HIGHLAND GAMES, WEST VIRGINIA
The Hotel - Present Day
For the second time in her life, Paige got what she wished for…well…almost. It wasn’t a monsoon, but close enough.
The sky was dark and sheets of rain poured from the heavens above as pitchforks of lightening speared down in bright flashes of light. Every few minutes a roll of thunder would shake everything in the general vicinity.
She couldn’t be happier.
Gavin shook his head and dropped the curtain back in place. “Och, I suppose that weatherman was right after all.”
“Yes, I suppose so.” She had a hard time keeping from smiling.
“I need ta apologize to ye, lass,” he said suddenly, turning from the window.
Her heart started racing. “What for?”
“I thought ye were telling lies ta me when ye said the weatherman on the picture box said it was going ta rain today.”
A wave of relief, followed by a smidgeon of guilt assailed her. As usual, she squashed the guilt down—it was a need to know kind of moment and as far as she was concerned—he didn’t need to know that she lied.
He walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. “I feel I must tell ye the truth of the matter,” he said. “I am relieved that it is raining.”
“You are?”
“Aye. I am.” He took her cold hand in his. Lifting it to his lips, he kissed the top.
As usual, her entire body crackled in response, much like the lightning outside the window. “Now that we have no place to go, what would you like to do?”
He lowered her hand but didn’t let go. “Hmm.” He stroked his chin with his free hand as though he was giving it a lot of thought. “What would ye like ta do?”
“Anything you want?”
“Anything?” He lifted his brow daringly.
“Well, I… um, guess so.” Her body tensed with anticipation of what that might be.
“I was hoping ye were going ta say that.” He dropped her hand and stood. Crossing the room, he sat down in the chair by the fireplace. “Come over here, lass.”
Feeling nervous suddenly, she stood. The hotel robe felt heavy on her shoulders as she crossed over to where he was sitting.
“Take a seat, lass.” He pointed at the chair opposite from his.
Paige dutifully sat down on the edge of the cushioned seat of the chair.
“Get comfortable.”
“Um…okay.” She pulled her legs up and tucked her feet under her bottom.
“Are ye comfortable?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” He leaned forward, rested his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands together. His expression became resolute. He cleared his throat and said, “We need ta talk.”
Oh God! She felt sick. “What would you like to talk about?”
“I have a few questions I would like ta ask ye but I want ye ta know that if it is going ta be too difficult ta speak ta me about yer personal matters jes let me know, aye?”
She frowned. “Okay.”
“Where is yer family, lass?”
“They are gone.”
“Gone?”
“Yes.” She nodded.
His brows creased. “Where did they go?”
“They passed away when I was younger.”
“Och, lass, I am sorry ta hear that.”
“It’s alright. I am used to it now.”
“Who raised ye?”
“My Grandmother. The cottage where I live is hers.”
“Where is she now?”
“She passed away last year.”
He digested that for a moment and then asked, “So ye are all alone?”
“Yes.”
“What did ye do before I came ta be here?”
“I worked on my art most days and read a lot.”
“Aye,” he said, nodding. “I saw a lot of books in yer cottage.”
“Yeah, it’s one of my favorite things to do.”
He grew silent.
Paige wasn’t sure where the conversation was going. Was he just curious or was there another reason for his questions? She would have asked but she was kind of afraid to hear his answer.
“Why did ye go to the highland games?”
There was no way in hell she was going to tell him the truth—that she went there to look for a highlander for herself. “I was going to see if they would be interested in taking some of my pieces to sell.”
“Is that why ye met with the gypsy?”
“Yeah. I mean, kind of.”
His brows creased.
“Tavner,” she said, trying to explain, “he was one of the elders and council members who judged the games. He suggested for me to get a reading done by her because I was a virgin.” She didn’t mention that it was not true, just a figure of speech.
“What type o’ reading?”
“Just to see who I should represent in the games.”
“How did ye get my colors ta wear?”
“I saw them in one of the tents and liked the way they looked, so I bought them and put them on.”
“Did ye give favors ta anyone in the games?”
“No. I couldn’t.”
“Why?”
“Because Tavner told me that I picked the colors of the um…the um…” Should she tell him what Tavner had actually told her—that by picking the colors of the 13, that she sealed her own fate? “The 13,” she blurted, finally.
“What did the witch, err, gypsy say ta ye?”
“She told me to go up on the mountain with a basket and wait.” She left out the part that she was really going up there to meet a Highlander.
“And ye did that?”
“Well, yeah. I was there, wasn’t I?”
“Aye.”
What was with the twenty questions? She had a feeling he was trying to figure something out, and what that could be though, she had no idea. “Why are you asking me so many questions?” she finally asked.
“I am jes curious, tis all.”
It seemed like a lot more than curiosity to her. It seemed like he was trying to figure something out or make up his mind about something. She just didn’t know what that something was. Deciding to turn the tables on him, she asked some questions of her own. “Do you have any family?”
“Aye. Callum.”
“Where are your Mother and Father?”
“They passed away when I was younger.”
“Who raised you?”
“Morgan.”
“Oh.” She cringed at the mention of his name, feeling a pang of remorse for bringing up such a touchy subject. Morgan was the last person she wanted to bring up. “What about the other men? How did you end up with them?”
“Alec, Graham, Muir, Callum, Morgan and Angus, we have been together for as long as I can remember.”
“Angus?” She didn’t remember an Angus.
“Aye. He’s dead now.”
Now she felt really bad but her curiosity, as it was, got the better of her and she couldn’t stop herself from asking another question. “What about the other six men?”
“They came with me to Greystone when we were released from prison.”
“You were in prison?” She couldn’t keep the shock from her voice.
“Aye.”
“What for?”
“A paltry crime or two, mayhap three.” He shrugged his broad shoulders.
“How did you meet the gypsy?”
“She was there the day of my execution.”
“They were going to kill you?”
“Aye. It would seem so.”
“For a paltry crime? What is wrong with people?” She threw her hands up in the air.
“Ye would have ta ask them.”
“How did you get away?”
Gavin grew silent, not sure if he should tell the lass, the truth of it all. That he made a deal with the witch. “Much the same as ye, I suppose,” he said finally.
“You made a deal with the gypsy?”
“Aye.” There, he said it out loud. But for some reason it didn’t lessen the sickening feeling twisting in his innards like he thought it would.
“Wow.” That was all she could say. It was a lot to take in.
As the storm raged outside, he grew silent again. Paige did too, as she tried to make sense of what they each just learned from one another.