“While you’re there, give that idiot a kick from me,” his mother said.
And his kids grinned at him.
Agnes stood up from the step she’d been sitting on. Her legs shook and her head throbbed, which is why she’d been on her way downstairs to ask Logan if he had some aspirin. As soon as she’d heard her name, she sat down to listen. She didn’t even try to pretend she wasn’t eavesdropping, or that she was doing it by accident. Nope, she’d wanted to hear what Logan and his family had to say about her.
The last thing she’d expected was that they wanted her to stay.
A tight sensation wrapped around her heart as she climbed the stairs to Logan’s bedroom. Outside of her sisters, had anyone ever wanted to keep her around? And why would Shona think she belonged in Invertary? It was almost insulting—the town seemed filled with people who danced to their own special beats. Oh. That was why.
She crossed the room to look out the window. Snow fell thick and fast now, covering the town in a veil of white lace. Watching it from Logan’s warm bedroom, she could appreciate the beauty without aching from the cold. There was something magical about having the world whitewashed around her. Everything looked clean and new—for a little while anyway.
Taking a seat on the bed, Agnes pulled out her phone and dialed Isobel. Her sister’s smiling face made Agnes want to cry.
“Are you sick?” Isobel said as soon as she saw her.
“Hungover. And you’ll never guess who I got drunk with. Betty!”
There was stunned silence. “No…You’re right. I would never have guessed. Are you sure you should have been doing that? Betty tends to get people in trouble.”
“Don’t you worry. I can find my own trouble without any help.” She took a deep breath. “I quit my job, Isobel. Tell Callum I’m sorry, will you? I know he pulled strings to get it for me.”
“Callum won’t care that you quit.” Isobel waved a dismissive hand. “What are you going to do now?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t want to work in a hotel.”
“Do you want to come to London? You’re bound to find something you like here.”
“No.” Agnes started to shake her head, but pain made her stop. “I don’t want to come to London—instead, I want you guys to come here. Can you come for Christmas, Isobel? I miss you all so much.”
Her sister didn’t hesitate. “Of course we’ll come. Do you want me to call Donna and Mairi?”
“Yeah, I need to lie down for a bit.”
“Okay.” Isobel hesitated. “There’s just one thing. Will you still be there at Christmas?”
Agnes started to say that Christmas was only three weeks away and she might as well stay put until it was over, but she stopped herself because that wasn’t exactly the truth. Not anymore. And that meant, really, there was only one answer she could give. “Aye, I’ll be here.”
Chapter 22
The Christmas market was in full swing by the time Agnes felt well enough to go. Although barely teatime, the sky was already black—apart from the thick, white snowflakes that continued to fall silently and gather beneath their feet.
Shona had loaned Agnes a pair of padded snow boots, which kept her toes nice and toasty. And under her padded coat, she had on more layers than an onion. She could hardly move, but she was warm. To top off her look, Darcy had insisted on her wearing her fluffy pink earmuffs under her woolly hat. Nothing would have made Agnes disappoint the girl, so she wore the earmuffs, and every time Logan looked at her, he grinned.
“Nice muffs,” he said, for the tenth time.
“That joke never grows old,” she drawled.
“Hey, Logan,” an older woman called out as she passed, “nice bum.”
Agnes burst out laughing. It served him right.
“I’m getting the Benson Security tech people to scour the internet and take down those photos,” Logan said.
“You love it.” She bumped him with her shoulder. “Admit it.”
“Aye, I love having my arse hanging out for the world to perv at.”
“Knew it,” Agnes said.