Page 274 of On A Manhunt: Complete Series

DANIEL

I was in my rental car in the parking lot–or car park as it was called in the UK–staring at the sign through the heavy Scottish rain: MCGAVERNAL WHISKY.

I’d been in the country for three days.

I walked the Royal Mile in Edinburgh.

I looked for Nessie at Loch Ness.

Now I was ready to sample some good whisky.

But all I could think of was Melly. How she’d tell me some piece of trivia about Scottish history or the origins of the Nessie legend.

She’d ensure I drove on the right side–or wrong side for me–of the road so I didn’t kill myself, which had been a close possibility a few times.

But it was the sign on the distillery that said WHISKY with no “E” that made me frown.

That made me want her.

I wanted Melly to be here, to see this with me. To try the “e”-less whisky with me. What was the point of doing it alone?

My dick would agree with that question. Not drinking whisky, but my dick had gotten used to Melly’s incredible pussy. Now all he was getting was my hand.

I was cranky.

I was alone.

For years, I wanted some alone time. Every parent equally craved and missed carpool and football practice and science fair projects and catching kids sneaking out.

I was no exception. With family, they always seemed to butt in, to annoy the shit out of me.

I had four brothers who–fuck, I thought of their faces as they stared in my front window at me and Melly.

They meddled.

Showed up unannounced at the house. Ate my food.

We even worked together.

I dealt with employees, a kid, family.

There was no alone.

I thought of Melly.

She was alone. Her dad, well, he wasn’t in the picture. Her grandmother was teaching in Europe and was rarely in Hunter Valley. Melly had said she’d moved in with her when she was eighteen, but I had to wonder if she was more of a permanent house sitter than anything else.

Then there was her mom.

What a piece of work!

And that douchebag who was with her.

She flitted into town, this time for money, and then left.

Melly had friends. Mallory. Bridget. Everyone in Hunter Valley knew her and cared about her. Ang had warned me. So had Deek. Even Arlo at the bar when I went in to pay the drinks tab. But I had friends, too. Acquaintances.

Everyone important, everyone close and crucial to Melly, left her.

Her dad. Her grandmother. Her mom.

Me.

She’d been so intent on setting boundaries with me. Rules for sex. It was no wonder.

As I sat in Scotland and watched a tour bus pull into the lot I realized something important about her.

They weren’t parameters she put in place so I didn’t overstep sexually.

No, that woman didn’t seem to have any sexual boundaries other than being shared. Or have it with anyone her mother suggested.

Those boundaries were to protect her fucking heart when she knew a person wasn’t sticking.

I wasn’t going to stick. I told her upfront I was leaving. She knew. She was fine with it. Why wouldn’t she be? It was what she expected.

Everyone left her.

So she put the rules in place to guard her feelings especially since our fling was all sex.

She was attracted to me and finally wanted to have it. To have it like we had, she had to drop every fucking wall she put up to protect herself, otherwise she would have laid there like that nun Deek talked about.

She wanted me. ME. Even with her issues, she’d let me in knowing she was going to feel. To get hurt. And to let me go.

“I asked her to come with me!” I said to the car.

Why would she? We didn’t spend too much time talking and getting to know each other. I knew exactly how much to tug on her nipples to get her to squirm and get her pussy to drip.

I didn’t know if she was allergic to peanuts or what kind of music she liked. I only knew… the important things. She felt safe with me. Trusted me. Clung to me for protection.

Me, the asshole who growled and shoved myself into her life.

I had no idea if Melly and I would be good together for the long haul. What the hell did I know about relationships? I wasn’t going to find out being here and she wasn’t going to trust that I’d stick if I didn’t do just that.

Stick. Stay. Be there for her. Be with her.

Share this whisky tour with her.

The car windows were starting to fog up, but I still didn’t go inside.

She’d said to me I hope you find the life you want.

As I watched the group of tourists enter the distillery, I wondered… was this the life I wanted? Alone in a strange place? Having no one to share it with? Me, my dick, and my hand?

Had I been so eager to leave Hunter Valley because I hated the life I had or because it was missing something?

Did I have what I’d been missing in my arms for three days, beneath me in my bed, and I didn’t even realize?

Why was I here? Was I searching for the life I wanted or was I running away from the amazing one I already had?