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Her eyes widen, her pupils dilating slightly, and she opens her pretty pink mouth, only to snap it shut, turning her face toward the sound of an approaching vehicle coming from around the front of the pub.

“That’s my grandparents,” she notes.

I glance over my shoulder. “Aye, Finlay will be bringing the hay bales, then.”

“Hay bales?”

“For the obstacle course.”

She smiles again, her wee bunny teeth on full display, and I feel a squeezing sensation in my chest. She’s as adorable as she is desirable, and it seems that the combination is a surefire way to leave me dizzy.

“Yeah,” she chuckles. “I think I am going to have to insist you enter these games.”

“Only because you’d like me to win you, aye?”

Her emerald eyes dance with humor as she lifts one shoulder casually. “Guess you’ll have to enter and see, hm?”

I’m cursing the way the sun is already high in the sky—knowing there aren’t enough hours left in the day to drag her back to my place and remind her who had her screaming only this morning. Maybe spank her pretty arse for being such a tease.

But Finlay’s hand clapping my back quickly yanks me out of thoughts of defiling his granddaughter.

“All right, Lachlan?”

I give the smaller man a thin smile. I like Finlay, and I’m pretty sure he’s a genuinely decent person, but he’s still a MacKay. Trusting him doesn’t feel natural.

I blanch at the thought.

So why does trusting Keyanna come second nature?

“All right,” I tell him, pushing away the thought. I nod toward Hamish and Malcolm, who are climbing out of the large truck attached to Malcolm’s trailer. “I see you managed to put those two to work.”

“Oh, aye, aye,” Finlay laughs. “Had to drag Hamish away fromthe herd for a day.” He eyes Key standing beside me, moving in close to throw his arms around her. He’s so much shorter than her that they land practically around her middle. “And how’s my favorite granddaughter this afternoon?”

“I’m your only granddaughter,” she reminds him with a laugh.

“Och, we don’t know that,” he says. “I was quite the catch back in my day. Who knows whether or not I—”

He jolts when Rhona’s hand smacks him on the back of his head. “Quit your yapping.” She clucks her tongue. “Honestly.” She regards Key, her gaze much warmer than it has been in the past. “All right, Keyanna?”

“I’m good,” Key answers with a shy sort of smile.

I’ve gathered that their relationship is still a bit strained, but I can tell the auld gal is making strides to get to know her granddaughter. I can also tell that it seems to bring Key a good deal of peace.

“Key,” Finlay says. “Come and meet Malcolm, aye? His father and I were mates back in school.” He winds his arm through hers, tugging her along. “Now, don’t listen to a word he says about me.”

Key flashes me a small smile before she lets herself be dragged away, leaving me half pining after her and trying my best not to let it show. Apparently, I don’t do a very good job.

“Don’t hurt her,” Rhona says beside me, making me startle a bit.

“What?”

Rhona’s gaze is assessing and almost cold, looking as if she trusts me as much as I do her. Which is to say not as much as I could. “You heard me. Be good to her.”

“I don’t know what you’re—”

“Och. Save it.” She waves me off. “I’m too auld and too tired for games. You just be good to my granddaughter, and everything will be just fine, aye?”

“I…” I shut my mouth at the look in her eye, giving her a stiff nod. “Aye.”