grins then heads for Maw’s. I grab the last box, close the boot, and follow after.
A long-distance runner, Richard has an athletic but lean figure and his training rarely focuses on upper-body strength. It wouldn’t be fair to compare him with Lewis, and yet... I notice he lets out a sigh of relief when setting down the box in Maw’s hall. I doubt Lewis did that, and he carried two at the same time.
I reprimand myself for this thought. I’m not living in a romance novel. So what if Richard’s max load is twenty paperbacks?
“There you are, Richard.” Maw emerges from the kitchen and gives him a warm embrace. “Welcome!”
“Thanks for letting us stay, Elspeth. We’ll try to be out of your hair before long.”
“Och, there’s no rush for you to find a place of your own. Truth be told, now that Aidan has moved in with Grace, the house is too big for just me. Anyway, I’ve made us all tea, and I baked a lemon drizzle cake this morning. You can finish unpacking later. For now, have a seat and recharge your batteries after the drive.”
She ushers us through to the living room, and... oh wow! The cake is so good—light, fluffy, its delightful tangy flavour bursting on my tongue with each mouthful. Moving back in with Maw is going to be dangerous. My figure is on the curvier side, and while I’m happy with how I look, I’d rather not put on too much more weight.
As we enjoy our sweet treat, Maw asks Richard a few questions about the job he’ll be starting as a wind turbine technician. Until a month ago I had no interest in returning to Bannock, but on the same day Richard heard about this new role, Bannock Vets posted a job opening, and it was like it was meant to be.
Rested and refuelled, Richard and I fetch the rest of our things from our cars then haul them upstairs. We stack most of the boxes in what used to be my brother’s room but dump the ones containing clothes in my childhood bedroom, which is still adorned with teenage relics. I was eighteen when I moved away—barely an adult. The naive girl I was then seems almost like a different person.
“It’s not how I pictured our first place”—Richard lifts a Highland cow cuddly toy and gives it a wee squeeze—“but it’ll do for now.”
Down in Glasgow we had our own flats, but I’d spend a night or two at his each week, or him at mine, so living together shouldn’t be too big a leap.
“Now we’re here, it’ll be easier to go to viewings and find somewhere to call our own,” I point out.
“Yeah. Anyway, how about some music as we unpack?”
My phone is closer, so Richard wakes it and taps the play button without checking what I was last listening to.
“The laird roughly pulled Felicity against him, her voluptuous breasts pressing into his chest. She could feel his throbbing manhood—”
Richard pauses my audiobook, and I giggle, fully expecting a bit of playful teasing for my listening habits.
“ The Laird’s Feisty Virgin Bride was your entertainment for the journey up?” He shakes his head. “Honestly, considering how bright you are, it’s a mystery to me why you like such rubbish.”
Okay, well, that wasn’t so much playful as judgemental. I enjoy what I enjoy—what’s wrong with that?
My expression must betray my feelings because he envelops me in a hug. “I’m just joking.”
Except it wasn’t funny , I think, but I take a breath, let go of my irritation, and snuggle into him. Tracing his chest with one finger, I say, “Maybe those books give me ideas. Did you think of that?”
“Like . . . bedroom ideas?”
He shifts uncomfortably. He can be pretty inhibited when it comes to sex. I mean, we do it, but...
“Having your mum in the next room might cause us problems.”
“Well, we’re not going to go celibate, are we? It could be a few months before we move into our own place. Having to be discreet and do it quietly could be kind of... exciting.” I kiss his neck.
He pulls away, laughing nervously. “Sorry, it’s just...” He shrugs. “I don’t know. It feels really weird while your mum’s in the house. Anyway, let’s unpack. While I’m sure you’re desperate to hear more about Felicity’s voluptuous breasts and the laird’s throbbing manhood, I’m going to put on some music.”