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"Not what I meant." I knife a hand into my hair. "I wasted money on this trip because I was desperate to change my life, to stop being selfish and settle down to start a family. Be responsible."
She scoots across the bed to sit beside me with one leg tucked under her, turned partway toward me. With my hand still shoved into my hair, my arm blocks my face from her view. She grasps my forearm, gently urging me to lower my hand. After a few seconds of struggling to resist her tenderness, I give up and let my arm drop.
"Aidan," she says, laying a palm on my cheek, "regret is pointless. It was an accident, and you can't know why it happened, no matter what Seona says. You have to let it go. Stop giving her that kind of power over you."
"Power?" I finally look at her, because her statement confuses me. Maybe it shouldn't, but it does.
"Yes." She clasps both her hands around mine. "She's using your guilt against you. You know she has problems, and she's obsessed with you. Why are you accepting it's all your fault just because she keeps telling you it is? The woman is trying to extort money from you. Nothing she says can be believed."
For a long moment, I let her jewel eyes entrance me. But I can't avoid responding to what she said, not for much longer. "Maybe you're right, but it's not so easy to get rid of guilt. Or fear. You should know about that."
"I have an idea," she says. "Why not have Lachlan or Rory—maybe both of them, actually—go and talk to Seona? They can find out what she's really after."
That's not a completely rubbish idea. I consider it for a moment while we both sit here in silence, then I give her an appreciative nod. "You are very clever,mo chridhe. Seona lives in Ballachulish. I could ask Lachlan or Rory if they'll have a talk with her. Lachlan might be best. He could bring Erica along as a buffer."
"Sounds like a plan." She raises her brows and smiles. "You're going to ask Lachlan for help? I seem to recall a certain someone refusing any kind of assistance from—"
"Aye, well, I've changed my mind. You convinced me." I warp my mouth into something like annoyance and humor fighting for control of my expression. "Don't need to remind me I'm fickle."
"You're not fickle. You finally wised up to the fact overbearing brothers can be useful on occasion."
I turn toward her, bending one knee and reaching for the sandwich container. I offer it to her. "Let's have our picnic in bed and forget about the rest until tomorrow."
"But you'll call Lachlan?"
"In the morning." I tap a finger on her nose. "Happy?"
"Yes." She accepts the plastic container, pops the lid off, and gazes down at the sandwich nestled inside the wee box. She takes a quick peek inside the insulated bag. "Ham and cheese? And potato chips?"
"The selection in your kitchen was rather limited."
"But I was kind of expecting something Scottish."
"Couldn't find haggis around here." I grin when she wrinkles her nose. "So, you don't want Scottish food after all, eh? Turn your sweet little nose up at my whisky, and now you look fit to vomit from the mention of haggis. I think I should be offended by your disrespect for my cultural heritage."
"I do love plaid," she says, probably trying to soothe my wounded Scottish pride, then she leans in until our faces are a breath apart. "Especially when you're wearing a kilt."
"You like my legs."
She slides a hand down my naked thigh and back up to my hip. "Among other things."
I sneak my tongue out to graze her lips, which taste faintly of Atholl Brose. "Why donnae we put off the picnic for a wee bit longer?"
"Oh yes, please." She shifts her hand to my swelling cock. "And I can think of something Scottish I'd love to devour."
Chapter Twenty-Nine
We arrive back at the house around ten the next morning, both of us feeling relaxed and satisfied like we've spent an entire afternoon and evening giving each other intense pleasure. Oh, that's right. Wediddo that. No wonder I feel so good this morning. Telling Calli everything about the accident and Seona had made me anxious at first, but then the anxiety crumbled away as I realized I have no more secrets from Calli. And sharing my guilt about Seona lifted a weight off my shoulders, one that had crushed me for far too long.
Calli freed me. And I showed my appreciation in the best way I know how—by giving her orgasms that she called "soooo beyond earth-shattering." Aye, I felt bloody fantastic after she said that. That's why I didn't complain at all when she reminded me I'd promised to ring Lachlan this morning to ask him to visit Seona. My brother agreed without hesitation.
Hand in hand, we walk up the path to the front door. Calli glances at me just as I glance at her, and we both grin like eejits.
Beyond the window beside the door, something catches her eye. The curtains hang slightly parted to reveal a sliver of the interior, though I can't see through the gap from where I'm standing. Calli leans forward, squinting at whatever she glimpses inside the house. She blinks quickly, as if she's startled.
"What is it?" I ask.
She shuffles backward a step. "Why don't we go for a walk? The puppies must be in the backyard playing, so if we go around the outside of the house we can—"
