Sparks in Scotland Read Online Free

This is fun, and I’m glad I came.”
    I wanted to close my eyes and let the rich brogue of his voice wash over me. There was nothing quite like the sound of a Scottish guy talking. I almost laughed at myself for how ridiculous and moony-eyed I probably looked right now. I tilted my chin up and eyed him. “I haven’t done a lot of tourist things in Cleveland, either,” I admitted. “Somehow I just run out of time.”
    â€œCleveland. Yer in Ohio, right?”
    I nodded. “Lived there my whole life.”
    We headed to the terrace in front of St. Margaret’s Chapel and turned to face the panoramic view of Edinburgh. I rested my hand on my chest and just stared in awe. Incredible. The hills rolled on as far as the eye could see, and Edinburgh’s old buildings were scattered everywhere.
    â€œThere’s nothing in Cleveland that compares to this,” I proclaimed as I surveyed the city.
    â€œAye,” he said, and I heard the pride in his tone. “She’s a beautiful city.” He looked down at me, and a breeze ruffled the tips of his hair. His eyes glowed a brilliant pale blue, and his face held a hint of a smile.
    Oh wow. My heart almost stopped in my chest. There was something about Graham even beyond his attractiveness that made a girl want to fall into his eyes. He was intense, magnetic. My stomach squeezed in warning, and I swallowed and gave him a shaky smile in response.
    Maybe spending the day with Graham wasn’t going to be so bad after all.

ChapterThree
    A fter the four of us peered around St. Margaret’s Chapel, taking in the stunning stained-glass window, we popped back out and headed toward the Royal Palace. The rooms in here were quiet, humming with the soft whispers of visitors. Wood panels, thick stones, ornate paintings—the place was stunning. I couldn’t get over how old everything was. What would it have been like to live in this palace?
    â€œTake a look over there,” Graham whispered to me with a nod of his head to my right.
    I turned and looked . . . and saw the Crown Jewels. With a blink, I asked, “Is that really . . .”
    He grinned, and his teeth flashed in the light. “Aye. The real deal.”
    The bejeweled crown was set on blue velvet, with a sword and a scepter presented around it. My fingers itched to pop it on my head, just to see what it felt like. With all the gold and jewels on it, it was probably heavy. But I didn’t want to get kicked out of Scotland on my first full day.
    â€œWhatcha smilin’ about?” he asked, eyes twinkling with curiosity.
    â€œOh. Um, I was just thinking what it would be like to be royalty. We don’t have anything like that in the States.” Unless you counted movie stars or the president, I supposed. But there was something unique about a monarchy.
    â€œSo tell me about America.” He slipped into an easy pace beside me, and his cologne wafted to my nostrils. His scent was light and fresh, drawing me closer.
    My pulse picked up again, and I struggled to keep my voice even and not give away my attraction to him. “Um, what do you want to know?”
    â€œYa go to . . . high school—that’s what it’s called in America, right? What is that like?”
    We walked into another room and eyed the paintings on the walls. A bunch of serious, severe-looking men and women frowned at us from their luxurious clothing and tapestries captured on the canvases.
    â€œI just finished my sophomore year—I’ll start eleventh grade in the fall.” I tilted my head and studied the jewel-draped woman in front of me as I thought about how to describe American high school. “Basically, it’s chaos,” I said with a light laugh. “We haveclasses on many subjects, on many different levels, depending on where you placed—regular, honors, advanced. I don’t have a lot of classes with my friends, but I can choose which kind of math