Chapter 44

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

TAVISH

Draven walks out the door, and I collapse in devastation. I push away everyone who tries to help me up. I don't know how long I sit there with my back to the wall, staring at the door he and Dillion disappeared through, but I finally pull myself up, make my way downstairs, and lock myself in my rooms.

Days later, there's a knock at the door. I check the camera feeds. I'm not up to talking with anyone. I've ignored and avoided everyone since Draven left. Anyone who persisted received a message that told them to go the fuck away. This person, though, won't be so easy to deter.

I unlock the door from my computer and she strides in. As usual, Everly looks like she could walk a runway compared to me. As I follow her gaze around the room, I take in the destruction left over from Draven's rampage after learning what happened to Simon.

Everly sighs, pulling a chair close to mine. She sits at a right angle to me and stares at the side of my face. I wait and wait, but so does she.

Finally, she says, "Tav, you deserve happiness. We all do. I won't deny you your happily ever after. Especially not when I've found it for myself."

Tears prick my already burny, scratchy, sand-filled eyes. I refuse to have another crying meltdown. And I definitely am done letting my misery be entertainment for all those around me.

I suck in a deep breath and say, "Everly, I can't abandon you. You saved me."

"Fuck that nonsense. You saved your own damn self. We just helped. You, on the other hand, saved my ass. You helped the guys rescue me when Owen abducted me and hid me in that cabin. You turned off the locator chip and then destroyed it so Owen couldn't track me. Then you stalled giving Owen anything to help locate me. Had Owen found out you were working against him, he'd have killed you. There's no doubt about it. You saved your own damn self and me in return. You're the hero of my story. Maybe not the knight in shining armor, but the man behind the knights in shining armor."

Heat suffuses my face, and I duck my head in embarrassment. Then I ask, my voice barely a whisper, "Who will take over for me?"

She laughs. "You're a smart boy. I think you can figure out how to have your cake and eat it, too."

"Marie Antoinette isn't really your style. Killian's, maybe. Although it would be awesome to see you do it and yell, ‘Off with their heads!'"

She shakes her head and laughs. "You're mixing up your queens, love. Plus, you might need to rein in the dramatic tendencies if you're going to chase after that Viking of yours and help him raise a kid."

"Screw that. Draven's my daddy, too. I'll be the big brother. Let the Viking be the daddy. I'm going to start calling him that. Viking Daddy has a nice ring to it."

Everly chuckles and says, "Figure out your shit and get your ass to Scotland. I need the Viking to be Viking-like and my tech guru to be his usual geeky self, and right now, I have a dour despondent chucklehead and a sullen, uncommunicative asshole. It's interchangeable from moment to moment, so don't bother asking which you are. Both of you need to get your heads out of your asses."

I laugh along with her at the last part.

She's right. Hell, so is Draven. My place is with him. "So, me working from Scotland wouldn't be an issue?" I ask.

"Oh, I'm sure there'll be issues. Especially with the time difference, but there'll always be issues. Even if you were here, there would be issues. But it's not a deal breaker."

I curl my lips into my mouth, biting down on them as I consider her words. She watches me and when I say nothing, her brows rise. "Well, can I tell the Viking to quit sharpening his axes?"

Surprised, I glance at her. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, the man's been blowing my phone up. He's harped at me for days about making sure you eat and sleep. What's his deal with that, by the way?"

"It's his love language. He's a caretaker. Apparently, he did the same with Daddy Simon, too."

I can see the shock on her face, but she doesn't comment. "So, can I tell him when to meet the plane?"

I shake my head, no, and she groans. The sound is so dramatic and put upon. "I'm going, but I want to surprise him."

"Shew. I thought I was going to have to resort to hogtying you and sending you FedEx to get you to see reason."

Everly gives me a hug and takes her leave. I watch her go, then grab my laptop and a couple of other things, calling the pilot as I do. Then I realize I'm screwed. I don't have a way to the airport. I walk to the door, and Everly is standing there with her fist raised to knock.

"Need a ride?"

I laugh and say, "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were trying to get rid of me."

She slides behind the wheel and says, "Nope. I just want everyone to be as happy as me. Just don't tell anyone. The boss has to be a badass."

Hours later, the plane touches down in Wick. I'm tired, grungy-feeling, and ready to lay eyes on my man. I messaged Mack while I was in the air and asked him to meet me.

MACK:

It's about damn time ye brought yer arse back home to Scotland, lad.

I couldn't agree with him more. So, when my feet hit the tarmac, I could have kissed the ground I stood on, but ewww, gross. Oily pavement isn't what I came all this way to kiss.

I walk through the little airport and out to the parking lot. Mack is standing next to the car, with a grin spread across his face. When I'm close enough, he pulls me into a hug and says, "Welcome home, lad. The laird's been a bear to deal with. Ye'll be lucky if all the staff don't kiss yer feet and throw ye a party."

I laugh, getting into the vehicle when he lets me go. The drive home isn't long, but add in the flight's length, and the way we left things, I can't seem to keep the nerves at bay. They're only made worse when we pass through the gates surrounding the castle.

As Mack pulls to a stop in the circular drive, I sigh, closing my eyes as the feeling of freedom washes over me. Stepping out of the car, I open the front doors, turning toward the study.

"Tavish?"