She shut the door, then sighed and rested her head back against it, closing her eyes but falling short of groaning in case he was still on the other side. She straightened, crossed to the bedside table, and picked up her phone, sending a quick WhatsApp to Bia.
Where are you? You need to ditch your hunk and come back to the room. Now. We’re going for a day out with Max.
It didn’t deliver. Well, that was just fantastic. Clearly her phone had run out of battery. She sank down onto the bed and briefly contemplated ringing Laura to find out which room Stuart was in—if he was even staying at the castle at all. But it really wasn’t the kind of thing you wake newlyweds up for, now was it? So instead she sighed, and headed into the shower room to try to reverse last night’s damage.
* * *
—
Josie got to the entrance hall about forty-five minutes later, deliberately not rushing. If Max wanted to drag her out on some mystery expedition, then he could bloody well give her some time to get ready. She hadn’t managed to get hold of Bia, but had decided not to wait, because who knew how long it would be before she heard back from her?—she could be waiting half the day for all she knew.
What she wasn’t counting on was Erin, standing next to Max in the entrance hall, admiring a painting of an old man. She looked immaculate, pulling off the ponytail in a way very few people can do and wearing a crisp blue blouse and white slacks. Josie slowed her pace, but Max had already seen her and was waving her over. Erin turned, smiled at her too, though Josie thought her smile was a little more reserved. Josie’s eyes flickered between them as she stopped a meter or so away.
“Erin’s plans fell through,” Max said, acting like it was no big deal, “so she’s coming too.”
Erin offered another small, slightly tight smile. “I hope you don’t mind me gatecrashing,” she said, with perfect courtesy.
“Of course not,” Josie said quickly. Because what was she supposed to say? This was her boyfriend who was arranging a weird outing with a girl he’d slept with—no wonder her plans had magically fallen through.
“Come on then,” Max said, leading them outside. He looked easy enough, but his hands were tucked firmly into his pockets, making Josie wonder if he was being deliberately careful not to touch anyone. “You’ve got your camera, right?” he added, a little redundantly given he was currently looking at the bag strapped across her shoulder.
She nodded, held the camera bag up. As they stepped onto the gravel, Josie glanced at the taxi, then at Erin, wondering if it was genuinely too late to come up with a reason not to go. But Erin was now sliding into the backseat, and Max was holding the taxi door open for her. So, trying to do so as gracefully as Erin had, she got into the taxi. She was fully expecting Max to shut the door and get in the front seat, but he got in the back too, so that Josie was stuck firmly in the middle between the two of them. She snapped her legs together, being extra careful that no part of her body touched Max, which was actually rather difficult, being as how she wasn’t exactly tiny, and both Max and Erin seemed to take up the entirety of each of their sides, leaving her with no extra room. She put her camera onto her lap and crossed her arms firmly as the taxi pulled away.
“Edinburgh, that right?” asked the driver.
“That’s right, thanks, mate.”
Josie glanced at Erin, but either she already knew where they were going, or else Max did this kind of thing often enough that she was just used to it. Either way, she seemed relatively relaxed as she stared out the window. Josie shifted, felt Max’s leg press next to hers, and jumped obviously enough to make both Max and Erin look at her. She cleared her throat. “So, everyone having a nice weekend?”
The small talk was forced and awkward, making it seem like the taxi was moving incredibly slowly—Josie actually glanced over the driver’s shoulder at one point to check the speed. It was in one of those too-long silences, about fifteen minutes into the drive, that Max made everyone in the car start by practically shouting, “Stop!”
The driver slowed, frowned at him in the rearview mirror, while both Josie and Erin looked out Max’s side of the window. For a moment, Josie assumed that they must have nearly hit an animal or something, but Max only said politely, “Can you pull over here?” He indicated a lay-by next to a stile, which led to what, as far as Josie could tell, was just a big field.
The taxi driver, still frowning and looking at Max slightly suspiciously, pulled over, and Josie wondered if Max just had a desperate need for a wee or something. But he looked over to Erin and Josie. “Let’s get out.”