McGillivray's Mistress - By Anne McAllister Page 0,29

sometimes a little tricky.”

David looked like he might have other ideas, but apparently years of being polite had taken their toll. He gave Fiona an apologetic smile, then turned to Suzette. “Thanks very much,” he said. “That would be brilliant.”

He bade farewell to everyone else, then turned to Fiona. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said, lingering as Lachlan herded them out of the restaurant and down the steps.

“I’ll be around,” Fiona assured him. “I’ll be working at home in the morning and in Carin’s shop in the afternoon.”

“If you want her, I can spare her for an hour or two,” Carin offered helpfully.

“I’m sure David won’t need anywhere near that much of her time,” Lachlan said briskly, coming back for them, holding the door and looking impatient. “He’s a busy man. Go on now,” he urged David and Suzette. “Must be almost time for the first set.” Sounds of tuning and a bit of percussion were already coming from the Grouper. “You won’t want to miss anything.”

“Are you coming?” David asked Carin and Nathan politely.

Carin shook her head. “We’ll be heading home,” Carin said. “Wouldn’t do to leave Lacey on her own with Josh too long.”

Nathan shuddered. “Heaven only knows what he will have got into.” Josh was one—and a force to be reckoned with.

Fiona, who had baby-sat him herself a time or two, grinned. “He’s just like Mike’s boys were at that age.” Over the years she’d baby-sat Tom and Peter a fair amount and had enjoyed it. She’d always intended to have children of her own. But that was back when she’d thought life was something she could plan.

And now?

Now she had Sparks. At least Sparks, even if he did say so himself, was a spectacular cat.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said to Carin and Nathan. “You, too,” she said to David. “It was lovely to meet you. Enjoy the steel band. Nice to see you again,” she said to Suzette.

And then she turned to Lachlan who was looking decidedly irritable for no reason at all. “Thank you very much for dinner,” she said in a proper, well-brought-up fashion. Her mother would have been proud. “It was kind of you to invite me.”

Even though she knew now that he hadn’t.

“It was, wasn’t it?” he said smoothly. And to her amazement, instead of following David and Suzette or heading back to the Moonstone, he took her firmly by the arm and started down the hill with her.

She tried wriggling out of his grasp, but he only slid his hand down until his fingers laced with hers.

“What,” she demanded through her teeth, “are you doing?”

“Walking you home.”

“I don’t need you to walk me home!”

“Too bad. I brought you. I’m taking you home.”

“It’s not necessary.”

But apparently she wasn’t convincing. Lachlan didn’t answer. He didn’t let go of her hand either. His fingers were warm and rough against hers. Fiona felt a frisson of definite sexual awareness skitter up her spine.

“What was that business about me having to work?” she demanded.

He didn’t answer that either.

“Lachlan?”

But he just strode on, and Fiona, if she didn’t want to be dragged, had to practically run to keep up with him. Good thing she’d forgone Julie’s dressy heels for her own sandals.

They went past Carin’s old house, where Lachlan’s sister, Molly, was now living. She was sitting on her front porch talking to Miss Saffron, the old lady who lived next door. Molly’s eyes widened slightly at the sight of them together.

Miss Saffron waved gaily.

Fiona waved back and tried to look as if she wasn’t being abducted, which was what it felt like. “What are you so mad about?”

“I’m not mad.”

“You just naturally steam from the ears?”

He shot her a hard look. But not until they reached Fiona’s porch did he ease his grip on her hand. She wiggled her fingers experimentally. They might get feeling in them again sometime next week.

“Well, that was nice,” she said brightly because she certainly didn’t know what else to say. “A lovely evening. A wonderful dinner. And now I’ve met an earl—”

“And flirted with him,” Lachlan said harshly.

Fiona blinked as much at the tone as the words. She could hardly deny them. And why should she?

“I’m allowed,” she said mildly. “And he didn’t seem to mind. Actually,” she reflected, “I think he quite enjoyed it. Now, I think I’ll go in and get a good night’s sleep since I have to be up early. Thank you for seeing me home,” she added with a certain amount of irony.

But he