“Exactly.”
“Aunt Arro, I can’t reach the peanut butter!” Eilidh yelled from the kitchen.
We caught up with the kids to help them. For two strangers, we fell into a companionable sync as we prepared a light snack for Eilidh and Lewis and settled them at the dining table. Afterward, Arrochar gave me some salve and Band-Aids for my battered feet.
“So.” Arrochar smiled curiously as we sat beside each other at the island with coffees. “What brings you to Ardnoch?”
Right to it, huh? I smirked. “My sister.”
“Aye, that visit is long overdue.”
I raised an eyebrow at her directness, and she shrugged. “Sorry. None of my business. But you should know I’m not just Lachlan’s sister. I’ve become very fond of Robyn.”
The warning made me bristle. “Well, I’m more than fond of Robbie. I love her more than I love anything.”
“Does she know that?”
I jerked back like she’d slapped me.
Arrochar winced. “Regan, I’m sor—”
“Regan! Can you help me with my homework?” Eilidh yelled across the large living space.
Her aunt sighed. “You don’t have homework, Eils. You just want Regan’s attention.”
Eilidh’s answer was to scrunch up her face and growl in a deep voice, “Spoilsport.”
I looked away so she couldn’t see me laugh.
“Don’t give me the monster voice, Eilidh Francine Adair. Why don’t you finish the new drawing you started in class? It’s my turn to chat with Regan. You’ll get yours later.”
That seemed to settle her.
“Monster voice?” I asked quietly.
Arrochar snorted, her pale eyes sparkling with amusement. “About a year ago she started saying stuff in a deep voice that cracks us up. We call it her monster voice, but we do not know where she picked it up. It’s just intrinsically Eilidh. She’s a bit weird, which means she fits in perfectly with the rest of us Adairs.”
“She’s adorable.” I watched her and Lewis, heads bent over their work. “They both are.”
“My brother is doing a fantastic job,” Arrochar said, pride in her voice.
Thinking of Thane and his dead wife, sadness filled my tone. “I can’t imagine having to raise two kids after losing the love of my life.”
“It was difficult.” Arrochar turned to me, keeping her voice low so the kids couldn’t hear. “He was still with a company in Inverness back then, so he hired a nanny. She was around until Eilidh turned two and Thane decided to go freelance. He’s juggled work and raising them for the past three years, but it’s been a struggle. I know it wasn’t a straightforward decision for him to return to working with a company. He doesn’t like the idea of his children being raised by a nanny. It was never what he and Fran intended.”
“Was Fran a stay-at-home mom?”
“She was a maths teacher. She was from the Borders originally. They met at university, and she loved Thane enough to follow him back to the Highlands. Luckily, she got a job at the local high school. I’m sure Lachlan had something to do with that. My eldest brother isn’t above nepotism.” She smiled fondly and then shadows entered her eyes. “Thane and Fran were the happiest people I knew. They designed this house together. Lewis was born just as the construction was completed. Fran had barely returned from maternity leave when she fell pregnant with Eilidh, and she decided to quit her job. Be a full-time mum. Thane would never have asked it of her, but I know he was relieved there would always be someone around. We didn’t have that, you see,” she said so softly, it was almost a whisper. “Our mum died after giving birth to me. Thane was six years old. Our dad kind of checked out for a while. Lachlan and Thane practically raised me. Anyway.” She shook her head. “Thane wanted something different for Eilidh and Lewis.”
My heart broke for them all, realizing life had repeated itself. “I’m so sorry.”
She shrugged. “What can you do? It is what it is.”
“Can I ask … how Fran died?”
Arrochar winced but before she could respond, Lewis called over suspiciously, “What are you guys whispering about?”
We tensed for a second, then I grinned at him. “Girl stuff.”
He wrinkled his nose and turned back to his homework like I suspected he might.
Arrochar chuckled. “You’re good with them.”
“I used to nanny. During summers at college.”
“Really?” Her eyes lit up. “I don’t suppose you’re looking for a job, are you?”
“I’ve spent all afternoon looking for a job.”
“Huh. Does Thane know you nanny?”
“Yup.” I raised an eyebrow. “But I think my sister might have filled his head with the notion that I’m irresponsible.”
“Are you?”
I studied the way she studied me and decided I liked Arrochar Adair. There was no judgment in her expression, even though I was sure she’d been told just as much about me as Thane had. She was blunt and direct, but I appreciated that. And it seemed to me she was the kind of person who liked to make up her own mind about people, which I respected.
“No. Fundamentally, no.” I shook my head. “I have been impulsive in the past, but I’m not sure irresponsibility always goes hand in hand with that trait. Besides, believe me when I say something recently cured me of my impulsivity. And yeah, I haven’t been there for Robyn when I should have been. I have an excuse. It isn’t a great one … but I’d hate to think that one mistake will be held against me for the rest of my life.”
Arrochar considered this. “You should talk to Mac. I think he, more than anyone, will understand whatever it is you’re going through when it comes to Robyn.”
Anger flushed through me. “I haven’t been there for my sister these past eighteen months. That’s not the same as a father abandoning his child.”
“Mac didn’t abandon her,” Arrochar bit back. “It’s more complicated than that, something you’d know if you’d been around for Robyn to tell you.”
I stifled the urge to argue. Instead, I wondered at her vehement defense of Mac. “There seems to be a lot I don’t know,” I eventually replied.
The stiffness eased from her shoulders. “Sorry for snapping. I just … I’m protective of Mac. What happened with Robyn … it was a pain he carried for a long time. Finally, things are good between them. I don’t want anyone to upset that.”
“I’m not here to tear shreds out of Mac,” I assured her, though I was curious to discover what had gone down between him and my sister. “I’m here to put things right with Robyn. And to do that, I need to stick around—to stick around, I need a job.”
“Aunt Arro, is it my turn yet?” Eilidh called over, cutting through the intensity of the moment.
Thankfully.
Arrochar rolled her eyes. “Your presence is required.”
Laughing, I hopped off the stool to give Eilidh my time.
While Arro prepared dinner, I hung out with Eilidh on the couch. An animation was on the TV, but Eilidh was too busy playing with my hair and chatting about her friends to pay attention. The only time she did was when a character started singing a song and she stopped to sing along with them.