The evening and night passed in a blur of naps, kisses, and insane happiness. Shock and my injury had me sleeping far more than typical, but whenever I woke, Maddock was there, offering a drink, or food, or the meds Elise delivered.
Already far gone for him, I fell so hard I saw stars.
In the morning, he danced into the bedroom, radiating excitement. “My sister had her bairn.”
I jerked up and instantly regretted it. “Oh wow, congratulations, uncle. Boy or girl?”
“A lass. Healthy and braw, and apparently yelling the place down. Isla will be over the moon. She wanted a wee sister.”
“I can’t wait to meet her. They’ll be home within a few days, right? Enough time to get a one-arm baby cuddle before I have to go.”
Maddock’s grin diminished. “Aye. No problem there. Listen, I have the week off work, I just confirmed it with Gordain. We can have breakfast, then I want to find my brother. Does a short drive sound good?”
“Perfect.” I swung my legs from his too-comfortable bed and rose.
Later, I’d need to get to all the messages on my phone. Talk to Mom. Talk to my boss, and to the police. But for now, I could continue to block out the outside world.
With Maddock’s help to wash my hair, I slowly and gingerly readied for the day.
Except when Maddock called Max, he wasn’t on the estate.
“I’ll be back later,” he said over loudspeaker. “If the two of ye are bored already, Isla will take ye up on that helicopter flight ye promised her. She’s mentioned that almost every time I see her.”
With our plans changed, Maddock booked the heli, and we drove to collect Isla from Maddock’s parents’ place.
The little girl ran out as we parked. “Rory!” she yelled. “I have a baby sister.”
My heart swelled. She remembered me from our brief previous meeting.
“Yeah, you do. I bet she’s as sweet as you.”
A woman waited at the door, clearly Maddock’s mother. Red hair a few shades lighter than his curled over her shoulder. She cocked her head at us, an eyebrow raised at her son.
Maddock grinned. “Ma, this is Rory. Rory, be prepared for a subtle interrogation. Watch this one, she’s shifty.”
His mother rolled her eyes. A man joined her, and I was introduced to Maddock’s dad. They asked after my recovery, shock expressed over the events that led to my accident.
“I have access to excellent solicitors, should you need any legal support,” Scarlet, his mom, advised. “Just say the word and I’ll get them down here.”
All words were said with care, and parental concern hid behind every look.
I instantly loved them both.
For so long, I’d been the parent in my relationship with my mother, and in some ways, my father, too. Both of them. I’d been responsible for forging a relationship and deciding how I handled them. My stepdad, I’d treated with kid gloves. My birth father with caution. His excitement and enthusiasm to reveal himself as my father couldn’t replace years of lies. Something I’d never really tackled.
An instant yearning hit me to be near such solid family as the McRaes. Yet another thing to panic about when it came time to leave Scotland.
I suspected when that moment came, Maddock would find a way to come with me.
I wanted and regretted that in equal measures.
At the hangar, we loaded into a helicopter. Up until this point, my distraction had stolen my fear of flying, but the moment the rotor blades spun, nausea hit me. The last time I’d flown, I’d been hurried to the hospital, borderline unconscious and the bone in my arm snapped from the kidnapping.
“Are ye scared? Don’t worry, Maddock is really good at flying.” Isla slid her little hand into mine.
“Rory isn’t afraid,” Maddock told us through the headphones and with a wink in my direction. “She’s the bravest person I know.”
Up we rose, then Maddock took us on a tour of the estate.
It felt like a lifetime ago that he and I had driven the coastal route and talked about exploring further. What I wouldn’t give to spend my recovery time doing exactly that.
Life rarely worked out the way I wanted.
With Isla squealing over every familiar sight, it was easy to forget my worries in favour of entertaining the bright little girl.
But once we were done, and we’d taken her home, there was no avoiding what I needed to do.
At Maddock’s kitchen table, I unlocked my phone and prepared myself. Mom first.
But no answer came to her number. I tried my aunt instead.
Aunt Rebecca answered on the first ring. “Oh, honey, I’ve been so worried. I spoke a couple of times to Elise, but I can’t believe what happened to you.”
I sucked in a breath and gave her the short version of the story, something I knew I’d have to repeat over and again. Then I finally got to the point. “How’s Mom doing?”
Aunt Rebecca snorted. “She’s all patched up and going home tomorrow.”
My stomach tightened in dread. This was happening sooner than I hoped.
“I’m so sorry but I need your help in looking after her until I can get back.”
“No need. She’s already told me to go home.”
I scowled at Mom’s instruction. “That won’t work. Who’ll look after her?”
“Her boyfriend. He’s barely left her hospital room.”
Fuck. “You mean my stepdad.”
“Wade? I haven’t seen him here once. I don’t think he even knows your mother hurt herself.”
I held the phone tighter. “Then who do you mean?”
“Sean. They’ve been dating for a while. I told you this on the phone.”
My mind ran over our last conversation, when Max had been driving me back from the airport. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Sean who?”
Then it came to me.
The man Mom said had visited. Sean Arcadia, who I’d stormed around to yell at.
“Her old boss?” I spluttered. “How…?”
“Of course, it was a conflict when they worked together,” Aunt Rebecca continued, “but your mom resigned and that was that. They haven’t told me, but I’m pretty sure Sean wants to marry her once her divorce to Wade comes through. After all, he paid her hospital fees without even blinking. That man looks at her like she’s an angel. By the way, why did you send me that money? I told you on the phone that the evidence to pay was all taken care of.”
“Because I could barely hear you. Because I panicked and knew how expensive it was going to be.”
“Yes, well, Sean handled all of that. Your mother gave him a key to your place, and his daughter is going in to spring clean ahead of April going home. I assume that’s okay with you?”
I opened and closed my mouth like a fish. “Then I don’t need to rush back?”
“With a broken arm? Don’t talk crazy. We’ve got it covered.”
I sagged in my seat. Across the room, Maddock raised his gaze from where he fed the log burner fire. His shoulders had bunched at the start of my conversation, now they loosened.
At the tiny shake of my head, he fist pumped then raised his hands in a praise God movement.
With a short further conversation, I wound up my call with my aunt.
“If I don’t speak to you sooner, happy New Year,” she ended the call and then was gone.
I stared at the date on my phone. It was New Year’s Eve, my sister’s original wedding day.
In the back of my mind, secondary to my panic over leaving Maddock, I’d feared not being able to attend her rearranged wedding. Quickly, I dialled her.
“Hey!” Elise chirped.
“When is your wedding booked for?” I asked.
“A week from today.” She sucked in a breath. “Please tell me you’ll still be here. I’ve been too scared to ask.”
Maddock finished his task and moved over to the table. With his gaze on mine, he knelt in front of me, parting my knees to get closer. In wonder, I stared at him.
“I’ll still be here,” I told my sister.
She squeaked in delight, but my focus was all on the man in front of me.
As quickly as I could, I wound up the conversation with a promise to see my sister tonight. Apparently, in replacement of the original wedding party, a McRae relative was hosting Hogmanay, a New Year’s Eve party that was a huge deal in Scotland.
In utter confusion, and treacherous, wonderful hope, I filled Maddock in. “Mom has a new boyfriend. He paid for her medical care, and his daughter is doing all the things I should for her to go home.”
It didn’t escape me that I still hadn’t spoken to my mother. And for the first time, I let myself feel a tiny degree of that selfishness that had always been there. The one where she’d always taken from me and not given back. Put my stepfather over me. Didn’t share vital information with me when I carried all the burdens.
“She quit her job on purpose,” I continued, working things out. “I went around and yelled at her boss about that. Who, incidentally, is the new boyfriend. I’m now wondering if she expected this. Him to take over looking after her. She doesn’t seem to be overly worried about me.”
“Or maybe she’s doing all she can to let ye go.” Maddock ran his hands around my waist, under my shirt. His thumbs made slow sweeps over my hot skin. “Before I get too excited, does this mean ye can stay for longer?”
“It does.” I still had work to handle, the police to talk to, and a thousand other life things to deal with, but nothing mattered besides Maddock.
Inching forward to the edge of the chair, I kissed him. For days, I’d barely done anything but rest. Today’s excursion could’ve tired me out, but the reprieve from hurrying to the States fuelled me.
He held still, letting me love on him.
“I want you,” I said against his lips. “This is so terrible of me, but I never want to give you up. I need you in my life in all ways, including here and now.”
I kissed him again, coaxing him to lift his restraints. I wouldn’t break any more than I already had. Finally, his tongue slid over mine, and we both groaned. Our kiss turned wet and dirty in no time.
My body woke, and my blood heated. It had been way, way too long since we’d done this.
“Stand up,” I ordered.
Maddock leapt to his feet. With my good hand, I hauled down his shorts and freed his rapidly hardening dick.
“Fuck,” he whispered, urgency in his tone.
“In a second,” I replied then took him into my mouth.
Maddock swore again and gently held my head.
I sucked him and swirled my tongue around the end, my fist gripping the base of him, too big to fit him all inside my throat without choking. Maddock’s dick pulsed, and he thickened under my attention. His taste was so addictive, his sudden and instant readiness for me even more so.
Slowly, he rocked his hips, cradling the back of my head.
“Too fucking good.” He snapped his hips back and lifted my chin. “Need to be inside ye. How do we do this? I cannae bend ye over this table or have ye against a wall. All I know is it needs to be right now.”
I clambered to my feet, and Maddock kicked off his shorts, keeping his hand in mine. Too eager, I led him to the bedroom. On his quilt, I spread out, and he came with me, his big body hovering over mine.
“Like this,” I said. “Just you and me, face to face.”
With his focus hazy, he dipped his head then reached for my waistband, ridding me of half my clothes in one go. He attempted my t-shirt, but my cast got in the way, so instead, he reached back and drew his own shirt over his head.
I finally got a good look at the new tattoo on his chest.
My robin. The same image I had inked on my hip. And his twin had, too, but that was not the topic for the moment.
My mouth dropped open, and I sat up. “You did not.”
“I did.” His lips twisted in amusement, and he positioned himself between my thighs, spreading me wide for him.
“What if we’d never seen each other again? What if—?”
Maddock lined his dick up with my centre and entered my slick heat in one thrust. I cut off my words with a yell.
“What if ye just let me be in love with ye and express that whatever daft way I choose?”
God, the thickness of him drove me crazy, and I saw stars yet again. I’d missed this so much. If I could, I would’ve clawed at him, had him bend me over and twist me into fun positions. But for once, we could do this the simple way.
Make love.
He stooped forward, and his mouth took mine. At the same moment, he reached between us to find my clit, rolling the little bud between his fingers before rubbing hard circles over it.
With his other arm, he kept his body weight off me, his biceps bulging with the effort. I glanced my touch over those hard muscles and down his back. Something in his strength lit me up even more, and I wrapped my legs around his waist to take him deeper.
Inside, he hit the same place over and over, charging me up. I buried my face in his shoulder, ignoring the pain from my arm, and I strained to get closer. To surrender to all the good things that came when he and I were together.
We were undeniable. Electric.
We surged against each other, testing and perfecting our connection. Our lips locked, and our moves came as natural as breathing. I wanted this forever. Him. The happiness we generated together.
Maddock kissed my cheek then nudged my head back so he could see my eyes. “I love ye.”
Heat surged through me. “Say that again.”
“I love ye.”
Tight coils wound deep in my belly. “Again.”
“I love ye, Aurora Robin Westacre.”
My climax smashed into me, and I clamped down on Maddock. The room spun, and lights danced before my eyes. Maddock slammed into me over and again, prolonging my pleasure.
“I love you, too,” I uttered, breathless, when my head had cleared enough to allow speech.
“Christ,” he growled and jerked his hips once more than stilled, his dick pulsing deep within me.
Then his mouth was on mine and we were kissing out our pleasure. For a long while, we just laid in each other’s embrace, satisfied, exhausted, and so happy it hurt.
That evening, after yet another long nap, Maddock drove us to Castle McRae, his uncle’s incredible home. In the Great Hall, a party was in full flow. Though I couldn’t drink with my pain meds, I was introduced to fifty relatives, all welcoming. Many with small kids in their arms or running around.
I’d had no idea there were so many McRaes, or how tight they all were. Four or five brothers and their ladies made the older generation, then a whole army of cousins came after.
Coming from a family of two, I goggled at it all, my eyes well and truly opened.
At midnight, when we’d all counted down to the new year, a knock came at the door.
From our position by the fire, Maddock frowned at a dark-haired man, there with his wife and kids. Another cousin, or a family friend. I’d lost track.
“Hey, Sebastian, I thought this was your job,” he said.
Sebastian shrugged. “I’ve been usurped. Another dark-haired man has taken my place this year. His request.”
Maddock’s uncle answered the knock, and Gabe waited on the other side, items in his hand including what looked like a lump of coal and a bottle of whisky. In the past few days, Maddock had confided that he was here, and that he worried for his friend.
After the black eye his dad had given him, no wonder he’d spent all of Christmas here and now celebrated New Years with this family, not his own.
“Scottish first footing tradition,” Maddock said to me. “Gabe offers gifts and Callum entertains him.”
“Isn’t it also said that he can claim a kiss from any lass here?” the woman under Sebastian’s arm said coyly. “I know I enjoy that tradition when you’re the one at the door.”
Rose, I recalled her name. I grinned at her, more so when Sebastian’s expression darkened.
“In his case, any single woman,” he corrected, louder.
Around us, people chuckled, and Gabe glanced over. “I’ll settle for the entertainment.”
“Ye sure about that?” A dark-haired, slender, and gorgeous woman raised her hand.
Her name escaped me, though I recalled she had a brother who’d married into the family, two guys and one woman living as a committed three-person relationship.
A man to my left choked. “Effie!”
The brother, I guessed.
Effie’s eyes gleamed in devilish humour. “What, Brodie? Do we all want good luck for the next year? I know I could use it. What’s your name, newcomer?”
“Gabriel.” Gabe tilted his head, something interesting registering in his expression. A slight degree of embarrassment at the attention but amusement, too.
“Okay, Angel Gabriel, come on over here.”
But he shook his head, his lips resisting a smile. “I wish I could, but I have a plane to catch.”
Maddock leapt up. “Swim first.”
“Into the loch!” several people cheered at once.
I’d been warned about the night getting raucous and traditions being upheld. Looked like this was one of them. Whooping resounded, and a charge led outside.
Maddock kissed my cheek. “I’m going in. Stand and watch, if ye like.”
“Going in? You mean to the water?”
But he was already gone.
I joined the throng heading outside, frost on the ground. The icy loch glistened in the moonlight, reflecting back the castle and mountains. The McRaes stormed the banks, shedding clothes as they went.
Elise joined me, her arms folded against the chill. “What the ever-loving heck? I knew this was a thing, but I figured it would be a mild night. It’s freezing.”
We huddled together, watching the crazy sight. “I’m sorry this isn’t your wedding party,” I told her.
“I don’t mind. I only cared that we got you back safely. Are you really going to stay for a while?”
“As long as I can. I have to go home eventually.”
“Why?” Elise turned to face me. “If the only thing tying you to the States is your mother, and she is making efforts to move on, then live here.”
The thought had crossed my mind over and over.
My sister continued. “If you’re worried about rushing things with Maddock, live with us. We have the space, and I want you here. So much. At least give it a trial run of six months.”
“But my job…”
“Bokeh sucks. When I told them you’d been hurt and wouldn’t be back for a while, the guy sniffed and said you’d be fighting for your contract. So screw them. We’ll find you something else.”
“It isn’t as simple as that.” Except maybe it could be.
On the rocky beach, people stripped to their underwear, or even entirely nude, and stepped into the water. Maddock gripped his twin by the shoulder and yelled for Gabe. The three of them splashed in until they were knee deep then threw water at each other, until one took the initiative and knocked the other two over. I grinned at the sight, at my happy, beautiful Scot.
Then I stored away the joyful thought that one day my stay here might be permanent.
