Highland Fling became the best-selling Midnight Moon ever. The critics panned it as romantic claptrap, of course, but the readers loved it so much that a film was made with a gorgeously rough American actor who could actually manage quite a good Scots accent. Apparently, the top girls of Hollywood clawed each other to death for the part of Evie. The enormous cheque for the film rights arrived with Stevie exactly eighteen months after Adam MacLean first kissed her.
Adam discovered the increasing turn-on of women with soft curves, freckly noses and absolutely no ability whatsoever to control flour. Stevie was to wonder how she had ever lived without large crushing Highland thighs, red stubble and thunderous, unintelligible endearments.
Adam bought Humbleby Cottage for himself and his bride, his wee adopted laddie and their auburn-haired newborn daughter, Rìona, and they all still live happily there today with a huge sloppy dog, a mad ginger kitten and an enormous black rabbit called McBatman.
Life, for the MacLean clan, is braw.
Acknowledgements
A very sweet part about writing a book is being able to say a very public thank you to a swarm of wonderful people.
To the totally fabulous guys at the agency – Darley Anderson, Julia Churchill, Emma White, Ella Andrews, Madeleine Buston and Zoe King. And at Hive HQ – Simon and Schuster – to Queen Suzanne Baboneau, Libby Vernon, Nigel Stoneman, Joe Pickering, Amanda Shipp, Caroline Turner, and the lovely Grainne Reidy who always make me feel so welcome when I fly down there and, of course, to my gallant chaperone Paul Evans. And to the ultimate Worker, Joan Deitch, for combing out all the crappy bits from my manuscript.
To the nectar in my life – my friends: Alec Sillifant for allowing me to refer to his smashing children's story ‘The Useless Troll' (published by Meadowside Children's Books) and the best male mate in the world Paul Sear. To Ged and Kaely Backland, Cath Marklew, Maggie Birkin, Sue Welfare, Debra Mitchell, Sue Mahomet, Rachel Hobson, Tracy Harwood, Judy Sedgewick, the enviably artistic Chris Sedgewick, the gorgeous and superbly talented Lucie Whitehouse and my S.U.N. sisters – Karen Baker, Helen Clapham and Pam Oliver – all friends in the greatest sense of the word.
To Sara Atkinson at haworthcatrescue.org who is an absolute honey!
To the decidedly ‘uncrusty' Dr Peter O'Dwyer and my solicitor David Gordon and the Attey gang – Bev Stacey and Mary Smith who have got me through a B of a year with kindness, support, expert expertise and very strong coffee.
To the smashing Steph Johnson and Steph Daley at the Barnsley Chronicle, the delightful Jo Davison at the Sheffield Star and the magnificent Jayne Dowle at the Yorkshire Post for all the nice things they've said about my book, my hair and my house!
To our man in the Highlands – Iain MacLennan at www.Scottishquality.com for his Mcexcellent Gaelic Translation services.
To Miss Kate Taylor at Barnsley Sixth Form College who made me see Jane Austen as she was meant to be seen and turned English into my favourite subject.
To my beautiful ‘pupae' – Terence and George for not telling me to ‘buzz aff' when I ask them if I've told them recently that I'm a novelist.
To my very special parents Jenny and Terry Hubbard for babysitting, making me huge Sunday dinners then listening to me drone on about my weight.
And last but by no means least – to the inspirational clan of Glasgow both past and present – all those wonderful warm, big-hearted, generous, funny, crazy aunts, uncles, cousins and friends who coloured my childhood days with bright tartan and flavoured my memories with square sausage, steak pie and Jocks' Loaf.
Tapadh leibh-you're the Bee's Knees, every single one of you.