Page 37 of A Summer House on Arran (Scottish Romances #3)

Logan smiled as he watched Kitty run over to Fergus, throw her arms around him and hug him tightly.

‘It’s so good to see you, cuz,’ he said.

‘And I’m sorry that I’ve not had a chance to catch up properly with you.

I feel really bad.’ He smiled reassuringly at Logan and waved his hand to welcome him over.

‘Hey there. How are you? Good to see you again. I hear you’ve been keeping Kitty busy?

’ The corner of his mouth lifted in a mischievous grin.

He looked at Kitty sideways, wondering just what she had told him. Not that there was much to tell. But her face was the picture of innocence.

‘Yip, I told Fergus that you’d been cracking the whip with all these walks we’ve been doing. My feet have been totally shredded.’ She grinned at him.

‘What do you kiddos want to do today?’ he asked. ‘Are you still keen to take out the kayaks? Perfect weather for it.’

‘Less of the kiddos, Ferg. Remember that I’m older than you, so show some respect.’ She laughed and gave him a playful punch on the arm.

He rolled his eyes. ‘Sorry.’

‘Kayaks would be great if that works for you?’ Logan had already checked the weather conditions for the rest of the day, and they were in luck. It was set to be fine and calm. A bubble of anticipation began to form as he thought about the day that stretched ahead of them.

‘Okay, no problem. I know that you’re savvy enough, Logan, but I have to say that you’ve come along with the right woman.

You’re in good hands with Kitty here.’ He jerked his thumb towards the shed.

‘I’ve left a couple over there for you and just remember your wetsuits and buoyancy aids.

Gail will sort you out with that inside.

Just bear in mind the usual safety stuff and be careful.

But as I said, Kitty will look after you, mate. ’

Logan’s gaze swept over Kitty, and he wondered if he had missed something. She looked at him and winked.

‘Did I tell you that I’m a qualified instructor?’ Her gaze lingered on him.

‘No, you did not tell me that.’ He grinned back.

‘I learned with Cameron when he was younger. He loved sea kayaking in the Moray Firth. I spent so much time helping out that I decided I may as well get the qualification.’

‘I’m impressed,’ said Logan, genuinely.

Kitty met his eyes. ‘No big deal. Right, shall we do this? I’ll be ready in ten minutes if you are?’

‘Deal,’ he said.

When they had their wetsuits and buoyancy aids on, they dragged their kayaks down to the shore. As they walked, he could smell the gentle floral scent of her perfume in the air. ‘Ladies first,’ he said, gesturing for her to go ahead of him.

‘It’s fine. You go first. I just want to make sure you know what you’re doing,’ she said wryly.

‘Of course, I keep forgetting that you’re in charge.’

They both paddled out towards the Holy Island, Kitty at the front, constantly looking over her shoulder to check he was behind. He wanted to be alongside her, so he paddled a bit faster until he was.

‘Isn’t it pretty?’ said Kitty as she manoeuvred herself around and pointed back at the panoramic view of Lamlash.

‘I know,’ he said. ‘That’s what I love about being on the water. The different perspectives it gives and the way you can look back on a place and see it like this. It’s amazing.’

‘Do you see those terraced cottages there?’ said Kitty, pointing at the row of white houses with green doors that were prominent in their view. ‘Did you know they’re actually of major architectural importance? They were designed by Sir John Burnet and built in the late nineteenth century.’

‘I did know that actually, but I’m impressed,’ said Logan. ‘I didn’t realise you were so up to speed on the island’s history. Did I tell you that on one of the tours when we drove through Lamlash?’

‘No,’ she said indignantly, then laughed. ‘It’s something Fergus tells me just about every time I see him.’

‘How come?’

‘Because he’s decided that he wants to buy one of the cottages. So he’s been doing his research while he waits for the perfect one to come on the market.’

‘Ah, I see.’

‘It will actually be good to spend a bit of time with him while I’m here. I haven’t seen him properly for ages, and he also has a new girlfriend that he appears quite smitten with.’

Logan considered her words for a moment. ‘That sounds like a familiar story. The same thing happened to my friend, James. Until he met Amy, I thought he would be a bachelor forever.’

Kitty turned to him and he allowed his gaze to roam over her face. She opened her mouth as though she was about to say something in response, then appeared to change her mind and clamped it shut again.

‘What is it?’ he said.

‘Nothing.’

‘Mmm. You looked like you were going to say something.’

She held up her hands. ‘All I was going to say was, first one to the Holy Isle is the winner.’ With that, she turned and began paddling furiously.

They paddled quickly, peals of laughter coming from Kitty as she tried her hardest to stay in front.

There was no denying that she was good, and he was struggling to keep up.

By the time they reached the shore, he was panting for breath, as was Kitty, and she beat him by about a metre.

‘I won,’ she said, punching the air triumphantly.

‘I didn’t have you down as the competitive type,’ he said, grinning.

‘I’m afraid I am. I can’t help it. Even when Cameron was small, he would get annoyed with how competitive I could be.’

‘What, did you try and tackle him and his friends when they were playing football?’

‘Pretty much,’ she said, beaming. ‘I know I shouldn’t be telling you that. You’ll think I’m an awful person.’

Logan stepped out of his kayak and pulled it onto the beach, then stretched his arms up. ‘That was quite the workout,’ he admitted.

‘Did you think you were just going to have a gentle morning on the water?’ There was a smile on her lips.

He looked shame-faced. ‘I wasn’t expecting that. Just goes to show you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.’ He reached into his small backpack, which was tucked into the boat. ‘I don’t know about you, but I’m desperate for a coffee.’ He pulled out a flask. ‘Can I offer you one?’

‘Oh, yes please,’ said Kitty, fastening her hair with a clasp. ‘I’m parched.’

‘There you go,’ he said, passing her an enamel mug. ‘Hope you don’t mind it black. I wasn’t sure what you took so thought I’d play it safe.’

‘It’s perfect,’ she said, taking a sip. ‘Wow, this is a really good cup of coffee.’ Her tone was quite sincere.

‘You sound surprised.’

‘Well, it just goes back to what you said. We shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.’

He laughed and raked his hand through his hair. ‘I will admit that I didn’t make it. James only has the instant stuff in his flat, so I took it down to the distillery café and asked them to fill it for me.’

They sat in companionable silence for a while. Logan wondered if he should tentatively ask again about her husband and what had happened. But Kitty drained the rest of her coffee then bounced back to her feet, and the moment was gone.

‘Right,’ she said. ‘Are you ready for a rematch back to the other side?’

‘You mean you want another race? Oh boy, okay. But you do realise that I was giving you a chance on the way over here. I didn’t want to embarrass you by winning. It wouldn’t have been very gentlemanly of me.’

He twinkled at her and Kitty narrowed her eyes. ‘Sod that nonsense. Last one back can buy lunch and, seeing that I’m not feeling very generous, I hope you’ve brought your wallet.’

Before he could respond, she had jumped in her kayak and was off. ‘Hey,’ he called after her. ‘You didn’t give me any warning.’

She looked over her shoulder and grinned. ‘Catch me if you can.’

It was an invitation he couldn’t refuse.