Luag_A Time Travel Romance Read online

  She shook it. “No hard feelings. I’m glad to meet you, Ignacio.”

  She took her latte over to her favorite table and plugged in her phone to charge while she slurped. It tasted like home.

  21

  Fortified with protein and caffeine, Katherine ordered an Uber to her salon. It would be here in half an hour. Might as well better familiarize herself with PenUlt’s new products. She could personally attest to how good the backpack was, but she hadn’t had time to test the cell phone earrings. She put them in and called Kelsey, using the number she’d found on Celtic University’s website.

  “Kelsey MacGregor.”

  “Hi Kelsey, it’s Katherine.”

  “I’m so glad you made it home, but can we chat some other time? This thing with Sarah and Michael is taking up all my time today. Sorry.”

  “No problem,” Katherine told Kelsey, tapping her earring to disconnect the call. Wow, these earrings worked great!

  Inexplicably, Lupe gasped at the sound of the door opening. The barista was so level headed, this caused Katherine to look away from the latte she was savoring, having only a few swallows left.

  What?

  Luag stood there in the door to the café.

  Katherine hadn’t done any makeup, being on her way to the salon, and so she was able to rub her eyes, thank goodness. She had to pull herself together.

  But when she opened her eyes again, Luag still stood there, waiting for her to acknowledge him.

  Lupe beat her to it. “Come on in, Luag.”

  Luag smiled at Lupe and inclined his head to Ignacio as he entered the café, but he didn’t come over to Katherine. He was still giving her the chance to welcome him, or not.

  Katherine stood up. “Luag, why have you come for a visit? Is everything okay? Please tell me no one died.” She held her breath while Luag approached her.

  His face didn’t look worried, so it was good news. Was Jessica pregnant? Was Lauren pregnant? Yes, that was probably it. He looked excited, eager.

  She felt herself fidgeting with her latte cup, pulling the lid off and pushing it on, slushing the small amount of liquid around. Unable to contain herself —unusual for her— she blurted out, “What’s the news? Just tell me already. The suspense is killing me.”

  Lupe and Ignacio both laughed. And so did all the customers.

  “What’s going on?” Katherine asked Lupe.

  Unexpectedly, Luag answered. “I’ve been here two hours, just to make sure I caught ye before work this morning. I already had a nice conversation with Lupe and Ignacio and everybody here. They’re laughing because they ken I’ve come all the way from Scotland just to see ye.”

  Hope sprouted in Katherine’s heart. She looked up into Luag’s eyes and saw only him, shutting out everyone else —for now. She was certainly going to have a word with Lupe later.

  But old reactions died hard, and having to look up at him vexed her even now.

  When she stood, she was still looking at his chest, but that was better than when she’d been sitting down. “Oh?” she said. “Pray tell, Luag, why have you come all this way from Scotland just to see little old me?” She put on a Scottish accent. “Are na they keeping ye busy enough in Scotland?”

  He came right up and put his arms around her, resting his hands on her waist and moving his face close enough to kiss her. “I came to ask you a verra important question, lass.”

  She wanted to be flippant, to make everyone laugh with her the way they’d laughed with him.

  But his eyes stopped her from joking this time. They had been aloof most of the time she’d known him, reserved. But now, so close to hers, she could see they were beseeching. And fearful.

  That sprout of hope in her heart blossomed, and her body urged her to close the distance and kiss him already.

  But she had to make sure he’d thought this through. “But you were miserable here in my time, Luag.”

  He raised his eyebrows and cast his eyes about the room at the other people.

  Still lost in his deep blue eyes, she quickly amended, “Here in America, I mean. You were here all of two days and you hated it. I would’ve invited you to come back with me from Scotland except for that. And what about Leif and Taran? Don’t they need you? You were training—”

  Still with his face kissing close, he interrupted. “They’re as good as I am now. And I ken ye would na be happy living in Scotland.”

  It took all her will to stop herself from kissing him. She sensed he had something to say, and she didn’t want to stop him from saying it.

  He kissed the air in front of her and then smiled at her mischievously before he spoke some more. “I will na be happy without ye, Katherine.”

  “Well,” she told him with a grin, “I have it on good authority that ‘The best way tae dae some aught difficult is as fast as ye can.’”

  Her quip visibly softened his fear, bringing back more of the warrior she so desired. His shoulders went back and his chest filled out with pride in his ability to conquer.

  His voice was soft, only for her ears, making her feel higher than a kite. “Verra well. I came to ask you to be my wife, Katherine, to take intae yer home for the rest of our lives, if you’ll have me.”

  She couldn’t help it. “Had na you better ask me, then?”

  Close-up like this, only she could see the promise of an equally hard time for her in his eyes when he said, “Will ye be my wife, Katherine?”

  “Aye, I will—”

  She was going to say more, but he crushed her in a hug and kiss.

  Everyone around clapped and cheered, then rushed to congratulate them. Lupe took pictures, and Ignacio served cake. Thankfully, someone had explained to Luag he could keep his arm around her the whole time.

  With him so attached to her, Katherine asked Lupe, “Do you know a father who could marry us today?”

  Lupe gave Katherine a knowing look. “I do, but there’s a mandatory waiting time in California, and a blood test requirement. So you can wait, or you can go to Vegas.”

  Katherine must’ve looked crestfallen, because Ignacio spoke. “I have a spare room Luag can have until you get married. It’s close by, so you can see each other most of the time.”

  “That’s perfect,” Lupe chimed in. “We already know you work together.” She turned to Luag. “Say yes.”

  Laughing, Luag said, “Yes.”

  “Oh no.”

  Everyone looked at Katherine.

  “Our Uber’s here. We have to go.”

  Luag got the full treatment right next to her, and everyone in the salon commented about her sexy spa date. She bought him some slacks and a designer shirt, and finally the two of them were polished and coiffed and ready to go talk to her boss.

  Michelle waved them right into Kate’s office.

  Kate was sitting at her huge desk, and her face lit up when she saw Katherine, but even more so when she saw Luag. “Now I see what’s kept you so busy this past year.” She ended this with a wink meant to unsettle Katherine.

  It didn’t work.

  “We have other news, Kate. I’ll let Luag tell you. Luag this is Kate, my boss. Kate, this is Luag.”

  Kate’s amused eyes were on Katherine until she heard Luag’s Scottish accent.

  “‘Tis glad I am to meet ye, Kate.”

  Kate was on their side of her desk in a split-second, holding out her hand for a handshake. “Pleased to meet you, indeed.” She looked Luag up and down.

  Luag went for the forearm grasp.

  Katherine winced.

  But Kate laughed and clasped Luag’s forearm as well. “I don’t remember this practice from our visit to Scotland, but it’s charming.” She looked him over some more. “Very charming indeed.”

  Inspiration struck Katherine. “My friend Lupe assumed Luag was a PenUlt model when she met him.”

  Kate’s eyes didn’t depart from Luag. “Did she now?”

  Lupe’s priest married Katherine and Luag at the end of August. It was a small
wedding with just twenty friends and family members, but the scenery made it grand. They had it in the grassy park on the Santa Monica cliffs overlooking the ocean.

  “I do,” Katherine said, lost in Luag’s eyes.

  “I do,” said he, smiling back at her.

  They kissed for five minutes.

  Anxious to get started on their honeymoon in the bridal suite at the Miramar, Katherine looked for an escape route, and judging by the way the reserved Luag held onto her, he was looking for one as well.

  But they had guests.

  Kelsey was there and made a point of shaking Luag’s hand, which meant she could bring him into the dream visits. “‘Tis verra pleased I am indeed tae meet ye, Luag MacDonald,” she said in perfect Gaelic.

  “And I ye, Kelsey MacGregor,” Luag told her.

  Kelsey’s phone played a bar of Celtic rock music, making her roll her eyes and sigh. “Sorry, I promised I would take this.” Into her phone, she said, “Sarah, I pulled a lot of Celtic University strings to get you that position. You told me you loved it and you wanted to stay, so I pulled even more strings. You don’t want to find out what happens if you make me break my promises…”

  Katherine turned to Luag, who was also watching Kelsey walk away. “I wonder what that’s all about.”

  He pulled her close to him and kissed her soundly. “I think you have much better things to wonder about, Mrs. MacDonald.”

  They were only home on the weekends anymore. It was a bit trying, but it would only be for a few years, while Luag was young and in demand as the hot new survival-gear model. Kate had promised him a position at PenUlt after that, along with giving Katherine a few years’ leave of absence.

  PenUlt’s commercials with him had been so popular that Katherine and Luag’s phones rang nonstop during business hours with offers to hire him as a model until they broke down and got an answering service.

  Katherine was Luag’s full-time manager. She made sure he got the most advantageous deals possible and only modeled for the best companies.

  They bought a Scottish-style cottage in Santa Monica. It was so close to PenUlt’s headquarters that they could walk, once Luag’s modeling career slowed down. But thanks to Luag’s earnings, their garage held two new Mercedes convertibles.

  The cars stayed in their garage except on the weekends. Every work week, a new limousine took Luag and Katherine to the airport and they flew off to Bali or Peru or some other exotic location for a photo shoot.

  They were almost done moving into their cottage. Lupe and Ignacio had helped them find a houseful of handmade furniture, and they brought his kids over every Sunday after church to play in the backyard while Luag barbequed and the cafe was closed. Katherine had taken pleasure in ordering handmade linens and dishes to complete the feel of the place, which Luag assured her felt like home.

  The doorbell rang.

  Katherine rushed to answer it, eager to meet more of the neighbors, who it turned out they had a lot in common with, all of them being into cottages.

  A smiling UPS man greeted her with a huge flat box standing next to him. “Delivery for Luag and Katherine McDonald.”

  “I’m Katherine MacDonald.”

  “Will you please sign here? Thanks.”

  “Can you help me get this inside?”

  Luag walked around her and took hold of the large box. “Never ye mind. Thank ye. I’ve got it from here.”

  The return address on the box was Kelsey MacGregor at Celtic University, and once it was inside their living room and the door closed, Katherine and Luag eagerly tore it open.

  Both of them gasped.

  It was a large painting in a beautiful frame suitable for putting over their fireplace. It would fit there exactly, in fact, as if it had been custom-made just for their house.

  Which was remarkable.

  Because it was a painting of Leif, Jessica, Taran, Lauren, Amena and a man who must be her husband, a dozen people who must be their grown children, and three dozen more who must be their grandchildren.

  It had been painted inside Cresh Manor, where Lauren had built several more improvements besides the water closet and the Franklin stove. She had also expanded the place considerably.

  Katherine stroked Luag’s back. “I’m so glad to see everyone happy and healthy.”

  He took her into his arms, the two of them still looking at the painting.

  “Aye, ‘tis good to ken all is well with them.”

  He kissed her.

  “Just as all is well with us.”

  Afterword

  Hi, Jane here.

  I hope you enjoyed Luag and Katherine’s story. I had fun writing it. Katherine is modeled after my mom, Junelle, a beautiful, blonde, strong-willed woman who likes the finer things in life. She’s part Norwegian, so we come from Viking stock!

  The next Dunskey Castle book, Meehall, starts at Celtic University, where Kelsey became a druid and received her dream-walking ability. She’s gotten her old faire-friend Sarah a job typing up English translations of Gaelic texts for the university’s website.

  Sarah’s boss at Celtic University plonks an iron bracer on Sarah’s desk. It reminds her of one of Kelsey’s magic druid dreams. In it, Sarah’s ex, Michael (Meehall in Gaelic), used this bracer as a time travel object and was a kilted highlander in 1700s Scotland.

  At lunch, Sarah’s friends say they’re calling in sick tomorrow to attend a local fair. They want her to call in sick too.

  Sarah isn’t keen on giving the bracer back. She wants revenge on Meehall for breaking up with her and decides to use the bracer to have a bit of fun.

  Sarah tells her friends they don’t have to call in sick because she’s taking them back in time.

  “Good one!” they tell her, laughing.

  There’s a link to Meehall on the next page. If Amazon kicks you out of this book, you can get to the next page by hitting the back arrow. See you there!

  Also by Jane Stain

  Meehall is the next book.

  As Cherise Kelley I wrote:

  Dog Aliens

  My Dog Understands English!

  High School Substitute Teacher’s Guide

  Here are links to all of my Jane Stain books

  in reading order:

  Druid Magic - Dunskey Castle 1-3

  RenFaire Druids - Dunskey Castle Prequels

  Celtic Druids - Dunskey Castle 4-6

  Leif - Dunskey Castle 7

  Taran - Dunskey Castle 8

  Luag - Dunskey Castle 9

  Meehall - Dunskey Castle 10