AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I brush the back of my hand over her cheek. "Whatever you need, I'll get it for you."
While Ashley opens the bottle and swallows a pill, I get back on the road—and do it more gently this time. I suppose my way of driving would make a lot of lasses nauseous, though none of the girls I've dated complained about that. But maybe that explains why so many of them don't want to go out with me for more than a few dates. They can't handle me.
Ashley can. Despite her need for motion sickness pills, she hasn't backed out of our expedition.
We've just turned onto a gravel road when I glance sideways at her. "Feeling better?"
"Yes, much better."
"Good. At least you're already drugged for the next leg of our journey."
She leans toward me. "You're not scaring me off."
"Donnae want to."
The trees open up to reveal an oblong clearing. At one end lies a small house. Just in front of that, my favorite girl waits for us. Well, my second favorite girl. Aye, Ashley has taken the top spot away from Marilyn. Not that Ashleyismy girl. I haven't asked if she wants to be, but she has insisted this is business only.
I stop the car near the house. "Here we are."
She leans forward to peer out the windscreen. "Where's the runway? All I see is the plane and lots of grass."
"That's right. It's a grass strip. Only I have permission to use it."
"Do you own this property?"
"No. You'll meet the owner any minute now." I exit the car and shut the door, then take a deep breath of woodland air. The Highlands smell better than anyplace else on earth.
Ashley gets out too and yawns. "They lied about the less-drowsy part."
"You can have a wee nap once we're in the air."
The front door of the house bursts open, and a gray-haired man with unkempt hair and a bushy beard stalks up to us. He drags me into a bear hug—briefly, thank goodness.
"Good to see ye, laddie," he says. "Come to give Marilyn some exercise?"
"Aye, sort of." I wave for Ashley to come closer and slip an arm around her shoulders. "This is my Great Uncle Torcall Murdoch, who's the uncle of my father. He's lived out here for so long that we've all decided he wants to become a bear and repopulate the species in Scotland."
"Tosh," Torcall says. "Are ye taking your lass on an aerial tour of Loch Fairbairn to scare the tourists? Last time you did that, we had UFO reports filed at the police station."
"A DC-3 looks nothing like a UFO. Besides, I only flew low over the village twice, and that was ages ago."
"So now 'ages' means 'last week'?"
"No. It was…at least a month ago."
Ashley's lips tighten into a closed-mouth smile. "I missed all the fun, huh?"
"Not at all. I've got plenty more excitement for you, donnae worry about that." I turn to Torcall. "Would you mind if I leave my car here? We'll only be gone for the day, back before nightfall, I'm sure."
"I'll guard your car, Errol. Not that it looks like anything a thief might want. Why donnae ye buy a nice, shiny new Land Rover?"
"I like the classics."
Torcall snorts. "Not everything old is a classic."
"Come on, Ashley," I say. "We'd best get on our way, or else we'll miss our appointment."
"I hope ye brought earplugs, lass," Torcall tells Ashley.
