Page 4 of Highlands Homecoming

“Ugh. No, I’ll suffer through today. I don’t want to tackle that mess until the jet lag wears off.”

As they droveacross town to the building where Colin worked, Melissa couldn’t contain her excitement. It had only been a few weeks, but she already missed him and couldn’t wait to see him.

“Want me to just drop you off, or should I go in with you?” asked Caitlin.

“Whatever is easier,” said Melissa. “Actually, you probably need a break from me to do your own thing, right? Go ahead and run your errands or go home and do what you need to do.”

“I’ll come back in an hour? Two?” asked Caitlin.

“Seriously, whatever works for you. He’ll certainly be working, but maybe I'll grab coffee with him.”

“Text me.”

Chapter2

Colin sat at his desk looking out at the cold, bleak Charles River. Years ago, when he’d first moved to Boston from Scotland, the snow piled up everywhere each winter. However, the last few years, it had been just cold enough to chill someone to the bone as the rain washed away what little snow had fallen. He was happy to see it was snowing steadily for once.

Colin had always loved Boston winters. When he wasn’t cross-country skiing in the Boston suburbs, he drove a few hours north to Vermont and New Hampshire for downhill slopes. He dined out, saw Broadway-in-Boston shows, and could often catch a show in previews before it made its debut in New York. He’d moved to the US eager to carve out a life for himself, and he’d done it. He’d cultivated a great circle of friends, co-workers, and clients, and he’d made himself a real home in Boston—he’d thought. But after spending the past few weeks in his hometown of Inverness, Scotland, his old life in America that once had felt so full of promise now felt hollow.

He glanced through the stack of briefs that he needed to get back up to speed on after the holidays and this past MLK weekend. It was going to take a lot of coffee to keep him alert enough to get through those. His ex-girlfriend, Fiona, had talked almost the whole flight back from Scotland. She was also a lawyer, and one who never lost, which meant that she couldn’t take no for an answer. Somehow—even though she knew he’d met someone recently and there’d been significant sparks—Fiona had strong-armed her way into having dinner with Colin. She had implied it was just as friends, but he doubted that was her full intent. She couldn’t lose. Even if she didn’t want to win, she would try to do anything she could to avoid the loss.

He’d been so caught up in getting away and starting anew that he hadn’t realized what he was leaving behind. Melissa was so full of wide-eyed innocence and joy. She loved exploring Scotland, and Colin had loved every minute of their time together. Why had he left so suddenly? Just because he’d bought a ticket didn’t mean he’d had to use it. Colin had never felt so depressed. This wasn’t the post-Christmas blues, either. This was something new. What he needed was a pint with some friends, not dinner with Fiona.

Colin was finally absorbedin his work. But soon the door burst open, an angry Dave charged in with Colin’s apologetic assistant, Meghana, shaking her head as she followed him into the office.

Dave was Colin’s client and Melissa’s ex. Colin didn’t even want to think about what this situation could do to his law career. He never should’ve gotten to know Melissa, but fate had other plans. They’d first met at the airport, then rode the same plane to Edinburgh, then the same train to Inverness. When the man at the hardware store had sent Melissa to Colin’s father for firewood, that had sealed their fate—at least the getting acquainted part. The rest had just unfolded, and now he could very well lose his job … or get disbarred.

“Hello, David,” said Colin calmly. “I don’t believe we had an appointment today. I’m deep in a case right now. I’m afraid we’ll need to schedule something for tomorrow morning.”

“I had an idea,” said Dave.

Colin set down his cup of coffee and looked at his phone. “All right. Have a seat. Would you like some coffee?”

Dave leered at Meghana. “I’ll take two sugars, honey.”

Meghana blinked at him and pointed to the Keurig machine in the corner of the office. “Coffee machine’s over there.” She rolled her eyes and walked out. Colin hid his amusement.

“What can I do for you?” asked Colin.

“I want to speed things up,” said Dave.

“Okay. Your ex-wife has agreed to let you have the house and half of the money. I believe that’s more than generous.”

“And as you know, I want half of her inheritance. That house in Scotland I’ve been hearing about,” said Dave.

Colin took a deep breath. “Then you’d be collecting more than half of what?—”

Dave interrupted, “No, half means half. Cut down the middle. 50% for me, 50% for her.”

Colin nodded. “Well, that’s a good idea, but unfortunately the divorce has already been finalized.”

“Then why don’t I have the notarized final copies of the divorce in my hands?”

“They’re on their way. We were closed yesterday for Martin Luther King Day and I just need to?—”

“No, you don’t need to. You’re my lawyer, and I’m telling you to stop the divorce until I can sort this house thing out.”

Colin froze. “I can’t do that.”