Eternal Moon

Chapter 10: Whiskey Talk

Jamie had planned to confront Kane in the morning and finally get him to admit what was going on. But when she awoke, Effie informed her that the Laird had left for the day and would return around dinner. Until then, Jamie had full rein in the library. Confused but not displeased, Jamie had taken up the offer and dove into her research, not wasting any time exploring every shelf that she could. Before she knew it, dinner was ready and she went to the dining room, prepared to discuss the previous night. Yet Kane was not there.

"The Laird sends his apologies, Miss," Effie spoke to her as she set out the meal. "He had some business in the village that's kept him away. He won't be back till late in the night."

"Oh." Was he avoiding her? "I guess I'll see him in the morning then."

But she didn't see him in the morning or that evening. For five days, the Laird was conveniently busy. Every time she asked Catrina or Effie about him, they gave some sort of excuse as to why he was absent. A meeting in the village. Preparations for the solstice. He was exercising. Meanwhile, she was still free and encouraged to use the library at her leisure.

Despite days of poring through documents, Jamie had gotten no closer to figuring out the myth of Gealach Lán. She had found a few old parchments referencing the town, but all it had given her was some trade information. Nothing about the community's leadership or subsequent history. The closest she had come to anything substantial was a document about the heavy presence of Druids in the area even into the 18th century. The religion had all but vanished after the advent of Christianity and the fall of the Western Roman Empire, but several papers indicated that some clans still practiced the old ways. While scholars did not take the claims seriously, many had pondered whether Druid magic was responsible for the disappearance of Gealach Lán.

Jamie was a historian first and foremost but even she considered the possibility. What if she was in an area of Scotland where people practiced Druidism? Could that explain some of the strange occurrences that had happened since the moment she arrived? The secrecy? She had tried grilling Catrina and Effie for more information but the two women were doggedly sticking to their almost robotic scripts. As if they were covering for Kane. Maybe Kane was a Druid warlock or the reincarnation of King Arthur. Maybe Jamie had stepped inside of a wormhole. Or maybe she was just losing her mind.

She hated admitting it to herself but she missed Kane. She had started to really enjoy his company. Just when she felt like they were getting somewhere, he tucked his tail and run. Typical. She had a tendency to attract emotionally unavoidable men. Pride kept her from admitting that he had hurt her feelings by bailing on her, but she had a hard time coming up with any other reason for why she was so upset. He didn't owe her anything - he was being hospitable by letting her stay in his home but he wasn't required to entertain her too. And she knew he was a busy man. He was the laird of this community. That had to come with serious commitments. Still, it stung to go from being so close to the man - quite literally - to not seeing him at all.

There was even a part of her that worried he was disgusted with her. Had she turned him off by responding so heatedly to his kiss? She'd been pretty sure that the feelings were entirely mutual; she had been grinding on that big ol' erection of his. Maybe that had repulsed him though. Perhaps he had gotten the wrong idea about her. He would be an asshole if that was the case, especially since he'd been the one to initiate the kiss, but it was possible. He was a very traditional man. Maybe he had never encountered a woman bold enough to kiss him back.

Not that any of it would matter... In two days, the town would have the summer solstice. That was when Donald's daughter would come in with her much-needed car and be able to give Jamie a ride back to Aberdeen. After the initial furor and uproar over her return, life would return back to normal. Jamie would finish her study abroad and go back to the States. Then she'd try and forget everything about the laird and his mysterious home. Hopefully.