Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 99960 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99960 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
It’s been five years since Jared McCulloch’s grandfather Collum passed away and he inherited his farm in the Scottish Highlands. After his grandad saved him from his past life, Jared is determined to honor Collum’s legacy. But not only has a series of bad luck put him in danger of losing the farm, his estranged father is disputing the will. In a desperate situation, Jared realizes he’ll do just about anything to save the land.
Even marrying Allegra Howard, a woman he’s avoided at all costs.
A woman who tempts him beyond reason.
There’s only one place that makes Allegra Howard feel safe; one place that feeds her artist’s soul. Allegra wants to settle down in Scotland and expand her business. But there’s a hitch: immigration intends to return her to US soil.
Panicked, Allegra finds the one person just as desperate as she is. The same person she’s lusted after for years. In exchange for marrying her, she’ll invest financially in Jared McCulloch’s farm.
However, living together only forces them to acknowledge their searing mutual attraction. And with it comes an undeniable emotional connection Jared’s not sure he’s ready for.
Yet, blurring the lines of their arrangement is the least of his concerns when someone begins terrorizing the farm.
Allegra and Jared came together to save what matters most and now that might just be each other. And unless they can figure out which of their pasts has returned to torment them, they could lose their chance at a real future together.
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Prologue
Allegra
Five years ago
Ardnoch, Scotland
Ispotted him as soon as I strolled into the Gloaming. I froze, blocking the exit.
There were many appealing things about Scotland. Its beauty was a feast to my artist eyes. The musical brogue that changed from place to place. The fact that I could hang out legally in a bar at twenty years old if I wanted to. And the men.
At least the men here in the Highlands.
They were growing them damn nice here in the Highlands.
Like him. Sitting at the bar. Laughing with the pub’s hot bartender and co-owner, Arran Adair, whom I’d already met.
A traditional old building in the middle of the Highland village of Ardnoch, the Gloaming was exactly what you imagined a Scottish pub to be. Low ceilings with dark wooden beams, a roaring hearth on one wall, booth seating covered in a smart tartan fabric skirting the edges, with a few cute tables and chairs here and there. The pub was attached to the rest of the hotel and restaurant, and from the look of the architecture, it was the oldest part of the building.
I loved its atmosphere. As an artist, I was more focused on glasswork, but I liked to paint too. Mostly landscapes. I was not a Renoir by any means, but moments like this almost made me want to pick up a paintbrush. The pub was busy, but not as crowded as I knew it could get during the summer.
A large dog laid out by the fire, soaking up the heat on this dreary September day. People were smiling and talking, all the while nursing their drinks as chart music drifted out of the speakers on low volume.
My attention returned to Arran and the delicious man he conversed with. Arran owned the Gloaming along with his brother Lachlan, who also owned a private members-only club for TV and film professionals. It was situated in his family’s converted ancestral castle and estate on the outskirts of the village. My father, legendary film director Wesley Howard, was a club board member. We had a beach house on the estate, and my big sister Aria was the club’s hospitality manager.
Whenever I could get away from school, I visited. With Aria here and, well, just Ardnoch’s whole vibe … this place felt way more like home than Malibu ever had. Even Rhode Island where I attended the School of Design didn’t hold my heart like this place. I couldn’t explain why it so appealed to me.
But views like the one at the bar certainly explained some of it.
He was broad-shouldered and I could see the ripple of his biceps straining against his dark T-shirt as he leaned into the bar. Laughter lit up his face, and I felt an answering swoop of attraction low in my belly. I aged him at between five and ten years older than me, with dark hair cut short at the sides and long on top. I watched him a few seconds longer as he scrubbed a hand over his dark, neatly trimmed beard before saying something that made Arran laugh in return.
The man’s answering grin was so sexy, I swear my knees trembled.
Yes, please.
Although I had no time for a guy in my life right now. I’d had my fair share of trauma these last few years, I was unsettled in life, and unsure of where I was going. But that didn’t mean I couldn’t have fun occasionally, and the guy at the bar made me want to have a whole lot of fun. I was supposed to be meeting Aria and her friends here in a little while, but I could fit in flirting before that.
Crossing the room, I hopped up easily on to the bar stool next to the hot mystery man. Our eyes met and I sucked in a breath. The stranger had the most beautiful jade-green eyes I’d ever seen. I wanted to capture the cool, pure color in my art.
For a moment, I think I gaped until his eyes flared before warming. Shaking myself, my answering smile was flirtatious before I looked at the bartender. “Hey, Arran. Can I have a club soda, please?”
Arran nodded in greeting, a knowing twinkle in his eye. “Of course. How are you?”
“Good. You?”
“Aye, always.” He winked at me. “Allegra, this is Jared. Jared, this is Allegra.” The helpful Scotsman moved to the end of the bar to make my drink.
Feeling the mystery man’s gaze, I turned to meet it. Wow. Those eyes. I just couldn’t get over them. “Hey. Jared.”
A smile quirked the corner of his gorgeous mouth as he held out a large hand to me. “Nice to meet you, Allegra.” His voice was deep but smooth. His accent was a little more pronounced than Arran’s, and I wondered if he was from another part of the country.