Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 121460 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 486(@250wpm)___ 405(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121460 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 486(@250wpm)___ 405(@300wpm)
Regan pouted with disappointment. Voyeur. “That wasn’t a kiss. You’re disrespecting the mistletoe.”
Brodan searched my face. Whatever he found there made him ask Regan quietly, “Let’s let her off the hook, sis, eh?”
“Fine. You know I put that mistletoe there, so Thane is forced to kiss me before he leaves for work every day.” She grinned cheekily.
“Somehow I doubt my brother feels forced,” Brodan observed, taking the thought right out of my head.
“No, he does not,” Regan agreed. “This way.” She sashayed ahead of us, leading us into the main living space. The room was decorated beautifully, a large tree in the far corner surrounded by gifts the kids had already opened and others that remained wrapped.
The room was a flurry of activity. Eredine was in the kitchen, a glass of wine in hand, and Arran sat at the island. Lewis sat with Thane on the couch, looking over what I assumed was a shiny new laptop. Eilidh and Callie huddled together in the large armchair, giggling over whatever they were doing on a tablet computer. They were both dressed in the cutest Christmas dresses, Callie in green, Eilidh in red, and looked like a perfect postcard. Searching for Callie’s mum, I found Sloane seated next to Robyn and Baby Vivien, while Walker stood chatting with Lachlan near the dining table.
The only folks missing were Arro, Mac, and Baby Skye.
“Look who’s arrived, everyone!” Regan announced.
Eyes flew toward us, and smiles and cries of “Merry Christmas” met our ears. Regan gestured for us to put down our bags, and Arran was the first to approach to hug us. With the moment in the car still on my mind, I tried not to tense as Arran hugged me tight and kissed me on the cheek. “Merry Christmas, Roe. So happy you’re here.”
I wanted to look at Brodan. To see his expression. I wanted … to know. But the coward I was, I kept my attention fixed on Arran and replied, “Merry Christmas. Happy to be here.”
Eredine rounded the counter, smiling brightly as she hugged Brodan, then me. We exchanged hugs and handshakes all around (and received a nod of greeting from Walker, whom I wasn’t sure knew how to crack a smile) before we shrugged out of our jackets and settled in.
Arro, Mac, and Skye arrived not long later, and then we were a full house. Brodan and I offered to help in the kitchen, but Regan and Eredine assured us they had it under control. They’d yell if they needed us.
After a glass of wine, I relaxed a bit, chatting away with Sloane and Robyn, and while Brodan had gotten involved with whatever Thane and Lewis were up to, I could feel his inquisitive eyes on me now and then.
“So, your parents couldn’t come to Scotland for the holidays?” Robyn asked Sloane after Lachlan came over to take Vivien. He and Mac had disappeared to put the girls down upstairs.
Sloane looked uncomfortable as her gaze flew to Callie, and she shook her head. “We’re on our own.”
Robyn, being a smart cookie, left it at that. “Yeah, well, sometimes I wish we were on our own.”
Regan, she of the bat ears, called over, “Amen to that!”
Her sister snorted, and I asked, “You don’t get along with your parents?” Maybe we had that in common.
“Yes, and no. Regan’s dad, my stepdad, is the best. But our mother is …”
“The Queen of Passive Aggression,” Regan supplied helpfully.
My lips twitched as Robyn grimaced. “She’s not wrong. Mom wanted us to come out to Boston this year for Christmas since they’ve been flying here. But it was just the worst year to ask us to do that because of Vivien. And now Regan and I have been treated to not-so-subtle guilt-tripping for the last few months, and she refused to fly here. Even though we offered to pay for it. My stepdad won’t leave my mom alone, so Merry Effing Christmas.”
Her words made me wince. “I’m sorry. I know what it’s like to have a difficult mother.”
Sympathy filled Robyn’s expression. “Well … let’s just forget about it for today and enjoy Regan’s awful cooking.”
“Hey!” the cook in question yelled, and seconds later, a raw brussels sprout flew across the room and bounced off Robyn’s head.
Robyn chuckled, leaning down to pick it up. “You do have good aim, though.”
“No dessert for you, Robbie.”
“Oh, come on. Everyone knows I’m kidding,” Robyn huffed and got up to stride across the room toward her sister. “I am very grateful you are cooking a delicious Christmas dinner for our horde, and I’m sorry for teasing you. Even though you make it really hard not to when you’re wearing those antlers on your head.”
Sloane and I chuckled at the sisters’ banter. “This is nice,” Sloane said quietly as we stared around the room. “This is how it should be.”