Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
"How did things go with Ross?'
Harper was halfway across the hall when the question stopped her.
She turned to find Lucy coming from the left wing hallway with a large vase of fresh flowers.
It was a new day and Harper had very little sleep.
She'd spent half the night thinking about Ross, wondering, imagining, dreaming, and admonishing herself for doing so.
Last night, spending time with Ross, was. ..unexpected. Definitely a mistake.
Lucy shifted the vase, holding it to one side. Her smile was as bright as the flowers she held. "You did find him?"
"I did, yes." Part of her suddenly wanted to open up and flood Lucy with an accounting of all things Ross.
She barely knew the woman, but Lucy had an openness about her, a quirkiness that Harper liked.
Or maybe it was the down-to-earth vibe. Who knew.
But it made Harper want to blab the entire sordid story.
"Didn't go as planned?" Lucy surmised.
"Pretty much. But things seem to be going better now. About to meet him at the old distillery."
Lucy bit her lip thoughtfully. "It's almost lunch. Why don't you take something with you." She set the vase on a nearby table. "I'll make you guys a basket."
"Oh no, it's okay."
"Nope. I insist," Lucy said already walking to the kitchen. "Come on, Harper. It won't take long," she called over her shoulder.
"But . . . I'll be late," she said lamely following.
"Nothing wrong with keeping a man waiting a little. Besides, once he sees what you brought, all will be forgiven. Trust me."
"And if he worries about where you are, well, that's good for him too," Riley said in a surly tone, meeting them in the hallway as she, too, was heading for the kitchen. Riley had fire in her eyes and Harper sensed it had nothing to do with keeping Ross waiting.
In the kitchen, Lucy directed her to the pantry to get bread while Lucy pulled items from the massive refrigerator. When Lucy had her hands full, she shut the door with her rear and gave Riley a look. "You gonna help or sit there and watch us?"
"Sit here and watch." Riley parked her hip on the counter and crossed her arms over her chest.
Harper liked the MacLaren women. They were exactly the sort of friends she'd have if she ever allowed herself time to have friends, that is. "Man trouble?" Harper ventured as she unwrapped the bread and took the knife Lucy handed her.
Riley snorted. "If you can call him a man. I prefer to call him a dic—"
"Riley!" Lucy shouted.
"What?" she asked innocently. "He is. Well, he's acting that way at least. And I'm sure Harper knows all about dic—"
"Riley!"
Harper couldn't help it. She started laughing. Lucy followed. Riley, still pissed off, finally gave a begrudging chuckle.
"It's okay," Harper assured Lucy. "She's right. I've known my share."
"So what's the deal with you and Ross anyway?" Riley asked.
"It's..." She searched for where to begin.
"Complicated? It always is with the good ones," Riley said.
Harper eyed her for a long second. "You think he's a good one? Ross, I mean."
"Any man who dotes on Fran and Hamish like Ross does and allows that ole coot to run all over him... Yeah, he's a good one."
Harper thought about that for a long moment. She felt lost, honestly. And alone. And in need of friendship and support. "He was my first."
Riley and Lucy's eyes grew wide. Understanding the significance to that statement, they pulled her to the table.
Lucy brought over tea and poured as she gestured for Harper to continue.
Harper sipped on the hot liquid, wondering if she'd done the right thing by sharing, but wanting desperately for some support.
Maybe she just needed a second opinion. Someone on her side.
Someone to tell her that her feelings were normal and okay. "I was seventeen. Totally in love."
"This must've been when Ross and Liam moved to the States. Ian told me about that. That was what ten years ago?"
"Twelve. They were only there for six months or so.
We tried not to like each other because, you know, our parents were together and there was a chance we'd be step siblings.
I don't know... maybe that was part of the attraction.
The fact that we knew we couldn't and shouldn't be together.
Only made me want him more. Anyway, one thing led to another.
He was my first, and the next day they were gone.
No note, no . . .explanation. Just gone. "
"Ouch," Riley said softly.
"Yeah. Never saw him or spoke to him again until the other day. Wasn't sure what I'd find really... And it wasn't to get closure or anything. I mean, it was a long time ago. I'm here for my father, to get something he wanted me to have that Ross' mother also had."
Lucy let out a romantic sigh, her chin perched on her hand.
Riley rolled her eyes. "Please. There is nothing romantic about it, Luc. The guy used her and left without a single word. I take back what I said about him."
"Well, maybe something happened. Like he wanted to and couldn't. You know?" She turned to Harper. "Did he say? When you saw him?"
She shook her head. "No. He told me to go home."
Both women gasped. Riley muttered some choice words and even Lucy let out a curse.
Oddly, Harper wanted to defend him, a small part of her wondering if maybe Lucy was right.
Maybe something had gone wrong. "It was weird, though," she admitted.
"He seemed to think I was the one who broke his heart. Not the other way around."
They frowned. "That is weird," Lucy said. "Maybe you should confront him. Ask him for the truth. Or his version of it anyway."
Harper nodded. "Maybe." Sounded reasonable, but what if there was some explanation? What then? That possibility made her stomach clench.
"Doesn't seem like something Ross would do." Lucy got up to finish making the sandwiches. "Then again, at that age... You were both very young."
Harper pushed away from the table and helped Lucy pack the basket.
"So why are you so put out with Jamie?" Lucy asked Riley.
Riley let out a disgusted snort. "He wants to climb mountains."
"That doesn't sound so bad," Harper said carefully, closing the basket.
"It does if you're missing a leg."
"Jamie lost his leg in combat," Lucy explained, then turned her attention to her cousin. "And you're not mad at him, Riley. You're worried. Big difference."
"Well, it's easier to be mad." A sigh escaped Riley's lips. "I want him to climb mountains. I want him to fulfill every damn dream he has. But there are two of us now, another person to take into consideration. And where does that leave me. Home worried sick, that's where."
"So go with him," Harper said, immediately cringing at her quick words and hoping she hadn't overstepped.
The room went quiet. Lucy stopped cleaning up the counter to stare at Riley as Riley looked a little taken aback. Slowly a smile grew on Lucy's face. "She's a freaking genius."
"I am?" Harper said, confused.
Lucy nodded and then focused on Riley. "Go with him. It's perfect." She turned to Harper. "You know what Riley does for a living? She's a travel writer."
Oh. Well, it was the perfect scenario then, wasn't it? Although Riley might hate mountain climbing. She could prefer writing about luxury destinations, high end hotels, spas, and stuff like that. Training and hiking up some mountain might not be her thing at all.
"I . . . Huh," Riley said, lost in thought. "I could do a whole series of articles... We could train together, plan, see some of the world before having a family..." She looked at Harper thoughtfully. "Thanks for the suggestion."
"Anytime."
Lucy pulled the basket off the counter and handed it to Harper. "Let us know how it goes."
"All I want is what I came for," Harper said. "If I can get that, drinks are on me."
"Deal," Lucy and Riley said.
As Harper left the kitchen, she overheard Riley say in a knowing tone, "She's going to get way more than she came for."
Whatever.
Harper wasn't interested in clearing the air with Ross.
It simply didn't matter. No. They'd go through his mother's office in the distillery, find the notebook, and be done with it.
Ross could go back to creating his labels and she could go back to.
.. She paused at the front door. Go back to what?
Her father was gone. Dean's was all but gone.
Her mother had never been in her life. She had no brothers or sisters.
Feeling a little sorry for herself, Harper pushed through the front door.
But she quickly dispelled the woeful feelings. She could look at things with a defeated attitude or she could look at the future as a blank slate. And who knows, maybe she'd learn the art of bourbon-making after all. Follow in her father's footsteps...
By the time she made it to the abandoned distillery, she was hot and out of breath.
The picnic basket had grown heavier and her arm was aching. She wished she'd chosen shorts instead of jeans. But then jeans were far better for going through old boxes in an abandoned building.
Blowing a strand of hair from her face, she headed for the stone building that still had lettering on the wooden door, indicating it had housed the offices of the old Balmorie Distillery.
She pushed open the door with her hip, figuring Ross must already be inside, and no doubt irritated by her late arrival.
"I'm back here," he called, hearing the old door creak. "Come on back."
The sexy, rough brogue caused a flutter in her stomach. She sighed, acknowledging the effect that potent voice had on her. No point in denying it. She'd just have to deal with it and not let his voice or the man himself get to her.