Kilted Lover (12 page)

Sirens blared closer. A few minutes later, an ambulance arrived. Leslie stood aside while the paramedics loaded Fletcher onto a stretcher. As she was following them out, she noticed her purse lying on the floor. She snatched it up and searched inside, but she didn’t have time to check everything. Her phone, wallet and keys were there at least. They’d likely taken her money and other valuables.

“I’ll drive Fletcher’s car behind the ambulance,” Leslie told Scott and Paul outside. “The house we rented is one block over.”

“I’m coming with you.” Scott followed her to the sidewalk. “If you lose the ambulance, you might have a hard time finding the hospital, unless you know where it is.”

“I don’t. And thanks.” Was he a great guy or what? Helping her make sure her “boyfriend” was okay while also taking care of her. He was definitely a keeper, if only she got an opportunity to keep him beyond her stay in Charleston.

***

“How is he?” Paul asked.

Scott turned from the window of the emergency room waiting area. “I don’t know. Leslie’s still visiting with him.”

Paul gave him a sympathetic look. “This whole situation sucks, huh?”

“Yep.”

“The police want us to come to the station and give statements. Leslie, too.”

“If she ever comes out.” She’d been in with Fletcher for what seemed like hours. Scott knew he shouldn’t resent that, but he couldn’t help it.

“So, what’s going on with her?” Paul asked.

“I don’t know. Fletcher’s badly injured. She can’t leave him. And even if she could….” He shook his head.

“Was it just a fling between you two? Just sex?”

Scott couldn’t stop the glare he shot at Paul.
Just sex
was so far off the mark it didn’t deserve a response.

“I didn’t think so.” Paul sighed. “Well, wait for Fletcher to recover, then if—”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” It was too big an
if
. He had no guarantee Leslie’s feelings for him would last beyond the next twenty-four hours, which was about as long as he’d known her. She’d told Fletcher she loved him. They’d dated for ten months. Obviously they had a more stable relationship than she and Scott had.

Leslie’s and Scott’s connection was more like an explosion which blazed hot, but might, for her, burn itself out fast. If he couldn’t have her, he at least hoped his feelings for her would die quickly. But he doubted it. How could he develop an attachment for her so soon? It didn’t make sense. Maybe he was delusional. But when Leslie walked toward them five minutes later and his arms ached to hold her, he didn’t think he was imagining anything. He wanted her for a lot longer than twenty-four hours.

A worried frown contorted her brows. When their eyes met, her expression eased a bit. “He has a mild concussion and eight stitches. He’ll have to stay overnight.”

“Did the doctor give a prognosis?” Scott asked.

“He should be fine after several days.”

But I won’t be, Scott thought.

***

The next day, Leslie strode toward Scott in the hospital waiting room. Her heart somersaulted at the sight of him, and not just because he was the most physically appealing man she’d ever met. He’d wound himself around her, body and soul, and she never wanted to leave him. She’d missed him terribly last night.

When he and Paul had dropped her off yesterday evening after their trip to the police station, she hadn’t even kissed or hugged Scott as she’d yearned to do. But now she had him alone for a few minutes.

“Did you spend last night on the boat?” She didn’t know why that was the first thing she asked him. Maybe because that’s where she most longed to be—held tightly in his arms while they lay in the stateroom bed.

“Yeah.” Though he didn’t say the words, his eyes said he’d missed her. He looked tired, as if he’d gotten little sleep.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Yes. Fletcher’s going to be released today.”

“Good. He must be improving.”

She nodded. “We have to go home, back to Columbia.”

“I’m going home, too.”

She had shared the most profound of intimacies with this man, yet she didn’t know nearly enough about him. In one way he was almost a stranger, but in another, she knew him better than she’d known any man. And she wanted so much more that it frightened her. She feared she would never get it.

Guilt overshadowed the giddy happiness she experienced simply standing beside him. Though she felt like a traitor, she didn’t want to go back to Columbia with Fletcher. She only wanted Scott to hold her until she felt better. Then she wanted him to make slow and delicious love to her.

He led her by the hand down a hallway toward the vending machines and pay phones. In a deserted alcove he tugged her close. “I’ll miss you, Les,” he whispered. The look in his eyes almost broke her heart.

“I’m sorry. Scott, I wish—”

He stopped her words with a finger to her lips. “Shh.”

She tried to tell him with her eyes that she only wanted him.

He kissed her, gently at first, then fierce and hard. His taste and his scent were like coming home, comforting, familiar, and exciting. She framed his precious face with her hands, accepting his angst-filled kiss—his goodbye kiss—willing it to be something else. Willing it to be the beginning, not the end.

Oh, God, I love him.

When he pulled back, breaking the kiss, a protest caught in her throat.
No, not yet.

“I should go.”

Her throat tightened. She held onto his wrist and savored the feel of his skin. “Scott.”
Don’t go!

“Shh, baby, don’t cry.” He kissed her eyes, the warmth of his lips making it much harder. “He needs you right now.”

I don’t care if he needs me,
she wanted to scream.
I don’t want him. I want you.
But she was too mature to do such a thing. She had to be a grown-up and salvage what little remained of her conscience and loyalty. She had to make sure Fletcher was well, then she could break it off with him. But she couldn’t tell Scott now. That would only increase his feelings of guilt. She wouldn’t conspire any further behind Fletcher’s back. If she was meant to be with Scott, it would happen at the right time.

She held his hand tightly. “Thank you for everything, Scott. Thank you for helping me, for saving my life more than once.”
Thank you for the
most incredible night of my life.

“You don’t need to thank me for that.”

What he’d given her two nights ago was too much, too broad and too deep for words. “Take care of yourself.”

He nodded slowly and released her hand. The look in his eyes now bordered on agony—the same agony that battered her own heart. “You, too.”

He turned, opened the door, and walked away, leaving her with nothing but a hollow ache inside.

She wanted to chase after him and tell him,
I love you
. She wanted to whisper it in his ear and yell it to the world. But she couldn’t. Not yet.

She dried her eyes and returned to the Fletcher’s room where the nurses were preparing him to leave.

***

Scott stared absently at the blueprints in front of him. The dim interior of the large, half-completed log home didn’t help his concentration. But mostly he couldn’t push Leslie out of his thoughts. Sometimes the oddest things made him think of her—a woman’s laugh, a certain kind of soap, or the scent of grilled steak. Hell, even a glimpse of his kilts reminded him of her, so he’d buried them in the back of his closet. Their conversations and everything else they’d shared replayed almost continuously through his mind. He wondered how she was, and what she’d done during the past three weeks. Strange how such a short association could imprint her so strongly on him.

Catcalls and lewd whistles erupted outside. Normally he wouldn’t have paid any attention to his crew’s antics, but they were in the mountains in the middle of nowhere. He moved toward a nearby hole in the wall where a window would go.

The flame-colored hair of a petite woman in the drive matched the red fall leaves. “Les,” he whispered. His heartbeat tripped. Was he hallucinating?

“What do you want with Scott?” one of the crew asked. “I’m a better man than he is.”

Though he could hardly breathe past the tight excitement in his chest, Scott strode outside and met her in the yard.

“Scott.” She smiled like the sunshine, her blue eyes slightly misty. Seeing her felt like a punch to the solar plexus. Questions crowded his mind.

He steered her out into the drive where she’d parked a good distance from his obnoxious, jeering employees.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, drinking her in from the top of her head to her sexy, shapely legs beneath the hem of her shorts.

“Looking for you.” Her hungry gaze trailed over him. This seemed promising. “I called your office and got directions.”

“You did?” He felt as if he’s lost the power of speech.

“Yes. I kept your business card.”

“Oh.” He didn’t know she had one.

“Did you miss me?” She watched him expectantly.

“Hell, yes. You know I did.”

She threw her arms around his neck and held him tight. “I missed you, too.”

He picked her up in a hug. God, he’d missed the feel of her small, tight body in his arms. She giggled and he set her back on her feet. Maybe he was getting ahead of himself.

She drew back. “I broke up with Fletcher after he recovered completely. And he was okay with it. I think he was relieved that I turned down his impulsive proposal. So, now that we have nothing to feel guilty about and I’m not involved with anyone else, I was wondering if you’d consider another one-night stand.”

Relief and thrills shot through Scott. He shook his head slowly. “No.”

Leslie’s smile faded, and she searched his face.

“One night is just the beginning of what I want,” he said.

Tears filled her eyes and a wobbly smile moved across her lips. He couldn’t wait any longer for a kiss. He pressed his mouth to hers, slid his tongue inside for an erotic taste, and knew he’d found paradise.

Catcalls, whoops and hollers erupted behind them. He glared back at the men. “Get back to work!”

“Yes, sir, Mr. Romeo,” his foreman sing-songed. All the men laughed.

“Just because I’m in love with you, does that mean I’m Romeo?”

Leslie laughed, and a tear streaked down her face. “I love you, Scott.”

He picked her up again, hugging her tight, and buried his face in her fragrant hair. She’d said the most beautiful words in the world to his bruised heart, and he simply had to give her a small reward.

“Let’s go to Scotland,” he said, setting her on her feet.

Her mouth dropped open. She tugged him close and placed sweet little smacking kisses all over his face. “Yes!”

He caught her lips with his and leisurely explored her mouth. God, he had been lost without her.

“Get a room!” one of his men yelled. Laughter followed.

Scott grinned and lifted his head. “Great idea.”

Leslie blushed.

He tried to take his mind off his arousal. “I see you’re wearing the amulet.” When he brushed his finger against it, the peridot brightened, mystifying him as always. It had to contain magic which had helped them find each other.

“Yes. I had it appraised.”

“And?”

Her eyes lit with excitement. “It’s seven-hundred years old and worth a lot of money. They didn’t know how much because if I wanted to sell it, the amulet would have to go up for auction.”

“Are you going to sell it?”

“No. It led me to you, so it’s priceless.”

Kilted Lover: Epilogue

“I want to show you something beautiful. Close your eyes.” Scott helped Leslie out of the car and led her halfway down the wooden steps that led to Sango Bay in Durness, Scotland.

“Brr! It’s cold! And I hear the ocean.” She held onto him tightly.

The May wind still held a sharp sting, but they were bundled up in wool sweaters and coats. Because of their schedules, they’d had to wait seven months to take this trip, but it was worth it. They’d been dating, spending weekends together, and talking on the phone a lot since she’d come back to him in October. Yes, this month-long trip exploring Scotland had definitely been worth the wait. Visiting all his favorite sites with her was like experiencing them for the first time again. Her excitement was contagious.

“Open your eyes,” he said.

He watched Leslie instead of the landscape. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped.

“Oh, my God, Scott! This is the most beautiful place on earth.”

He loved the look of awe on Leslie’s face. He’d so hoped she would find this place as incredible as he did.

“I think so.” With her he gazed out over Sango Bay, the gray ocean waves smashing against the huge black boulders that jutted up from the beige sand. The dramatic clouds emitted a mystical gray, purple and pink glow.

“Come on.” He led her by the hand down the steps to the beach.

“This place is amazing.”

They walked among the tall, primordial rocks protruding from sand and ocean. The beach was deserted and the wind whipped them fiercely. They reached a low, wide outcropping of pink sandstone that extended into the ocean. Scott helped her onto it, then joined her. The ocean crashed onto a cliff nearby.

Scott hugged her to him and kissed her. When he pulled back, his chest felt tight. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” She searched his eyes. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong.” He sucked in a deep breath and dropped to one knee.

“Oh, my God, what are you doing?”

He gave her a shaky smile. “I’m proposing to you, Leslie Livingston. Will you marry me?” He placed a small black box into her hand.

She threw her arms around his neck and he stood, lifting her, holding her.

“Yes, yes, yes! You know I will.” Tears streamed from her eyes while he kissed her. He swiped her tears away and the cold wind dried them.

“You didn’t open the box yet.” He grinned, trying not to tear up like a sap.

Her hands shook as she fumbled with it. He helped steady her and the box opened to reveal the large diamond solitaire surrounded by small gleaming peridots.