“I don’t think that’s going to happen,” Keegan said.“I’ve seen the way he looks at you.Lust, definitely, but there’s also adoration.He’s falling in love with you, so now you have two choices.One, you sever ties with him and live out your life working here with me.We’ll be two little old ladies cackling at all the youngins.Or two, you take a leap of faith and have all your dreams come true.”
Mairi took a deep breath.Keegan was right.If she walked away, could she live with the thought ofwhat iffor the rest of her life?That seemed heartbreakingly depressing.She hugged her cousin.“Thank you.”
“We’re the last of our families and that means I’m always going to be here for you.Or, well, I guess we’re going to have Tavish in our genealogy now.”
“I love you,” Mairi murmured.
“Love you back, and I’m going to miss you.”She pulled back and wiped the moisture from under her eyes.“Make sure to send me an invite to your mating ceremony.”
Chapter Thirteen
Tavish sat at his deskafter a meeting that seemed to have lasted days, although it was probably only a handful of hours.For the first time in his life, he resented his company.His thoughts centered around Mairi and this obsessive dilemma.Was this part of the mate bond?Or was his lack of focus because they weren’t mated yet?Or did he simply miss her like hell?
It was definitely the latter.Possibly the former.The middle question was debatable.
“Laird MacAlary.”
He blinked, coming out of his confusing thoughts, and realized he’d spaced during the meeting with his potential new subsidiary.The stocks in the company he wanted were lucrative and he knew they would turn a nice profit, but the owner had been balking on his acquisition.
“Excuse me,” Charles, his assistant, cleared his throat.“’This is the projected revenue against the cost analysis.”
He handed over a tablet and Tavish studied the information and graphs.It took all his willpower to maintain his concentration.He simply couldn’t gloss over the numbers.Day after day, and hours later, the inevitable agreement was reached.He stood and held out his hand, ending the negotiations that had taken far too long to resolve.
“Reschedule the rest of my meetings to Zoom calls,” he ordered as they left the boardroom.“I need to visit with my gran before I fly back to America.”
“Aye, sir.”
A minute later he rode the elevator down to his private parking where his McLaren waited.He slid behind the wheel and felt the power of the engine vibrate through his body.He’d always loved the sensation.He left the city to head toward his grandmother’s estate where she resided in her small-ish castle just outside Edinburgh proper.The damn thing had eight bedrooms, four reception rooms, and was nestled on twenty-four acres complete with an apple orchard.Apparently, his gran was out to save the historical orchards of Scotland.
His McLaren rumbled as it pulled through the gates and he saw several gardeners working in the large flower beds that lined the road.Tavish waved at them and they waved back.He parked and exited his car, racing up the flight of stairs to the front door, where the butler had opened it and gave a slight bow in respect to his title.
“Hello, Gilbert, where’s my gran?”
“In the sunroom, m’laird.”
He nodded his understanding and headed to the large sunroom, with arched windows showcasing said orchards.His grandmother sat at her desk, working on her laptop.She looked up when she became aware of his presence.
