Page 37 of Entangled With You

“Oh.” My heart sank. I scrawled the address of our home.

“Then where did ye go?”

“I was in a race, in Jacksonville.”

She gestured for me to write it down. “The time and the address.”

I wrote that down too.

“And then?”

“I ate dinner at home with Magnus and then—” I glanced over my shoulder at him. “We went to bed early because I was tired.”

“Write the time ye were home for dinner and the time ye went tae bed.” She watched me write. “Put the date at the top. Include the year. Now sign the bottom of the page.”

I signed it. A possible death warrant for myself. I had to comply or I would be dead two weeks ago. There was no way I could go back and warn myself without throwing everything that had happened, all the happy moments between then and now, out of whack.

Lady Mairead picked up the book, closed it, and pushed it into her coat pocket. “If ye daena come tae the future, ye canna hide from me. I will go tae this date and Kaitlyn and I will discuss the issue. Dost ye understand me, Magnus?”

Magnus said, “Och, aye.”

I raised my chin. “Yes, we understand.”

Lady Mairead returned to her seat.

I drew a deep breath and another standing between Magnus and Mairead. “And about you needing a place to rest tonight.” My words started faint, but I made them louder and more firm to make up for a weak beginning. “There is no way in the world that I am allowing you to come to my home. It’s my home, not yours. You aren’t welcome. I will call and get you a hotel room. The security guard will take you.”

Lady Mairead said, “Aye, Kaitlyn, keep your home tae yourself. You should enjoy the peace of it. Twill be a matter of days before your past catches up tae ye and the press is on your doorstep. Then all of Samuel’s army will arrive soon after tae bring ye tae justice.”

Magnus said, “Call about the room, Kaitlyn. Security and I will take Lady Mairead there. She will leave first thing in the mornin’.”

“Yes, she will.” I smoothed down my dress. “Yes. She will. Magnus, can I speak to you in the hall?”

In the hall Magnus pulled me into his arms. I cowered there against his chest and let him surround me. We didn’t say a thing.

There were too many emotions and things to say, but it all had to wait.

Finally I pulled off and stepped back.

He held my face and wiped my tears away with his thumbs.

“I’m probably a mess and there’s a whole wedding reception to deal with.”

“Ye look beautiful and...”

I showed him a sad smile. “What should we do with this?” I held up the envelope.

“I daena want it.”

“I get that. Me too. But you might need to know.” I tucked it into his chest pocket. “You’re going with her to the hotel?”

“I should. I will guard outside her room. Ye and I have a lot tae talk of, I daena want tae go without speaking tae ye on it, but I daena trust her tae...”

“Yeah, me neither.”

I watched his face. “Magnus, come home in the morning. After you see her off, come right home. Even if you⁠—”

“Even if I — what?”