DINNER WRAPPED UP and Pepper felt a little off-kilter by the attention Connall was paying her. He was perfect. Too perfect. She never did trust perfection, which in turn, meant she couldn’t trust him, and she had every intention of sticking to her guns on that one. That is, until he touched her. A gentle hand on her arm, his knee tapping hers under the table, no matter how insignificant, his contact calmed her. With her aversion to touch, she felt like she should want to put distance between them, but with Connall, she wanted the opposite.
Samantha drew her attention when she laid her napkin on the table. “I desperately need to wash my hands. Pepper, will you join me?”
Pepper didn’t hesitate. She rose to her feet, a little surprised when the men stood as well… all but Dalton, but he recovered quickly.
Sam looped her hand through Pepper’s arm and pulled her toward the restrooms. “You look like you need to talk.”
“You know me so well.”
They closed the bathroom door and Pepper sagged against the wall. She opened her purse and pulled out the foil packet with her miracle migraine cure, slipping the pill under her tongue.
Sam caught her eye in the bathroom mirror. “Migraine?”
Pepper nodded. “Third one this week.”
Sam frowned. “That’s not good.”
“Par for the course at the moment.”
“I have something for you,” Sam said.
“You do?”
Sam smiled and dried her hands before reaching into her purse and pulling out a long, navy velvet box.
“What did you do?” Pepper asked in suspicion.
“It’s part birthday, part maid of honor gift. I’d like you to wear it with your bridesmaid dress.”
Pepper grinned and opened the box, unable to stop a hum of admiration. A stunning necklace lay nestled in a bed of white satin. A large red crystal surrounded by pomegranates and the pomegranate flower, all interwoven with Celtic knots in silver hung from a silver chain. Tears filled her eyes as she gently pulled the necklace out and secured it around her neck. “Wow.”
“You like?” Sam asked.
“It’s amazing!” Pepper wrapped her arms around her friend. “Thank you so much.”
Sam giggled. “Ooh, you must like it. I’m getting an unsolicited hug from you!”
“It’ll go great with my other silver.” Pepper leaned forward to study it in the mirror. “The stone is incredible! It’s so red. What kind of crystal is it?”
Sam mumbled something unintelligible.
“What?” Pepper turned to face her again. Sam was staring at her shoes. “It’s not a crystal, is it?”
Sam shook her head, but still didn’t look at her.
“Samantha Christene, what did you do?”
Sam waved her hands in the air. “Don’t freak out.”
“No promises. Spill. What is it?”
“It’s a ruby.”
“Sam! No.” Pepper reached to undo the clasp.
“It’s a really low-priced, low-quality ruby,” Sam rushed on.
“Right. ’Cause that’s totally your style.” Pepper snorted. “So, am I to assume it’s not silver?”
“It’s gold, but again, a really low-priced, low-quality gold… the cheapest you can buy.”
“You are a ridiculous person!” Pepper retorted. “You’re going to take this back.”
“I am not.”
Pepper let out a frustrated groan when she couldn’t undo the clasp. “Help me get this off.”
“Please, Pep,” Sam begged. “Just keep it on.”
“I can’t take this, Sam. It’s too much.”
“You have to,” Sam insisted. “I can’t return it. I’d have to put it in a drawer somewhere and it would be wasted.”
“Then you shouldn’t have bought it.”
“Technically, I didn’t. At least, not yet, anyway.” Sam tried to stop a smile. “Con picked it up for me before he and Brodie left Scotland. I haven’t paid him back.”
Pepper tried to think of a legitimate reason why she should give it back, but the pull of the beautiful jewelry and the earnestness with which her friend was staring at her, made her fold. “You really can’t take it back?”
Sam raised her palm. “Swear to Buddha.”
Pepper narrowed her eyes, but when Sam didn’t flinch, she knew she’d lost the argument.
Again.
“You are too much, sissy,” Pepper complained.
Sam clapped her hands. “I so thought that was going to be harder.”
“Chalk it up to the headache.” Pepper faced the mirror again. “It’s stunning, Sam. Seriously.”
“I’m really glad you like it.”
Pepper turned and shrugged. “I guess if I run out of money, I can always pawn it.”
Sam laughed. “There’s the spirit.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Sam pulled out her lip gloss and switched places with Pepper at the sink. “So… Connall.”
“Who is this guy? I can’t think or… I don’t know… function around him,” Pepper bemoaned.
Sam smiled. “Oh, honey, I know. Same thing happened with Kade. It’s like the Gunnachs crawl inside your heart and mind and you realize you never had a chance.”
“Connall’s too perfect, Sam. Besides that irritating fact, this is just the worst timing. I’m so busy with packing and then MGA and… um… everything else coming up.”
“Right. Everything else. Want to elaborate on that?”
Pepper opened her purse in an attempt to look like she was doing something instead of avoiding the question. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Sam turned and crossed her arms. “Let’s just drop the pretense, hmm? I know about your stalker.”
Pepper groaned. “Dalton told you?”
“Sort of. Let’s just say, he was persuaded.” Sam frowned. “I can’t believe you told him you were in trouble but left me out of the loop!”
“I didn’t technically tell him, but regardless, you should have left it alone.”
“Listen here, missy,” Sam snapped. “I will ignore the fact that you told my brother and not me, I will also ignore the fact that you sold Jonesy, even though I would have thought finding someone to take Rover would have been easier.”
Pepper burst into tears. “I’m sorry.”
“What?” Sam asked.
“He killed him.”
“What? Who?” Sam turned away from the mirror.
“The stalker.”
“The stalker killed Jonesy?”
“No,” Pepper sobbed. “He killed Rover. That’s why I had to sell Jonesy. He said that if I didn’t, he’d kill him too.”
“Oh, honey! Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because he threatened to hurt you too.”
“All the way in Scotland?”
“Stop being logical!” Pepper snapped.
“Everything okay in there?” Connall called through the door. His voice was muffled, but Pepper still heard the concern.
“Fine, Con,” Sam called back. “We’ll be right out.”
Pepper jabbed her hand toward the door. “What is he doing?”
She almost told Sam that she could hear him speak to her, but with the news she’d just delivered, she thought it best to keep her insanity to herself.
Sam bit her lip. “It’s really complicated, and I think he should explain it to you.”
“Explain what?
“The reason why you feel safe and calm when he’s close to you, and how he knows when you’re upset. In addition to the irritating fact you seem to like his touch,” Sam said. “That.”
Pepper took a paper towel and blotted her tears away, trying her best not to smudge her mascara. “I can’t deal with this right now.”
“Well, you don’t have much of a choice.”
“You have to help me get rid of him.”
Sam rolled her eyes. “Right.”
“Seriously, Sam. You have to.”
“Ain’t gonna happen, sunshine,” Sam retorted. “He’s the only one who can truly keep you safe, and since you don’t seem inclined to fill me in on what’s been going on, I’m not going to help you put distance between you and the only person who will protect you.”
“Dalton’s working on it,” Pepper whispered.
Sam snorted. “That man out there has resources Dalton can’t even begin to imagine.”
“Fine.” Pepper sighed. “I’ll talk to Connall, but I’m not promising anything.”
“You don’t need to,” Sam said evasively. “I trust Connall to take care of you.”
Pepper grasped her arm. “Go easy on Dalton, okay?”
Sam didn’t respond as she pulled open the door.
Connall stood on the other side, looking worried. “Everything okay?” he asked.
Sam nodded. “It will be.”
Connall smiled. “Kade’s looking for you.”
“I know he is,” Sam said, and tapped her temple.
He nodded.
Sam started toward the dining room but turned and said, “Oh, by the way, the bastard killed her dog and made her sell her horse. Deal with that for me, okay?”
“Samantha!” Pepper admonished.
Sam smirked and headed back to Kade. Pepper stood momentarily stunned. Samantha never repeated anything Pepper told her. She glanced up at Connall, whose expression was unreadable.
He reached out and wiped a tear gently from her cheek. “Are you okay?”
Pepper squeezed her eyes shut and nodded. Her initial reaction was to recoil, but when he wrapped his arms around her, she realized she was right where she was supposed to be. She would later reflect how strange and right it was all at the same time… the fact that he stood and held her for several minutes outside the women’s restroom at the most popular barbeque joint in town. If anyone passed them, she didn’t notice, both overwhelmed and comforted by the strong arms around her and the soft, sweet words being whispered to her in his sexy Scottish brogue.
She was grateful her headache had subsided as well. Her meds had never worked that quickly before. Sooner than she would have liked, the ping of Connall’s cell phone brought her back to the present and she pushed away from him, disgusted at her display. “I’m sorry.”
He smiled. “Why are you sorry?”
“Because I don’t know you and you’ve been pulled into my drama.”
His phone pinged again, but he continued to ignore it.
“Don’t you need to answer that?”
He shook his head. “Not until I know you’re all right.”
“I’m fine. Really.”
His phone pealed and Connall answered the call without taking his eyes off Pepper. “Yes, Kade.”
Pepper heard her cell phone ring, muffled inside her purse, and she pulled it out. “Hi Dalton.”
“Hey, did you fall in?” Dalton joked.
Pepper wrinkled her nose. “Oh, you’re funny.”
“I got a call from one of my agents. Your mom’s doing much better, but you still can’t see her.”
“How come?”
“Until we know exactly what happened, it’s not safe. Just trust me on that. She’s out of danger and resting comfortably for now. If anything changes I’ll let you know.”
Pepper sighed. “Fine. Thanks.”
She heard his hesitation as he said, “Looks like everyone’s getting ready to leave. Do you want to ride back with us?”
She glanced at Connall, who was still on his phone, but he managed to shake his head. Pepper raised an eyebrow in challenge, which he mimicked. She couldn’t stop a slight smile as she went back to her phone call. “Um, no, Dalt. I’ll go with Connall. I’ll see you back at the hotel, okay?”
“If you’re sure.”
“I’m sure.”
“Okay. See you later, then.”
Pepper hung up and dropped her phone back in her purse.
Connall was rubbing his forehead and nodding as he continued to speak to his brother. “Aye. I know. Yes. Kade, I’ve got it. Okay, ’bye.” He slipped his phone into his pocket and turned his attention back to Pepper. “Everyone’s heading back to the hotel. Are you ready?”
“Not really,” she admitted.
“We can stay here as long as you like.”
“Or,” she mused.
“Or, what?”
“Would you mind if we went somewhere else first?”
“Not at all.”
“It’s a little bit of a drive,” she warned.
He smiled. “I’ll go anywhere with you, lass. Lead the way.”
Pepper grinned and led him to the car. If Sam trusted Connall enough to share Pepper’s secrets, then Pepper knew she could trust him as well. There was comfort in the fact that Sam was such a great judge of character. Pepper had always relied on her discernment and she hadn’t been led astray yet.
Connall held the car door for her and Pepper slid in, her nerves calming as soon as he was next to her and holding her hand. She linked her fingers with his and directed him to their destination. They drove in silence for about thirty minutes, then the coastline was before them and Pepper couldn’t help but smile.
Connall parked the car and let out a quiet whistle. “It’s beautiful.”
Pepper smiled. “It’s my refuge.”
Tybee Island was her little slice of heaven and during the colder months, it was much less crowded. She often came here to think and had brought Jonesy down whenever she had time. He loved the water and was always willing to go for a run.
“Shall we walk?” Connall asked.
“Definitely.”
Pepper waited for Connall to climb out of the car and open her door. He reached his hand out and she grasped it, letting him pull her from the car. The chill of the ocean breeze felt like a hundred frozen needles piercing her skin and it made her rethink the walk idea, despite her heavy sweater.
“Chilly, eh?” he observed.
She nodded. “I left my coat in Dalton’s car.”
“You can wear mine.” He popped the trunk and pulled out a dark wool pea coat. He held it open for her and she slid her hands into the lined sleeves, giggling when they fell several inches past the ends of her fingers.
She sighed in relief. “You may never get this back.”
“You wear it far better than me anyway.” He grinned and pulled the coat closed, securing the buttons and rolling up the sleeves. “Och, lass, you’re bloody adorable.”
She felt the heat on her cheeks as she dropped her head. She wanted to run away with him and block the rest of the world out.
He grasped her hand and they headed toward the sand. Pepper let his warmth seep into her as they walked. This was definitely something she could get used to.
“Why are you being so nice to me?” she asked.
He drew his eyebrows together in question. “What do you mean?”
“You don’t have to watch me, you know. Sam’s overstepping the boundary by asking you to. I’m fine.”
He sighed. “Och, lass. No one asked me to do anything.”
She bit her lip and blinked back tears. “Really?”
“You know I’m telling you the truth.”
She did. She didn’t understand how she knew, but she did. She felt as though she’d known him forever.
“Ask me,” he said.
“Ask you what?”
“What you’ve been dying to ask me since you walked into the hotel.”
She shook her head. “It’s stupid.”
He shook his head. “I highly doubt that.”
“You’ll think I’m crazy,” she whispered.
“Why? Because of our conversation earlier? The one in your mind when you were frightened?”
“I am crazy!” she ground out.
“No, lass. You’re not.”
“You heard me?”
Yes. And you heard me.
“Stop it.”
He shook his head again and smiled. Don’t be frightened, Pepper. Talk to me.
“I can’t.”
Yes, you can. We were made for this.
What do you mean? She gasped, realizing she’d just spoken to him telepathically. “How did I do that?”
“I’ll explain everything to you soon. I don’t want to frighten you.”
“Oh, well that makes me feel so much better,” she deadpanned.
“You’ll know everything in time. I promise.” He kissed her fingers. “Change of subject?”
She nodded. “Okay.”
“This man… the one harassing you… he’s the one who killed your dog and made you sell your horse, correct?”
She nodded again.
“What else?”
“Nothing,” she whispered.
“Pepper,” he admonished.
She hesitated for all of ten seconds and then she told him everything. As they walked along the beach, she filled this virtual stranger in on the events that had taken place in the last two months. From the poster to the cassette tape and the burning down of the diner. He listened without comment, but she could feel his anger pulsing through their connection.
“What is this?” She glanced up at him. “I feel everything you’re feeling.”
He stopped walking and turned her to face him. “When you look at me, what do you see?”
“Trouble.”
He chuckled. “Why do you say trouble?”
“Because you might hurt me.”
“If I told you it would be impossible for me to do so, would you believe me?”
She cocked her head. “What do you mean, ‘impossible’?”
“Just as Samantha was made for my brother, you were made for me. We are connected in a way that will seem strange for a while, but it’s lifelong.”
“How does that ensure you won’t hurt me?”
“Because I can’t. Not in the way you’re most afraid of. I’m sure that as we get to know each other, we’ll have tension, as any other couple does, but I will never hurt you.”
“How do you know what I’m afraid of?” she challenged.
“Listen.” He took her hand and placed her palm against his chest. “Close your eyes.” She did. “I will never leave you, Pepper. My hands will never touch you in anger and I will never cheat on you or take you for granted. You will always be the most important person in my life. Always.”
Pepper felt his emotion as she stood in the middle of the beach, her eyes closed and her palm against his heart, “listening” to him. As his lips covered hers, she was more surprised by the fact that she knew he was going to kiss her than the act itself. She sighed and opened her mouth, allowing him deeper access. Wrapping her arms around his neck in order to stay upright, she wove her fingers in the softness of his hair and wished that she could stay there forever.
Much to her annoyance, he broke the kiss. She whimpered in protest and he smiled. “If we don’t stop now, I’ll make love to you here on the beach.”
She bit her lip. “I’d be okay with that.”
“It wouldn’t be wise, however,” he said. “I think we should get back. You need to sleep, something I’m guessing you don’t get enough of.”
“Sleep’s really overrated, if you think about it.”
He chuckled. “Come on, love. Let’s get you back. Tomorrow you’re all mine.”
“I have to check with Sam about wedding stuff.”
“We’ll work around it.” He took her hand and they headed back to the car. “The ladies are all staying at her parents’ home tomorrow night, right?”
“Yep. Why?”
“Just making sure you’ll be somewhere safe if I’m not with you.” He frowned. “I want you to stick to that plan.”
“Hey.” She tugged on his hand. “Just because you delivered a mind-blowing kiss in my favorite place on earth does not mean you get to dictate where I go or who I go there with.”
Connall faced her. “There are two problems with that statement, love.”
“Do tell.”
“One, you have just admitted our kiss was mind-blowing, which I agree with whole heartedly, by the way. But it means you’re not as immune as you’d like me to believe, and I fully intend to repeat it before we part company tonight.”
Pepper’s stomach flipped. “Oh, really? I’m that much of a given, huh?”
He grinned. “I personally couldn’t turn down a little more mind-blowing action, could you?”
She shook her head. “But that doesn’t mean you’re the boss of me.”
He laughed. “Bloody hell, you’re adorable.”
“Thank you. Now, what was the other problem?”
“The other problem, Persephone Esther Brooks, is that I never ever dictate. However, until my hand is wrapped around this bastard’s neck, you won’t go anywhere without me or someone I trust.” He leaned down and kissed her nose. “So for a little while, let’s just say I am the boss of you.”
She gasped. “Did Sam tell you my real name? I’m going to kill her!”
“You told me your real name.”
“I did not.”
He tapped his temple. “Yes you did.”
“Okay, wait. I know I’m sleep deprived and everything, but it would be impossible.”
He laughed. “Are we really having this argument, love?”
I don’t remember ever “thinking” my real name.
Ah, but you did. When your mother called you Persephone Moonbeam.
“As soon as the plane landed, I felt your stress. When that happened, I had access to you.” She shuddered and he squeezed her hand. “Sorry, sweetheart. That came out very, very wrong.”
She took a deep breath. “Explain before I freak out.”
“We’re joined by something we call örlög… fate.” He kissed her palm. “The moment we connected, we were connected for life. I want to tell you more, but I don’t want to frighten you or have you compare it to what you’ve been going through. You’re in no danger from this,” he tapped his temple again, “… or me.”
“I do know that,” she admitted. “I just feel overwhelmed.”
He tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear. “You don’t have to take it on alone, Pepper.”
“Even if I wanted to, apparently.”
“You don’t really want to, do you?”
“Maybe not.” She pressed her lips into a thin line. “I have to say this is a record, even for me.”
“What is?”
“It’s been all of four hours and I’m kissing you on the beach and believing every wonderful word you speak.”
He smiled and stroked her cheek. “The difference this time is that I don’t lie and I’m not going anywhere.”
She licked her lips. His Scottish brogue did something to her. She slid her hand into his hair and pulled his head down for another heart-stopping kiss. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her to his height.
Ég elska þig fallega stúlka. Alltaf.
What does that mean?
I’ll tell you another time… tonight I want to keep some secrets.
Pepper broke the kiss, resting her forehead against his, and tried to catch her breath. “What are you doing to me? I can’t think.”
“Me neither. You can’t begin to understand.”
She cupped his face. “I want to.”
“Let’s just get through the wedding and we can figure everything else out then. I’ll feel much better when you’re in Scotland.” He kissed her again and then lowered her to the ground. “I can feel your exhaustion, love. You really do need to sleep. Let’s get back.”
She sighed. “We can’t just stay here, can we?”
He smiled. “We’ll come back.”
She climbed into the car and tried not to focus on the fact that he was taking her back to reality.