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“If you sigh any harder, you’re going to blow your laptop across the table.”
I dropped my head back and rolled it to the side, staring at Max. He was standing in front of the window in jeans and a black t-shirt, and a water droplet trickled down the side of his face, disappearing into his stubble.
“I’m going on strike,” I mumbled.
He laughed, walking over. He perched on the edge of the table and peered down at the screen for a moment before turning his attention back to me. “That’s a lot of words for someone going on strike.”
I pursed my lips. “My editor pointed out a plot hole. I can’t go forwards until I’ve gone back, but I’m stuck.”
“Would you like to talk it over?”
“It’s not a big one, exactly, but I’m stuck.” I rested my elbows on the table in front of me and propped my chin up on my hands. “So in the book, something happened in the family that means that the grandmother and the mother of the duke don’t speak.”
“Right.”
“I just don’t know what that is.”
“Ah.”
“Yes. You understand my predicament.”
Max nodded.
“So I need something that would be completely believable, not at all petty, and something that would potentially be an issue for more than twenty years.”
“And let me guess—your heroine will help to heal the rift.”
“But of course. What else?”
He dipped his head, smiling. “Okay. Anything specific?”
“Well, not really. Just something that would cause a lot of issues that couldn’t really be easily resolved.”
“Okay. Hm.” He tapped his fingertips against his knee. “My friend, William… that might work.”
I blinked at him. “Why? What did he do?”
Max laughed and stopped tapping. “Not him, but his family is in a similar situation.”
“Are you going to share?”
“Don’t be so impatient.” He tapped his finger against the tip of my nose, and I wrinkled my face up in annoyance. “His grandfather is the Duke of Glenroch.”
Oh, I knew that one. I’d researched Scottish castles for past books.
“Ooh, their castle is fancy.”
“One hell of a place,” he agreed. “He’s also very old school, and he expected his son—Will’s dad—to marry well.”
“Into another titled family, you mean.”
“Yes. I can’t remember who it was, but he and the other woman’s father tried to arrange their marriage, basically,” Max explained. “They went out a few times but didn’t click romantically. Will’s dad met his mum and told the other woman he wanted to marry her instead, and she agreed that they should marry for love. Turned out she’d been seeing someone quietly for two years and wanted to marry him but was willing to give it up for her family’s wishes.”
Aw.
“The duke wasn’t pleased. He married for status, not love, and Will’s grandmother came from a very old Scottish line, and the duke wasn’t happy when his son refused to marry the other woman. I think the only reason he didn’t disown him was because he was his only son.”
“Wow. That’s… harsh.” I frowned. “I couldn’t imagine disowning my child because they fell in love.”
