Page 239 of My Fake Dating with the Grumpiest Highlander
“So you decided to play with our lives?”
She turns toward me.
“No. I decided to give you a chance neither of you would’ve given yourselves.”
“That wasn’t your decision to make.”
“You’re right.”
I blink in surprise.
Did Maggie McGregor just admit she was wrong?
She returns to her chair and folds her hands neatly in her lap.
“You deserve an apology, Mary. A real one. What I did was invasive. Manipulative. Certainly not what a grandmother should do.”
Her voice cracks slightly on the last word.
“But I did it out of love. Not cruelty. Because I know exactly what people lose when fear keeps them from reaching for happiness.”
I sink farther into the chair completely thrown off balance now.
“What do you mean?”
Maggie draws a deep breath like the next words cost her something.
“When I was your age, I almost made the biggest mistake of my life.”
She pauses, her gaze drifting somewhere far away.
“Your grandfather… Charles. When we met, I was exactly like you. Independent. Stubborn. Convinced I didn’t need anyone.”
I’ve almost never heard Maggie speak about Grandpa Charles like this.
Honestly, she rarely talks about him at all.
“He was… different from what I expected. Softer. More patient. He looked at me like I was something precious, and it terrified me. I was afraid of falling in love with him and ending up tied to Glenfield forever raising a family.”
A sad smile touches her mouth.
“So I decided to leave. I’d been offered a position in Edinburgh. It was an incredible opportunity. A completely different life. Far away from Glenfield. Far away from everything I was feeling and didn’t want to feel.”
My heartbeat quickens.
“What happened?”
“I got on the train. I had my luggage, my ticket, my whole new life planned out. I sat there in the compartment staringout the window repeating to myself that I was making the right decision.”
She looks at me now, her eyes shining with restrained tears.
“And then the train started moving. And I saw Charles on the platform. He was running after the train like a madman, shouting my name.”
I stop breathing.
“The train was already pulling away. He should’ve given up. But he kept running. Kept shouting, ‘Maggie! Stay! Please stay!’”
A tear slips down her cheek.
