Page 37 of Kilts and Kisses at Highland Hall (Kilts and Kisses #1)

Given how easily they normally spoke, the silence between them as they walked back to the castle felt notably tense.

In Bex’s case, it had everything to do with their hands.

Several times, she almost reached out to hold Duncan’s only to snap her hand back to her side.

She was sure he did the same. So they opted to walk a couple of feet apart, which was ridiculous, really.

‘That was a nice night, wasn’t it?’ Bex said, aware of how oddly formal she sounded.

‘Aye, they’re grand, those two. Good mates, too.’

‘Lorna thinks there’s something going on between them. Or at least there should be. And I’m inclined to agree, don’t you think?’

‘Maybe there could be,’ Duncan said, ‘but maybe they’re wiser than that. I mean, if they’re just friends, maybe they don’t want to ruin it.’

‘But would it be ruining the friendship? It could be something so much more?—’

‘Or it could end up an absolute disaster.’

She saw a flicker of pain cross his face, and the guilt rolled through her.

So many times now she had ended up putting her foot in her mouth, or feeling like she was about to, but maybe what she actually needed to do was talk to Duncan about what he’d been through.

And not the fact that he had been cheated on, but how he had lost the people closest to him.

‘Do you not talk to Archie at all?’ she asked before she could stop herself. ‘He was your best friend. Surely you miss him, too?’

It was intrusive, possibly rude, but she wanted to know. Duncan was such a people person, the type everyone gravitated towards. It was hard to imagine him cutting someone out of his life entirely.

‘He’s tried calling a couple of times,’ Duncan admitted, his gaze drifting down to his feet. ‘But what would I say to him? I need to move on with my life, and he needs to move on with his. I suppose I should be the bigger person and forgive him or something, but?—’

‘No, I think you’re being the bigger person as it is,’ Bex said. ‘The fact that you haven’t wrung his neck or beaten him to a pulp shows real restraint,’ she added, then paused. ‘You didn’t, did you?’

Duncan laughed. ‘No, I didn’t. That’s not to say I didn’t think about it, but I decided that wouldn’t be a good idea.’

‘What about Katty? Have you spoken to her?’

He shook his head. ‘She still messages, but it’s the same – I don’t have anything to say to her. The truth is, I think it was inevitable, her and me drifting apart. If I’m honest with myself, I think part of me knew that, even when I proposed. Maybe that was why I proposed.’

‘What?’ Bex stopped. Partly because her feet were killing her, but also because she didn’t think this was the type of thing you shared just strolling along.

She wanted to look at Duncan as he told her this.

To show him she was listening. With a slight nod of his head, he paused and looked around at her.

‘Katty has always been too big for a village like this – same as Archie has. You saw her, right? She never really fit in.’

‘I could see that,’ Bex admitted. ‘But I’m hardly one to comment. It’s not like I fit in here either.’

‘From where I’m looking, you’re doing a pretty good job.’ He smiled, but it was with his lips alone. His eyes were shadowed. ‘But Katty… I think I could feel she was outgrowing this place, and I wanted to keep her here. So I proposed.’

‘She didn’t have to say yes, though,’ Bex countered. ‘If she thought she was outgrowing the place, surely it would’ve been kinder to turn you down.’

‘Maybe,’ he replied. ‘But maybe she didn’t want to outgrow it.

Maybe she was trying to use me as her anchor to stay.

I don’t know. It’s strange, though… These last few months, of course I’ve been lonely, but it’s more that I miss having someone to talk to.

Someone to wake up with in the morning. I don’t think I’ve actually missed her . ’

‘Wow,’ Bex said. ‘Those are strong words.’

‘I know. Maybe the wine’s to blame.’ He chuckled, then met her gaze to prove that wasn’t the point at all.

‘So, is that why you hang out with me?’ Bex said. ‘To fill that gap?’ She couldn’t hide the pang of disappointment that struck behind her ribcage. But what did she expect? She had known he was in serious rebound territory from that first day.

‘Yes… but no,’ he said. ‘It’s not just that. I do like having you to talk to, but with you, it’s different. You make me laugh, and when you’re not there, it’s not like anyone else can just step in and replace you. It’s you I want to be with.’

‘Duncan…’

‘I know, I know – you don’t want to hear this and I get that. But I want to be honest with you. There’s something so special about you. And I don’t just mean the fact that you have a fricking beautiful body.’

‘Hey, I thought you said you didn’t see anything,’ she said, laughing as she slapped him playfully on the arm, only for him to hold her by the wrist.

That was when the laughter stopped, and it was just them, staring into one another’s eyes.

Could he really be looking at her like that if all she was to him was a rebound?

And what did that say about all the other men she had dated?

Because she was pretty sure that none of them had ever looked at her like that before.

‘I like spending time with you too,’ she said softly.

As they stood there, he lifted his hand and brushed a strand of hair behind her ears. Her eyes closed involuntarily as she drew in a long breath. Pine. That was what he smelled of. Not the shower gel she had found that first day, but fresh pine. Like the woods and nature and the earth itself.

‘So, does that mean I can take you out for dinner this week? For a proper date?’

She opened her eyes while the question rolled around in her head. A proper date. Time with just her and Duncan. It sounded ideal, but then she knew this feeling in the pit of her stomach. She was falling, hard. Did she really want to set herself up for possible heartbreak?

‘Technically,’ she said, ‘we already went on a date tonight.’

‘What are you on about? We went for dinner with friends.’

‘Two couples, not yet together – clearly a double date,’ she teased.

‘You’re a nightmare, you know that?’

‘But I’m a nightmare you like,’ she replied.

They were close now, so close she could feel the warmth radiating from him. Her body shifted forwards, desperate to close the space between them, to feel his touch again.

The castle was in sight, but Bex was only half-focused on getting home. She wasn’t sure when his hand had slipped into hers, but it felt as natural and easy as anything. Just like the way his other hand rested on the base of her spine, holding her there. Holding her close to him.

‘So, if this was a date,’ he asked, ‘do I get to kiss you goodnight?’

‘I don’t kiss on the first date,’ she whispered back.

‘I thought you said it was our second,’ he replied, eyebrow raised, a smirk playing at his lips. ‘After the shooting and everything.’

‘Fine,’ she said, trying to hide a smile. ‘Then maybe you’ll get your kiss on the third.’

‘In that case, I’m not taking no for an answer. Wednesday night, The Haven.’

Every rational part of her brain told her this was a bad idea, but the butterflies in her stomach wouldn’t let her say no.

‘Okay. Wednesday night at The Haven. I’ll be there.’ Not that she had any idea where that was. She didn’t recognise the name, but at that moment she couldn’t have cared less. Her mind had lost the ability to string thoughts together properly.

‘I’m looking forward to it more than you can imagine,’ he said, tilting his head to the side and kissing her gently on the cheek, before turning around and continuing towards the castle. ‘Until Wednesday, Barker. Until Wednesday.’