Finding Hope at the Loch (Loch Lannick Book 7) Read online

“Did you tell Isla that?”

  “Of course I didn’t. She’d already implied that she didn’t think I was good enough, and I’d insisted I could do it. There was no way I was going to say I couldn’t.”

  “Well, you’ve got a couple of months to practice. I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

  “I suppose I’ll have to. Unless …” An idea popped into her head and she couldn’t help but smile.

  “Unless what?”

  “I told Isla I’d show her some possible designs, but I didn’t want her to see the final version until the day.”

  “So?”

  “So I could go rogue and make my original design!”

  Rory chuckled. “She’d kill you.”

  “You’re right,” Elspeth agreed. “I’m probably not that brave.”

  Chapter Seven

  Apart from a brisk walk on the path around the loch on Sunday afternoon, Lexie mainly spent her weekend off eating unhealthy food and lazing around the house. Too many weekends like that probably wouldn’t be great for her waistline, but she loved spending so much quality time with Nick. Not long ago she’d have laughed at the idea of being a clingy girlfriend, but she was a little doleful when Nick announced that he had some work he had to get on with after dinner on Sunday. That meant he’d disappear upstairs and shut himself away in the room that he’d made into an office/library.

  Her suggestion that she work alongside him was definitely a little clingy. But she genuinely did have planning to do for a hike and a couple of other activities the following week.

  When Nick insisted he didn’t mind her encroaching on his workspace, she settled herself on the couch upstairs while Nick worked at the desk in the corner. Researching suitable areas to hike and jotting down useful information to share with her group was absorbing, and a couple of hours passed with her barely looking up from the laptop.

  When she’d finished everything she needed to do, she stayed cross-legged on the couch, her laptop still in her lap as she watched Nick work.

  “Why do you keep looking outside?” she asked when he leaned back in his chair and craned his neck towards the window for the third time in ten minutes.

  “Checking how dark it is?” he said, looking at her in surprise. There was a flash of guilt in his features as though he’d been caught out. “There’s going to be a meteor shower later. I thought we could go out on the deck and watch through the telescope.”

  “That sounds nice.”

  “Aye.” He stared at her. “It should be quite an interesting evening. There’s this star that you can’t usually see, but it should be visible tonight and it’ll be really bright.”

  Lexie’s lips spread to a smile. “A meteor shower and a really bright star? Is my knowledge of astronomy getting better or are you dumbing things down? I understood everything you just said. What’s happened to all the scientific terms and Latin names?”

  “The names are mostly derived from Arabic actually, not Latin.” He stretched his neck. “And I realised it goes way over your head, so I decided to simplify things.”

  His face broke into a smile when she threw a cushion at him. Standing, he walked over and pulled her up from the couch. “You just think it’s hot when I get geeky about the stars and use all the long words,” he said.

  “I can’t deny it,” she said happily.

  “Good. Let’s go out on the deck and I’ll impress you with my knowledge.”

  In the summer months they’d spent many evenings out on the deck, cuddled up under the stars. It was becoming less and less appealing now that the weather was taking a turn towards cold and wintery. As soon as Nick opened the patio door, Lexie shivered.

  “I think I might wait inside and you can give me a shout if you see anything interesting.”

  “Put a jacket on,” he suggested.

  Lexie wrapped her arms around herself as she glanced past Nick at the darkness beyond. A strip of silver cloud drifted in front of the crescent moon. “It’s not even very clear tonight,” she said.

  “It’s not bad.” He gazed up. “And it’s supposed to clear up.”

  “I might put the kettle on and come out in a bit.” She slid the door closed before making her way to the warmth of the kitchen. She’d only just filled the kettle when Nick called for her.

  “What?” she asked, walking back to the living room.

  He was peering in through the open patio door. “Come and look at this.”

  “You’re letting all the cold air in,” she mumbled, stepping outside and tilting her head back. “What am I looking for? Shooting stars?”

  “Look through the telescope,” he said, giving her a gentle nudge in that direction with a hand at her waist.

  She squinted into the lens. “I’m not sure what I’m looking for.”

  “A star. You’ll know when you see it. Keep looking.”

  “I can see lots of stars,” she said, mesmerised by the twinkling lights.

  “Come here.” He took her hand and pulled her towards him. “You can also see it without the telescope.”

  As she searched the sky, Nick slipped behind her, circling his arms around her waist.

  “Can you see it now?” he asked.

  “I can see loads of stars. They all look the same to me.”

  “This one looks like a diamond,” he said, his breath warm against her cheek.

  “You’re really dumbing things down for me this evening.” She leaned back, enjoying the warmth of his chest against her back and the feel of his arms around her. “Tell me in relation to the constellations. That might make it easier.” In all honesty, she wasn’t particularly interested in some bright star, but she always liked it when Nick got engrossed in telling her about them. He was so passionate about astronomy that she’d end up enthralled, even when she wasn’t entirely sure what he was talking about.

  Nick raised an arm to point. “Right there.”

  “That’s not overly helpful.” She followed his finger but still only saw the vast blanket of stars.

  “You might be looking too far,” he said.

  “Now you’re being ridiculous.” She tilted her head so it rested against his. “I’m looking into space. How can I be looking too far? I’m following your finger but I still don’t see anything.”

  “Don’t follow my finger then. Try looking at it instead.”

  As her gaze shifted she realised he wasn’t pointing at all, but holding something between his thumb and forefinger. The moonlight caught it, making it shine.

  It took a moment for her to find her voice. “Is that a diamond?” she asked through the lump in her throat.

  “Yes.” He lowered his arm to show her the ring. “Will you marry me?” he whispered in her ear.

  Shocked, Lexie forgot to speak. She stared at the ring until tears blurred her vision.

  Nick laid a gentle kiss on her shoulder. “I’d like to remind you that you promised you’d say yes.”

  “Yes,” she said, her voice coming out slightly croaky as she took the ring and slid it onto her finger. “Of course I’ll marry you.” Turning, she kissed his lips and tasted the salt from her tears.

  “How was my proposal?” he asked with a cheeky grin.

  “Pretty perfect actually,” she said, beaming at Nick, then inspecting the ring again.

  “And the timing?” he asked, looking slightly nervous.

  She paused, thinking. They hadn’t been together very long and she was sure everyone would be shocked. She was pretty shocked herself, but it also felt right. She had no reservations. “Perfect timing, too,” she told him.

  “Really? I know we said we’d wait a while, but with all the talk of weddings I feel as though it’s all I think about. I didn’t feel like waiting any longer to ask.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t wait,” she said, then laughed. “You surprised me, though! I really wasn’t expecting that. Especially not after our conversation this morning.”

  “I’ve been driving myself crazy since I bought the ring.
I kept changing my mind about whether I should ask you now or wait a while. I couldn’t figure out what you’d want.”

  “When did you get the ring?” she asked.

  “A few weeks ago. Last time I was in Fort William. My mum helped me choose it.”

  “Your parents already know?”

  “They know I was thinking of asking you.”

  “What did they say about it?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t think they were surprised. They’re happy about it.”

  “Good.” Lexie wondered how her parents would react. She suspected her dad wouldn’t be overjoyed by the news. He’d never really warmed to the idea of her and Nick being together, and things had been awkward between them since the misunderstanding on Nick’s birthday when her dad had ended up kicking him out of the pub. “The ring’s beautiful,” she said, deciding not to worry about how Angus would react to the news. “And it fits perfectly.”

  “I put a piece of string around your finger to measure one night when you were asleep.”

  “Nick!” She blurted a laugh. “That’s creepy.”

  “Yeah. It did feel quite creepy as I was doing it. Worked, though!”

  “It did,” she agreed, twisting the ring on her finger.

  “I love you,” Nick said, lowering his face to hers. “I promise I’ll always do my best to make you happy.”

  “I know you will,” she said, hugging him harder as she shivered. “I love you so much.”

  He rubbed her arms to warm her up. “I’ll get a blanket before you freeze.”

  “Or we could just go inside.”

  “There’s actually going to be a meteor shower,” he said. “We should be able to see some shooting stars if we keep watching. I’ve also got champagne hiding behind that chair. I brought it out here earlier when I said I was getting a glass of water.”

  “Sneaky,” she said, then sank onto the edge of a sun lounger while Nick ducked inside. Her eyes fell automatically to the delicate band on her finger. Moonlight hit the dainty diamond, which was framed by two smaller diamonds. It was subtle but stunning. When she dragged her eyes away from it, she caught a shooting star zipping overhead.

  “You just missed one,” she said, when Nick stepped back outside.

  “No way! Really? What did you wish for?”

  “At this moment I can’t actually think of anything to wish for.”

  “Lucky you!” he said in a jokey tone. “I’ve got a list of things. We can’t go inside until I’ve seen twelve shooting stars.”

  “Shut up and pour the champagne,” she said happily.

  He popped the cork and filled the glasses with the foamy liquid. “We could nip to the pub and tell your parents, if you want?”

  “No. Let’s just keep it to ourselves this evening.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Is this going to be like the time you kept putting off telling people we were together?”

  “No!” Tempting as it was to not have to deal with certain people’s reactions, she was still dying to share the news. Especially with her mum and Leana. “I can’t wait to tell people,” she said, looking at Nick in earnest before clinking her glass against his.

  Chapter Eight

  “Have you got another day off today?” Nick asked Lexie the next morning. She was still nice and cosy in bed while he got dressed for work.

  “No. I’m going to help Tim clear out the office at the activity centre. He’s finally trying to be more organised about his filing system. It’s currently a disaster zone. So that’s probably not going to be much fun.” She rolled onto her side, fiddling with her engagement ring. “How about we go to the pub this evening and tell everyone?”

  He nodded as he perched on the edge of the bed and leaned down to kiss her. “Do you think Isla and Logan will think we’re trying to steal their thunder when we start wedding planning too?”

  “I hope not.” Lexie’s smile slipped at the thought.

  “I was joking. And we don’t need to start planning already. Maybe you want a long engagement?”

  “I don’t know.” She sat up, fastening a button on his shirt that he’d missed. “I’ll have to have a think about it.”

  “No rush.” He pushed her hair behind her ear. “We’ve got loads of time to decide what kind of wedding we want.”

  Lexie kissed him again before he left for work. Then she flopped back on the bed feeling utterly content. After grinning at her engagement ring for five minutes, she realised she couldn’t wait all day to tell her parents. She had an hour before Tim was expecting her at work, and she wanted to tell them straight away.

  Quickly, she got ready and headed out of the door. Her hands were clammy as she used her key to let herself in through the side door of the pub. It occurred to her how sudden the engagement would seem to other people, and she was unsure how her parents would react. Her mum really liked Nick, but even so, she might have something to say about how fast things were moving.

  At the top of the stairs, she knocked on the door to her parents’ flat, then let herself in.

  “In here,” her mum called out.

  Lexie followed her mum’s voice and the scent of coffee to the kitchen.

  “Morning,” her dad said, glancing at her over his newspaper.

  “Nick asked me to marry him,” she said without preamble, then focused on her mum as she held up her hand to show off her ring. She could probably have done a better job of warming them up to the conversation, but she was worried if she didn’t tell them immediately she might not manage it.

  “Oh my goodness!” Mary was out of her chair immediately and enveloped Lexie in a hug. “That’s wonderful,” she said, then took a step back and took her daughter’s hand to inspect the ring. “Didn’t he choose well? It’s gorgeous. When did he ask you?”

  “Last night.”

  “That’s a bit out of the blue, isn’t it?” Angus asked.

  “Not really,” Lexie said. “We’ve talked about getting married a lot. It’s what we both want.” She hated how she sounded as though she was trying to convince her dad. It shouldn’t really need to be a discussion.

  “You’ve not been together that long,” Angus stated.

  “Long enough.” Lexie forced her voice to sound upbeat. “Not far off a year now, and I’d known him for a few years before we got together.”

  Angus’s features were tense as he looked at her. “Are you pregnant?”

  Lexie shook her head. “No! I’m not pregnant.”

  Mary glared at her husband, then took Lexie’s elbow. “Come in the living room and tell me how he proposed.”

  In a daze, Lexie followed her mum. “I can’t believe he just said that,” she hissed in the other room.

  “Ignore him,” Mary soothed. “He doesn’t mean anything by it. Apparently he’s never learned to think before he speaks. Give him a minute for the news to sink in.”

  “What’s his problem with Nick?” Lexie asked. Deep down, she’d known that her dad wouldn’t approve of them getting married. His reaction stung, regardless.

  “I’ve no idea,” Mary said. “He’s just stubborn. Once he gets an idea in his head it’s difficult to shake.”

  “You like Nick, don’t you?”

  “Of course,” Mary said as they sat side by side on the couch. “He’s a great lad. I’m so pleased for you.”

  “Thank you.” Lexie pulled herself together and told her mum about Nick proposing under the stars. Mary peppered her with questions, and she was feeling calmer when Angus finally joined them.

  “Congratulations,” he said, then inhaled deeply. It wasn’t quite the apology that Lexie would have liked, but she supposed it was a start.

  “Thanks.”

  “I suppose if you’re happy that’s all that matters.”

  Lexie gritted her teeth as her anger levels rose again. “So you’re not happy about it?”

  “It just seems a bit fast. What’s the rush?”

  “I love Nick. And he loves me. I know I want to be w
ith him forever. What exactly should we wait for?”

  “If that’s what you want,” he said with a shrug.

  “It is,” Lexie said. “I’d also like to come in the pub tonight and celebrate. It would be nice if you could at least pretend to be happy for us.”

  “We can have a little party,” her mum said. “That will be nice. Invite all your friends and we’ll crack open some champagne.”

  “Thanks, Mum.” Lexie kissed Mary’s cheek before she left, grateful that at least one of her parents was happy for them.

  “Aren’t you a good little housewife?” Nick said jokily when he arrived home from work that afternoon.

  Lexie was pulling a beef stew out of the oven. “Tim only needed me for a few hours and I was bored, so I thought I’d cook to kill the time.”

  “It smells great. And I’m starving.” He hung his jacket on the coat rack and kissed her cheek. “Did you already tell people about the engagement?”

  She grimaced. “I told my parents, then I called Leana and Elspeth. I’d imagine that means Isla and Logan also know, and Rory and Alasdair. Plus my mum will have told anyone who’s been in the pub today. Oh, and I mentioned it to Tim. And Gertie from the hiking group called while I was at the activity centre so I told her too.”

  “Seems like you covered most people.”

  “Sorry.” She pulled plates from the cupboard and began to set the table. “You don’t mind, do you?”

  “No. I thought we’d tell people together but it doesn’t matter.”

  “I decided it might be better if I told my parents alone. Then I was worried about Leana finding out from someone else. Things snowballed from there.”

  Nick got them both a glass of water and put them on the table. “How did everyone react?”

  “Leana was really excited.” She smiled as she took the stew to the table. “Elspeth seemed surprised but excited too. Tim was surprisingly enthusiastic. Mum was really happy.”

  “Dare I ask about your dad? I’m imagining him saying something completely tactless.”

  “He was fine,” Lexie said weakly, trying not to meet Nick’s eye as she dished up the food. When she picked up her cutlery, she noticed Nick staring at her. She sighed. “He asked if I was pregnant.”