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“I’ll find you a hotel,” Alec added. “Some place convenient with a good restaurant so you don’t have to go out at night if you don’t want to.”
“Thank you,” Ella said warmly. She smiled from Alec to Cara. “You married a really good man, Cara. If I haven’t said it before, I approve.”
Cara laughed. “I did, didn’t I?” And then she lifted her face for a kiss, and Alec obliged.
*
Baird spent theafternoon at his aunt’s house, playing the longest game of Scrabble of his life. He was glad when Kate finally won so he could take his leave. But once back in his flat, he paced around, and then poured himself a drink. But the whiskey didn’t do the trick.
He was restless. Aggravated. He was happy he’d made his aunt happy, but nothing in his world felt settled or right.
Should he call Ella? Wish her a Happy Christmas?
Or should he wait and see if she would reach out to him?
Why had everything become so complicated?
He forced himself to sit in his leather armchair, legs on the ottoman and slowly sip his whiskey while he watched the fire. But the fire made him think of Ella, and he wondered if she was building a fire in the cottage hearth every day, or if it had burned out and she’d left it cold.
He wondered if she was plugging in the lights on the little tree.
He wondered if she was happy. He wasn’t happy. One of them should be happy, and if he had to choose, it should be her.
Baird glared at the fire, the whiskey doing nothing to mellow him out. He hated feeling feelings. He hated them more than anything. This was exactly why Fiona had been a good fit. He was calm with her. He was disciplined and rational. He no longer felt rational.
Baird was still glowering at the fire when his phone rang. It was Alec calling to ask about Baird’s plans for New Year’s. Was Baird going to return, or was he planning on staying in Edinburgh?
“I’m not sure,” Baird answered. “I haven’t accomplished much this past week. I should stay here and try to get caught up.”
“If you’re sure, then I won’t try to talk you out of it,” Alec said. “But if you’d like to return before, Ella won’t be here. She’s taking the train to Bath in the morning and will be spending a few days there, returning for New Year’s, so if you came now, you’d have the cottage all to yourself.”
Baird set down his glass. “Who is she going with?”
“No one. She’s traveling on her own. I’ve booked her a room near the Abbey. It’s a nice place, and she’ll be safe there. I put a call into the concierge and the staff will be keeping an eye on her.”
“What train is she taking?”
“The one that leaves just after eight arriving around one.” Alec paused. “You’re not thinking of meeting her in Bath, are you?”
Baird frowned at the phone. What a question. No, he wasn’t thinking of meeting Ella in Bath.
He hesitated, his frown deepening, his frustration ratcheting.
Or maybe he was.
“Which hotel?” Baird asked, swearing he could feel Alex’s smug smile across the line.
Alec gave him the hotel’s name and address. “If you do go, andifyou’re getting along, could you drive her home for New Year’s? She’s not very confident about taking the train and I’d prefer Cara not to worry too much.”
“This is why you called me,” Baird said. “You called knowing I would go after her.”
“I know you’re attracted to her. I’ve known since the wedding. I don’t know what happened to you two at the wedding, but something did, and whatever it was—is—it’s still here. Maybe just face the facts—”
“Feelings are not facts.”
“Okay, fine. But Baird, she would be good for you. You need someone like Ella, someone that makes you feel alive.”
“I don’t.”
