“Dougall?” Sara asked.
“Aye.”
Sara left the room, giving Dougall a moment to tease Logan. “Ye like the lass, dinnae ye?”
“She’s an odd one. I’ve never met a lass like her,” Logan said.
“Ah, so that’s why ye’ve been staring at her,” Dougall prodded.
“She’s nae hard on the eyes.” Logan winked at his friend.
“I see. Well, have a care. She’s nae from our time. Ye’ll be leaving soon and ye dinnae wish to leave a trail of broken hearts behind.”
“A trail? I’ve met just the one lass,” Logan pointed out.
“Ye ken me meaning, Logan.”
Sara returned with a bottle and three very small glasses. She also had what appeared to be salt and cut up limes. She poured some of the liquid into each of the small glasses.
“Okay. This is what you do.” Sara used her tongue to wet her hand just below her thumb, placed some salt there and licked it. At the sight of Sara’s tongue, Dougall thought Logan’s eyes may fall right out of his head, which elicited a deep chuckle. Next Sara threw back the drink and then quickly sucked on a piece of lime. She made a face that told Dougall she didn’t care for the taste. “Now you try.”
“Like this?” Logan asked as he placed some salt on his hand.
“Yes. Now lick it.”
He did as instructed and Dougall followed suit.
“Now down the tequila and then suck on a piece of lime.”
The fiery liquid made its way down Dougall’s throat.” He bit into the lime. “I see. The salt is to help disguise the taste of the…” he pointed at the bottle, “and the lime is to cleanse yer mouth after ye drink.”
“Right. If I had any good tequila, you wouldn’t need to do that. This stuff is just something cheap that was left here the last time I had a party. I don’t usually keep alcohol in the house other than wine.”
Dougall was learning all sorts of things about Sara. He eyed Logan and could see that he was as well.
“So you live here alone?” Dougall asked.
“I do.”
“Why?” Logan wondered.
“I don’t know. I’ve had roommates before and it’s been nothing but trouble. It’s just easier living alone.” She filled their glasses again.
“Do ye nae wish to get married and have a family?” Logan asked.
“Someday. I have to meet the right man first. That’s not always possible here in the city. The men are always looking for the newer, younger versions who move in. Then they get tired of them and move on again. It’s not the best place to find a husband.”
“But ye want one?” Logan asked. They’d all had more than a few drinks of tequila by now, and Logan was becoming braver where Sara was concerned.
“I guess so. The men I’ve met so far haven’t done much to make me think about it. I mean, if they’re all like the ones I’ve dated, then probably not.”
Dougall drifted off into his own thoughts. Things hadn’t gone exactly the way he planned. Yes, he’d seen Helene, but he’d failed to get her to leave with him. Now here he was in this strange time and place doing his best to understand what he could do to make Helene love him again. This tequila would help him forget about it all, at least for now.
Chapter 15
Helene had been very distractedall through her day with Zeke. She could tell he was doing his best to take her mind off of Dougall and she felt badly that he hadn’t been able to. Zeke had been so kind to her and there were many things she found attractive about him. He’d made her feel at ease from the moment she’d met him. He was very handsome as well. He wore his dark brown hair differently than the men from her time. It was short and well groomed. He had a short beard, which added to his good looks by framing lips that were full and appeared to be soft. He made her laugh all the time. He was also a man who knew how to make her feel important. He encouraged her to make her own choices and decisions. He asked her opinion and wanted to know how she felt about all kinds of things.
It wasn’t that Dougall didn’t, but in their time life was different. He loved her, of that she was certain, but he was also the only man she’d ever really been attracted to. So, her experience with men was limited. Meeting Zeke had opened a whole new world to her. Well, that and being transported through time. Besides, she was angry with Dougall. He’d gone off and left her alone with his father. An involuntary shiver raced through her at the thought of Paddraig MacRae, but the terror of her ordeal was nothing in comparison to the fluttering feeling in her belly and her racing heart at the sight of Dougall. No matter how angry she was with him, it was clear to her that she still loved him. So many conflicting emotions ran through her body and now she had to add guilt to it. Guilt for ruining the day Zeke had planned for her. She was so confused and it was affecting her ability to enjoy her time with Zeke, who had become her security here in this time. These two men meant so much to her, but one of them held her heart and she didn’t know if what she felt for the other could grow enough to overtake it.
