Chapter 3

After her long soak in the tub, she opened her wardrobe to put on a dress. It was proving to be a gloriously sunny day, and she felt like a town book sale demanded she made a little more effort with her appearance. After all, her community was getting the first glimpses of the ‘outsider.’

She had been here a couple of weeks, cooped up in this cottage, surrounded by the mess and eating microwave food and oven meals. A trip to check out the local shops was not a bad idea. She could pick up something fresh, maybe even some cakes, and take Muffin for a stroll beyond the gravel road that led out onto the main road from her tree-covered nook.

Pulling out a fitted baby pink sundress that flared out from the waist and brushed her knees. She slid her feet into matching flat pumps and brushed out her long dark hair, pinning it up the back of her head loosely, so tendrils fell around her face. Her skin had tanned to a lovely shade from all the garden work the last couple of days, and she applied minimum makeup. A spritz of her favourite perfume, a glance in the mirror to approve how she looked with a satisfied nod.

She grabbed a cream-coloured canvas shoulder bag to throw her purse in and girly essentials, like strawberry lip balm and sunscreen spray. She picked up her baby pink framed sunglasses, Audrey Hepburn style, and picked up Muffin and his leash.

Ready to rumble!

Rose sang tunelessly when she swept out to her car with the dog in tow.

Her little pink mini shone in the sunlight in front of the cottage, relieved to be free of both boxes and roof rack and crying out to be driven. Lovely and clean from her morning washing and polishing days before.

Rose had always had a pink obsession since childhood, always obsessed with all things pink, girly, and sparkly. Her car had been her one indulgence in London, going for a baby pink, a tiny car that suited her girly - all things cute obsession. She had hated that every male she had dated criticised it, and it was partially why none of them made it beyond two weeks with her.

Blaring the summer hits CD, she pulled out with Muffin in the passenger seat and headed along the road. Pulling out onto the main road and reaching speed quickly, she sang and smiled at how free she felt. Energised by this impromptu outing and the glorious sunshine, which was not typical for Scotland this early in the summer. It was truly shaping up to be a wonderful day.

Out of nowhere, the nose of a black car poked out in front of her from the tree-edged hedge way, causing her to swerve and scream as she tried to hit the brakes in alarm. Her car skidded halfway across the road with an almighty screech before slamming to a halt, and Rose fell forward on her steering wheel, trying to catch her breath; sure, she had just suffered a major heart attack.

Grabbing at Muffin to feel he was still in one piece, her hands began shaking violently, and her heart pounded through her chest; trying to keep her head on the wheel to steady her breathing and calm her nerves, she could feel her rage rising.

Who in the actual hell??? What the actual f…?

Her car door was ripped open beside her, causing her to snap around and glare angrily into the steel-coloured eyes facing her, which had suddenly appeared too close.

“Are you o…” A smooth and deep voice that sounded genuinely concerned tried to infiltrate her red haze, but she had already hit maximum rage.

“What in the actual hell are you doing???” She screeched at the face before her, not taking in the jet-black hair, tanned skin, or intense grey eyes belonging to the tall stranger. Ordinarily, this kind of sexy would have put Rose in a slump of panting hormones, but Rose just saw red!

“You could have killed me!!! Are you aware that road is a sixty? You pulled out into traffic on a goddamn sixty!” She pulled herself out of her seat, releasing her belt to square her small five-foot-four to the huge six-foot frame before her. Anger seared her every nerve at the sheer stupidity of the man. He quickly stood back, looking almost shocked as she continued to yell at him about his idiotic driving manoeuvre with hands firmly on her hips and letting fiery Rose loose.

“Whoa there, Penelope!” Splaying his hands in defence as he tried to calm her rant. “Look, I’m sorry! I’m sure I got as much of a shock as you! Most folks know how bad the view is for me coming out and crossing to the other side to pass the manor opening!” He was defensively moving away from Rose as she continued waving her hands, cursing at him about recklessness and moronic men with stupidly fast and flashy cars. Rose was on a roll. She stopped suddenly, realising something he had said.

“Who the hell is Penelope?” She blinked in confused fury, but he only laughed at her sudden change in persona, then tried to smother it with a cough.

Smooth move, mister! Asshole. God, you’re hot!

Rose only seemed to notice this little fact now that she was inches from him.

His shocked manner seemed to flip into smiling, good-humoured, if not a little embarrassed, but Rose was beyond oblivious in her mental state.

“You!… Sorry, it’s just… Pink car… Pink dress… Fiery little lady who comes out like a bat out of hell, like she’s about to rip my head off…” The handsome stranger stood with hands up defensively, smiling at her like it was the most obvious thing in the world to everyone except her. Rose stood motionless. Cluelessness and confusion all over her face added to her internal irritation at his far too-good-looking smugness.

“Penelope Pitstop from wacky races?” He tried again to get her brain to connect to whatever the hell he was talking about. “Look, never mind. It’s just, that’s what I thought when I opened your door.” He was laughing now, in a rather deep and husky way which only enraged her more and brought out another bought of fury.

“Screw you and your stupid wacky whatever’s! Next time watch where you’re going, asshole! Or next time, I won’t swerve!” She turned and threw herself back into her car in the most unladylike manner, attempting to grab her door, so she could dramatically slam it. All previous ounces of rage reconnected with her inner diva, but he caught it first.

“Allow me.” He slammed it shut with the force of a guy who had reconnected with anger. The humour was absent from his face and replaced with “I’m pissed off, lady.” Their eyes glinted at one another angrily, fire meeting fire. Sparks ignited in the air around them and almost crackled with the collision.

Rose didn’t wait for any further conversation. Putting metal to the floor, she sped off without hesitation, almost taking him out with her wing mirror in the process and giving zero care about it.

Rose wasn’t sure why this guy had invoked such a furious response, but all she wanted was to put a huge sea of distance between her and that smug laugh and get rid of the ball of internal anger writhing inside of her. She could see the arrogant sod in her mirror, shaking his head after her, watching her drive off before walking back to his flashy black car and sliding back in with the grace of a cougar.

“Asshole!” She screeched loudly, angered at the sheer effortless grace the idiot was displaying.

Muffin looked at her with wide, wise eyes, almost telling her she had lost the plot.

“Well, he is! Mr, I’m so good-looking with my big muscles, sports car, and expensive clothes. So Mr smooth, I think I can give you a cute pet name, and you forget I almost killed you!” She slapped her wheel, eyes darting from the road to the rear-view mirror manically as she tried not to cause a further accident with stupid driving.

“Fuck you!… Ow, that actually hurt.” She lifted her fingers to her mouth and blew them gently to soothe the self-inflicted burning pain, releasing some of her tension as she did so. That ‘almost’ crash had given her a massive fright, and her reactions since had been some delayed mental breakdown brought on by a near-death experience. Being confronted by a guy who was far too handsome for an early morning rural drive added to her extreme reaction.

I mean, who the hell was he? Wearing designer clothes and a flashy car and looking a little too sophisticated for the highlands. Men like him were normally arrogant Londoners, and she had met enough of them to last a lifetime.

Pushing that irritatingly flawless face out of her mind, she suddenly felt remorseful for swearing angrily in front of Muffin and sat back in her chair, trying to release the tightness of her muscles. Flexing her shoulders and tilting her head from side to side to flex her neck. Slow, steady, calming breaths and internal chanting to cool her jets.

The black sports car appeared in her rear-view mirror, coming up behind her fast, and she instantly tensed back up, teeth gritting and eyes narrowing angrily. Putting the foot down, she sped away from him before reaching the sign for the town and slowing back down again as she passed it. Completely pointless but satisfying, to say the least, riled by how this man made her feel.

Throwing daggers from her eyes in the mirror, she slowed to thirty and meandered through town looking for a car park as the car behind her turned off at the huge museum; she sighed with relief at his departure.

Hot or not, I don’t need you behind me today!