Chapter Twelve
They were shifters. Their bodies regenerated when damaged, so why did she suffer every month?
Was it linked only with her human side, leaving it out of her wolf’s ability to heal?
Why did things like her disease exist? What purpose could it possibly have?
Although the same could be said about every disease, every disease wasn’t attached to his mate. PCOS was.
Her strength amazed him. Men were always thought to be the rough-and-tough gender, but he didn’t think he could endure what she went through with her cycle.
Turning into a wolf once a month wasn’t even in the same stratosphere as what she dealt with, and if—when—she came back to Scotland, he would find someone like Savannah to make sure Mairi was never in pain.
That led to hoping she would come home. That she would choose to be with him. If she said no and wanted to stay in Colorado, then he was going to have to do a helluva lot of the flying.
When his cell phone vibrated and he read Charles’s name, he closed his laptop and set it on the nightstand before leaving the bedroom to connect the call.
“Morning, Laird MacAlary,” Charles greeted, although there was a thread of urgency in his tone.
“It’s eleven thirty at night here.”
“Oh, sorry, I...” Charles mumbled, clearly flustered. “Um. The MacGordon Group is threatening to table the deal unless they talk with you.”
“Schedule a video conference—”
“Sir,” Charles interrupted. “They insist on talking with you in person.”
“Seriously?” Tavish pinched the bridge of his nose. All he wanted to do was cuddle with Mairi and take care of her. Get her what she needed or wanted. Which shocked the hell out of him because his entire adult life had centered around his business. “Okay, schedule my plane to depart in two hours.”
“Very good, sir. See you soon.”
The call ended and exasperation surged through him.
He didn’t want to leave Mairi, but he had a feeling she wouldn’t go with him.
Yet. With a heavy sigh, he walked back into the bedroom and joined her, sliding his arm around her waist and spooning behind her.
As much as he didn’t want to leave her, he did have a business to run.
People depended on him. He’d fly back, take care of things, and then return.
“You have to leave.”
“I thought you were sleeping,” he murmured.
“I was. I am. I’m still tired, but I guess I’ve gotten used to my big mate beside me.”
He grinned and kissed the back of her head. “I don’t suppose you’d like to come back with me?”
“I...” She fell silent for a moment, then said, “I can’t.”
His heart stuttered. “I figured.”
She placed her hand on top of the one encircling her waist. “My obligation to Keegan is the same as yours to your enterprise, despite it being a mere coffee shop.”
“I didn’t mean to put down Keegan’s business. I only ... I’m gonna miss you,” he said, and there wasn’t any way to disguise the vulnerability he was experiencing.
There was a pause.
“I shall miss you, too,” she whispered, and then yawned.
Her admission filled his heart. “Get some rest. I’ll text you when I arrive in Scotland.”
“All right.”
Once again, she patted his hand. He waited until her breathing evened out, and then rose to dress. He gathered his belongings, kissed her once more on the top of her head, and then left. Leaving her was one of the hardest things he’d ever done.
****
“Back to the land of the living, I see,” Keegan teased when Mairi showed up.
“I’ve been working,” Mairi defended.
“I’m teasing.”
Mairi sighed. “I know. Sorry.”
Keegan tilted her head. “What’s wrong?”
Did she tell Keegan everything, including how she and Tavish connected? That they had been practically living together during her cycle week? That they declared love for each other? Did he want the world to know?
A few insecurities crept into her mind. Like the devil on her shoulder whispering all the tiny doubts that still lingered. Maybe he went back to Scotland because he was disappointed with her. Maybe he had been using her until he’d scratched that itch. What if he never came back? What if he—
“Stop,” Keegan said, taking her hand. “Whatever you’re thinking, let it rest.”
Mairi nodded, but it took a Herculean effort to do that.
It helped when Mrs. Smyth barreled in with her demanding self.
When a few more people entered, wanting the special of the day, she was finally able to relax her thoughts.
The morning stayed unusually busy, probably because they just introduced the fall flavors with a heavy emphasis on caramel apple, and of course, pumpkin spice.
Late morning, Rhodes walked into the shop with an easy grin and Mairi gave an internal groan. There had never been anything romantic between them, at least not on her part. She really hoped he wasn’t there to ask her on another date.
“Morning, ladies,” he greeted.
“Hello, Rhodes,” Keegan said with a little wave. “What can I get you?”
“Small coffee, two sugars, and cream, please. Thank you.”
While she turned to make his order, he glanced over to Mairi, his silver eyes assessing. Probing. Whatever he saw, maybe it was the truth or maybe just a realization, made a ruefully twisted grin lift a corner of his mouth.
“Hi,” he said.
“Hi.”
“You doing okay?”
“Yeah. You?”
“I’ll be fine.”
The stilted conversation definitely had a double meaning, and all the things they weren’t saying tugged on her heart.
She’d never made any promises to Rhodes.
Their handful of dates had only consisted of friendship on her part.
Still, she cared about him, and there wasn’t ever going to be anyone but Tavish in her heart.
He paid for his coffee and stuck the change in the tip jar. He took a deep breath and smiled at Mairi.
“I hope he knows what he has,” he told her.
“I think he does.”
He nodded. “Good. Then that’s how it should be. See you around, Mairi.”
“Bye, Rhodes.”
He exited the shop and her shoulders slumped.
“You okay?” Keegan asked.
“I’m fine,” she replied. “I just hope he finds the person meant for him.”
“I’m sure one day he’ll find his mate.”
The morning stayed busy, but once the rush of morning had passed, Keegan was a dog with a bone.
“So, tell me what happened?”
“Not gonna let this go, are you?”
“Nope,” she replied, popping the p.
“Tavish received a call from his assistant,” she explained. “He was needed for a meeting so he had to return to Scotland.”
“Are you going to join him?”
Mairi blinked and frowned. “I have a commitment here, with you.”
“With me? What do you mean?”
“Here, you know.” She gestured around. “The coffee shop. You can’t run this alone.”
Keegan gave her a soft smile and took hold of her hands. “I love you, cousin, and I love that you thought of me when you needed a haven. But you don’t have to worry about me.”
“But this place...”
“I was running it fine before you, so I’ll find someone who needs a job.”
“Wow, what a way to make me feel loved,” she teased.
Keegan rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean. But tell me, and be honest, what do you want to do?”
She stared at her cousin as her mind raced.
It was her decision to exile herself in America, afraid of confronting Tavish about his ideas of her.
Back then, she wanted to bury her head in sand in order to hold onto him.
She had accused him of being selfish, but perhaps she was selfish as well, trying to hold onto him in the only way she knew how, by running away.
“Say what you’re thinking, Mairi,” Keegan ordered. “Right now. Just say it. Blurt it out.”
“I want him,” she whispered.
Keegan smiled. “Then go to him. Take back all the years here and be with your mate.”
“What if he decides he doesn’t want me?” It was a fear she lived with every day, and even though he told her he wanted to be with her, it was hard to maintain that belief. The little devil on her shoulders wouldn’t shut up.
“I don’t think that’s going to happen,” Keegan said.
“I’ve seen the way he looks at you. Lust, definitely, but there’s also adoration.
He’s falling in love with you, so now you have two choices.
One, you sever ties with him and live out your life working here with me.
We’ll be two little old ladies cackling at all the youngins.
Or two, you take a leap of faith and have all your dreams come true. ”
Mairi took a deep breath. Keegan was right. If she walked away, could she live with the thought of what if for the rest of her life? That seemed heartbreakingly depressing. She hugged her cousin. “Thank you.”
“We’re the last of our families and that means I’m always going to be here for you. Or, well, I guess we’re going to have Tavish in our genealogy now.”
“I love you,” Mairi murmured.
“Love you back, and I’m going to miss you.” She pulled back and wiped the moisture from under her eyes. “Make sure to send me an invite to your mating ceremony.”