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“Damien’s a douchebag. You did the right thing,” Carlo said, knowing he was far enough away from my mother’s reach.
“You knew about this?” Enzo turned to Carlo.
“Just last night. Her friend Savannah posted about it.”
“Is Savannah the one…” Gio cocked his head at Carlo and made kissy noises with his mouth.
“You’ve got a thing for Savannah?” I zeroed in on Carlo, distracted for a moment. This was news to me.
“Why do you think he follows her on Instagram?” Enzo laughed, dodging as Carlo tried to punch him in the shoulder.
“Boys! Enough.” Dad turned to me. “Pumpkin. Tell us what happened.”
And so I did. By the time I’d finished, we were all gasping for breath, we were laughing so hard, and I realized just how much I would miss my family if I went to Scotland. No matter the situation, they always had my back. Where I’d woken up today, nervous and uncertain of my future, their support was helping me to understand that I’d made the right decision.
Plus, who really wanted to eat grasshoppers?
“Grasshoppers.” My mother made a disapproving noise with her mouth and then looked up at me, worry filling her warm brown eyes. “But Scotland…it’s so far.”
“It’s not too bad. Six hours on a flight. About the same as to California,” I pointed out. We’d only gone once to Scotland, as a family, years ago when my dad had received a promotion at work, and they’d watched flight deals for a year. It was the only international travel that I’d ever done, which reminded me, I’d have to see if my passport was out of date. Was I seriously considering this job offer?
Itwasa sweet deal.
Sophie, an American, had recently inherited MacAlpine Castle in Loren Brae, and she was working on a new campaign to encourage tourism. Part of that campaign was to build out the restaurant at the castle, and they hoped to do themed weekends for visiting tourists. She said they’d read about my surprise-themed menus and had thought I’d be a perfect fit for what they had in mind. The offer included housing, a generous salary, and even a moving stipend. My own restaurant. In afreakingcastle.
It almost seemed too good to be true.
“But…” My mother trailed off at a look from my father. When she went quiet, the rest of the table did as well. It wasn’t often that my father took the lead on things, but when he did, we all listened.
“I think this could be a wonderful opportunity. Why don’t you tell us about it?” My father gestured with his fork, and I let out a breath before rambling off all of the details that I knew. By the time I was finished, Luca was nodding along with me.
“This is so cool, Lia. You have to do it. I mean…it’s Scotland. I can come visit and be an influencer,” Luca said.
“Influence who? Girls into not dating you?” Enzo asked and my brothers started razzing each other.
“Lia? Porch.” My dad stood and angled his head to the front door, and I topped off my wine glass before following him outside. The air was brisk, but summer had been kind to us so far, and it wasn’t cold enough to have to grab a coat. I settled into an Adirondack chair next to my dad, and we sat in companionable silence for a moment like so many times before. As his only daughter, my dad had often tried to take me aside when he could, giving me small special moments together in his busy schedule. Sometimes it was just like this, sitting on the porch, watching the world go by, talking about whatever was on our minds.
“Will you go?” My dad glanced at me before taking a sip of his beer. “To Scotland?”
“I…I don’t know. I’m thinking pretty seriously about it.” I shifted in my seat, crossing one leg over the other, and watched a car search for a parking spot on the street. “It doesn’t seem real. It still feels like I’ll be going back to Suzette’s tomorrow to plan the menu for the week.”
“Big changes don’t always happen on our preferred timeframe.” Dad shrugged one shoulder. “I was asked to go back as well. But well, I had your mother to consider. And we had a home here. A family. Friends. It wasn’t much, but it was ours. Och, starting from scratch after we’d worked so hard to eke out a living here, well, it didn’t suit.” Although my father had been away from Scotland for well over thirty years now, the whisper of the Highlands still clung to his voice.
“Who asked you to come back? Your family?” I raised an eyebrow at him. To my knowledge, he didn’t have much family left in Scotland aside from his great-aunt. Both of his parents had passed on before I was born.
“No. The people of MacAlpine Castle.”
My jaw dropped. “What, the same MacAlpine Castle I’ve just been offered a job at?”
Dad nodded. “I think…there’s something more there that you should know about. Gran, well, you never got to know her, but she was part of a thing there years ago. An Order. I think…well, I don’t know all that much, truth be told. There was magick involved, I guess. Myths. Legends. Och, it’s been ages since I’ve even thought about it. There’s been whispers of magick through the years at MacAlpine Castle. It’s kind of a known thing in Scotland. You’ll need to be careful how you approach things, Lia. It’s not like Boston. Some of the people who live in small towns in Scotland are often mired in the old ways, old thoughts, myths…magick.”
“Magick?” I choked on my sip of wine. “Wait, you’re saying your gran was a witch?”
“Aye.” He turned to me, his eyes serious.
“But…like, just someone who liked crystals and stuff or…” I widened my eyes at him.
“From my understanding, a proper witch. A Kitchen Witch if I remember correctly.”
