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The men of Invertary and the women of Knit or Die, who weren’t ones to be left out, lined up along the shore of the loch. They watched in stunned bemusement as the most stupid visitor ever to come to the Highlands tried to escape by boat.
“Does he know this is a loch?” Josh watched Frank power away on the tiny motorboat.
Frank flashed a one-fingered salute to the watching crowd.
“There isn’t even a road over the other side,” Harry said. “There are only bushes, badass cows and old Gilbert’s hunting lodge.”
“He said he’s going to Glasgow.” Archie, one of the domino boys, took off his cap and scratched his head in wonder.
“Did anyone tell him a loch is basically a big puddle?” Harry said. “There is no exit. The idiot is landlocked. If he’s trying to get to Glasgow, it’s going to take him a while.”
Archie shrugged. “Might as well go get a bite to eat, then.”
The ancient domino boys headed for the pub.
“This is disappointing,” Matt said. “I really wanted to hit him.”
“You can still hit him,” Lake said. “You just need to wait until he figures out he can’t do anything but go round in circles. He’ll come back to town when he gets hungry.”
“Do you think the idiot will come back or try to walk through the gorse on the other side of the loch?” Josh said.
“Frank isn’t known for his brain, but he likes his shoes,” Joe said. “Kept telling me they cost more than my life was worth. He won’t damage his shoes.”
The men stood watching the boat in awe.
“I feel a bit lost now,” Matt said. “I was all worked up to hit the guy. It’s a bit of a letdown.”
Mitch patted him on the back. “If it helps, I’ll lend you Josh later on. He can wind you up until you’re ready to strike out again.”
“Happy to oblige,” Josh said.
Matt sighed and looked at Lake. “I’m going to the hospital. Can you deal with this?” He pointed in the direction of the idiot on the water.
“I’ll call when he runs out of petrol for the motor.” Lake’s lip twitched.
“The bomb site is under control,” Matt said. “The fire crew are there, but I’ll tell them to call you if they need anything.”
Lake nodded.
“I need more cops,” Matt said. “Ever since you foreigners came to town, I’ve been run off my feet.”
“You would be in a boredom coma without us,” Josh said.
“Good point.” Matt turned to his SUV. “Call if anything turns up.”
The men nodded then went back to watching Frank drive his stolen boat.
“What we need,” Josh said, “is some fries and a beer. Mitch, run over to the pub and get some takeaway.”
“Get it yourself,” Mitch said.
Matt shook his head with a grin as he climbed into his car. It was time to see his woman. As he drove, a plan began to form in his mind. He smiled wickedly as he flicked on the hands-free set for his phone. A couple of calls and it would all be in place.
“Where’s Matt?” Jena said when she came to.
Her head hurt. Her mouth felt like it had been washed out with sand and her eyeballs were scraped raw every time she blinked. It felt a lot like a hangover.
“He had to stay in Invertary and arrest Frank.” Heather, Matt’s mom, came into focus. She was smiling down at Jena.
Jena blinked, wincing at the scraping sensation. “Where am I?”
“Hospital. Fort William,” one of the twins said as she grinned from the other side of the bed. “You broke a couple of bones when you were sucked underground by the explosion.”
The words made the memory rush back at Jena. She closed her eyes and groaned.
There was a smacking sound. “Good job, freakoid, you’ve upset her.” That had to be the other twin.
“Girls.” Heather used her mom voice, which was strangely reassuring. “One of you give Jena a drink of water and the other one fetch the nurse.”
A cup with a straw appeared in front of her face. She accepted it gratefully.
“Samuel, raise the bed,” Heather ordered.
The bed was promptly raised. Jena looked out of the corner of her eye to find Grunt grinning at her.
“Glad you’re alive,” he said.
“Thanks.” Jena shifted on her pillows, groaning at the ache in her side.
She looked down her body and took stock of the damage. Her ribs were strapped beneath the hospital-issue gown she was wearing. Her lower leg was in a bright pink fibreglass cast and her left hand was bandaged. She held up the hand. She didn’t remember that one.
“Nasty cut,” Heather said. “Same as your head.”
Jena reached up with her right hand and, sure enough, there was a dressing attached to her temple.
“Did they have to cut my hair?” Why she was concerned about her hair and not her broken bones she wasn’t sure, but it seemed the most important worry.
“No, dear, your hair is fine.” Heather patted her hand, and for a moment Jena felt as though she was being mothered. It was nice. Strange, but nice. It brought tears to her eyes. She worked hard to blink them away.
“It was nice of you to come,” she told them. “But you don’t need to stay. I’m sure Matt will be here when he’s finished knocking Frank into next week.”
“We’re staying,” Claire said. Jena knew it was Claire because she was sitting in Grunt’s lap.
“You’re a member of the family now,” Heather said.
Jena felt her bottom lip tremble. She felt stupid. Twenty-six years old and the thought of having a family made her insides turn to custard.
“I’m not. Matt and I aren’t even dating.” Her words came out all pathetic and trembling.
“Oh, sweetheart,” Heather said. “We’re the Donaldsons. We don’t date. We tend to get married and worry about the other stuff later. Matt proposed to you while you were trapped. So it’s a done deal. No getting out of it now.”
“He didn’t propose, he ordered me.”
“Same difference.” Heather seemed unconcerned.
“Doesn’t it bother you that your son wants to marry me?” Jena demanded. “I’m a mess. My house is rubble. I have fourteen dollars, I mean pounds, in the bank. I don’t have a proper job and I can’t teach dance like this. My mother can’t stand me. My ex-boyfriend tried to kidnap me and turn me into his pet stripper.” Her bottom lip wobbled. “I just found out I’m living here illegally. All of my belongings are now under a house. I don’t even know where my clothes are. I know I was wearing some when I was rescued. On top of that, everything I touch breaks. And everyone around me gets hurt at some point. I’m the last person you should want your son to marry.”
The tears came. She couldn’t stop them. She was a joke. A useless waste of space. No good for anything.
“No.” At Matt’s voice, Jena’s head snapped to the door. “You’re not the last person I should marry. You’re the only person I should marry. You’re the only woman I want to marry.”
He stepped into the room. His eyes only for her. Jena chewed her bottom lip as tears fell. She was so relieved to see him. At the same time she knew he should run far, far away from her. “You’re only saying that because you feel sorry for me.”
Matt burst out laughing. “Silly girl.” He stepped up to the bed, sat on the edge and put his palm on her cheek. His thumb brushed away her tears. “You make me laugh. You make me take things less seriously. Your enthusiasm and sense of adventure means every day around you is fun. You’re hard-working. You’re kind. You’re so optimistic you make the sun shine just by being you. You look out for everyone.” He leaned forward to press a kiss to her forehead. “You are incredibly sexy. You’re unpredictable. Eager to learn. Slightly mad and seriously accident-prone.”
Jena gave a sad little laugh.
Matt’s beautiful blue eyes held hers. She saw in them the truth of every word. She saw the depth of feeling he had for her. It was all there. Raw and open for her to read.
“Don’t send me away, princess,” he whispered. His voice husky with emotion. “I need you. Without you I’ll become one of those sad, uptight old men who only cares about rules, regulations and how neat his house is. I need you to drive me crazy every day of my life and remind me what I’m living for.” He kissed her lips ever so gently. “I’m living for you, princess. You’re my soul mate. Don’t take that from me.”
“I love you so much,” Jena whispered. “But I don’t deserve you.”
He smiled at her, making her heart melt further. She was defenceless against him. “I’ll remind you of those words frequently.”
She shook her head at him. Matt looked over his shoulder towards the door. “Come on in,” he called.
From the looks on his family’s faces, they were none the wiser about who he was talking to either. The door opened and the vicar of Invertary Presbyterian Church walked in. Jena shot a confused look at Matt. He held her uninjured hand tight and pinned her with his gaze.
“We’re getting married. Now. Here. Don’t argue. It’s a done deal. Just accept it,” he said.
“What?” Jena gaped at the vicar. “Shouldn’t I agree to this first?”
“Generally, yes,” the vicar said, but didn’t seem at all bothered that she hadn’t.
Meanwhile, Matt’s mum burst into tears as she hugged Matt. “This is wonderful. I love it. Your dad would have loved it. It’s exactly the kind of thing he would have done.”
She wiped a tear from her eye before giving Jena an equally enthusiastic hug. Jena winced, and Matt’s hand shot out to pull his mom back. “Remember her ribs are cracked.”
“Oh, sorry, Jena.” His mother fussed over her, and it was kind of nice.
“Right, let’s get this over with,” Reverend Morrison said.
“Hey,” Matt said. “Attitude.”
The old man rolled his eyes. “I’ve got the paperwork. There aren’t any rings. So all we need to do is say the vows, sign the certificate and you’re done here.”
Matt scowled at him before smiling at Jena. “We can have another wedding when you feel better. A proper one. We can go shopping for rings together.”
Jena blinked at him. “Is this really happening?”
Heather and the twins laughed as Matt smiled at her. “Oh yes,” he said.
“Does she have concussion?” the minister said. “Is she in her right mind? I can’t marry her off to you if she doesn’t know what she’s agreeing to.”
“Jena, tell the man you want to marry me,” Matt ordered.
She stared at him for a long couple of minutes while everyone in the room seemed to hold their breaths. “Yes, I absolutely want to marry this idiot,” she said.
The women squealed with delight. The vicar sighed heavily and Matt winked at her. “Good decision. Well done. But how about less of the idiot stuff?”
Before she could answer, the vicar cleared his throat. “Dearly beloved,” he started, and Jena didn’t hear anything else.
All she could see, all she was aware of, was Matt’s smiling face and his eyes full of love.
Love for her.
Jena Morgan had found a home at last.