Morna's Legacy 04 - Love Beyond Measure (10 page)

He mistook my response. As I threw the car into park and unbuckled my seatbelt, he started to apologize. “Ach, I’ve behaved as a fool, Grace. Forgive me. I dinna mean any disrespect to ye. I meant it as a compliment. I dinna wish for ye to think that I was bored with ye. I know the conversation may have seemed that way. I’m sorry. Truly. I doona know…I am no verra good at speaking with women.”

“Hush.” I was certain my eyes were hazy with lust. I scarcely knew how to handle the emotion, it had been so very long since I’d felt it. My entire body trembling with my desire for him, I placed one finger on his lips, just long enough to silence him and then I pressed my lips against his.

It surprised him, I could tell by his short intake of breath, but he responded immediately. Groaning into my mouth, a deep, guttural noise that made my stomach muscles clench as his left hand moved to the back of my head, pulling me closer.

It was perfect, yet restrictive. I couldn’t stand to continue kissing him with the barrier of the console between us. I wanted him closer, wanted to deepen our kiss. “Wait. I…” my words were shaky. I breathed deeply trying to catch my breath. “I did that too soon. I’m sorry.”

He laughed a bit, but allowed me to pull away. “It was no too soon for me, lass.”

“That’s not what I meant.” I started the car, throwing it into drive so that we could get back to the inn and resume our kissing outside the vehicle. “I want to be closer to you than I can be in the car. Let me get us to the inn.”

I saw his grin from the corner of my eye as he moved to brush a strand of hair behind my ear. “Do ye? Well, I willna deny ye that.”

I couldn’t finish the remaining mile fast enough, but after seeing lights still on inside the inn, I parked the car quietly, hoping Cooper wouldn’t see us pull up. He’d rush outside to greet us if he did.

We exited the car in sync and, after a brief moment, I crushed myself against him once again, not hearing the front door of the inn open or the footsteps that approached us as I lost myself in Eoghanan’s kiss.

“Mom, look who’s here.”

I stilled instantly, mortified that my young son had caught me making out like some hormone-crazed teenager. I didn’t even care who was there, nothing or no one could embarrass me more than I already was…or so I thought.

“Tough day of work, huh Grace?” Jeffrey stood next to Cooper, smiling with shocked eyes.

Then Cooper’s voice, all high and pitchy with excitement, “it’s Dad!”

“Jeffrey!” My voice was perilously close to matching Cooper’s pitch and, although there was no reason for me to feel this way, guilt swarmed over me. I’d been doing nothing wrong, but seeing Eoghanan’s horrified expression made me feel like I had.

“Da?” Eoghanan took a huge step away from me, putting a wide gap between us. He glanced back and forth between me and Cooper and Jeffrey, his brows turning in deeper with each flick of his eyes. “I think I’ll retire, Grace.”

His voice was hard as he walked away. While I wished to go after him, there were other people I had to deal with first. I waited until the inn door closed behind Eoghanan then I stepped forward to hug Cooper and then Jeffrey.

“What are you doing here?”

“I decided it wasn’t worth it to stay and listen to your father. I turned over my clients to other lawyers and decided to join the two of you.” Jeffrey winked down at Cooper who was ecstatic at how Mom’s business trip had turned into a family vacation for him.

“Oh.” I knew Jeffrey could see the disappointment on my face, and I rushed to clarify. “It’s not that I’m displeased to see you. You’ll be a big help if you’ll keep Cooper occupied while I work. It’s just…” I jerked my head back to the car to indicate what they’d walked up on. “I just wish you’d waited a minute to make your appearance.”

Jeffrey pulled the corner of his lip down in apology. “Yeah, sorry about that. The way Cooper talked about it, I just didn’t put it together that it was that sort of dinner. Guess you better go after him to do some explaining, huh?”

Before I could answer, he bent to pick up Cooper, “You ready to go to bed?” Cooper yawned and lay his head on his dad’s shoulder. His excitement had worn him flat out. Jeffrey turned his attention back to me. “Go, Grace. We can talk more in the morning. The old lady, Morna, right? Anyhow, she put me in my own room. I’ll take Cooper with me.”

“Ok, thank you.” I kissed Jeffrey on the cheek and Cooper on the top of his head, holding open the door for Jeffrey so he could carry Cooper through it.

“Hey, Grace.” He paused at the base of the stairs, looking at me over his shoulder. “Good on you. It’s good to see you smile—get out a bit. It’s time.”

*

He didn’t answer on my first knock so I hollered at him as I rapped my knuckles against the door a second time.

“Eoghanan. Look, I know all that didn’t make me look so good. Will you open the door so I can explain?”

The handle turned slowly to reveal a stone-faced Eoghanan. He stood blocking the doorway. Clearly, I wouldn’t be permitted inside.

“I am angry with ye, Grace. I doona think there is need for explanation. ’Twas verra apparent.”

“No, believe me, there’s a great need for explanation. It’s a complicated situation.”

He made a noise that lay somewhere between a groan and a laugh. A noise that gave away just how truly hurt and angry he was. “I doona doubt that lass, but I doona wish to hear it. Goodnight.”

He shut the door.

The breeze that followed froze my face.

“Good morning.” I entered Jeffrey and Cooper’s room bearing coffee and orange juice. Although I didn’t much feel like it, I couldn’t help but smile at the sight of Cooper and his dad coloring together.

Jeffrey stood as I entered, reaching desperately for his coffee. “You’re amazing. Thank you. Last night didn’t go so well, huh?”

“Why do you say that?” Setting Cooper’s orange juice down on the floor next to him, I started in on my own cup of coffee.

“Give me some credit, Grace. I know you. I know that,” he pointed to my forehead, “the large vein that runs across the top of your head bulges with you’re stressed or upset. It’s bulging big time this morning.”

“Great.” I rubbed at the vein and then stopped, knowing it would only aggravate it more. “You’re right though. He wasn’t in the mood to let me explain. I don’t know if he’ll ever be.” Waving a hand dismissively, I took a large gulp of coffee. “Just as well, I guess. It would be a bad idea to get involved. Ya know, since he lives in Scotland and we live in New York.”

“What a load of crap, Grace.”

He was absolutely right, but if I admitted that, I knew I’d get all sad and mopey. I had too much work to do for that.

“No, it’s not. It’s practical. This is a work trip, and that’s what I plan on doing today. Coop and I are going to be gone taking photos this afternoon. Want to join us?”

“No. I think I’ll hang around here.” There was an expression on his face that made me nervous. An expression that said, ‘I have definite plans, but I’d just rather you didn’t know about them’.

“Are you sure? What is there for you to do around here? You’re not planning on saying anything to Eoghanan are you? Because there’s no point. Please don’t.”

“Yeah, I’m sure. I plan on sleeping most of the day, not meddling in your dating life.”

Dating life. He said it like I usually had one. I didn’t think that one date could be considered equivalent to my having a dating life—dating incident, perhaps. “Sleep is the worst thing you could do for your jet lag. You’ll never get adjusted that way.”

He rolled his eyes. “I’m adjusted. I’m just exhausted and want to spend a lazy day doing nothing but sleeping and eating.”

“Okay, fine. Just don’t say anything to him, okay?”

“Sure thing, Grace. Sure thing.”

*

Eoghanan slept fitfully, visions of Grace’s face as her husband walked up on them kissing, floating up behind his eyelids each time he tried to shut his eyes. He thought over the events of the previous evening repeatedly, each time all of it making less sense than the last.

He’d seen it on her face, the guilt, the regret she felt at kissing him. She’d not been pleased to be seen with him. It had been his mistake really, to assume Cooper’s father was dead. He didn’t understand enough of the customs of today’s times to have another explanation for why the lass and her son would have traveled such a great distance alone.

How ironic that he would be accused of having an affair once when he was innocent only to be guilty in a different one without his knowledge. It was unfair of Grace to treat him thus, to pull him into such a situation. Surely, he’d not behaved in such a way to make her think he was the kind of man who would kiss another man’s wife.

One aspect of the evening confused him more than any other. Why had the man Grace had called Jeffrey not knocked him on his arse for placing such intimate hands on his wife? He certainly would have had it been him. Instead, the man had smiled at them both, with no show of anger in his eyes.

As if summoned by mere thought, Eoghanan opened his door to the rough knocking of the very man he’d been thinking about.

The man held the same unsettling smile. Surely it wasn’t a common thing for men to share their women so leisurely in this time. The man extended his hand toward him. Ignoring the painful pull of his shoulder, Eoghanan met the man’s hand with his own.

“Uh, hello. I didn’t get to properly introduce myself last night. Name’s Jeffrey. Do you mind if I talk to you a minute?”

“I’m Eoghanan. Aye, come in.” Eoghanan stepped aside to allow the man entry, wondering if now would be when the man might swing a fist in his direction. Perhaps he’d only refrained from doing so last night so that young Cooper wouldn’t see the altercation.

“Listen.” Jeffrey faced him just as soon as he’d stepped inside. “I need to talk to you about Grace.”

Of course, why else would this stranger need to speak with him? “Aye, I believe I owe ye an apology. I willna lay the blame on Grace, but I dinna know that ye were married. I wouldna have…I wouldna have kissed her if I had.”

“What? Grace and I are not married. I’m not the one you need to apologize to, not at all. As long as you don’t hurt her, you go ahead and kiss Grace all you want to. I imagine it would do her some good.”

Jeffrey clasped him on his injured shoulder, and Eoghanan had to clamp down on his teeth to keep from groaning with pain. His head hurt. He’d not felt such an overwhelming lack of understanding in a very long time.

“So ye are no Grace’s husband, but ye are Cooper’s father? Forgive me, I doona think I understand the situation.”

Jeffrey shrugged and started to make his way back to the doorway. “Yes, I’m Cooper’s father, but not Grace’s husband. It’s a weird situation. Look, I already told Grace I wouldn’t say anything to you, so I’m not going to say anything else. I just wanted you to know that whatever conclusion you jumped to last night is undoubtedly wrong. Talk to her.”

Eoghanan nodded, unsure of what else to say. Nodding in return, Jeffrey turned his back to him, retreating two steps toward the doorway before twisting to speak to him once more.

“Oh, and one other thing. Grace may not be my wife, but she’s my family. I have a strong feeling that you made her cry last night. I didn’t see her do it, but this morning her head was all veiny and her eyes all red. That is not okay. You make her cry ever again, and I’ll knock you flat on your ass. I don’t care if you’re eight inches taller than me. Got it?”

Eoghanan repressed a grin. Stranger or no, anyone who would rise to Grace’s defense in such a manner had his respect and admiration. “Aye.”

“Good. Well then, have a good day. See ya around.”

Jeffrey turned and left, leaving Eoghanan smiling in the doorway. He’d gather more explanation from Grace later. He’d already heard the most important part—the lass wasn’t married and so his own hope could remain.

After I’d spoken with Jeffrey, I spent the rest of the day working. I drove down the road to Conall Castle, allowing Cooper to show me the best places to take pictures after he’d told me he’d looked around especially for them during his trip there with Jerry and Morna. While not the first places I would have chosen to photograph, it thrilled me that my son was so thoughtful. I gladly followed him around, letting him lead for the day.

By the time we returned to the inn, Coop was more than ready to spend some time with his dad, which gave me the evening to work on the article. I worked steadily, determined to keep my mind off of Eoghanan and my frustration at him for not allowing me to explain myself. As much as I wanted to hash things out, I’d spent too much of my childhood around a man who wouldn’t listen to what I had to say whenever I needed him to hear me the most. Though, I didn’t believe this was a common character trait of Eoghanan, his refusal to listen made me feel like the repressed child, teenager, and then young mom that I’d once been. I was through trying to reason with someone who didn’t want to hear it.

Jeffrey knocked on every door, every time he did so, in just the same way—three knocks, brief silence, followed by three more knocks. Cooper never knocked and neither did Morna or Jerry, so as soon as I heard a knock on my door, I knew who it was. Part of me had known that Jeffrey wouldn’t keep his promise. Subconsciously, I think that’s why I asked it of him. I didn’t want him to.