You’re right, pleasant little village.” It was almost dark when Rodland tied off the motorboat at the pier. He jumped out and swung Jane onto the pier. “Emphasis on little.” His gaze raked the stone buildings that lined the narrow streets. “Several shops, a tearoom.” He smiled as he heard music issuing from a brightly lit building a few doors away. There was an outdoor patio with several tables and chairs beneath the tan-and-blue umbrellas. “And that must be my designated home away from home. Jock’s pub?”

“That’s right.” She could feel her tension growing and she drew a deep breath. She turned to her left and headed for the bank of shops and offices down the street. “Have an ale on me. I’ll see you soon. I’ll watch the time. We have to get back to MacDuff’s Run.”

“Sure, I’ll just be sitting here at one of Jock’s outdoor tables.” He dropped down in a chair. “Will you tell me which shop or building you’ll be going into?”

“No.” She looked back at him. “But I’ll be close enough that you’d be able to hear me from that chair if I called out to you. So don’t follow me. If you do, I won’t trust you again.”

He was silent. “I’ll give you an hour. Then I’ll come and find you.”

“It shouldn’t take longer than that.” She waved and turned right into the bank of shops.

She stopped and drew a deep breath as she glanced back at the pub. Rodland was sitting totally at ease, but his gaze was still fixed on where she’d disappeared. Forget about him. Think about Caleb. Concentrate on what she had to do and hope she could trust Rodland. If she couldn’t, she’d worry about handling the fallout later. That might be the least of her worries.

She glanced away from Rodland and hurried down the next street and into the foyer of the sandstone building set back from the cobblestone street.

Get it over with.

She hadn’t thought she’d be in a panic, but the panic was there…

*  *  *

“You’re early.” Rodland straightened in his chair as he saw Jane coming toward him. “Fifty-five minutes.”

Jane chuckled. “And were you about to jump up from your chair and start stalking if I didn’t show up exactly on time?”

“Probably.” His eyes were narrowed on her face. “I might have given you an extra five or ten minutes, but I’d have to keep my word to you. We had an agreement.”

She was still smiling. “Which was really an agreement you had with Palik and Caleb. I was just an afterthought.”