The Sunstone Brooch : Time Travel Romance Katherine Logan (no david read aloud TXT) 📖

have without intervention. You three are the best people to talk to him about treatment. Tell him he can return to his time whenever he wants.”

“If Sean talks to these three, he’ll believe that once he leaves his time, he’ll never go home again,” Elliott said.

“We’re going home,” Cullen said. “One of these days.”

Kit glanced at her husband and smiled, and his smile was just as bittersweet. They had a silent conversation, and Elliott wondered if they had made end-of-life decisions about dying at home—at Montgomery Winery—in their own time.

Kit would tell him when it was time for him to know.

“You’re traveling with the diamond brooch, right?” Charlotte asked.

Elliott nodded. “And what about Emily and her medication?”

“David engineered a refrigeration system with solar panels and batteries to keep my medicine cold,” Emily said. “It’s all in the trunk I’m sitting on.”

“We’ll see that it’s set up immediately,” Elliott said.

“Travel safely,” Charlotte said. “Braham and I will be waiting right here. It’ll be lovely to see Sean and Lyle Ann again.” Charlotte crossed the room and stood next to her husband, far enough away that they wouldn’t get sucked up in the fog. “Good luck!”

Elliott locked arms with Meredith on one side, Kit on the other. Next to her was Cullen, and then Emily completed the circle. Elliott opened the diamond brooch. “Let’s focus on James Cullen and MacKlenna Farm. Ready?”

Everyone nodded. Then Elliott recited the chant:

“Chan ann le tìm no àite a bhios sinn a’ tomhais an’ gaol ach ’s ann le neart anama.”

Elliott held tightly to the women on each side, preparing for the whirlwind ride through the cosmos, and wondering what he would do when he found his son.

Kick the shit out of him? Or hug him like there was no tomorrow?

28

MacKlenna Ranch, CO—Tavis

Tavis drove the rental car up to the gate-code box at MacKlenna Ranch and put the car in Park. “I hope the code works.” He punched in the numbers, but the gate didn’t open. “Shit. Austin changed it.” Tavis drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, reviewing his options. “I can ram through it or shoot it open.”

“If you tear up the car and gate, repairs not covered by insurance are on you,” Kevin said from the back seat. “And you’ll have to guard the broken gate until the security company makes the repairs. Plus, you’ll have to deal with the insurance company to fix the rental.”

“What the hell? That’s what your staff does.”

“I don’t have any staff here,” Kevin said. “And I’ll be damned if I’m going to stand guard over a busted gate because you didn’t come prepared.”

“Prepared? Really, Kevin. That’s the best you’ve got? We were wheels up thirty minutes after we got the green light. I barely had time to get the gear together.”

JL sat in the front passenger seat, thumbing on her cell phone. “Stop it, both of you. It’s late, and we’re all tired.”

“I would have gotten a couple of hours of sleep if you hadn’t spent the entire flight going over every detail of this mission when we already knew what we had to do,” Tavis groused.

“Austin’s my son. And I don’t want him hurt,” she snapped.

He’s going to get hurt, JL. There’s no way around it.

Tavis opened his door. He’d have to jump the gate to get in.

JL grabbed his arm. “Hold your damn horses. I’ll get you the code.” Her thumbs flew over the tiny keyboard, her gaze fixed on the screen. She stopped, then thumbed again, waited, then continued texting. After a minute or two that seemed more like an hour, she said, “Key in these numbers: 040426030.”

“What’s wrong with just five numbers? Who the hell can remember a string of unrelated numbers like 0-4-0-4-2-6-0-3-0?”

“You,” Remy said, drumming on the back of Tavis’s headrest. Ba-dum-ching! “Let’s get this shit show on the road. I’m playing a gig next weekend to fill in for a drummer who has to be at his sister’s wedding.”

“Has to be?” JL asked.

“Yeah, she’s having a baby next month and finally agreed to marry the baby’s father.”

“What the hell was she holding out for?” JL asked.

“Doan know. Doan care. I’m just happy my sticks are getting some action.”

“Drumming is your passion. It has your total focus and energy,” Kevin said. “You get lost when you play. Why are you doing this crap when it’s not what you want to do?”

“Because I’ll never be Art Blakey or Max Roach, but I can fly around the world, stay in five-star hotels, eat the best shrimp étouffée, jambalaya, and gumbo in New Awlins, and date beautiful, sexy women.”

“Been there,” Kevin said.

“At least Remy has more discriminating taste than you did when you were traveling with Elliott full time,” JL said.

“I was just waiting for you to come into my life, sweetheart.”

“Yeah, right. You weren’t any more ready to settle down when we met than I was.” Then JL punched Tavis in the arm. “You just going to sit there and stare at your phone or open the frigging gate?”

“Frigging? What kind of word is that?”

“A nice word. The kids are mimicking me. I’m trying not to cuss.”

“That won’t last long.” Tavis rolled down the window, plugged in the code, and the gate swung open. “Shit! How the hell did you do that? What software program did you use?”

“It’s so simple. I’m surprised you don’t know.”

“Stop giving me shit, JL. Tell me how ya did it.”

Kevin grumble-laughed. “Good luck. We’ve been together for fifteen years, and I still can’t get her to give up information.”

Tavis put the car in gear. “If it’s so fucking simple—”

She held up her phone, showing an open text message from David with the code.

“Son of a bitch.” Tavis drove ahead, then looked in the rearview mirror and watched the gate automatically swing shut. “Why the hell didn’t McBain tell me he had the code?”

“I guess he wanted me to feel empowered.”

“Empowered for what?”

“You’re here to kidnap my kid. A locked gate would slow you down