Present Day - Boston, Massachusetts

The water beaded up on the plexiglass windows separating the people from the planes. Jaime stared out through the running droplets at the jets landing and departing on the runway. The clouds swirled around in the sky, and the wind feverishly blew the runway’s bright red windsocks in all directions.

Jaime was lost in her thoughts as people boarded flights around her. She had made sure to get to the airport extra early. While the gate for her flight to chilly Scotland was fairly empty, there had been a rush of families and romantic couples in their beachwear heading for sunny destinations.

Her phone buzzed. It was Chris.

Hey. Where are you? I thought we were going to talk?

Jaime hadn’t told him she was leaving. She packed her keys, her passport, and a few items of clothing before leaving the apartment behind. She really didn’t care what Chris thought.

Jaime rolled her eyes, put her phone on silent, and tossed it in her purse. Why would he think there was anything to say? Jaime looked back toward the window, catching her reflection. She looked terrible. Her long strawberry blonde hair was pulled back in a messy bun, her blunt cut bangs tickling her forehead, and her oversized sweater and yoga pants were at least ten years old. Sure, she had packed some nice clothes, but she figured jumping off a plane where it was, at the most, forty degrees, and riding a train from Edinburgh to Crieff called for comfortable and warm.

The loudspeaker crackled and cracked above her as an attendant stepped up behind the desk and turned on the phone. She typed on the computer for a minute before actually speaking. Jaime stared at her, feeling like there was something just a bit odd about the woman. She had bright red hair, matching lipstick, and thick-lensed glasses that she kept pushing up her nose every few seconds. She looked, Jaime thought, out of place more than anything.

“Abernathy. Jaime Abernathy. Would you please come to the front desk?” the woman’s nasally voice called out.

Jaime sighed, figuring the nearly empty flight to Scotland was cancelled. She piled her purse on her carry-on and wheeled it up to the front then stood there for a moment waiting for the woman to notice her. Jaime cleared her throat, catching the woman’s attention.

“I’m Jaime Abernathy.” She scowled. “Please don’t tell me this flight has been cancelled.”

“Ticket?” the woman happily chirped, ignoring her complaint.

Jaime slid her ticket across the counter and watched while the woman, whose name tag read “Fiona,” held the ticket close to her face and then began to type on the keyboard. Minutes later, the woman finally looked up at Jaime and smiled.

“You have been upgraded to first class. Here are your tickets. We board shortly,” she said, a lilt to her voice, without skipping a beat.

“Really?” Jaime said with disbelief. “There must be a mistake.”

“Nope.” Fiona smiled and leaned forward. “Broken hearts need better seats.”

“Pardon me?” Jaime felt like she was in the twilight zone. How did this woman know she had a broken heart?

“You just seem like such a sad person,” Fiona explained. “Thought I’d brighten your day!”

“Oh,” Jaime laughed at herself, suddenly feeling rather self-conscious. “Thanks.”

She lugged her bag back over to the chairs and plopped down, looking at the seat change on her ticket. Her turn of luck came as a surprise. Perhaps it was a sign she had made the right decision to travel to Scotland. She looked back up to the desk, but the woman had disappeared. Jaime shrugged her shoulders and shoved her jacket inside of her carry-on. She rooted through her purse to make sure she brought her tablet and headphones for her phone since it was almost a nine-hour flight from Boston to Edinburgh, and she could never sleep on planes.

After another few minutes, the plane began to load, and Jaime walked on board, happy to see her seat was near the front and at the window. She put her carry-on in the carriage overhead and plopped down in the cushioned seat. Much better than coach. An older gentleman sat next to her and smiled as he took off his large-brimmed hat and laid it on his lap.

I could get used to this.

She leaned her head against the window and watched as the green field outside change to empty gray sky.

The flight was smooth despite the crappy weather, and Jaime decided to have a few drinks — five to be exact. About three hours into the flight, against all the odds, Jaime was passed out, fluffy first-class blanket and all.

By the time she woke up, the plane was starting its descent, and she couldn’t believe how quickly the time had passed until the alcohol-induced headache hit her hard and she downed the bottle of water she found resting in the seat-back basket in front of her.

Once the plane landed and pulled into the gate, the older gentlemen pulled her suitcase down from above and handed it to her. She smiled and wiped the dried drool from the side of her face. As she passed the flight attendants on her way out, she noticed Fiona standing near the door smiling at her.

“Enjoy the flight?” Fiona asked.

“Yes, thanks for the upgrade,” Jaime said with the happiest tone she could muster.

“Enjoy your stay in Scotland and make sure to really take in all that history,” Fiona said, smiling as Jaime walked off the plane and into the tunnel leading to the terminal.

The bus to the train station was very easy to find, which took some stress off Jaime’s shoulders since she had a tendency to get lost. The airport to the train station was only a few minutes ride and Jaime climbed onto the train and let the conductor punch her ticket. It would take about an hour to travel from Edinburgh to Crieff, so Jaime leaned back in her chair and watched the beautiful scenery fly by. It was just as she had remembered from her childhood, very green with small castle-like buildings and lush forests everywhere.

Between the train ride and the cab to her family’s house, Jaime’s spirits were lifted by the sheer beauty of the landscape around her. Her family land was just five or six kilometers outside of the actual village of Crieff, but it felt worlds away from civilization, so she had the cabby stop by a store for some groceries before heading over. Cabs were few and far between out there, so she paid the cab driver extra to wait for her. By the time she reached the drive to her family’s home, the sun was starting to go down, and jet lag was setting in.

Jaime paid the cab driver and stood in the front yard with her luggage looking at the cottage. It was just as she had remembered from when she was here as a child. She had only been about eight years old, but it still felt like a house from a fairytale with its jagged shingles, red shutters, and wooden arches. It was surrounded by lush greenery, with the hills of Scotland far in the background, creating a postcard picture, and a smile tugged at her lips.

She was happy to find her key worked with no issue as she let herself in. No one had stayed at the cottage in years, so she had hired a cleaning service to come the day before to prepare everything. It wasn’t something she would normally do, but she wanted this time to be simple and relaxing. Fighting through cobwebs and doing laundry was the last thing she wanted to face when she got here.

She unloaded her groceries before plopping down on the overstuffed bed in the back bedroom. Perfect, she thought, laying her head down on the pillow. She was exhausted, but after a few minutes of rest, she forced herself off the bed and into the kitchen to make some dinner.

The kitchen was set up just as she had remembered and Jaime stood for a moment looking around, thinking of the last time she had stood here. She had been so small, but she remembered her mother’s smile and laugh so perfectly. Her mom was excited to be there, and her red hair and green eyes shone vibrantly against the Scottish sun. That trip was all laughter and exploring, and she hoped she could leave here feeling the same way she did so many years ago.

For once accepting the memory and all the emotions that came with it rather than pushing it away, Jaime wiped a small tear from her eye and walked over to the sliding door.

She looked out the glass pane at the patio set and decided it was the perfect night to bundle up and enjoy her dinner on the deck. She pulled out the the steak, vegetables, and wine she’d purchased then went to work making her meal. Jaime struggled to get the cork from the bottle but after a few grunts and choice words, she was taking a swig straight from it.

When her dinner was finally made, she sighed in contentment, gathered her plate and bottle of wine, and turned toward the patio doors. Rain had soaked deck, leaving it sodden. How in the world had she missed the apparent typhoon that went through while she was cooking?

Shrugging her shoulders, Jaime left the door open a crack to let in the fresh, heady scent of rain-filled air. Then she sat down at the large dining table in the center of the cottage. The sounds of bugs outside echoed through the house, and she was reminded how rustic this place was without television or radio. Jaime was determined to enjoy the silence and a good meal, and realized as she did so how long it had been since she had simply relished eating her food, without any distraction.

When she was done, she closed the door, grabbed her bottle of wine and plopped down on the floor in front of the fireplace. It had been years since she had started a fire and the stacks of newspaper, old wood, and long matches set in front of the fireplace only served to confuse her. But after another swig of her wine, she started balling up the paper, replaying her father starting a campfire in her mind. Once the newspaper was shoved beneath a bedding of kindling, she struck a long match and set it on fire. Flames flickered then rose with more confidence, and she threw a few pieces of wood on top of the blaze and leaned back, feeling triumphant.

Her victory lasted until the newspaper burned out and the wood hadn’t caught fire.

Well, that was that. Jaime scowled at the dying embers, picked up her bottle of wine, and headed to the bedroom where she knew a soft bed and warm blankets awaited her. She unpacked her suitcase and threw on her plaid PJ pants and button-up flannel before sitting down in the bed and pulling the covers up to her chest. She set the bottle of wine on the nightstand and inched down farther, rubbing her feet across the flannel sheets.

As the sun sank lower in the sky, Jaime snuggled into the warm down comforter and drifted off to sleep, leaving all the drama of the past month behind her, determined not to think of it while she was in her temporary home. Instead, she was finally ready to dive into her heritage and figure out why this place, of all places, was calling her name. She told herself before falling asleep that she would do some exploring the next morning. Jaime was hoping to find whatever it was that she was looking for, and she thought a good walk through the woods, connecting back with nature, was the perfect place to start.

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Bride for a Time is now available for purchase on , and can be read for free through Kindle Unlimited.