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“With Callum?” She frowned, taking in the food preparation again.
“No.” For the first time I considered the fact that my friend might have a problem with this. She’d pushed me toward Mal in the beginning, but the joke she made about Callum at the tasting may have left her thinking I was playing one brother off against the other.“It’s Malcolm.”
“Malcolm? MybrotherMalcolm?”
“Yes.” My tone couldn’t be more tentative.
“Yes!” The swift clapping of her hands made me jump.“I knew it! I bloody knew it!”
“Knew what?”
“You and Mal! You’ve always had a crush on him, it was so bloody obvious. My brother can be harder to read, but I guessed right away… there’s something about the way he watches you when he thinks no one’s looking.”
My hands stilled on the pink peony flower arrangement.“How does he look at me?”
“Like… you’re arevelation.” I swallowed thickly.“Like you’re a puzzle he has no idea how to solve but wants to try anyway.”
I didn’t know what to say.“I’m not that complicated,” I whispered eventually, carrying the vase to the table.
“No,” she agreed with a sad sort of smile.“But to Mal you are. My brother is the best man I know. Don’t tell Callum or Alastair that, but it’s the truth. He’s smart, kind, and loyal. He gives without taking. He has the biggest heart, but outside of his family and Kier, he’s never given it to anyone because deep down I think he’s afraid it won’t be accepted, like he doesn’t deserve to be happy.” She let out a soft cry, wiping tears from her cheeks, and I went to her, wanting to cry too because everything she said was true. I hugged her and she hugged me back.“What I’m trying to say is—please don’t hurt him.”
“I would never hurt him.Never.” I shook my head vehemently.“I know you suspected I had some interest in Callum, but there was nothing. From either of us.”
She pulled back, waving a hand.“Oh, I know that. Callum isn’t attracted to you at all.”
“Um…ouch?” I knew I’d said it first, but having Heather confirm it so bluntly still stung my pride a little.
“I didn’t mean it like that! We’ve been scheming to get you and Mal together for weeks.”
“What?” I gaped at her. I’d guessed that morning Callum had purposely been attempting to make Mal jealous, but Heather too?“You’re serious?”
“Yep. Now—” She clapped her hands like a drill sergeant.“Everything needs to be perfect. Is that what you’re wearing?”
We both glanced down at the loose shorts and tank top I wore.“What’s wrong with this?”
“Mal won’t care, but it’s a little sloppy.”
I laughed.Where the hell was my sweet friend?“Babe, please don’t become a matchmaker, it goes to your head.”
“Just call me Cilla Black.” Then she broke into a god-awful rendition ofSurprise, Surprise.
“You’re thinking ofBlind Date,” I said.
She threw me a glare.“We really don’t have time to waste. You get dressed, I’ll sort this mess out.”
“Aye, aye, captain.”
“Does he prefer white or red?” I held up the two bottles ofwine I’d picked up from the village store. The selection had been pretty limited.
Heather nodded to the red.“It’s the only alcohol he drinks outside of whisky.”
I stored that nugget of information away.“You think I should have grabbed some whisky from the bar?” I chewed my lip, wondering if I had time to dash down and grab one.
She threw me a bemused grin over the pasta sauce she’d taken charge of.“You’re nervous about this.”
“I’m not nervous.” I blew out a breath, clutching the back of the breakfast stool.“All right, I’m nervous, yes. I’ve never really done the dating thing, all my exes I met through work and we sort of fell into relationships. And Mal is…”Special.I couldn’t say it aloud.
She smirked again and plucked the wine from my hand, poured out a healthy glass and pushed it back to me. I gulped half of it down, barely tasting it, then pressed out the creases from my skirt. It was a warm evening so I’d changed into a silky, calf-length skirt in jade green that clung to my hips and a white tank top with a high neck and wide straps that showed a strip of navel below the hem. It felt summery and playful but not too sexy.
