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This might all be too much. The restaurant, the magick, the broonie, the Kelpies…all of it. What was I even doing here? I couldn’t even control my own little kitchen elf. How the hell was I even going to help Sophie with the Kelpies?
Two pieces of paper fluttered onto the table in front of me and I looked up, wiping my eyes, as Brice popped his little head out from behind where the spice cabinet had moved from the wall. He lifted his chin, urging me to look at the paper he’d dropped in front of me while I was crying.
“What is this?” I said, wiping my eyes before picking up the papers in front of me. “Tommaso Bianchi wanted for fraud in New York City. Wait, is that the Italian guy?”
I looked up to see Brice nodding at me.
“Is he one of the investors? And what is this?” I held up the other piece of paper that looked like a deed of sorts. “Is this for the Auld Mill property? This says it is protected land. There’s a natural habitat of otters?”
“Aye,” Brice said, softly, as though he wasn’t used to speaking.
“Oh my God.” Realization hit. “Munroe has no idea what he’s walking into, does he? That’s why you flipped out.”
“Aye,” Brice said, again, his eyes filling with tears once more.
“Shit. I have to go. I have to stop this.” I grabbed my purse and shoved the papers inside, racing for the doors. “We need to talk about how you express your emotions, Brice. Don’t do anything else until I get back, I have to fix this.”
Slamming the doors behind me, I skidded to a halt by the bicycle. I knew that Munroe was meeting with the investors in a private back room at the Tipsy Thistle. By the time I rounded up Sophie, explained what I needed, and got her to drive me, I could already be there.
If I rode the bike.
Fear for Munroe’s future far outweighed any trepidation I had about accepting this gift from him, and without another thought, I swung my leg over the bar and plopped my butt on the seat. It had been ages since I’d ridden a bike, as we’d only had two to pass among the siblings, but it was true what they said about old habits coming back easily.
After the first few tremulous pedals, my confidence grew, and I took off toward town, like a Kitchen Witch without her broom. The crows joined me, cawing above my head as they circled, my own personal cheering squad, and I raced for the pub.
I only hoped I wouldn’t be too late.
CHAPTERTWENTY
Munroe
“Gentlemen, I have to admit, I have some reservations.” I’d been surprised to see Tommaso as one of the investors when I’d arrived at the meeting today, and wondered why he hadn’t mentioned it to me the night before. I suppose that made sense why he was in the area, as it had seemed odd that he was in town just for the soft opening of Lia’s restaurant. Not that she wasn’t fabulous, of course, but the castle had done no publicity on the restaurant yet.
“That’s understandable,” Tommaso said, spreading his hands wide. “It’s not easy to start playing with the big boys.”
The way he said it rankled me, and I assumed it was designed to do so. Even though he wore a kindly smile, I sensed that he was goading me, as though he wanted to see if I was capable of rising to the challenge. With him sat two other investors, both with proposals about how we could take Common Gin to the next level. My real estate agent had handed off the paperwork for me to submit an offer on the Auld Mill property once the meeting was finished. I’d hesitated there, as well, even though the property was lovely. Something was niggling at me, which usually meant I needed to take more time before I made a decision. As much as I wanted to start the process of opening a distillery in Loren Brae, I still needed to be smart. If that meant taking more time until I found the perfect property, then so be it.
“How did you come to hear of my plans to build here again?” The investors claimed that they had caught wind of my interest in another distillery for Common Gin, which had subsequently piqued their interest in taking my brand to international markets as well. They claimed it showed my willingness to expand into other markets, since I continued to build more properties under the Common Gin brand.
“Your agent,” Craig, one investor, mentioned. He seemed the nicest of the three, but I wasn’t necessarily fooled. There was something that shifted beneath his eyes that I didn’t quite like.
“Your mother,” Tommaso said, and I turned, raising an eyebrow at him.
“Mum mentioned it?” It appeared I’d have to speak with my mother about sharing business secrets. I’d mentioned the new distillery in passing to her when I’d first come to Loren Brae, and it surprised me that she’d viewed it as notable enough to share with an investor like Tommaso.
“She did. Your parents were at the club, and we had a chat.”
“What do you think?” Craig asked, pushing the paperwork toward me. I leaned back in my chair and steepled my fingers in front of me as I thought about how I wanted to proceed. Much like in my dating life, I could move at a glacial speed when it came to business as well. I would rather take my time to make sure a deal felt right, than to impulsively jump into something. These investors were offering a significant opportunity, the likes of which would take Common Gin through the stratosphere, and there was a lot of money on the table. Not only would I be giving up shares of my own company, but I’d also have to buy in to a new conglomerate they wanted to form to introduce a few choice Scottish brands to international markets. The packaging was slick, the opportunity was apparent, and the little boy inside of me who wanted to show up his parents screamed at me to take the deal.
“Munroe, wait!”
I jumped to my feet as Lia crashed through the door, her hair wild around her face, her breath coming in pants.
“Lia, what’s wrong?” My stomach dropped. Had the broonie hurt her after I left? I was an idiot for walking away. I’d known it at the time, and I shouldn’t have gone to this meeting. She was what really mattered, and she could have been hurt further. I moved around the table and took her hands in mine. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, I’mfine,” Lia promised me, gulping for air. She leaned to the side to see the three men in suits gaping at her, and then looked up at me with panicked eyes. “I need to talk to you.”
“Um, now isn’t really the best time. Can it wait?” I asked, relief filling me that she was safe.
