‘I’m so sorry, Iz. But this is meant to be. Bumping into you like this. I made a terrible mistake. Antonia and I have split up.’
Her heart did another of those funny little salmon flips against her better judgement while in her head a voice railed,Here he goes again. Hot. Cold. Hot. Cold.
‘Sorry to hear that.’ She was quite proud that she managed to sound indifferent and unmoved by the news, unlike the night when he’d told her he was engaged. Now she was able to appear calm, equable, which was utterly at odds with the maelstrom of emotions bungee jumping their way through her system, erratic and discombobulated.
‘Not as sorry as I am, Iz. I miss you terribly.’ He reached forward and clasped her hand in both of his, one finger stroking gently over her thumb. ‘You were my best friend. I didn’t realise until you weren’t here anymore.’ The insistent slide of skin on skin disconcerted her.
‘McBride,’ another voice interrupted and she whirled round, tugging her hand from Philip’s.
‘Ross,’ she said, her vocal cords once again being strangled by guinea pig superpowers. ‘Hi.’ It was all she could say but later she would have to try and analyse why him calling her McBride pleased her so much. Perhaps it was because of the surprise on Philip’s face that accompanied it.
She looked up at him and then over to the book signing table. He gave her an odd smile. ‘I’ll explain later but my plans have changed and I wanted to talk to you quickly. I’m due to finish sooner than planned, do you want to go to dinner before we get back on the road? I’ve a table booked at the White Horse Oyster Bar on Canongate. I could meet you there…’
His voice trailed away as he glanced at Philip and then down at all the shopping bags around her feet. ‘Successful shopping trip?’
‘Yes. Very,’ she said. ‘Although my arms are killing me. And I still need to do more.’
‘Why don’t you leave them with me? I’m sure I can ask the manager to pop them in a storeroom.’
Izzy smiled at him, grateful for his thoughtfulness. ‘That would be brilliant. Thank you.’
Philip cleared his throat and she turned back to him, about to apologise for ignoring him but then remembered the number of times that he’d suddenly forgotten her existence around other people. ‘Ross, this is an old friend, Philip.’ Her head was firmly in charge and she was damned if she was going to give in to Philip’s blatant curiosity. Leave him guessing for once. ‘And dinner sounds great.’
Ross lifted his head and caught a frantic signal from a young lady who Izzy guessed must be the manager or his minder. ‘Duty calls. I’ll be done in about half an hour. I’ll see you at the restaurant.’ He bent to pick up her shopping bags and before she could say anything else, he strode off and she saw him depositing the bags into the arms of the bemused woman at the table.
‘How do you know Ross Adair?’ asked Philip, sounding almost disappointed, as if he’d discovered something about Izzy he didn’t know and he didn’t like it.
‘He’s just a friend.’ She gave Philip a blithe smile, knowing that he’d described her in exactly those terms when she’d first met Antonia and overheard her fierce whispered question, ‘Who is that girl and why’s she so familiar with you?’ Philip had kissed her cheek and laughed. ‘Izzy? Don’t be silly. She’s just a good friend. We’ve been friends since we were teenagers. She’s more like a sister.’
That’s when Izzy’s heart had cracked wide open. She gritted her teeth, pushing the painful memory away.
‘Have you known him long?’ asked Philip.
Izzy shook her head.
‘I was going to ask if you wanted to go for a drink. For old times’ sake. We could have had dinner together. We still could.’
Izzy caught her lip between her teeth and gave Philip a cursory study. Once upon a time, she’d have dropped everything to be with him.
With a brilliant smile that hid her internal flutterings, she said, ‘Another time, maybe. But it’s good to see you.’
‘Izzy,’ he said urgently. ‘There’s so much we need to talk about. I have made a terrible mistake. I can see it so clearly now. When I saw you… I… It hit me.’
Izzy swallowed, completely confused. She’d told herself she was over him and there was so much else to think about now, like the castle. She had responsibilities and she couldn’t let Xanthe down. For all her mother’s faults, they were family and they were all each other had.
‘I can’t. I need to get back home.’ Home. The thought brought with it an unexpected warm glow and she smiled. Despite knowing how much there was still to do, she was looking forward to getting back to the castle with all her parcels and packages, decorating the trees and seeing Jim, Jeanette and Duncan, none of whom took her for granted.
‘We could go for a quick drink now.’
Izzy could only stare at him. ‘I’ve still got things to buy.’
‘I could come with you.’
Now Izzy laughed. ‘You will only slow me down because five minutes in, you’ll be trying to persuade me to stop for a coffee.’
He grinned at her. ‘And that’s why I miss you so much. You know me better than anyone else.’
‘I do.’ Her heart quivered in sudden recognition. Perhaps a quick coffee. Then his phone beeped and he looked down at the screen, a frown marring his handsome face. ‘Damn, I have to go.’ He looked at her with evident regret and leaned in to kiss her cheek. ‘I’m not giving up on you, Izzy McBride, we’ve been friends for too long. Like I said, you know me better than anyone else.’ His eyes met hers and he smiled with a slow, sad intensity. ‘You’ll always be my best friend.’
