( 3 )

About ten minutes after Golly and Jess left the kitchen, Lexie crept inside just as she caught Jamie single handedly with his hands in the cookie jar. Well, not exactly, as he was quickly trying to put the biscuits back into the pantry without being discovered by anyone coming in. He was bent over crooked and reaching far back, just as she tiptoed closer to him. She wanted to scold him for stealing the hidden biscuits and remind them they were for company only. She also thought of the best way to teach him a lesson, give him an awful fright, or well, humor herself.

"Boo!" She shouted out as he jumped, startled and hitting his head on the pantry shelf above where the biscuits went.

"Ouch! Wha?" He turned to glare at his sister in law, she was standing there with a huge "I told you so" smirk on her face.

"Ah heh, I thought you'd be stealing them biscuits from the pantry sooner or later!" She mocked him.

"The biscuits were for someone special, hence, special occasion biscuits had to be opened for a guest according to you." He chanted with a "You're wrong, Lex" smirk on his face back at her.

"Special? Who's special?" She tilted her head to the side, knowing her brother in law never thought of anyone 'special'.

"Jess." He smiled like a love struck fool, one who had met one of cupid's arrows and was shot right in the arse with it.

"Jess?" She replied outspoken. "Since when you do fancy a woman?"

Her jealousy slightly colored her voice, at one point in time she had some feelings for dear ol' Jamie, but he didn't love her that way back. And when she fell madly in love with Archie, he saw it as relief, mostly because she'd never act on those old 'lust' feelings she had for him at one point in time since they were purely just destined to be brother and sister in law only. He never ever went for girls that loved his brother, as they had an unspoken pact, well, brother loyalty, thou does not date each other's girlfriends, or the brotherly trust would be broken and Jamie lived by that rule all of his life.

"Look, I was being nice to her. Golly had no food in his croft and she was starving so I had her up for a bite. Duncan was here and it was totally harmless." Jamie covered up his love struck personality as he didn't exactly want to talk about his love life with his brother's meddlesome wife.

"Harmless-aye?" She scoffed at his now stoic and reserved manner.

"Yea, harmless." He then concluded, "And for your info, I've fancied a woman before."

"Oh, who?" She challenged.

"Katrina Finlay." He stated firmly as if he wasn't going to budge on his response. Lexie's eyes grew wide with astonishment.

"Katrina?" Her mouth dropped and then she remarked, "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because I don't date my brother's ex-girlfriends and I saw the trouble she caused between the two of you as you were trying to get married." Jamie answered boldly.

"Katrina? You wanted to date her?" Lexie's envy formed again, only Jamie put a stop to it.

"Yea, at one point I did. She's a teacher Lexie. I fancy teacher types." He nodded his head after rubbing the goose egg bump on the back of it from slamming his head into the pantry shelf.

Lexie busted out in laughter. Jamie's face grew serious before he gave her an devlish look.

"I'm---sor--ry." She laughed more.

"Eh, yea, right." He rolled his burnt wood eyes as she then got her laughter under control.

"Oh Jamie. I had no idea." Lexie shrugged.

"There's no need to get sentimental, as I wouldn't have ever told her I was interested in her anyway." He hid his true feelings once again. As Archie came bounding into the kitchen, happy to see his wife and yawing about how late it was and that he needed her.

"Lex, ready for bed?" He was trying to come to Jamie's rescue but he was a bit late. She didn't even have time to refuse and tell him she was talking to her brother in law about something important. Jamie waved her on. "Night, Lex and Arch."

"But-but, I was talking to---?" She was carted out of the kitchen and down the hall when Archie interrupted her.

"Yea, I know. He's not big on discussing his love life, as I figured you would have gotten the hint, Dear Abby." Archie replied low with a joke. Lexie was always playing 'Dear Abby,' an advice columnist in a newspaper, trying to discuss people's lives, worries, and woes, as this time it wasn't going to happen-she wouldn't be discussing any of it with his older quiet brother.

"Why's that?" She snipped, as she was a little annoyed at how her husband rudely interrupted her.

"Lex, Jamie doesn't like to talk about women or fancying them for that matter. He's always got something more important going on then getting married and having a family." Archie glanced at the hurt look on his wife's face. "What?"

"Arch, I think it's sad that he's not with someone, he's nearing 40, getting old, and I just think it's sad that's all. He decides not to date your old girlfriends, or a girl he actually fancies."

"Who said anything about my old girlfriends?" Archie's eyes zeroed in on her bewildered facial expression.

"He simply put it that he doesn't date anyone you've gone out with, even if he had fancied her for a long time."

"Katrina. This is about Katrina?" Archie added as he knew all about Jamie wanting to court her at one point, but never confessing to it. "He admitted to you about liking her?"

"Yea, don't look all impressed, Arch!" As they were walking up the stairs to their bedroom, just as he stopped them both in the hall.

"Lex, he's never ever admitted that fact to me, or anything about liking a girl who liked me, and I've known him for all my dear life." Archie then felt like his brotherly pride had been stepped on, or squashed like a bug. They entered their bedroom as they were getting changed for bed.

"Because he doesn't date your old girlfriends, he cares too much about you than to hurt you by getting involved with one of them! He felt he'd break trust between the both of you by doing so." She pulled off her shirt, shimmed out of her pants and swept her nightie over her head. As nightie straps fell onto her shoulders, the rest of the sheer fabric cascaded down her body and came to a halt at her knees. Archie loved watching his wife get ready for bed. At the same time, he was changing into his night clothes, Navy tee shirt and PJ bottoms, while yanking his socks off his feet as he climbed onto the fitted mattress after his darling wife had turned down the sheets and white comforter with wooden buttons.

"Lex, he'd never once told me he's ever liked a girlfriend of mine. He's just always been Jamie giving me words on my relationships. It's always been great advice."

"Oh? Like what, Mr. Laird?" She teased as she fell into bed beside him.

"He gave me support when you ran off just before we were to get married." Archie's face lit up, wondering what her reaction would be when she heard that bit of info.

"That's because he knows you care deeply for me." She grinned, as she cuddled her body to his. He snagged the covers up and over their shoulders as they were up to their necks in warmth, longing, and needing of each other.

"Anyway, Jess is back." Archie's lips brushed his wife's as he changed the subject.

"I know. Jamie fed her a bite in the kitchen and also used the special occasion biscuits." Lexie answered, as she went in for another kiss.

"Oh?" Archie's brow rose, breaking from the moment of osulation before adding, "He found those biscuits?"

Lexie hand thumped him in the chest before heaving a sigh, or in this case a very well 'You're blind as a bat, Arch' moan.

"What was that for, Mrs. Laird?" He glanced down at her as her arms were drapped across his chest.

"I believe he found Jess to be very special, if he had to dig out those well hidden biscuits." She sighed again, with a smile of contentment.

Archie pondered for a moment, if what his dear wife was implying were true, his brother was looking for someone to settle with, and do what he had done: get married and maybe have a heir to pass the lairdship down like he assumed him and his wife would one day. Jamie was now feeling at ease to date someone since his brother was married off. Archie then felt slightly panicked, as if his revelation had stuck a cord in his woeful mind, because if Jamie wanted to settle himself down, Jess was young, very young, and probably no where near that step that his brother wanted to take with someone.

Jess and her father wandered back to his croft as they walked side by side down the path way. Golly hadn't seen his daughter in three years and he made note she had changed a lot. He did make a point to call her, so often, but he couldn't leave the estate as he had too much work to do with the land upkeep. His mind went back to the time when she wasn't even born yet and he thought about Alison and everything they had been through together.

"How's your Mum?" He asked quietly as they strode together.

"She's great, considering her and Murray are still together." Jess didn't think fondly of her step-father, as she never did.

"How long are you planning on staying?" He spoke up, trying to keep the conversation with his daughter going.

"Just for a little while. I wanted to see you before I decided to see Mum again. Da, she doesn't approve of my boyfriend." She piped up as a moment of truth surfaced.

"Boyfriend?" He asked still with a quiet but steady tone of voice.

"Yea, but don't worry, Da." As they continued to walk towards the croft and he started to think there was more to the story, but didn't press her. His mind wandered to when he and Alison first got together...

Golly was back in town after his father's funeral, his life was turned upside down. He drank too much, spent too much time 'wandering the countryside' and not enough time thinking about what he would want to do when he grew up. The dreay day fit his mood as he slugged down a lager sitting at the bar. He had been just offered his father's job by the laird of Glenbogle, Hector MacDonald. He didn't tell him if he's take it or not. He just wanted time to think about it as he was doing it over a beer. She walked in a woman he had known since school, well, who was a few years younger, but still recognized him. He spent summers working on building projects, like porches and ramps for her father. Just odd jobs here and there. She looked over his way, nodded to the bartender for a lager as well and then sat down beside him.

"Sight for very sore eyes." She replied as his head turned to look at her.

"Aye, maybe." He replied back, before turning to his beer once again.

"Golly." She pried, before taking a sip of her beer too. "It's good you've come back here."

"Lass, that I am. Here." His brows lifted and then dropped as his fingers traced the rim and body of the beer glass.

"I'm sorry about your Da, Golly. Are you staying in town?"

"Al, I'm not sure. I was offered a job." He tipped his head to look at her. She was still beautiful, considering she didn't look a day older than 20, but she was actually in her 30's now.

"At the Glenbogle Estate." Alison added, as she knew all about it. "Word travels fast."

"Aye." He tipped his head to look at her once again.

"Are you going to take it? You'd be good at it, you know. I doubt Hector MacDonald would have offered it to you if he didn't believe you would be." Her eyes met his as he wasn't sure about how to take her compliment.

"I'm thinking about it, Al."

"Well, where are you staying then, while you're thinking about it? I know you just got back in town today for the funeral and I doubt you have appropriate logging?" She hinted at helping him out.

"Look, it's kind of you to offer, but..." He started to turn her down but her face, angelic as it was, was hard to say no too. "Okay, lass."

"Good, I'll make it a point for my father to know you'll be staying at the house while you mull over working for the MacDonalds. I'm sure he'll come up with some odd jobs for you to do in the meantime. So it's settled then? Can I get you out of here?"

"Alison, I'm..." He paused, but then shrugged, nodded to the bartender that he was done with his lager and turned his body towards her while sitting on the bar stool. "delighted."

"Great, let's get a move on. Chop-chop. I have lots of things to catch you up on." She laughed, as she was about to pay for the beers, as Golly nodded his head 'no.' She was insistent and paid for them anyway and then they both left the pub.

"Da," Jess glanced over to her father, as he was very quiet and pensive about something. They were now sitting in the lounge of his croft, Golly parked in an arm chair with a newspaper in his hand and Jess sitting on the sofa with an old photo album that she had packed with her for school.

"Yea, Jess?"

"If you had married Mum and it didn't work out and you fell for someone else, would you still divorce Mum?" She inquired oddly. Golly wasn't sure of where this question was coming from as he lowered the newspaper to look at her. She shifted her body to face him.

"Why do you question that?" He sensed Jess was on edge, for a short moment, before answering.

"Nothing, just a hypothetical question."

"I'm not one for giving hypothetical answers, now am I?" He asked wondering why she was asking such a thing. If he had married Alison, he would have stayed true to her, but something was making Jess ask such a pondering.

"No, I s'pose not." Jess sighed, "It's just I hate how Murray treats her and they have been married for so long that it's very tense to go home to it. When I brought my boyfriend home a week ago, she just felt too inclined to tell me what she really thought, then to just accept him."

"I see, lass, well, your mother made her decision and it's one she'll stand by." Golly knew Alison still quite well considering 23 years had passed since they were together. His mind wandered back to everything he had once shared with her...

"Da, said it was fine for you to be here. Here's linens and a pillow for the couch. Honestly, I don't know how you managed to stay out in the wood so long." Alison handed the linens over to Golly as they both made his bed up.

"I manage." He was good at one or two word answers as it was something she liked very much from him.

"Well, get used to this life again and how it is, and then tell me 'I manage.' Maybe you could kindly give me a few tips." Alison was one for change, but never once risked leaving Glenbogle. She knew there was an outside world, outside of the small town in the Scottish Highlands, and sometime she'd dream of it. City life, city people and city politics. The town poltics drove her crazy and at times she felt claustraphobic in the small village. She didn't comment on it though to Golly, just kept her dream to herself. She mostly didn't want to disappoint her father and just up and move away on him.

He laughed, before replying, "You sound burnt out, why?"

"It's nothing. I'll let you sleep. You need it." She nodded with a blooming smile. "Night, Golly."

"Night, Al."

"Da?" Jess interrupted his thoughts again. "I'm going to hit the sack, okay?"

Golly sat up in his chair before looking at her, as his mind was zapped back into reality. He wondered if his daughter knew how much he cared about her and how he wanted to be there for her when she was growing up, but couldn't be. He would have given anything to have Alison stay in town, but instead his friendship with her father remained until the day he died. He still had the prized family rowboat stored away in the basement of the Glenbogle House. He'd have to show it to her and have her take it for a spin. "Aye, right. Night." She lowered to peck her father on the lips, gave him a big hug and then walked through the lounge, towards the stairs, climbing them one by one until she make way to the small bedroom.

Jess rolled, tossed, and turned on the small twin bed hours after telling her father she was going to turn in. She was still getting used to sleeping alone, since everything with Sean Cook had ended very badly because of her. They used to sleep together side by side every night after he left his wife. He was her lecturer, which she omited that fact when explaining to her father who her boyfriend was on their walk from the estate to his croft. Yes, the man was married with a young child, Lydia of age seven, and separated from his wife for sure, but he was getting soon divorced. He was in his late 30's, close to Jamie's age...she tossed again entangled in the blankets on the bed. Sean, everything about him was wonderful, and he wanted to take care of her...yet, having an affair on his wife, even if he was living apart from her with Jess, was a huge no-no as he could have lost his ten year if it had gotten out what he was doing with one of his prized students. But to Jess at the time they were getting together, you can't help who you fall in love with, yet she wasn't in love with Sean. She told him she had to move on and he did too. That his marriage and his life were coming unglued and she didn't want to be the one who helped him piece it back together or be at blame for pulling it apart, when she wasn't ready for that kind of committment-marriage or motherhood-she couldn't be Lydia's 'step-mother' especially when she knew what it was like to have a step-parent and how hard it was because she wasn't keen about Murray being her step-father since day one, when she was just five years old. She actually blamed him for keeping her Mum from getting back together with her Da. Smooth move, Jess, frig up something good because you're claiming you're not ready, when you are, you just didn't want to tell him this truth about what it was like to grow up without your parents together. Sean, he knew nothing about growing up with out married parents as his had been together since the ice age, or so he joked on about. She tossed in the sheets again on her right side and then left. Da, seemed so distant tonight when I asked him a question about being married to Mum. Suppose he still loves her after 23 years? Of course he does as he wouldn't of asked me how she was doing. Her being there, must just bring back old memories to his mind about how he began to court her Mum. Of course, she didn't know the story either, as her parents lips were sealed quite tightly. It just infurated her at how no one told her how they met. With her grandfather dead, she couldn't ask him about it. She flipped over onto her stomach and then with another toss and turn, she fell out of bed and onto her rump on the floor. "Oh fudgety!"

With that remark escaping from her lips, she decided to stand up, put on her trousers, slide her gown off and put her sweatshirt on over her tank-topped chest. She fixed her stick straight bed head and put it back into another ponytail and then dressed her feet in socks and boots, before tiptoeing out of the bedroom and down the stairs into the kitchen. She peaked into the lounge as her father was asleep in his arm chair with a newspaper spread out on his lap. He looked so uncomfortable sleeping in that position, as she shrugged while walking slowly into the room, grabbing an old afghan off the couch and then removing the paper from his lap while replacing it with the wool knitted blanket. She didn't hestitate to kiss his forehead and then wander out of the croft. Golly didn't stir. He just sat in his chair off in dreamland with the blanket now covering his body.

The early morning light was fastly approaching the Glenbogle estate as Jess hiked down one path and then to another foot trail. Eventually she came to a clearing, a big wide open space where the loch was, as she was greeted by the waves tatering the shore and a very fine tuned breeze which hit her cheeks on her face. Someone was watching her intently from afar, almost surprised that she would be up at the crack of dawn too. She then hiked over to a rock and purched herself down as she was enjoying the peace and quiet, well, for the next few seconds until she recognized she wasn't alone.