Rob woke her a couple of hours later, moving over her to kiss her passionately.
‘I don’t want to leave, beautiful, but I have a flight to catch. I need to be in Edinburgh for a meeting.’ He stretched out, pulling her head to rest on his exposed chest as he leaned back against the headboard at a slight angle. Rose sighed, equally bummed that he had to go.
‘You can’t help being in high demand with your business.’ She smiled at him sleepily when he traced his fingers across her face, tucking back stray strands of hair.
‘Sometimes all the demands on my life get on my nerves. I would rather stay here with you indefinitely.’ He smiled, moving down so he could pull her body against his in every way possible, moulding together face to face, hooking her legs with one of his.
‘What demands would those be?’ She smiled playfully, lifting her chin to kiss him lightly on that sexy stubbled jawline. She heard the almost silent moan escape his throat and felt the stirrings between them arise again, now that she had found one of his weaknesses, nuzzling his neck with renewed vigour.
‘I swear if you keep doing that, I will cancel my flight.’ He caught her face with his hand and hit her with a toe-curling kiss before drawing back and regretfully sliding out of bed. Rose sat up, pulling the sheets over her naked breasts, making herself comfy in a sitting position.
‘Does being Laird take a lot of work?’ She asked quizzically, intrigued by what the title meant. She watched him dress lazily, with no hurry this time in his movements.
‘Not really. It’s more of an honorary title nowadays. The village doesn’t expect much of me, but I like to stay involved, maintain the place, and deal with minor issues. It just means I own most of the land around here, and I have tenants that rely on me to keep things ticking.’ He smiled back down at her as he pulled his shirt over his head, all those biceps and taut muscles moving seductively. Rose inhaled slowly to cool her rising temperature at watching him.
‘So, the dances and charity things; they’re just you, staying involved?’
‘I like to be part of the community, the house is big enough for events, and as I grew up with these people, I want to have a part in things. Abby and I were raised to love this village and appreciate the people and the surroundings, and being a Munro means I carry on the tradition of making sure it continues to grow.’ He had started hauling his hooded top and zipping it up slowly, running a hand through that sexy hair. He stopped to pull on his trainers before crawling back onto the bed and pinning Rose with his body weight.
‘You’re just an all-around good guy, then?’ She giggled as his mouth met her neck and jawline tenderly.
‘According to the town biddies, I’m their favourite celebrity. They all treat me like a rock star when I’m home.’ He was moving decidedly low, pushing the sheets out of his way as he got to her cleavage. Rose moaned lightly, distracted and struggling to formulate a response.
‘Well, it doesn’t hurt that you look like one of Hollywood’s sexiest men.’ The giggling turned to immediate groaning as his hand slipped under the sheets and found her too easily.
‘Is that you saying you find me sexy and good-looking, Miss Turner?’ He was peeling back the sheets now, gaining full access and changing his mind about going so soon. She breathed in response, only able to nod as a reply, incapable of more while his hands were on her that way. Rob let her go and leaned back to settle on his legs, pulling his top and shirt back off in one easy movement.
‘You make me horny as hell Rose. Don’t think I have ever wanted a woman as badly as I want you.’ He grinned and swooped back in, stopping the conversation with a swoon-worthy kiss that sent her off the rails before gazing at her adoringly and moving back to her cleavage.
‘Has there been many?’ It was out before her brain connected to what she was saying, instantly mortified that she would even ask him this, and it seemed to stop his kissing slowly down her body, an immediate pause.
‘Girlfriends or sex buddies?’ He looked at her seriously, with a slight smile and no obvious irritation at her question.
‘Either. I dated a few men in London, not many, and they never went anywhere before I decided that single life was less hassle. I haven’t ever had a serious relationship, though.’ She was blushing wildly, embarrassed by this and unsure she even wanted an answer to her question. Covering with her rambling, Rob came back up to lay beside her, pulling her hands to his mouth and rubbing her small fingers over his chin.
‘I had girlfriends on and off until Morag... I guess she was my first meaningful relationship, and after it went tits up, I had to be a little more delicate with dating. She was unstable, so I kept things casual and brief with the women I saw. None lasted more than a couple of months because Morag would start seeing the clues and getting hysterical again. I’m not going to lie. There’s been a lot. I hate sneaking around, but it’s been my dating life for a while, and not one of them was ever a real girlfriend. The last one was six months ago. Morag has made it near impossible to get any breathing space since then, so I just haven’t bothered.’ He sighed as he watched her closely and pensively, knowing that what he was saying hardly put him in a good light.
‘Why have you let her affect your life in this way?’ She furrowed her brow. A knot of apprehension grew inside. He sighed and pondered her question for a moment before getting comfy. Obviously, this chat wasn’t going to be brief.
‘I made the mistake of starting things this way, and changing it has been hard. Anytime I tried to tell her I was moving on, she relapsed. After a few close calls, I realised that pretending I had no sex life was easier than her monumentous meltdowns. I always intended to try and ease her into my being with someone else, but up until now, none of the women I dated was worth the hassle. It was easier to break things off when Morag started her shit than deal with her fallout.’
‘Are you saying I’m worth the hassle? You told me you didn’t want to sneak around with me... But if that’s what you have been doing for years, then why am I different?’ Rose averted her eyes to that strong neck and throat, trying to calm her over erratic heartbeats and unable to meet that steel gaze. She didn’t like what he had told her, yet some of her liked that he was this honest. Honesty meant everything.
‘I knew the first time I laid eyes on you, Rose, that you were different. We have something, an instant connection... A definite attraction, something rare. I didn’t want you to be like every other fling I’ve had. I wanted to be with you properly, and I didn’t want to jade us by being the same guy I have been for years. I truly want to be out in the open with you, have Morag accept that I’m falling for someone else.’ He brushed her lip with his thumb tenderly, her eyes coming to his fast.
‘Falling for me? As in... Love?’ She smiled at him shyly, a grin breaking across her face and small dots of heat flushing over her cheeks. She pretty much melted into him.
‘Isn’t that obvious? I haven’t been able to get you out of my head since I almost killed you with my car. Even spitting fire and looking murderous, baby. I knew I wanted to wrap myself around you and kiss the shit out of you....... When we lost you at the dance that night, I was sick to my stomach. I had no clue where you were. I have never been so worried and acted like a madman trying to find you.’ He kissed her this time, mouth in place of thumb and equally soft. ‘Sounds like you have it bad.’ She smiled against his mouth, her fluttering heart pounding erratically and her stomach doing somersaults.
‘You may be right there. As much as I do happen to be falling under your spell, I do really have to go. Rain check on what we were in the middle of, and I’ll make up for it when I get back?’ That easy smile, and then he was up and on his feet again, retrieving his clothes and throwing her back a loaded look.
‘I suppose; will have to be something special then!’ She jested, again burrowing back into the mattress and pulling the covers around her to snuggle in.
‘Dinner, movie...... Hotel after?’ He cast her another look as he put his top on again, smoothing it down. ‘I know a nice town about thirty miles from here with all the above.’
Rose’s heart sank a little. It’s not that she didn’t want all that; she knew his mention of a town far enough away from here to do it was just another sign that this was a secret arrangement. Hiding out, dating out of town. She had to remind herself that this was temporary.
‘Sure. It’s a date!’ She smiled, hiding her feelings behind it and accepted a brief peck on the lips when he was ready to go. Sighing as he straightened up, he ruffled her hair affectionately and turned to go. ‘I’ll be back in two days; I’ll call you.’
‘You better.’ She smiled again, and with another wink and that Munro smile knocking her for six, he was out the door and gone.
* * *
Rose found transitioning back into a normal routine hard over the next few weeks. It was almost impossible. Never knowing when they could steal moments together, sneaking around in the night and his leaving before daybreak when he did stay. Out of town meet ups became a little too frequent, arriving in separate cars and leaving that way. It was starting to get to her. They acted like casual friends in public in front of Abby, sure to keep anything hidden and would not look at one another too much.
Rob’s frequent business trips also cut into their time together, so when he wasn’t playing Laird in public and having to keep his distance or jetting off to deal with the Munro family business in whisky and oil, he was committed to helping Morag. Years of being her rock and shoulder to lean on, he would accompany her to appointments and help her with museum issues. Seeing as he was a silent investor. Rob’s time was split up hectically, which meant finding time alone to be together as a couple was harder than they had anticipated. A constant juggling act.
Lying to Abby was the worst part, although something deep down told Rose she knew more than she let on. Odd looks and, knowing half smiles, occasional comments hinted that Abby knew something but was not going to come out and say for sure. It was killing Rose inside and Rob, too. Both had to keep reminding themselves why she couldn’t know.
They could never stay at the manor because of that, and Morag had this highly annoying habit of popping by whenever the mood took her, day or night! She liked to pop by at every opportunity, claiming it was museum related or generally monopolising his time when he was home. The drunken episode of showing up at his house in the little hours was repeated several times; Rob told Rose that Morag was relapsing, and her mental health team were trying to get on top of her medication and mood swings. Alcohol was one of her worst vices; lately, she had been drinking more than ever before.
After three nights in a row of Morag showing up at the Manor, drunk and irrational, they had to cut down on nights he did stay with her in case Abby was again left to deal with the aggressive woman. Rob, the eternal brotherly protector, was torn with guilt over it.
Instead of lying in bed curled in his arms and drifting off to sleep, she would have to watch him dress in the dark and leave. She had begun pretending she was asleep so she did not have to pretend to be okay with his departure. Breaking inwardly every time he leant down in the darkness to brush a kiss across her hair.
During a minor row over this, she found out Morag had a key to the manor and had done it for ten years.
‘Why?’ She was fueled by frustration over another night that he had been torn from her by his phone illuminating in the darkness. Getting up to go and getting his clothes on was the familiar scene replaying anytime they did steal time together.
‘Because at one point she was almost family Rose, she lived there for a while when she had nowhere else to go; it’s not ever really been a great time to say, ‘Oh, can I have the key back.’ He was pacing around, equally annoyed. Aware that lately, tension had been growing between them. Morag’s antics had escalated of late, and he was constantly being pulled in two directions, torn as the friend who cared about the woman and the boyfriend trying so hard to keep Rose happy.
‘So, she can freely walk in at any time? Walk into your bedroom at any hour?’ Rose could not conceal her anger and jealousy, hating that she sounded this way but breaking inside with all the recent anxiety that had built inside her. The deceit of how they had been living.
‘Obviously...Hence all the drunken appearances!’ He was scrubbing his hair with his fingers, facing out into the garden at the window. Tense and straight. Even angry, he had a way of making her feel weak at the knees.
‘Take it back! Maybe you wouldn’t have to sneak out like some Casanova from my bed most nights!’ She snapped, knowing she was being unfair. She had agreed to this but could not keep this bubbling emotion locked down forever. It grew more and more uncontrollable as time went on, and the situation didn’t seem to improve in any way.
‘You think I haven’t thought of that? What difference would it make? She would still show up banging down the door and setting the alarms off instead. Draw a hell of a lot more drama at stupid o’clock.
Tommy and Alice live close enough that it would become their problem too. And my fathers!’ He wasn’t snapping at her, but he may as well have been, his voice tight and his actions agitated. This was their first real row over this.
‘It feels like nothing is moving forward, Rob!’ Her voice shook. ‘We’re just brushing it aside, and it feels like this is it for us.’ Her voice broke as emotion hit, her bottom lip trembling, so she looked away to regain control.
His face relaxed, and he turned to look at her, so many emotions passing in an instant. Mostly regret as he took her face in; closing the gap between them, he pulled her against him, his hands coming to her hair and kissing her crown gently.
‘I’m sorry, honey. I don’t want to fight with you. I am trying, Rose! I’m out of my depth with her. I feel like the older she gets, the worse it is, and I don’t want to push her over the edge again. This is not all there is for us. I want so much more, and I won’t stop until I have it, but I have to be delicate with her right now. She’s unwell, and she’s struggling.’ He pulled back to lift her chin, bringing her eyes to his. ‘I want you in my bed, by my side. I want to be able to take you out to lunch or walk around hand in hand. I want everyone to know I’m crazy about you and a future with no hiding and no secrets.’ He gently lifted her chin with his fingers and silenced her with a long, slow kiss. He had become an expert at kissing her in exactly the right way to evoke any mood he desired, and he was trying to end the argument. Rose was distracted enough to forget that they had not agreed on Morag’s key.