Tuesday Tales: From the Word BUTTON

Welcome to this week’s Tuesday Tales. Things are starting to come together. Our word prompt this week is BUTTON. I’m continuing with Listen to the Stones.

The moment he’d seen MacNish standing so close to her, implying that she was his, he’d seen red, the pain in his chest adding to his anger and discomfort. Keeping himself under control had been a monumental feat.

Heart pounding, Jerome removed his scarf and undid the first button at the neck of his shirt, hoping to force air into his constricted lungs. He inhaled deeply through his nose and exhaled through his mouth, praying that everything that had just happened hadn’t been a dream.

The agonizing pain in his chest that had struck him the moment he’d seen MacNish, a pain he hadn’t felt since that morning in his trailer on the film set, had disappeared, but the fact that he’d had it at all was worrisome. Maybe he should’ve had a doctor look at him the first time it had happened. While he’d dismissed it since the redness had vanished, maybe it was some indication of a serious cardiac issue and the shock of the encounter moments ago had been more than his heart could take.

Had he arrived too late? Had James MacNish beaten him and stolen his prize? Was that why he’d felt that incredible, irrational need to get here as soon as he could? He would fight until his last breath to keep her. His future depended on it.

He’d planned to befriend Lady Fraser to protect her and eventually convince her to sell him the land he wanted. Now, the prospect of marrying her and gaining everything he wanted loomed on the horizon, so close that he could almost reach out and grab it. What would Nathan have to say about this strange turn of events?

Jerome had never expected Lady Fraser to be his woman. And yet it made perfect sense. It would explain why his muse had been so closed-mouthed about her location, knowing the two—or was it three—were destined to meet here. How did James MacNish feature in all this? What role did he have to play? Marina had been born here on Lewis just as he had, but as the Fraser heir, her connection to the stones had to be stronger than his. Damn! What he wouldn’t give to know more about his birth parents. He needed to speak to Uncle Malcolm as soon as possible. Since he’d learned of his adoption, he’d been plagued by questions, including why they’d thrown him away.

That’s it. Come back next week for more. Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.