Always You (Adair Family 3)

“Yes,” I snapped. “Your assistant’s attitude is out of line. I’ll be emailing you a written account of what was just said to make a formal complaint.”

Marcello’s countenance darkened as he looked at Duncan. “I would say this is your second strike. One more, and you’re out.”

“But—”

“No buts. Go home. We’re done here for today.”

Duncan looked between us, glaring furiously at me, before he stormed off, his attempt at a stomping exit hampered by the mud.

“I may have threatened his job,” I admitted.

Marcello raised an eyebrow.

“I know. I’m sorry. He just … he brought up my family. He’s looked into me. And he’s had it out for me since he got here.” Suddenly, the note came to mind, and more than a fissure of apprehension ran through me. Duncan had shown up on-site just before I received it, and his attitude seemed to go beyond misogynism. It was like he had a problem with me, Arrochar Adair, not just that I was a woman.

Shit. No. Now I was being paranoid. This whole note situation had me freaked out.

“Hmm. He’s a good worker otherwise too. Shame. But I won’t have him around if he’s causing you problems. Email me everything that was said.”

I nodded. “Are we done here?”

Marcello gave me a worried once-over. “You sure you’re okay? It isn’t like you to threaten your coworkers, no matter the provocation.”

No, it wasn’t.

I stewed over that as I drove away from the site ten minutes later. I’d changed out of my muddy boots and into clean ones to drive home, and then I was on my way.

Yes, Duncan had pissed me off, but the anger already in me had burst out in our confrontation. All this resentment.

Remembering Regan’s words, I didn’t drive back to Ardnoch. Instead, I took the road that would lead me to Eredine’s lodge. She’d be home from the estate by now. It was about fifteen minutes northwest of Ardnoch, in the middle of the woods. The lodge was built on stilts, for some reason—it wasn’t like there was a lot of flooding here. I could only assume the grounds were too unstable for foundations. Eredine’s wraparound porch was brightened by colorful plant pots filled with spring blooms.

Like something from a fairy tale, the home was remote and idyllic, until a person considered what it might be like to live out here in the woods at night. But someone with sharp eyes might note the security cameras in the surrounding trees. They were courtesy of Lachlan, who had insisted on installing them after Austin Vale, Regan’s stalker, had attacked Eredine while she was babysitting the kids. The attack had caused Eredine to withdraw emotionally from us, and I wished I knew why. I wished I knew her story.

Maybe she’d tell me once I told her mine.

Her car was parked outside, so she was home. I jumped out of my Defender, my heart racing, because I’d come here to do just that—tell Eredine my story. If she wanted to hear it.

The front door opened before I even made it to the porch steps.

Eredine stepped out, her eyes wide with surprise. She wore sports leggings and an oversized sweater. Her pretty face was clean of makeup, not that she wore much, anyway, and she’d piled her gorgeous dark curls on top of her head in a messy bun that couldn’t contain it. She offered a kind smile. “What brings you to my door?”

I’d tried to place her accent, as if I were a master of American dialects, but I couldn’t detect anything in her inflections that might point to her state of origin. My sweet friend’s background was an utter mystery. “I needed someone to talk to, and you were the first person I thought of.”

A mixture of gratitude and concern filled her expression, and she stepped back to gesture me inside.

Her home was small but chic, the living area open plan with a sitting room and kitchen. She had a woodstove and comfortable furnishings around it, the perfect spot to read one of the many books I knew could be found in her guest room.

We’d bonded over our love of reading. Regan was a reader, too, and we’d discussed creating a book club, but nothing had come of it. I’d probably have to be the one to organize it. What seemed like many moons ago, I would’ve invited Mac to join our book club—few people knew that he was a voracious reader. Melancholy doused me at the realization he’d never get an invitation now. Robyn might join us, though she wasn’t much of a book lover. I enjoyed converting people into readers, so I might just keep asking until she gives in.

“Drink?”

“Tea would be lovely.” It had been a cold, wet day in the mud, after all. “How are you?”

“I’m good.” Eredine shot over her shoulder as she made her way into the kitchen. “Curious now.”

I nodded. “How are classes going?” Ery was the Pilates, yoga, and mindfulness instructor for the estate.

“Good.” She shrugged as she set about making the tea. “I never have any issues. I think it’s the whole Zen vibe of what I do. But you should hear the stories the girls and guys in the spa tell me.”