Nessa fanned her burning cheeks and swiped her hair out of her eyes. “I have to get my mind on something else or I’m going to spontaneously combust.”
Topping the last outcropping of grass-covered stones before arriving back at the archeological site, Nessa succeeded in pushing her lusty dreams to the back of her mind.
She smiled proudly as she watched her troupe of devoted grad students brushing soil away from bits and pieces of odd-shaped shards. This was absolute heaven. She’d waited for approval on this grant for years. Studied and cataloged before, the sites weren’t new digs, but Nessa knew there was more to be found. It tingled, like a sixth sense tapping at the base of her brain and her instincts were never wrong. There were several promising corded-off areas scattered across the site. The Bronze Age burial cairns and hut circles of Durness were more precious to her than a diamond mine littered with gold.
Trish met Nessa up on the hillside and handed her a mug of coffee. Nessa accepted it with a smile of thanks as she shivered in the chill of the early evening breeze. Trish took good care of her, from best friend to paperwork to the best coffee anywhere in the world. What more could a girl ask for?
Trish motioned toward two of the students and leaned close to Nessa and whispered, “James and Lyla have recommended a pub for us to try. I think they’re hoping for extra credit.”
Her attention turned to the two students Trish had indicated. Nessa studied them through the steam coming off her coffee as she sipped at the dark warming brew. “If they’d pay as much attention to their papers as they pay to each other, they’d both have completed their theses by now. In fact, as bright as those two are, they’d be well on their way to being published in this field as well as a couple of others.”
Trishtsk-tskedNessa with an arched brow as she adopted a chiding school marm tone. “There’s more to life than degrees and titles, my friend. One of these days you’re going to realize that Dr. Buchanan.”
Grabbing Nessa by the sleeve, Trish urged her toward the large weather-stained tent serving as their central office. “Come on. It’s time to call it a day. It’s Friday and high time we found a little nightlife around here.”
Holding her mug to keep it from sloshing, Nessa hurried along beside Trish. “So, I take it we’re going to try this highly recommended pub? Did you happen to get them to write down the directions?” If Trish was going to drag her out on the town, then Nessa had to give her a little grief about always getting lost.
Trish shut down the computers and scooped loose papers into awaiting trays. “Yep, it’s time for a little relaxation. Both of us are way overdue for some downtime. Several of your more devoted followers are spending the weekend at the site. So, you and I don’t have a thing to worry about. We can actually enjoy a few days of civilization in real beds at the inn. And they even have running water and flush toilets!”
Grabbing her backpack, Nessa’s mood lightened the more she thought about Trish’s plan. The tension eased out of her shoulders as she thought about soaking in a nice hot tub. Maybe this wasn’t such a bad idea. Shooting Trish a wicked look, she tossed her the keys to the jeep. “As much as I hate to agree with you, you’re absolutely right. I’m in the mood for a little relaxation myself.” But she couldn’t resist repeating her earlier question. Nessa was determined to get a rise out of Trish. “Did you say you got them to write down the directions or are we taking the scenic route again?”
Trish jangled the car keys behind Nessa’s back. “You always said you wanted to see the Highlands. I’m just helping to fulfill your dreams.”
Nessa laughed as she climbed into the car. She wadded up the map spread across the seat and tossed it over her shoulder into the back full of gear. “I tell you what. You get us there as best you can and I’ll just enjoy the ride.”
Starting the car, Trish teased with an evil grin. “Speaking of dreams, have you had any more shrieking orgasms like the one that had you moaning on the way over on the plane?”
Nessa’s cheeks as well as regions much lower flushed hot with the memory of the other passenger’s knowing smiles. “Actually, my Highlander has become increasingly…umm…active since our arrival in Durness.” Nessa squirmed in her seat and bit her lip. So much for tamping down her residual passions. A slow, moist burn flared between her thighs just from mentioning the man of her dreams. Trish would have to stir that up.
With a shrug, Trish glanced at Nessa before turning to scowl at a faded signpost. “Maybe that’s a sign you’re about to find the man in the real world that’s able to make you moan. Maybe now that you’re in Scotland things will turn around. It’s about time your luck with the weaker sex changed and you found somebody who could ring your bell.”
She pulled into the well-lit parking lot of a squat brick building and leaned over the steering wheel to peer up at the brightly painted sign. “I think this is it. See? It wasn’t even a twenty-minute drive. I told you I was getting better at finding my way around the Highlands!”
Nessa sniffed a satisfied breath as they walked into the welcoming pub. Glancing about the bar with interest, she soaked up the comfortable hominess of the room like an orphan who’d just found a home. From the dark, heavy wood of the tables to the high-backed benches built into comfortable booths, the pub was everything she had thought a bar in Scotland would be. Her mouth watered at the inviting aromas wafting out of the kitchen. The yeasty temptation of warm, buttery breads mixed with the smoky roasted meats and deep-fried vegetables. Layered among the aroma of all the tempting foods was the hearty smell of ale. Nessa shivered with anticipation. It had been forever since she’d had a chance to eat like this. This was heaven. The blood in her arteries was already starting to clog. What a way to go.
They found a table beside a wall of windows. Nessa nodded toward the smiling face of the buxom waitress already ambling their way. “Maybe James and Lyla do deserve extra credit. If the food and drink are as good as the atmosphere and the smells coming from the kitchen, I’ll even write them a letter of recommendation.”
Trish nodded toward a dark-haired man towering behind the bar. Keeping her eyes fixed on her latest discovery, she wet her lips and tapped a finger to get Nessa’s attention. “Forget about the food. Check out the barkeep. I wonder if he comes highly recommended.”
The waitress giggled as she pulled her notepad from the apron tied around her slightly plump waist. “That’s no’ the barkeep, miss. That’s the owner, Gabriel Burns.”
Trish sat even taller in her seat, arching her back in her best vixen’s pose. As she smoothed a finger over her lips again, she leaned closer to Nessa, nearly purring as she preened in Gabriel’s direction. “The owner? Hmm, that’s even better. I’ve got dibs on that one, my friend.”
This should be good. Trish was always on the hunt. Nessa snickered as she turned in her seat. She couldn’t wait to see this latest specimen of Trish’s interest. Nessa’s gaze locked with a pair of laughing dark eyes. The light in those eyes dared her to be the first to look away. But there was something else Nessa caught in that glance. Something dark. Something predatory and dangerous that made her recoil.
Long-legged and powerful, Gabriel crossed his arms, reclining against the wall behind the counter. Coal black hair framed his smirking face as he rubbed at the evening stubble shadowing his jaw. He nodded ever so slightly into Nessa’s wide-eyed gaze.
He laughed out loud as a rush of heat burned her cheeks.
The tips of her ears scorched with fire as she whirled back around in her chair. “Why didn’t you tell me he was looking this way?” she hissed as she hunkered down in her seat. Nessa cringed at the uneasiness churning in her stomach. What was wrong with her? You’d think she was some teen with a bad case of acne.
Nessa scowled at Trish and the giggling waitress as she kept her head ducked behind the high-backed bench. And here she thought she was going to be able to enjoy a night of no pressure and if she was lucky, enjoy eating enough rich foods so she’d have a grease hangover the next morning.
Trish gave Nessa a look like she’d lost her mind. “You didn’t ask. Besides, I already called dibs, so what are you worried about? You have to lighten up, Nessa, and quit taking yourself so seriously. How are you ever going to meet an exciting man if you can’t even look one in the eye?”
Nessa gritted her teeth and sat fuming in her chair. Damn Trish and her ability to roll with any situation. She had the self-confidence of the Queen of England. Why couldn’t Nessa figure out how Trish did it? Trish must’ve spent a ton on shrinks and self-help lessons. That had to be the answer to such ironclad self-esteem.
With a curt nod to the snorting waitress who waited to take their order, Nessa forced herself to sit up taller and folded her hands on the table in front of her. “We will both take an order of the shepherd’s pie and a pint of your darkest ale.”
