Page 38 of Snowy Surprises in the Highlands (Scottish Highland #5)

She fed Bertie and watched as he wolfed down his food as if it would be stolen at any second.

Then she looked through the fridge and cupboards, figuring Harris would be hungry when he got back from wherever the heck he’d been, and she had no way of telling him to pick up a takeaway.

She gathered potatoes, onions and some leftover roast beef and was standing at the cooker making a pan of stovies when she heard Harris’s motorbike pull into the driveway.

‘Finally,’ she said to Bertie, who tilted his head and wagged his tail as if he completely understood every word.

Harris walked into the kitchen with his crash helmet under his arm. There was something innately sexy about a man in a leather biker jacket, but there was something even better about her man in a leather biker jacket.

‘Hey, are you okay?’ she asked, wiping her hands on a towel as he put his crash helmet on the table and walked towards her. ‘You’ve been gone ages.’

He didn’t speak. Instead, he pulled her into his arms and held her close, the familiar, earthy smell of the leather and the heat of his body making her relax a little.

He kissed the top of her head. ‘I’m sorry, sweetheart. I shouldn’t have gone off like that. And I shouldn’t have left my phone behind. You’ve every right to be angry and upset with me.’

She pulled away and gazed up at him. ‘I’m not angry or upset. I was just worried about you. You seemed so sad when you left, and I wanted to help but you rode away before I had a chance.’

He kissed her tenderly. ‘I’m all good. And I have something I need to tell you.

Come and sit down.’ He took off his leather jacket and placed it on the countertop.

She turned the stove down to a simmer and then allowed him to lead her to the table where they sat down facing each other.

She wasn’t sure whether to be worried or not, as his expressionless face gave nothing away.

He took a deep breath and released it. ‘Okay… I don’t want you to be mad at me but…’

Ah, so she should maybe be a little worried because no good conversation started with those words. ‘But what?’ Her heart skipped.

‘I rode for a bit and then I ended up at the Quiraing viewpoint. It’s a crisp day so the view was clear.

And I was just alone with my thoughts and memories for a bit.

’ This wasn’t an explanation so far and that concerned Bella further.

What was he building up to say? ‘The situation with Alba…’ He shook his head and frowned.

‘It’s really made me think about everything, us… the wedding… the future.’

Her stomach lurched and for a moment she thought she might throw up. He was going to say they maybe should delay, or maybe shouldn’t get married at all, wasn’t he?

‘And?’ she asked, in almost mortal dread for the answer.

He pulled his lips between his teeth and nodded. ‘Okay, so I’ve sort of done a thing.’

Her nostrils flared and her eyes began to sting.

She covered her mouth with her hands as her heart tried to escape through her chest. ‘You’ve cancelled the wedding,’ she said.

He stared at her blankly, or was he shocked that she had guessed?

Either way, it confirmed her fear. ‘Look, I know you’re scared of losing me, Harris, I feel the exact same way about you, but this isn’t the way to handle things.

I understand your grief, of course I do, but?—’

He shook his head. ‘Why is it that your mind always goes straight there, Bella? That that’s always your immediate thought?

That I’m going to call things off? What have I ever done to make you jump straight to that conclusion?

Bella, sweetheart, I’m not Kerr. And I have no intentions of cancelling the wedding.

You’re stuck with me until death us do part, Bella Douglas, soon to be Donaldson. ’ He smiled.

Relief flooded her veins, and she relaxed a little more. ‘I don’t know… I suppose what you said about being scared of losing me and now Alba’s gone, and what the email said… I just—’ Shit . She clamped her mouth closed.

‘You read it then.’

She nodded. ‘I’m sorry, Harris, it was there, and I didn’t know what was going on. I shouldn’t have?—’

He smiled. ‘It’s fine. I have nothing to hide from you. You can read all my emails. I don’t mind at all.’

She shook her head. ‘Then you disappeared, and I didn’t know what to think. You have to realise that I’m scared of losing you, too, but I don’t go running off without explanation.’

He nodded slowly. ‘You are mad at me. And I totally understand. But the thing is, Bella, Alba’s death felt like a call to action. I had to do something immediately, and, no disrespect, without you having a chance to talk me out of it.’

No wiser, Bella shrugged. ‘Okay… But what was so urgent? What have you done?’ Oh God, has he gone and got a commemorative tattoo for another woman?

He reached into his jacket and pulled out an envelope. He paused a moment, evidently trying to weigh up his decision and trying to pre-empt her reaction to it. He slid the envelope across the table to her. ‘Open it.’

With shaking hands, she opened the envelope and pulled out several folded pieces of A4 paper. She flattened them out and stared at the information before her. She couldn’t quite believe her eyes. Was this really happening? Had he really done this?

She peered at the paper and then at Harris. ‘What have you done?’

A wide smile spread across his face. ‘Hear me out, Bella. I know how much you’ve wanted to visit Tuscany.

And Alba’s death has made me realise that we shouldn’t be putting off making special memories at all.

We should be grabbing each opportunity for happiness that we can, with both hands.

And it would make me so happy to take you to Tuscany for our honeymoon.

So… we’re going,’ he stated matter-of-factly.

‘We fly on 29 December and we’re there for ten days.

It’s all booked. I’ve spoken to Olivia and okayed it for us to stay at the castle until we fly, and she said absolutely no problem.

I was going to leave it as a surprise for the wedding day but I’m so bloody excited I had to tell you straightaway.

There’s no way I could’ve held onto it. We’ll be there in time to see the Cavalcade of the Three Wise Men in Florence on the 6th, something I know you’ve always wanted to see.

We’re going to visit a vineyard and have a wine tasting by a roaring fireplace.

We’re going to see the Duomo in Florence, the Uffizi Gallery, all open in January, we checked.

The travel agent up in Portree was so helpful.

We planned the whole trip. I know the weather won’t be sunbathing temperatures, but you love winter, and I figured this was going to be amazing, regardless of the cold.

And we’ll have each other to keep us warm. ’

Tears welled in Bella’s eyes and spilled over. ‘But… your savings, Harris. And what about the station?’

‘All sorted. Bertie too. All dealt with. You have nothing to worry about.’ He shrugged and pulled her into his lap.

‘Bella, if I’ve taken anything from Alba’s death, and the letter from Bryn, it’s that I want to make you happy and to make every memory I possibly can with you.

I don’t want to put things off if we don’t have to.

What’s the point of saving for a rainy day that may never come?

You’re my future and although no particular length of time is ever guaranteed, we can’t sit around focusing on the end when we’re only at our beginning.

’ She was utterly gobsmacked and sat in silence trying to take it all in.

He sighed. ‘Are you disappointed? Or angry with me for doing this without your agreement?’

She widened her eyes and wiped away her tears.

‘Absolutely not! Harris, this is the loveliest, most special thing anyone has ever done for me. You’re giving me my dream honeymoon.

How could I possibly be disappointed?’ She threw her arms around his neck and peppered his face with kisses.

‘We’re going to Tuscany!’ she said as the excitement finally kicked in to replace the worry and anxiety that had plagued her for the last few hours. ‘Tuscany!’

* * *

The group video call was scheduled on Zoom for the following day at 7p.m. and Bella sat, her heart doing somersaults as she waited for everyone to join. One by one their friends and family logged in and Harris kissed her hand.

When everyone was present and had said hello to one another, Bella began. ‘Thanks for logging on, everyone, and Granny, please tell Dorothy thanks from me for helping you and Tam with Zoom.’

‘I thought it was a washing powder,’ Isla said. ‘I had no clue this thing existed. I’m only familiar with the WhatsUp.’

‘Well, you’re here now and that’s all that matters. We just wanted to share our exciting news with you all.’

‘Are you pregnant?’ Ben asked, wide-eyed. ‘Because I’m telling you now, I’ve forgotten what sleep is.’

‘But it’s definitely worth it,’ Skye added, giving him a swift dig in the ribs.

‘Oh, aye, it’s so worth it,’ Ben agreed.

Bella giggled. ‘Sorry, no, no babies yet. But it’s something we didn’t think was going to happen.’

‘Come on, Bella, my suspenders are killing me!’ Isla said and everyone laughed.

‘Erm, Mum, I think you mean the suspense is killing you,’ Bella’s dad said, cringing.

Isla winked at the camera. ‘I know what I meant,’ she said and at this point no one could hold a straight face.

‘Harris has been very naughty,’ Bella said.

‘Maybe that’s not a topic for video call?’ Brodie said and another rumble of laughter travelled the ether.

‘Come on, Bells, just say it, or you’ll never get a word in with this lot,’ Olivia said with a roll of her eyes.

The excitement had got too much, and Bella was ready to burst. ‘Harris has booked for us to go to Tuscany for our honeymoon!’ she blurted, almost in a squeal.

This was met with a cheer and applause. ‘Oh, that’s amazing, Bells! Well done, Harris.’

‘Absolutely brilliant!’

‘You’ll love it!’

‘I’m so jealous.’

The comments kept rolling in and Bella sat there beaming as Harris squeezed her hand.

‘You have to go to the Uffizi,’ Reid said. ‘It’s incredible. Seeing Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus up close was an emotional experience for me.’

‘And the pizza is divine in Italy,’ Granny Isla added. ‘None of this processed rubbish you get in supermarkets. Proper cheese and an authentic Italian base. Nothing like it. Giovanni’s in Portree comes a close second, but it helps that he’s a proper Italian.’

‘We’re going to a wine tasting by candlelight,’ Bella said, swooning.

‘Bloody ’ell, Harris, you’ve done it now. Us blokes are all gonna be compared to you, you romantic sod,’ Neil said in his broad Yorkshire accent.

‘Aye, that’s one way to ruin all our street cred, pal,’ Dex added in his Geordie twang. ‘Not only are you a good-looking bloody hero who plays fiddle, but you book romantic holidays too. Jeez, what hope have we got?’ He was grinning as he spoke.

‘Take a leaf out of his book, boys!’ Ruby said, nudging Mitch. ‘You could all do with some lessons from Harris.’

‘So, you’re telling me a tent in midge season is no longer classed as romantic?’ Archie asked, feigning ignorance, and was swiftly whacked on the arm by Caitlin.

Everyone was laughing and Bella was ecstatically happy that they had all been so lovely about it.

When the call ended, Bella turned to Harris. ‘Thank you again, Harris. I can’t quite believe how lucky I am.’

He cupped her face in his hand and kissed her. ‘It wasn’t luck, sweetheart, it was fate. You and me? That’s what you call meant to be.’