32. Emma

Iwake up to the rain lashing against the window. Taran and I are snuggled under his huge duvet, which he must've arranged while I was flat out.

Fuck, I hope I didn't snore.

Cringing at the thought, I move, sit up, and glance at the clock. It's still early—only 6 AM. I need to message Anna. Getting up slowly to get my phone from the other room, I head to the nearest bathroom to pee and rinse my mouth out, hopefully with mouthwash or, if not, I'll make do with a finger toothbrush and some paste.

I text Anna.

Coming home soon.

A few seconds later, a message comes back with a line of lewd, winky faces, and I giggle and grab the mouthwash I spot. After a quick rinse, I go back to the bedroom to see Taran sitting on the edge of the bed, having just woken up.

"You're still here," he murmurs.

"Did you think I'd gone?"

"Yeah. I was worried."

"Just needed to message my friend."

He nods with a yawn.

"I should get back home. I'll call a taxi."

"No, I'll drive you. I'm not sending you out in that in a dress and no coat," he chuckles, pointing to the window.

"Just another gorgeous Scottish summer day."

We share a smile, and he gets up to pull a hoodie out of the wardrobe. He comes up behind me and places it around my shoulders. He wraps his arms around me. "Don't worry, it's not my Arrows one."

I laugh and turn as he lets me go. "That would be really rude."

He grins and disappears into the bathroom. I slip my shoes on and wait for him to return, which is only a few minutes later.

"What are you doing today?" he asks.

"Well, it's my birthday," I say. "Anna has planned a drinks thing at The Lamb. Do you want to come?"

He pauses and I realise my faux pas. "Sure. Will there be a lot of Warriors there?"

"I'm not sure to be honest. Anna has planned it. It's okay, if you don't want to. I get it."

"Oh, I'm coming," he says. "Don't worry about that. I just didn't want it to be a problem for you if they decide to not let the rivalry go for an evening."

"I don't care about that. I just want you there."

"Then there I'll be."

"Six-ish? I think."

He nods. "So where to milady?"

"Stone Cottage near the river."

He sits and shoves his feet into some trainers before finally covering up his hot bod with a black tee and the famous Arrows hoodie, which makes me giggle. "Coffee before we go?"

I shake my head, so he grabs my hand and leads me through the apartment to the lift.

The rain is absolutely chucking it down when we step outside, and I huddle under the hoodie automatically. Taran leads me to a sleek, dark car, and before I know it, we're gliding through the streets of Inverness toward my cottage. The streets are practically deserted, and the sound of rain tapping on the car roof is oddly soothing.

As we drive, there's a comfortable silence between us. It's weird; I've only known Taran for a short while, but this doesn't feel awkward. Maybe it's his calm confidence or perhaps the fact that he didn't run a mile after I cried all over him.

"Here we are," he says as we pull up outside Stone Cottage. It looks even more charming with raindrops streaming down the stones and mist curling around the garden.

"Thanks for last night… and this morning," I say as he cuts the engine.

"Anytime." He flashes me that smile that feels like it should belong to the devil himself, it's that seductive. He leans forward to give me a lingering kiss. "Happy birthday, Emma. I'll see you at six-ish at The Lamb."

"Thanks for the pep talk that actually helped me. I owe you big."

"Ohhh, don't be saying that, Thornton. I have ideas already about how you can repay me."

"As long as you don't ask me to get the guys to throw a game, I'll be repaying that debt, really soon."

He chokes on the snort that escapes him, luckily not offended at my extremely blunt and quite frankly, insulting remark that came out of nowhere. My cheeks flame with heat as I stammer, "I'm sorry. That was awful. I know you would never… it was a joke?—"

He grabs my hand and kisses my knuckles. "Firstly, no I would never and secondly, I can take a joke. It's not the first one we are going to face and some of them won't be kidding, Red." He goes serious. "I hope you're ready for that?"

The grim reality of this bitch slaps me, dousing me with Arctic water. "I know. But fuck them, right?"

"Definitely fuck them," he says. "I want this. I want you and I'm willing to face the talk."

"Me too."

He reaches over and brushes a stray lock of hair from my face. "I'll hold you to that, Thornton." Then, he winks at me as if he knows exactly what's going through my head. "Have a good morning. Try not to miss me too much."

"I'll try my hardest," I mutter, thinking about his cock and how much I want to jump on him right now and fuck his brains out.

Instead, I step out into the downpour and rush towards my front door, pausing only briefly to turn and wave at him. He beeps his horn and drives off as I open the door to come face-to-face with Anna, who has a Cheshire Cat grin on her face and mugs of coffee in her hands.