Chapter 2 Cold, I Hate The Cold

Teeth chattering I stepped out of the airport and looked around for Jer's brother. Cursing under my breath I yanked my hat down further over my ears and tried yanking my jacket up further. So no one told me how cold it was going to be in Scotland in November.

"Aye do ye need a ride lass?" I have to say the accents were quaint. I looked toward the older gentleman who was standing near a rusty pickup truck. I also knew that I could not trust strangers offering rides in a foreign country.

"Ye look like Melinda, are you Annabelle?" He stroked his gray beard and looked at me with watery eyes. He coughed and dug around in his jacket. He handed me a paper to me and a picture of him with my Great Aunt Melinda.

"I was supposed to meet someone here to pick me up." He coughed again and rubbed the back of his neck. His wrinkled face cracked when he smiled.

"The pink-haired one? He is back at the estate, Magnus had him pinned at the gate and I had to save him. The kid needed a pint and some good food. The missus is taking care of him." Groaning I had hoped that Wuggie managed to forget about coming here and went on his merry little way.

"Well Mr?" He laughed and held out his hand for me, and I shook it. He had a nice firm grip and I wondered how he knew my Great Aunt.

"Just call me Sinclair, I have been at Sheep's Lodge since your Great Aunt bought the place." I snorted and tried not to laugh as he raised a bushy eyebrow at me.

"Sorry Sinclair. The name of the estate just threw me." He grabbed my bags and loaded them into the bed of the truck. I felt like a horrible person laughing at the name of his home and my new home.

"Tis ok lassie, ye Great Aunt had a sense of humor and would let the wee woolly ones run through the manor in the winter." So Melinda was eccentric, or crazy, however, you look at it. It must run in the family because I was running away to a new country and to a place sight unseen because some unknown relative passed and left me their home.

"What can I expect when I get there Sinclair? How long have you and your wife been at Sheep's Lodge?" I gingerly climbed into the truck, the old springs groaning under me and the weight of Sinclair. The truck smelled like wet wool, dog, and tobacco.

"The old house needs some work, the local law has deemed ye dog and sheep a menace, also you have a neighbor who will be a pain in yer rear. It is best to either ignore her or make friends with her. I suggest you ignore her." Sighing, I was hoping that I would not have to deal with annoying neighbors.

"How close is this annoying neighbor? Also, where would I buy supplies?" I was going to focus on healing myself, throwing myself into my art and writing. The first few weeks I was just going to wallow in my own misery though.

"She is about 19,000 yards from the Western property line." I stared blankly at him, math was never my strong suit, actually, math was my mortal enemy. He laughed at the blank look on my face and shook his head.

"Aye, I forget that ye Americans measure differently. She is four acres away from the Western Property line." So she was not close and that was good.

"What about the sheep? Also what makes the dog such a menace?" I was expecting to hear about some maneater like Cujo.

"The sheep seem to always find a way to escape, the dog, well he has an issue with stealing kilts off the bodies of the poor sods wearing them." Blinking, I looked down at his hairy knees and he laughed again.

"We are an old village, and we do follow the old ways sometimes. A lot of the men like to wear kilts but will dress accordingly when coming to the estate. Magnus is a wee pup still and he has learned with a swift whack on the nose that he is to leave me kilt alone." I sighed with relief knowing that I would not have to worry about seeing more of Sinclair than I wanted to.

"What is it that you do Sinclair?"

"I take care of the property and the missus takes care of the house. We have been there for years, we were a young couple that your aunt took in during the seventies." I let out a low whistle, they have been at the estate for a long time.

"Well I look forward to your help and the help of your wife and you are welcome to stay for as long as you want. What I mean is that I would not get rid of you just because I was the new owner. Sorry, I just made this awkward." I lay my head back on the seat and he laughed again.

"No worries lass, we know you would not kick us to the gutter and that is not because it was your Great Aunt's wish to keep us. No, ye do not strike me as the type to do something like that. Now lay ye head back and get some rest it will be three hours before we reach the estate." I chewed on my lip and shivered. Burrowing deeper into my coat I could not figure out how this man could run around in a kilt in this cold.

"Is it always this cold?" He chuckled again and blissfully turned the heat up in the truck and made the poor old thing rattle.

"Aye, and it will get colder lass." That was just great, something else to look forward to, kilt stealing dogs, cold, colder, and delinquent sheep.