Page 51

He and Johnny set off, and Aidan presses his lips back to mine.

When he withdraws, he gazes down at me affectionately, his arms still wrapped around me. “I’ve been looking forward to doing that. You’re not annoyed with me, are you?”

“Annoyed? Why on earth would I be annoyed?”

Aidan glances in the direction of my brother then whispers, “David’s great, he really is, but I’d have been happy just to tell you I’d see you at the airport. Instead, he came up with this elaborate ploy and made me an unwilling accomplice to it. I felt terrible messaging you that I had to help Maw with Christmas preparations and wouldn’t see you until tomorrow. You’re really not upset?”

Smiling, I brush some snow from Aidan’s shoulders. “Trust me, I understand. It’s usually easiest just to go along with David’s ideas.”

“Thank God. Anyway, as if that wasn’t bad enough, he then made me hang about out here in the cold. Tell me honestly, if you’d arrived and seen me waiting for you with David and Johnny, inside where it’s warm and bright, would that have been any less surprising? How much did it add to the stunt that I was instead standing out here freezing my balls off?”

I can’t help but giggle at this little tirade, unused to his faux anger. The sound sends Aidan’s mouth back into a wide grin, and he squeezes me closer to him.

“My brother takes a bit of getting used to, but he’s got a good heart,” I say.

“Aye, he does. He was really excited about seeing you again, although not quite as excited as me. I’ve missed you, lass.”

Lass. My knees weaken at the word.

“And I’ve missed you, Aidan. But . . . it is really cold out here. Can we go to the car now, before I lose all feeling in my fingers, and before you literally get blue balls and they fall off? After all, I’d been hoping to have a play with them later.”

He chuckles. “Aye, it’d be terrible timing if I lost them now, after saving myself for you. Let’s go!”

The snow gets heavier during the drive, and by the time we reach Bannock, the town is a pretty winter wonderland. Bright Christmas lights hang across Main Street, fending off the darkness of a December night in the Highlands. Ornament-covered trees twinkle in windows we pass, and smoke spirals out of chimneys.

Johnny turns the car off the main road and onto the charming little lane he and David live on. I crane my neck to get my first glimpse of their cottage, and when I do, a gasp of horror escapes my lips.

“David! What have you done? Every other house has beautiful, classy decorations, but your place . . . it’s so . . . garish!”

The normally adorable cottage is festooned with lights that flash erratically in a dizzying array of colours, while the path to the door is lined with illuminated candy canes. An assortment of characters adorn the front garden, including skiing reindeer, sledging penguins, and an oversized inflatable snowman.

In the passenger seat, David twists to look at me. “Why are you so sure I did the display? Maybe these are Johnny’s decorations he puts up every year and you’re hurting his feelings right now. Did you consider that?”

As Johnny steers into the driveway, I catch his eye in the rear-view mirror. Grinning, he shakes his head.

David notices. “Okay, yes, I bought them, but you know what? They brighten the place up, and we’ve actually received some lovely compliments.”

“Aye, from the kids around town.” Johnny pulls up the handbrake. “I’m not sure what people over the age of twelve think.”

“Well, I’m thirty, and I reckon they’re fun.” Aidan pats David’s shoulder then opens his door, climbs out, and jogs around the car to open mine.

David meets my eye and raises his brows. “Getting your door for you? And I thought I had Johnny wrapped around my finger. Obviously, I’ll have to take some tips from you.”

Ignoring him, I gladly accept the hand Aidan proffers and step out of the car with his support.

“Careful! There’s snow everywhere, and you’re carrying precious cargo. Hold on to me so you don’t slip.”

Johnny closes the driver’s door and heads for the boot. “You two head on in. I’ll get the case. Oh, and Aidan, I’ll get the other thing too.”

While David gets out his keys and opens the front door, I whisper to Aidan, “Other thing? That wouldn’t by any chance be a present for me, would it?”

“Nah, it’s a dancing Santa for the garden. I thought it’d go well with the other decorations.” He winks.

Inside, the open-plan living room and kitchen has been decked out with festive knick-knacks and a Christmas tree. It’s sweet and much classier than the riot of colour outside.

“These are the decorations Johnny puts up every year, aren’t they?” I say.

“Yes, yes,” David mutters, kneeling to turn on the tree lights. “I get it: you prefer Johnny’s style to mine. But Aidan got you pregnant, and he likes my garden display, so there!”