She grins and bursts into some old song. “New moon, I’m all alone?—”
“The lyrics are ‘blue moon.’ But yes, there was a new moon last night. And what’s with all the singing? Have you been drinking? They said you were drinking.” I lean in and sniff. “I swear, there better not be a bar tab.”
“Ah, I’m simply happy as a lark, my lass. Getting close now.”
I scoot back my chair. “Not if we don’t get a move on. We need to hit the road.”
She giggles, then bursts into more song. “‘O ye’ll take the high road, and I’ll take the low road, and I’ll be in Scotland afore ye.’”
I jerk my head back. “Seriously? Not that again.”
But she ignores me, voice swelling with the tune. “’Twas then that we parted, in yon shady glen, on the steep, steep side o’ Ben Lomond, where in purple hue, the hieland hills we view, and the moon coming out in the gloamin’.”
“Just, come on.” I stand and gesture for her to do the same. So much for finding my Scottish relatives. I’ll be lucky if I get Janet out of here without suffering public mortification. “We have to check out before the hotel charges us for another day.”
“I dinnae ken about that.” I startle as a man steps up behind me, radiating self-importance. “I’m not so verra stingy,” he says, all but purring at Janet. “Nae for someone as bonnie as yourself.”
Great.
Clearly, he doesn’t register my scowl, because he grins at me and booms, “You must be Janet’s sister.”
My mother titters like a songbird. “Oh, Dan. You old flirt.”
“Not sisters,” I say, exhaling a flat sigh—we’ve done this routine a thousand times. “She’s my mother.”
Dan doesn’t even hear me. His adoring gaze is pinned on Janet as he takes her hands and pulls her to standing. “If our humble inn could enjoy one more night of your glorious company, well, that’s on the house, surely.”
“Surely,” I grumble.
Dan’s smile dims as his gaze shifts to me. “I’m afraidyou’ll still have to pay your way. Seeing as it’s peak season, well…you’ll understand.”
Oh, I definitely understand. Dan isn’t my first barkeep, and I have a pretty good idea where he’s hoping Janet might sleep tonight.
“Don’t worry,” I say with only the barest eye roll. “I’m checking out, and my mother is as anxious to leave as I am.You’ll understand,” I add sweetly.
“Nae as much of a charmer as your mum, are you?”
Janet yanks her hands back, her mercurial mood sizzling to life like acid on metal. “And you’re a miserable old goat.”
Is she…defending me?
For an instant, I glow with it. Then reality sets in—Janet’s probably just annoyed I ruined their moment.
I jump in quickly. “Whatever. It’s fine.” Then I turn back to Dan, eager to getsomethingout of this before he knows what’s hit him. “Though I will take you up on a late checkout. Thank you so much.”
It takes a second, but Dan finally nods, begrudgingly, and leads us to the front desk, where he studies his ledger like a head of state reviewing classified intel.
Before she can do any more damage, I grab Janet’s shoulders and steer her toward the stairs. “Get your things. I’ll meet you back here in an hour.”
She shoots me a saucy wink, and with a little flounce to her shoulders, sings in my face, “Moon coming out in the gloamin’.”
“Would you please stop? One hour, okay?” I eye her warily. “Actually, thirty minutes. You got that?”
With a nod, she sashays away.
My shoulders sag. How am I supposed to get through the next twenty-four hours? I still need to confirm ourflights and book a taxi, so I drop my phone at the front desk to use their USB thingie. Shockingly, it works. I’d half expected another relic to match this ancient hotel. With a sigh, I head upstairs, gripping the sticky, over-waxed banister, every tread creaking like a horror movie. No wonder I thought I saw a ghost.
Twenty-nine minutes later, I reemerge feeling almost cheerful. I’m headed back to New York. Back to Poppa, school, my beloved routine.
