‘Caviar?’ Dee stifled a laugh.
‘Aye. The guest must have been so hungry he had to snack on the job, and he must have forgotten to take it with him. Otto’s a firm believer in finders keepers.’
At the sound of his name, the dog pricked his ears and came closer.
‘Who brings caviar on a shoot, and then leaves it behind?’
Robbie shrugged. ‘You’d be amazed what gets left. Someone managed to forget their dog last winter. Found it in the back of the truck the next day, poor wee lad. They sent someone to collect it, eventually. There’s no accounting for some folks,’ he added, shoving the sandwich box into the rucksack and pushing at Otto. ‘Go on, now. Away with you.’
‘God, I’ve missed this,’ Dee said, unguarded as she rested her head back against the granite. ‘I’ve missed you, Robbie.’
‘Me too, Dee.’
At that moment, a shining high point in an afternoon when Dee had enjoyed herself far more than propriety should have allowed, Dee found herself wanting even more. She was greedy on the endorphins of pleasure and the last thing she wanted was for it to end. But end it did, as daylight faltered and then failed. In the half-light, Robbie gathered up the picnic equipment, packing it away efficiently and whistling to round up the dogs.
Now they were outside his cottage and, although Dee couldn’t stall her return to the castle any longer, still she paused.
Robbie sensed her hesitation. ‘Would you like me to walk you back?’
It would only prolong the inevitable, so Dee shook her head and smiled at him.
‘No, I’d best get back. Thank you for today, Robbie Keel.’ The sound of his name on her lips had her smiling more broadly and before she could think too hard about what she was doing, she leant across and hugged him, then climbed from the truck.
‘I’ll see you soon?’
He’d phrased it as a question, but Dee had never been surer of anything. She was so sure, she didn’t even reply, just grinned at him as she slammed the truck door and took a deep breath, heading up the flagstone path towards Kirkshield Castle.
Chapter 16
It turned out that, after Vivi’s arrival, Jess needed to give her aunt a couple of days to recover from her journey, even if Vivi made up some other excuse for the delay. She’d called to let Jess know she’d arrived in Kirkshield, but Jess didn’t think she’d ever heard Vivi sound so quiet, not even when she’d visited her in the hospital after the accident. So, Jess knew the journey had taken its toll, even though her aunt pretended it was something to do with a dodgy chicken and mayo sandwich she’d bought from the in-service food trolley while she’d been on the train.
It had also been a couple of days when Jess had kept her head down and concentrated on preparing for the imminent party. Between sprucing bedrooms nobody had slept in for a while, and getting as much food prep done as possible, she’d hardly had a moment to herself.
So, by the time Vivi gave her the green light, Jess couldn’t wait to escape the castle and head to the village for a visit to the Macwarrens.
She was about to wrestle Digby into his special walking coat when Sebastian wandered in.
‘I’m going to visit my aunt,’ she said, doing her best to coax Digby into putting his legs through the correct holes. ‘If that’s OK?’ she added.
‘Of course it is.’ He paused, then said, ‘Actually, would you mind if I came with you? I haven’t seen the Macwarrens yet.’
‘Are they friends or foes?’ she asked, then bit her lip at the lack of filter in her comment.
‘You’ve picked up on the village vibes, then, have you?’ Sebastian said, an unmistakeable arch in his brow.
‘It wasn’t exactly difficult. I think some of them would like to beat you to death with Aggie Fernell’s prognosis – or that broken space heater in the village hall – given half a chance.’
He gave a rueful laugh. ‘You might be right. Although it’s difficult to blame them, after the way they’ve been treated over the years. I know it’s up to me to try to turn it around. To try to win them back.’
His expression told a different story to his words, lacking as it did any hint of conviction. Maybe he thought it was already a lost cause.
‘Or not?’ she said.
Sebastian sighed. ‘Or not. Anyway, let’s not put clouds in a clear sky. I’m itching to meet your aunt.’
Jess frowned. ‘Are you? Why?’
‘She sounds …’
