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Mum wanders off and tosses a concerned look in my direction. Like I’m about to make a mistake and turn Ewan down.
Alone in the kitchen with him, I say softly, “You’re not calling Kieran because you know he won’t want a wife with an illegitimate child. Am I right?”
Ewan folds his hands. “I honestly don’t know. I do know something three thousand miles away is easy to refuse. I’m fairly certain once he sees…” He fingers the loose strands of hair from the messy bun I have after a long shift at the clinic. “Once he sees how lovely you are…”
The air thickens around us. It’s palpable, and I find it hard to breathe. “Thank you.”
That same tension from five years ago returns. But I bet the number of women he’s probably banged since then must be dulling the memory of the day he scattered his sister’s ashes and then nailed a virgin he found in his hotel bed.
Unless… Could grief have wiped away the memory all together? Surely, he’d recognize my tattoo. That’s another thing I’m not sure his friend would like.
“Can I see a picture of Kieran?”
Ewan takes out his phone, and after a few swipes, shows it to me with a warning. “I can’t seem to get a signal for something more recent from the cloud. He gets photographed a lot at fundraisers. This is an old picture of him and my sister. I kept it in my phone.”
I take it. He’s handsome, for sure, but my heart breaks for Norah, even though I never met her. God, how thin she looked. Kieran’s dark hair, vivid green eyes, and tawny skin compared to Norah’s pale, sickly complexion makes him stand out even more.
“What did she die from?”
“Meningitis.” Ewan shifts in his seat.
“Would Kieran have married her if he had to live with such a sick wife?”
“Aye.” Ewan stands with his plate, but I take it from him. “I’m certain.”
“He sounds like a nice man.” I put the plate in the sink and then grip the sides.
“He’s changed in the last five years. I won’t lie. He had to. Taking over for his father and heading the most powerful Irish clan in Astoria hardened him.”
I nod… “Makes sense.”
“He’ll make sure you have everything you need, hun,” he says quietly.
Hearing him call me hun, a smidge close to what he called me five years ago, feels like a feather stroked down the back of my neck. “But probably not his heart.”
“Arranged marriages rarely turn into love matches. But he needs a wife. He needs sons.” He glances at me, and the startling once-over rushes tingles under my skin. “One thing going for you having Sadie, clearly, you’re fertile.” His wicked grin sends shivers right to my core.
They want a babymaker. I should be insulted, but with those blues on me, I’m feeling anything but.
What is wrong with me? Five years ago, I had no idea who he was. I had permission to want him. Although there’s no blood between us, just the same name, and he’s a sinful number of years older than me. Still, others won’t see it that way.
“More whiskey?” I ask him, grabbing two fresh glasses from the cabinet.
“Please.”
We go back into the living room. After pouring two shots, I sit in Mum’s upholstered armchair under the window, next to a small side table and lamp.
Ewan saunters over and clinks my glass. “To family reunions.” He sits in the chair next to me.
If you only knew…
“To new friends.” I’m not sure how long I should keep the secret about Sadie from him. I just clink his glass back and swig the liquid, letting the warmth slide down my throat.
Putting the empty tumbler on the side table, Ewan leans in. “Here’s my promise to you, Darcy.” His use of my name pebbles my skin with even more goose bumps. “Trust me. Come to New York with me. You and Sadie. If Kieran isn’t the man I think he is,I’lltake care of you. You have to acknowledge living in New York is better for you than here. You will never want for anything if you give me this chance.”
He’s right about living and working in New York City versus Waterford. I’m lucky to have a job here, even if it’s not doing exactly what I want. I want to be a surgical nurse. But those higher-level courses are too costly for my parents.
“Why would you do that for me if I’m no use to your alliance with Kieran?”
