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‘Is she going to drive them away in that?’ Calum said.
‘She certainly is. I do love her. She’s so funny.’
‘God knows what the groom makes of it,’ said Morven.
‘Murray loves it,’ Will said. ‘They make such a great couple. I remember when they first met – they hated each other, but it turned out well.’
‘Listen,’ Calum said. ‘Arran’s inside already and I don’t want to talk to him or go anywhere near him, ok?’ He glared at Will.
‘I’m not that fussed to either. He’s not exactly my greatest pal.’
‘Good.’ They’d cleared that up. Will was all for building bridges normally but the thought of seeing Arran again would have rattled him.
‘We should sit near the back anyway,’ Morven said. ‘In case Angus starts screaming and we need to get him out.’
Half the back row was free and Calum let Will and Morven take their seats before he perched at the end of a pew. Within seconds his gaze zeroed in on Rhona and Arran. The murmur of voices grew fuzzy. Will was talking about Murray, the groom, who was at the front, adjusting his cuffs and looking uber smart in a modern charcoal kilt suit. Calum had skimmed him over, barely distinguishing one word of what Will was saying. Every atom in his body was concentrated on Rhona. The force of desire rushing through him was so powerful he half expected the stained-glass windows to shatter or the altar candles to erupt in shooting flames.
Rhona’s head slowly turned as he knew it would.Like he was commanding her. Their gazes connected and her brows raised. The sparkle in her irises had dulled and she wore a sorrowful expression. Only last week he’d said three precious little words to her. Three words he’d meant with body and soul and she’d barely acknowledged them.
The gentle organ music that had been playing in the background stopped. Its absence left an eerie hush, broken only by shuffling feet and low mumbles.
‘Please rise,’ the minister said.
Rhona faced forward again and Calum got to his feet.
At the front, the groom stood tall, hands clasped in front of him and the music started again, louder and prouder. This was the kind of thing Ron and Anne dreamed of for Calum. And with Rhona the tiniest whisper of possibility had edged its way in. In his heart anyway. But now?
The back doors opened and heads turned. Calum forced himself to look too, though his eyes demanded to see Rhona again.Stay focused.Beth stepped onto the carpeted aisle, her svelte figure encased in a plain but elegant sheath dress. Her dark hair was knotted in a low bun. Even in his messed-up state, Calum let out a breath of appreciation. Beth had always been a farmer, more used to wearing overalls and mucky jeans, but now she was like something straight off the catwalk. Her long slender arm was looped around her mother’s. Calum’s throat burned. He swallowed, remembering Beth had lost her dad some years ago and reminding himself how lucky he was to still have both his parents. Behind them walked her sister in a short pink dress, matching their mother’s suit, and Frank in a grey kilt and pink shirt. He wiped away a tear as he passed and flicked his tufty blond fringe.
‘Ahh,’ Will whispered. ‘She’s so beautiful.’
As they sat, Calum’s phone vibrated in his sporran.Seriously?Not an appropriate time or place. How could he get it out and switch it off without everyone tutting and muttering?Typical Matheson, always on his phone, cutting another penny-pinching deal.He’d heard it all before. Even if he didn’t feel he belonged to the reputation, he had it anyway. Attempting to get the phone out quietly was like opening a bag of sweets in the cinema without rustling it.
Will squinted at him curiously and Calum pretended not to notice, staring forward. The minister’s words washed over him. Without looking down, he fumbled around and pulled out his phone, sliding it onto the seat beside him. He glimpsed the screen and noted straightaway a message from Rhona.
His face woke the phone and he lowered his eyes, trying to read the message without it being too obvious.
RHONA: We need to talk. What’s going on? This was always going to be tough when it hit. Now we’re in the eye of the storm and every course is scary. I hope I didn’t hurt you going off with Arran on the boat. I had to. I still want to hear your side of the story. It’s important. I’ll try to get away from him today, and maybe we could chat after? XX
He shook his head at the screen.Hurt me? By walking off with my nemesis and leaving me alone to stew? Why would that hurt me?He’d laid his feelings on the line and she’d chosen to ignore them. No, not ignore them, dismiss them.
None of it could make him innocent because he wasn’t.
Maybe it was better like this. He didn’t want to do the clandestine thing. How could he? It was mockery, like his feelings weren’t valid and had to be hidden away to appease a family that had made his life a misery for years.No.
He should have known she’d do something like this. Once a Lamond, always a Lamond.
She was a talented archaeologist. If she got a call to dig up the lost treasure of the Aztecs next week, she’d be off in a flash. He’d been a fool to believe otherwise. Definitely better this way.
‘Excuse me.’ He jumped off the pew, nipped out the back door and stood on the step, breathing the fresh air. He couldn’t stand another second of this.
His fingers flashed across the screen.
CALUM: I can’t do this. My hand was forced last weekend when my parents decided to come with me to the karate competition. It wasn’t easy but we got through it. Maybe meeting Arran on the boat wasn’t the time or place for us to come clean, but instead of facing it head-on, you chose to go with him. Even now, you won’t speak to me when he’s there. I was ready to give it a go and I thought you were too, but with hindsight you’ve made the right choice. My behaviour at school was inexcusable. I hurt Arran and I shouldn’t have. Ever since I got close to you, I’ve worried that somewhere down the line that monster will show up in me again. I can’t risk it. Let’s stop this while we can.
He reread it but no matter what he said, it didn’t do justice to his heart. What he craved was to go back inside, crowd-surf to her, pluck her out, hold her in his arms, and tell her he’d love her forever. But no. Arran would murder them both. Even if he restrained himself, Rhona’s family would make sure he died a long painful death. Christ, they would probably disown her if she confessed to love him in return, and she wouldn’t want that.
‘And, fuck, neither do I.’ He marched to his car without a backward glance.Leave her. Leave her alone. It’s the only way.As long as he was in her life, he’d ruin it.
