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"No, it's my word. I invented it a minute ago."
"I do love your playful language. It's one of your most endearing qualities."
For the rest of the evening, we share a bottle of whisky and watch old TV westerns. I learn that Rebecca loves the shows that have "sexy men wearing tight pants and a gun belt" and also that she wishes she had learned to ride horses. She just never had the time for it.
Maybe I can remedy that for her. I'll need to think on it. Valentine's Day is coming up soon, and I do want to lavish her with gifts. The woman who set off a land mine to protect me deserves the world and more.
At bedtime, we crawl under the sheets and go to sleep.
The next morning, we drive into Loch Fairbairn so the gent who keeps my pickup running can examine the damage to the rear bumper. He checks out the vehicle from stem to stern. Fortunately, the damage isn't severe. All I really need is a new bumper. While my mate orders the part, I can still drive my truck in the meantime.
Rebecca and I go to the café for a late breakfast---and receive a surprise. We've just entered the establishment when it happens.
Everyone rises and claps. A few people whistle.
"Why are they doing this?" Rebecca whispers to me.
"Dinnae know." I shove two fingers into my mouth and blow, releasing a piercing whistle much louder than anyone else's. Everyone quietens down. "What is going on here? We came to have a wee breakfast. You lot are acting as if a rock star just walked into the café."
Jack MacTaggart and his wife, Autumn, leave their table to approach us. He shakes Rebecca's hand. "We're all congratulating you, lass, for your bravery and fortitude in a frightening situation. You saved Thane and stopped a criminal from escaping."
Her eyes bulge. "This is all for me? That's crazy."
I hug her to my side. "Mo chridhe, you deserve all the accolades."
Autumn turns to speak to the crowd. "Okay, we showed our appreciation for Rebecca. Now it's time to go back to enjoying breakfast."
The crowd settles down, and everyone goes back to eating.
"Would you like to share our table?" Jack asks.
I glance at Rebecca, and she nods. "Aye, we'll join you and Autumn."
As we sit down at the table, Rebecca leans toward the other side where Jack and Autumn sit. "This is all very strange. I mean, Thane did a lot to stop Holden too. It wasn't just me."
"Doesn't matter," Jack informs her. "Your legend has been created. Everyone will tell the story for years to come, maybe even centuries."
Rebecca's face goes blank.
Autumn pokes her elbow into her husband's side. "Don't scare her, Jack. Can't you see she's uncomfortable? Let the poor girl eat in peace."
Our waitress is Bonnie again, and she remembers both me and Rebecca. The lass has enough common sense not to bring up the issue of Rebecca's heroism. Instead, she cheerfully takes our orders and bustles away.
Lunch with Autumn and Jack is enjoyable, and Rebecca especially loves to hear the stories the couple tell us. Jack and Autumn had married impetuously in Las Vegas, then divorced a few months later. But two years after that, they realized they belong together---with a bit of meddling from the rest of the MacTaggarts.
Once Jack finishes the story, Autumn folds her arms on the table and speaks to me and Rebecca in a fake whisper. "Jack left out the best part. His cousins and their wives conspired to trick us into meeting here at this café. Then we wound up going back to my hotel room and having sex for two hours."
"Mhac na galla, Autumn," Jack hisses. "Haven't you heard of too much information?"
"Yep. But I ignore that." She reverts to her fake whisper as she faces us again. "I got pregnant on that afternoon. Two months later, when I found out I was having a baby, I flew to Scotland and shocked Jack with the news. That's when the meddling began."
"No one has meddled in my life," Rebecca says. "I think I'd know if they had."
"Sometimes it's very subtle."
Before Rebecca can ask any questions about the MacTaggarts' penchant for mucking about in other people's lives, Jack and Autumn announce they need to pick up their wee bairn from his parents' home.
For the rest of the day, I keep wondering what my friends might be plotting.
