Fire Maidens Scotland (Billionaires & Bodyguards #6) - Anna Lowe Page 0,39
into Lachlan’s mind.
He hid a smile, wondering what Mrs. Killin might think of that.
But the mood of their conversation turned soon after, as he, Tony, and Holly discussed the events of the day. Or rather, he and Tony did. Holly drifted away, helping Mrs. Killin clean up. Was she avoiding the subject of her near misses that day?
Avoiding the subject, he decided a little later when Holly whistled for Mungo and headed to the door.
“Come on, sweetie. Time to take a walk before going to bed.”
Lachlan tensed as she approached the door but held his tongue at Holly’s blazing, I dare you to stop me look.
He was damned tempted to do just that, after the two close calls they’d suffered that day. His dragon sniffed the air, unable to relax despite no evidence of trouble outside.
“Be right back,” Holly called gleefully.
An open challenge if Lachlan ever saw one. He gripped his whisky glass as Holly pushed open the front door.
She would be safe on Trevor’s home turf, wouldn’t she? Still, his dragon whipped its tail anxiously.
A breath of cold air sliced into the room, making the fire flicker. A moment later, the door creaked closed again, and Holly was gone.
Gone, his dragon mourned, as if she were leaving forever and not just walking the dog.
Tony’s eyes jumped between him and the door. Then he cleared his throat and spoke, picking his words carefully. “Something tells me she can take care of herself. In case you’re worried, I mean.”
Lachlan frowned. “Not worried. Just…um…”
Worried, his dragon sighed.
Tony barely hid a smile. “Of course not. Because… What is that you always say? Ah, yes. Love is foolish. And you are no fool.”
Lachlan stared into his whisky. No, he wasn’t a fool. Was he?
Tony raised his glass once more. “What shall we drink to, then? To long, lonely lives, empty of love and pleasure?”
Lachlan refused to take the bait.
Tony grinned. “Wait. I know. We drink to life on the edge. To making mistakes and learning from them.” He licked his lips and raised his glass higher. “And to love and pleasure. Lots of each.”
Lachlan snorted. “Which you’re an expert in, because…?”
Tony cracked into a huge smile. “In making mistakes, I am a master. In learning from them… Allora, time will tell. And as for love and pleasure…” He broke into a wolfish grin. “I have to make up for lost time now that I’m a civilian.” Then he frowned. “Sadly, standing guard over a prisoner on a frozen Scottish island is not exactly… How do you say? Conducive to amore or pleasure. But someday, if I ever return home…” He gazed wistfully into the fire, then swigged down the last of his grappa and smacked his knee, getting back to business. “Tell me more about that truck and the church wall. Was someone trying to kill you or warn you away?”
While Lachlan went over every detail, Tony listened, scrubbing the dark stubble of his mane — er, beard. His golden-brown eyes were a dead giveaway of his animal side, and the restless pacing when he was deep in thought yet another. But in so many other ways, the man was an enigma, even to Lachlan, who’d served alongside him for years.
Lachlan motioned his friend over to the crackling fireplace, where they spoke in hushed tones.
“If they were trying to kill you, they were sloppy. And they left too much to chance,” Tony pointed out.
Lachlan considered. “True. Either they were amateurs, or they wanted to miss.”
“What does your heart say?”
Lachlan hid a snort. His heart was too busy pining for Holly to offer any insights. But the more he considered, the more he felt sure of one thing.
“Natasha is the obvious suspect, but I can’t believe she would try to kill anyone.”
Especially us, his dragon grumbled, recalling her unwanted advances.
“You never know. Your trust may be misplaced,” Tony murmured, staring into the fireplace as if looking at his own past.
Lachlan glanced at him for a beat, then let it pass. Whatever ghosts Tony saw within the flickering flames were his to share — or conceal — as he pleased.
“Who else, then?” Lachlan wondered out loud, making a mental list of everyone present at the reading of Trevor’s will. Every dragon, every unicorn…
Just then, the front door swung open, and Holly entered, swiping raindrops off her sleeves. And like every other time she stepped into view, his heart pounded, and his dragon crooned.
My mate!
He could have spat fire at the thought of anyone harming Holly. But