Page 45 of Irish Betrayal

Blair: I miss you too.

That had been it, but it was enough to give him a modicum of hope that she wouldn’t kick him out on his ass.

Daniel glanced at his uncle Ulf who sat silently, which was his way. He would involve himself in conversation only if the subject pleased him, and it rarely did.

After living with his family’s history his whole life, he still paused at the sight of a man so similar to himself, one who had been unknown to all of them until a year ago. Even though Ulf had a different father than his younger brothers, the white hair was a dead giveaway of relation. The grandmother Daniel had never met and was thankful he hadn’t, after hearing some of the stories from his dad and uncle Pat, undoubtedly left her mark on the men in their family.

Ulf caught Daniel staring and raised his brows in question. Daniel shook his head and continued his vigil.

The Stanton house glowed warmly around them, all cedar beams, soaring glass walls, and soft amber lighting reflecting across polished wood floors. Outside, Oklahoma stretched dark and endless beneath the evening sky, the property surrounding the house lit only by scattered lanterns and the distant security lights.

Ordinarily, Daniel would have enjoyed seeing Katy and William. He hadn’t seen them since his grandpa Hugh’s funeral, and there’d been little conversation.

Tonight, he felt like his skin didn’t fit properly. Nothing felt right without Blair at his side, and he was having a hard time pretending otherwise.

Katy emerged from the kitchen carrying another dish before fixing him with a pointed look. “Daniel, sweetheart, you don’t want Blair’s first look at you in months to be that hangdog expression. She’ll hightail it back to Stillwater in a minute.”

Daniel winced. Katy was right, not about Blair running, though she’d done that once before, he reminded himself. She was right about their first meeting after months separated. He needed to exude confidence. “I was under the impression this was dinner, not a performance,” he managed to tease.

“It’s both,” Rowan said, giving her nephew a small smile.

Daniel narrowed his eyes on his aunt. “You’re enjoying this far too much.”

“Of course, I am.” Rowan sipped her wine with zero remorse. “You’ve been stomping around Dublin like a heartbroken Victorian widower for three months. A little emotional ambush builds character. Plus, your mother and Aunt River won’t enjoy their vacation until you’re sorted.”

“I can’t help but think that we’re all wrong and nothing nefarious is afoot. Blair might have simply not wanted the burden of a relationship with me, or maybe she chose Oklahoma to study for no other reason than to get away from Uncle Ulf.”

“I hope you’re right, Danny,” Ulf began, emphasizing the nickname Daniel hated, “and I could understand running from your less-than-stellar attitude, but me? Wales? No. My man’s on looking into that Peter Samson. Something’s there.”

Daniel bristled at the name, hating the man whom Blair’s friends claimed was like a best friend mentor.

Katy swung around from the pillows she was fluffing. “What about Dr. Samson?”

“Katy,” Katy’s husband William warned.

Ulf and Daniel were instantly on alert. “Have you met him?” Daniel asked.

“He’s been on your property?” Ulf questioned.

“Yes, and yes,” Katy answered, giving her husband a wide-eyed shrug. “And if there’s a bigger prick in the world, a person would be hard-pressed to find them.”

Daniel felt like he’d stuck a finger in an electrical outlet. He glanced toward Ulf and Rowan, who subtly shook their heads no. No one had told the Stantons that they were investigating the teacher.

“When did you meet him?” Daniel asked.

“He showed up one morning claiming that Blair had invited him to see her progress. She tried to hide it, but I don’t think she likes him very much, and I can understand why. He was a pompous prick. I wanted to stay, but he insisted he would be asking her questions for her thesis and couldn’t have the interruption.”

“We considered asking Dr. Bartel, the professor at OSU that helped set up the project with Blair and is her main instructor,” William explained, “whether or not she had truly authorized the guy to come here. He was rude to Katy, and my wife could tell that Blair was embarrassed. In the end we decided not to, thinking Blair wouldn’t thank us for making a fuss just because the guy’s an asshole.”

“Ulf,” Rowan started, focusing on his uncle, “my sisters mentioned to me before they left that you are having the man investigated. Has anything come of it yet?”

“No, but it’s early days. I called off the other man I had watching Samson’s flat when Daniel found out he’d followed Blair.” He looked at Rowan for a beat longer. “He’s guilty of something, and it cost me the one person who would make a real difference for Wales’ conservation. Eventually, I’ll have her whether it’s in the field or on the board of trustees for INCS.”

“I’m glad you’re looking into the man. I feel foolish that I encouraged Katy to back down from calling the university.” William shook his head in irritation while pouring himself another splash of American bourbon.

“Even though I disliked the guy, I hope there is nothing too negative found about the man, for Blair’s sake. We shouldn’t be ready to hang him for his rotten personality alone.”

“True,” Rowan agreed. “Perhaps we should concentrate on the evening, forget about the teacher, and hope Blair doesn’t strangle us all for not telling her we were coming.”