Scott swung himself over the rail and jumped the six feet to the dock landing easily in front of them.
“Reminds me of that first night I met you,” she whispered as Matt set her on her feet again.
Matt couldn’t speak. It was like looking in a mirror. There had always been differences, of course. Reginald’s eyes were lighter, his nose smaller, the set of his mouth, softer, more gentle. He stood tall and straight, his legs wide, his shoulders out.
“Hold out your hand,” Scott demanded. He searched Matt’s face taking in every detail just as Matt was doing.
Matt didn’t hesitate. He opened his fingers and held his palm in front of him. Scott did the same and the two touched their hands together. An exact match.
They were the same size, the same large knuckles, curved middle finger. A mirror image of one another. “Reginald?” Matt finally pushed out, his voice breaking on the name as his heart squeezed in his chest.
Scott’s eyes squinted smaller. “Reginald?”
“My twin brother. I lost him twelve years ago when he fell off a cliff trying to save our little sister.” Matt had to take a breath between each word. “It was a river outlet near Edinburg.”
Scott paled. “I was found twelve years ago in the Firth of Fourth with no memory of my past.”
“Bloody hell, it’s you.” Matt couldn’t hold back the flood of emotion any longer and reached out to embrace his brother. “After all these years. It’s really you.”
The other man stood stiff in his grasp. “You’re saying we’re brothers? That you know me?”
“Scott, we’ve got to go or miss the tide!” Someone called from on the deck.
“Please,” Matt said, his voice going higher than he’d heard it in years. “Please come home with me.”
Scott shook his head. “I have duties. Obligations.”
Matt let out a dry bark of a laugh. “You sound like a Sinclair even if you haven’t been one for the last twelve years.”
“Sinclair?” Scott asked but his tone had changed. It was soft and filled with a hopeful question.
“You’re not Scott but Reginald Sinclair.” Matt gripped him tighter, not wanting to lose his brother now.
He pushed out of Matt’s arms rubbing his face. “Matt?”
Bridget let out a squeak and then covered her mouth again, this time with both hands.
“Yes,” Matt took a long slow breath to calm his wild heartbeat. “It’s me, your twin brother.” He wanted to reach for Reginald again but he didn’t dare. For the first time in his adult life, tears pricked at his eyes. “You have three other brothers and a sister, Deliah, who recently married your best friend. They’re in love, by the by.”
“Roderick.” Tears pooled in Reginald’s eyes.
“Yes!” Excitement made his fingers tremble. He reached for his brother and put his hand on his upper arm. “I can’t begin to tell you how much we’ve missed you.”
Reginald shook his head and then he turned back to the boat. “You’ll have to go without me, Captain.”
Matt nearly choked as joy made his throat clog. His brother wasn’t dead at all. Reginald was coming home.
The Fate of a Highland Rake
Fortunes of Fate
Brethren of Stone
Tammy Andresen
Not only is this title part of the “Fortunes of Fate” series, it is also the final installment of the “Brethren of Stone” series. It is a standalone romance but if ye like Brawny Scots with a broody natures but hearts of gold you might considering reading the other Sinclair books. The Duke’s Scottish Lass, Scottish Devil, Wicked Laird, Kilted Sin and Rogue Scot. As always, thank you for reading!
The Fate of a Highland Rake