25. Keir
Chapter 25
Keir
I watch Emma march resolutely back towards her office from my spot near the edge of the rink. I know she's a force to be reckoned with when she's on a mission, and right now, it looks like she's on the warpath.
Emma spots me and changes direction, heading straight for me like a heat-seeking missile. I gulp, bracing myself for whatever storm is brewing inside that fiery head of hers.
"Keir," she says, her voice more steady than I expected. "We need to talk."
"Okay," I mumble, trying to sound casual but probably failing miserably.
She crosses her arms and looks at me with those piercing blue eyes. "What is going on with Lachlan?"
"What do you mean?" I ask with a frown. She's got me there.
She grimaces at me, but she can see I have no idea what she is talking about.
Until I do.
He must have said something to her about moving in with us, but not enough that she knows what he is talking about, and now she has her knickers in a twist about it.
"What do you know?" she asks shrewdly as the penny drops.
"Nothing," I mumble, but I relent when she hisses at me. "Okay, okay, we have something we want to talk to you about, but not here. And Taran as well."
"What is it?" she clips out.
"Nothing bad, I promise. Just not here." I take her hands and pull her closer to me. She snuggles into me, and I feel like the luckiest guy on earth. "I love you, Emma," I murmur into her hair.
"I love you, Keir."
"I know things seem to be moving fast, but for me, well, I've waited years for this chance to be with you."
She smiles, which lights up the arena. "Can we find the others then and talk about this, whatever it is?"
"Yes." I lead her over to where Lachlan is deep in conversation with Taran, going over some plays he has been dying to try for ages. Colin wouldn't allow it. He was so stuck in his ways that his leaving was a good thing. Taran is nodding along, agreeing, and making suggestions, and to my shock, Lachlan is listening to him.
Lachlan spots us approaching and breaks into a grin. "Everything okay?"
"It will be," Emma replies, glancing over at me with a knowing look. "But we need to talk. All four of us about what you said earlier."
Lachlan's eyes flicker with understanding. "Ah, I see. Let's head to your office then."
Keeping hold of her hand, I lead her up the stairs to her office. We file in and sit wherever there is space, feeling this is a very weird situation in the least romantic place possible. "Emma," I say, giving Lachlan a hard stare when he fails to come forward. For all his confidence, clearly, he is a bundle of nerves right now. So, it's up to me to plough forward.
"We've been discussing something important," I start, my voice steady. "And we wanted to get your thoughts on it."
"What is it?" Emma asks, her eyes darting between us.
"We want to be with you all the time. Permanently. We want to move in together, with Taran as well, so all four of us are in the same place, at the same time."
Her eyes widen until I think her eyeballs are about to drop out of her head. "I just rented a cottage with Anna!" she blurts out. "I can't just leave her!"
My heart melts as the first thing she thinks about is her friend.
"I'm sure Jamie wouldn't mind moving in with her. Kid's besotted," Lachlan finally speaks, but it's about as helpful as a chocolate teapot.
Emma stands, pacing the small space of her office, wringing her hands. "This is a lot," she admits. "I mean, all four of us? Together? And you've all discussed this?"
"Erm," Taran holds his hand up like a kid in school. "This is the first I've heard about this."
"Are you on board?" I demand more than ask.
His gaze shoots to mine. "Well, yeah, but where are we going to move to? Mine? Yours? The cottage? A new place?"
Emma stops pacing and looks at Taran, then back at me and Lachlan. "Bloody hell, this sounds like a logistical nightmare," she mutters, shaking her head.
I chuckle, trying to lighten the mood. "We can figure out the details later. The important thing is, we all want this."
Lachlan nods. "Exactly. We want to be with you, Emma."
She sighs and sits back down, looking overwhelmed. "You've just sprung this one on me… and Taran, by the sounds of it."
"We get that," I say softly, reaching out to take her hand again. "But we think it could work."
Emma looks at our hands, then up at Taran. "And you're definitely okay with this?"
Taran grins. "Definitely okay with this. I miss you when I'm not with you."
She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "Okay," she says finally. "If we can agree on where to live, I'll then have to have a conversation with Anna. It's not fair to surprise her with this when she moved all the way up here expecting me to be around."
"And that's one of so many reasons why we love you," I murmur, drawing her to me for a deep kiss.
She pulls back, her eyes cloudy with emotion and other things that are bothering her besides this. I want to ask, but I know she will shut me down. If she needs to talk, she knows I'm here, we're here.
"I need to go and get my head around this," she says. "Something has also come up that I need to deal with, so I'll see you guys tomorrow. I think Anna and I need a girl's night, okay?"
She doesn't really leave us much choice but to agree. Whatever has come up sounds and looks serious.
"Everything okay?" I ask, even though I told myself to stay out of it.
"Yeah, business. Nothing you need to worry about. You guys just need to focus on the ice, and I've got the rest."
I nod slowly, not sure if I like her taking all of this on by herself, but she is stubborn and determined. "Okay, you know where we are if you need us."
She smiles her thanks and disappears quickly.
"Thanks for throwing me in at the deep end there, fellas," Taran drawls.
"You're on board, aren't you?" I spit out, annoyed that Emma is shutting us out when it's clear she needs us.
"Obviously," he snaps back. "But a head's up would've been nice so I don't look like a dick. She's going to doubt me now."
"No, she isn't, you cock," Lachlan says. "And we didn't really have time to discuss this. I wasn't aware we were doing this now." He glares at me.
"Clearly," I grouse. "Seeing as it was your idea, and you clammed up."
"Fuck you. I was trying to find the right words."
"Yeah, okay," I grumble.
"Look," Taran says, holding his hands up. "None of that matters now. Emma agreed, and I think we can all say that it is a relief that we don't have to scramble for her attention anymore. I was getting pissed off with two nights off."
"Well, same," I say. "The cottage is too small. We need a bigger place."
"I've been looking at some properties close by," Lachlan says. "Five bedrooms, gardens, lake views, not too far from here. If all our salaries are thrown in, we can easily afford it."
"Let's see, then," I say as Taran also moves in closer when Lachlan pulls his phone out.
Lachlan scrolls through his phone, showing us pictures of the potential properties. "This one has a massive garden," he says, zooming in on an image of a sprawling lawn with what looks like a small pond in the background.
I nod appreciatively.
Taran raises an eyebrow. "Imagine the workouts we can do there. We won't need to leave the property to go for a morning run."
We continue scrolling through the listings, and one house catches all our eyes. It's a beautiful old stone cottage, modernised inside but with all the charm and character you'd expect from a proper Scottish home. "This could work," Lachlan muses, looking at us for approval.
"Definitely," I agree, glancing at Taran, who's nodding.
"We should show these to Emma," Taran suggests.
I sigh. "She's going to want to see them all in person before she makes a decision anyway."
"Fair point," Lachlan agrees, putting his phone away. "So, we'll schedule some viewings."
"Sounds like a plan." I stand up and stretch, feeling the tension from the conversation finally start to dissipate, but I'm worried about Emma and her sudden business. I just hope whatever it is, she is okay.