Fire Maidens Scotland (Billionaires & Bodyguards #6) - Anna Lowe Page 0,28
Lachlan. Much as he wanted to believe he could guarantee Holly’s safety alone, recent events had convinced him to err on the side of caution.
Hanging up, he checked his watch and started calculating.
“New ETA?” Holly asked.
“Ninety-five minutes.”
“To the gates or to the house?”
Bloody hell. Was she poking fun at him?
“The gate,” he murmured. Then he grimaced and ducked. “Mungo…” Did the dog have to pant right in his ear?
Holly called the dog over and caressed his ears. “Poor baby. I’ll pet you.”
The next ten miles of driving were uneventful, though Lachlan kept every sense piqued for trouble. Holly didn’t speak for that whole time, and he wondered what was going through her mind. Fear? Sorrow? Trepidation?
Touch her. Make her feel better, his dragon urged.
He wanted to. Badly. But he didn’t dare.
Then she pulled out Trevor’s first letter, rereading it quietly. When her chest rose and fell in a sigh, Lachlan was certain she’d reached the very lines echoing in his mind.
If there is any wisdom Ava and I can impart to you, it is this. Love is life. Love is the most powerful, enduring force. The most beautiful, whether that’s love for your mate, a child, or a comrade. Yes, love can hurt, but it is never lost.
“Do you have any regrets?” Holly whispered out of the blue.
Of course not, he nearly replied.
But his inner dragon growled first, and it took everything he had not to let the words slip out. Only when it comes to you.
But that wasn’t a regret. Not technically, because he’d had no choice.
His dragon rolled its eyes.
She gave him a disbelieving look. “Seriously, Lachlan. You must have a few.” She tapped her lips in thought. “Let’s see. What about joining the Foreign Legion? I seem to remember your dad wasn’t all that keen on it.”
He nearly snorted. His old man had thrown a fit at the only little bit of defiance Lachlan had ever shown. According to family tradition, Lachlan ought to have joined the Royal Scots Dragoons before going on to a career in law — all in preparation to be appointed a Guardian someday. But he’d been determined to chart his own course in life, at least to some degree. Thus, the French Foreign Legion.
To work amidst the rabble rather than alongside Scotland’s finest? his father had scoffed.
“No regrets,” he said firmly.
He double-checked the rearview mirror, then glanced at Holly, who was peering at him with a look that said, Don’t criminals sign up for the Foreign Legion?
He wished he could explain. Criminal was an easy tag to use until you learned the full story. Tony was a prime example — a good man who had killed a crime boss to prevent the murder of innocents. Did that make Tony a criminal?
Other recruits had been men of privilege determined to prove themselves without the help of a family name — like himself, he supposed. Yet others had signed up for the world’s toughest military corps to make up for the mistakes of their youth. And who couldn’t relate to that? Each wanted a fresh start and was willing to put in the blood, sweat, and tears to accomplish that.
His dragon snorted. Call it toil, not tears.
His lips quirked at the echo of one of his comrade’s jokes.
But how could he ever explain to Holly?
He turned the question around instead of answering. “What about you? Regrets?”
She thought long and hard, no doubt struggling to come up with anything. Holly lived for the day, for joy, and for quick laughs — blissfully unencumbered by expectations or a centuries-old family reputation. What use did she have for regrets?
To his surprise, the shine in her eyes dulled.
“Just one,” she whispered.
He waited, wondering what it might be. A stray dog she’d failed to rescue? A party trick she’d never mastered?
Then he remembered the people she’d mentioned — Deshawn, Cornell, and others. Were there disappointments among the success stories?
Her lips opened and closed, and for some reason, she looked at him. Really looked as if wondering whether or not to reveal the truth.
Finally, she spoke. A single word filled with so much pain, it cut his heart.
“You.” A moment later, she murmured, “Nothing personal.”
His breath caught, and his throat went dry. He couldn’t help but stare at the pain written all over her face.
Just how she looked when we left her all those years ago, his dragon lamented.
She swallowed hard and kept her eyes glued to the road.
“Why?” He managed to sound neutral — bloody hell, too neutral —