I dated here and there, and my best girlfriend often dragged me to a movie or high tea or a day of shopping, but mostly I holed up in my laboratory and worked on my theories. The good news was that I was a rising young scientist with a ton of accolades; the bad news was that I didn’t have much of what might be considered fun. I thought studying black holes was fun, but it wasn’t the same as having a man in your life. Or sex.
If nothing else, I missed sex.
I might have been a bit of a brainiac, but I’d been sexually active for a long time and it had been more than a year since I’d indulged. The stronger my feelings got for Dax, the less interested I was in anyone else. While my grandfather didn’t know Dax was the reason I hadn’t dated much in the last year, he’d definitely noticed, so I understood why he felt the need to intervene. The issue I had was with how he’d gone about it. Tricking me every time I turned around wasn’t good for anyone, least of all the men who wound up getting summarily rejected.
If he’d come to me and asked me about it, I might have been more open to it, but being blindsided at the dinner table on a regular basis had gotten old quickly. I’d breathed a sigh of relief when he’d stopped, and that was why he’d caught me somewhat off guard with Gideon. I didn’t know what had spurred his starting up again, but now I’d managed to nip that in the bud. However, it still left me with the biggest dilemma of all: was this thing between Dax and me something we could work out, or was it nothing but a lonely woman’s fantasy?
I had no answers but I was definitely going to find out.
4
Dax
Isla was waiting when I came through customs, and I took the few seconds before she saw me to drink in the sight of her. She wore jeans and a leather jacket, her blond hair falling around her shoulders and a sweet smile on her face. She was slender but shapely, a good six inches shorter than me, but I already knew how well she fit against my chest because I’d hugged her on many occasions. I planned to give her a big hug as soon as I got close to her, because I’d been thinking about it since our phone conversation about dating.
“Hallo!” She waved, her face lighting up when she spotted me moving towards her.
“Hey.” I wrapped an arm around her waist, gently pulling her to me as I gauged her reaction to my touch. She wrapped both arms around my waist and squeezed, resting her head against my chest for a few seconds before smiling up at me.
“It’s so good to see you. How was your flight?”
“Pretty good. I think I slept more than five hours, so I should be good to go until tonight.”
“I didn’t make any plans because I wasn’t sure how much energy you’d have after a transatlantic flight.”
“I’m not sure about energy, but I’m definitely starving,” I said as we headed for the exit.
“Merrie has a huge meal planned for tonight, but I’m sure she’ll find a snack for you.” Merrie was the family’s housekeeper and a fantastic cook.
“She always does.”
I gathered my luggage and headed out to where she’d parked. I put my things in the back and she turned the car towards the highway. Her family’s ancestral home was about fifteen minutes outside of Edinburgh. It was called Huntington Castle and was a large and mostly untouched castle that was hundreds of years old. The inside had been updated and they made structural updates as needed, but the integrity of the façade was intact and I loved being here. This would be my fourth time visiting and it never got old.
“I love your family’s home,” I said as we arrived at the gate.
“I don’t think about it most of the time,” she said, “but it’s mostly because I see it every day. I do agree that it’s beautiful.”
“There’s a majesty to it, something we don’t see much in North America. I’m always amazed that I get to hang out here as a guest.”
“Everyone says that.” She smiled. “I guess you don’t think about it when you actually live here.”
“Do you suppose you’ll move out when you get married and have a family of your own?” I asked her curiously.
She didn’t hesitate to nod. “Absolutely. As much as I love Huntington, I want my own home, a place to make different memories.”
“And once your grandfather is gone, do you think any of your brothers will want to raise a family here?”
“I don’t know about Ian since he isn’t anywhere near ready to leave hockey. Finn and Mac have no plans to stay once they’re married—they’ve said as much—and Liam and Lachlan are on the fence. Mum will stay as long as she’s alive, I think, but the place is huge, so it’s not like she’d be in anyone’s way.”
“You think your mom will ever get remarried?” I asked curiously as she parked in the newly added five-car garage around back. Isla’s father had passed away several years before.
Isla cocked her head. “I don’t really know. Do I think so? No. But is it possible? Absolutely. She’s lonely, but the idea of being with someone else is difficult for her.”
“Dax! Hello!” Merrie waved as we got out of Isla’s car.
“Hey, Merrie!” I waved back as I pulled my suitcases out of the back.
“We
