Page 32

‘Well, to start with, you can put that computer away. We’ll have these coffees and then you need to get your boots on. It’s time you saw more of LochDarroch than the inside of this study.’

31

Duncan waited downstairs while Bex got ready. She wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to wear, but boots probably meant jeans, too. As for picking out a top, she had brought a couple of items for wearing out – not that there was anywhere to go, but they were hardly suitable for exploring the Scottish countryside. And so, after a little deliberation, she chose a simple cream vest top with a chunky wooden necklace, although the moment she saw Duncan and the way his eyes widened, she feared she’d made the wrong choice.

‘Is this not all right?’ she asked, feeling a flutter of nerves.

‘No, it’s… You look… perfect,’ he replied, a touch of awe in his voice.

‘I think that might be a stretch,’ she muttered, trying to ignore the warmth in her cheeks.

‘It’s not,’ he insisted. ‘Trust me.’

Silence swelled between them and Bex was sure she was meant to be the one to speak, only she didn’t know how. She didn’t want to think about how all her muscles seemed to have turned to jelly under his gaze, or how it would feel so straightforward just to take his hand and walk out of the castle, fingers interlocked. As she searched for something to say, she spotted the pair of amber eyes staring at her from behind Duncan.

‘Are we okay to bring Ruby?’ she said, stepping forwards, relieved to have a neutral conversation starter. ‘She probably needs a walk, too.’

‘Sure. But we have to swing by my lodge first,’ he said. ‘I need to grab a couple of things.’

As Bex followed Duncan out through one of the back doors of the castle, she was struck by just how little of the area she had explored. Not just outside, but inside the castle, too. Other than the first day when she had been looking for the study, she hadn’t so much as peered in any other rooms, besides hers and the kitchen. And she knew there were other places worth exploring inside. What was it Duncan had called that room before? The solar? Maybe when she got a minute, she would see if she could find it. Although, if she had time to explore, then outside was probably the best place to do it.

‘Wow, I thought the view from the front was incredible,’ she said.

The door had opened onto the back lawns of the castle where a medley of greens stretched out as far as the eye could see, broken only by the crystal-blue water of the loch, while above the horizon, wisps of feathery cloud drifted lazily on the breeze.

‘Yeah, you never get bored of it,’ Duncan said. ‘And every season is completely different. I love it in autumn, when all the trees start turning orange, and winter is stunning too, just freezing. Come on. I’m this way.’

They took a narrow stone path that weaved its way through dense pines. A shortcut, she realised, to the main road and the lodge house. Only when Duncan reached for his front door handle did Bex realise that leaving homes unlocked wasn’t something only Fergus did.

‘I’ll just be a minute,’ he said, opening the door only for his tone to change. ‘Move out of the way, will you? Come on, you know I’m trying to get in.’

‘So, this is the famous Kenna,’ Bex said, keen to get a glimpse of Duncan’s number one girl. Although when she did, she was forced to do a double take.

Down by his feet, blocking the door, was… well, it was a cat, but it was also the most enormous cat she had ever seen.

‘Why is she so big?’ she asked, unable to hide her shock. From nose to tail, the cat had to be a metre long, and that was a metre of pure muscle and fur. It was the type of cat she expected to see on a nature documentary, not standing in the doorway of Duncan’s lodge. ‘Is she some kind of special breed?’

‘She’s a Maine Coon,’ Duncan replied. ‘Which apparently means she requires constant attention and needs endless brushing.’

Bex watched as Duncan scooped the cat into his arms. So much for lifting logs to train. She was pretty sure that lifting a cat this size should be a weightlifting category.

‘So, you really are a cat person,’ she said.

‘I think of myself as an animal person,’ he said, gesturing towards Ruby, who had followed them into the house. ‘She was supposed to be a Christmas gift for Lorna,’ he explained, ‘but it turns out Lorna doesn’t like cats as much as she thought she did. And, as it happened, Kenna didn’t like her much either. But she’s all mine now, my very furry handful.’ As he looked down at her, Kenna nuzzled her head into his beard. ‘I’ll give you a brush later, girl. I need to get something now.’

‘I could give her a brush while you grab whatever you need.’ Bex heard the words leave her mouth before she could stop them.

‘Are you sure?’ Duncan asked. ‘She’d love that. And it would stop her knocking everything off the shelf, the way she normally does when she doesn’t get the fuss she’s after. The brush is just over there.’

Bex looked over to where Duncan had gestured, wondering why the hell she had made the offer. Kenna looked like she could devour her whole. But there was no way she could back out now.

As Duncan dropped the giant feline onto the sofa, Bex picked up the brush, sat down beside the cat and tentatively began. Immediately, the purring started, encouraging Bex to brush just a little harder.

‘Does her name mean something?’ she asked as she focused on the long fur of the animal’s tail. ‘Kenna, it’s pretty.’

‘It’s loosely from Gaelic,’ Duncan replied. ‘Meaning fire-born.’

‘Because of her red fur?’ Bex guessed.