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He gave a slow shake of his head. “That would never be enough.”
No, it would not.
We were in a crowded lounge and barely knew each other, and all I could think about were the span of inches between our faces, the way his fingers moved against his whisky glass, the light in his eyes that said he knewexactlyhow he was affecting me.
I had enough attraction blazing inside me to light a football stadium. Worse, that photo of him and his daughters had set off something tender and sweet that settled dangerously close to my heart. Feelings for a strange man weren’t remotely what I’d come to Scotland to find.
This wasn’t Real Life Molly responding to him—this was Vacation Molly. Real Life Molly got to know men over weeks and months and years, not hours and days. I took my time, made sensible and safe choices. The last thing I’d rushed into had burned down around me in a puff of pretty custom logos and branding. Rushing led to mistakes, and mistakes led to heartache.
The man smelled divine and I wanted to listen to his laughter all night, but I had to be realistic. Anything that started between us would end in a matter of days. As interested in him as Vacation Molly was, I couldn’t open myself up to that.
Real Life Molly wasn’t prepared for the fallout.
“It’s late. I should probably get to bed.” I sounded way too peppy for a woman who had just chosen to walk away from her Scottish temptation.
Duncan worked his jaw as though debating whatever it was he’d thought to say. In the end, he nodded and said good night. Probably for the best, since I wouldn’t have needed much encouragement to stay.
One well-timed “Lochan Uaine,”and all my resolve would unravel like a cheap sweater.
seventeen
I might have leftDuncan in the lounge last night, but he’d followed me into my dreams.
Unfair of him, really, to catch me in such a vulnerable state. When I woke, my mind flashed with images of him from my fevered, sleeping fantasies. Most of the dream had faded away like mist in the morning light, but wisps of Duncan’s mouth on mine and vague imaginings of his broad, bare chest remained.
Pretty sure a kilt had been involved at some point.
I sat up in bed and checked my phone, hoping for a picture of Shatner to remind me of my life back home when everything inside me wanted to get swept away here on vacation.
Instead, I found two texts from Jill.
Jill: Call me when you get up, doesn’t matter the time. Important
Jill: Shatner’s fine, it’s not about him
My heart had jolted so hard after reading the first text, the second didn’t do much to soothe it. Why couldn’t she have led with that?Dog is fine, please callwould have been the preferable order there.
Harlow moved around in the ensuite, but I touched the phone icon anyway, figuring whatever Jill had to say couldn’t possibly make my nerves any worse.
She picked up right away. “Good timing, I hadn’t even gone to bed yet.”
“You scared the crap out of me, just so you know.”
She groaned. “I knew it, I’m sorry. I didn’t think how that sounded until after I sent it. Your dog is perfectly healthy. He’s currently sleeping on my pillow. I’ll have dog hair on my face all night.”
“Getting hair everywhere is his love language. What’s so important then?”
She made a small sound like she didn’t really want to tell me after all. My nerves kicked higher, even though after news about Shatner, I couldn’t think what else she might have to tell me.
“Ed got a promotion.”
Oh. Her husband worked for a popular search engine company and had climbed fairly high up the ladder. We didn’t run in the exact same circles, but between the two of us, we had enough tech contacts to fill a phone book. If anybody still made phone books.
“That’s great news, though! He’s been wanting to move into a new position for a while.”
“Yeah, we’re really thrilled.”
She drew in a slow breath, and that pause made me realize I hadn’t caught the full picture. My stomach twisted as I guessed the rest of her news.
