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“I’m so happy for you. How are the people on tour with you? A good bunch?”
“They are.” Two seemed the right number of words here. Gabbing about Duncan with Jill was one thing. She might give me a hard time, but she would keep it to sane levels. Mom would start planning a Highland wedding as soon as she caught on to my inclinations.
Although, seriously, a wedding in the Highlands would be gorgeous, wouldn’t it?
No. I needed to escort thatextremelypremature notion out ASAP.
“I’m glad to hear it. Does this mean you’ll start flying more often?”
The less I thought about planes, the better. I didn’t need to preemptively ramp up my anxiety. “I’m still in denial about the return flights.”
Her gentle laughter made me weirdly homesick.
“At least you tried. You wouldn’t want to go your whole life without one big trip.”
One big trip.That homesickness turned into plain old sickness. Was that all this was, then? My one big trip before I settled back into my old routine? I wasn’t sure I wanted to completely let it go. But that was the trouble with vacations—at some point, they had to end.
The ache in my chest amplified like someone had cranked a dial in my heart. I couldn’t think about going home yet, either.
“How are things on your end?” I asked before I could slip too far into my sad little thoughts.
“Oh, we’re the same as always. Although, your father is so delighted with the belly dancing lessons, he’s been having me put on shows for him—”
“Okay Mom, I have to go down for dinner. It’s been good talking to you.” Let’s just nip that conversation in the bud right now.
“You, too, honey. Enjoy the rest of your trip. Soak it up.”
“I plan to.” For as long as I could.
* * *
After dinner, Carlos, Harlow, Duncan, and I met up at the nearby pub again, where Carlos bought us a round of ales from a local brewery. The ale made for easier drinking than the peaty whiskies we’d sampled, thank goodness—although I would pace myself more appropriately than I had last night.
We settled in at a table where the sides of Duncan’s leg pressed against mine. Seemed like we had more room than that tonight, but I couldn’t complain. Give me all the coziness.
“I didn’t think you could drink that,” I said to Harlow. “The grains and all.”
“The occasional drink won’t hurt.”
Her fervor for her diet seemed to come and go. She turned back to Carlos, who pretty obviously delighted in her attention.
I couldn’t feel bad about being edged out when that left me on my own with Duncan.
“Tell me about some of the houses you’ve restored,” I said.
He ticked his head to the side as though considering my request.
“The most recent renovation was in Kensington, restoring the house to suit its 1920s history. We gutted the first level, expanded the kitchen and bathroom, and resurfaced all the hardwood floors.”
“Do you do any of the actual work, or are you more like the foreman?”
“Do I do any of the actual work? Do I look like the numbers man?” With his elbows still on the table, he flexed his biceps, and I laughed at the way they danced beneath his shirt. I wanted to grab one in the worst way.
“Well, you look like you could boss people around pretty well.”
“My crew would agree, although I don’t. Do I seem tough to you?” He stared me down with his fiercest glower.
If he’d looked at me that way the first day we met, I might have dropped out of the tour entirely. Tonight, it did something magical to my insides, lighting me up and fanning those flames. I knew more of the man behind the stare now and feared no ill-intent.
