Page 25 of Back in the Saddle

“Look, whatever your name is. I don’t need some man playing hero. I just need to get through three more days, and I can go back home.”

He stuck out his hand. “Ciaron Murphy.”

I studied his hand like it might be contaminated. Funny, since I had no qualms about kissing him a minute ago. I shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, Ciaron.” I looked around the city. “I’m sure you have plenty of girls falling at your feet. Go help one of them.”

He set his jaw. “If I can trump you on the crappy family, will you spend the next three days with me?”

We’d gone from him going to the farm with me to spending three whole days together. Nothing like raising the stakes. What was there to lose? A few more minutes before I caught a train back to hell?

“Fine.”

“My father has been in and out of prison since I was two. The only time he is faithful to my mother is when he’s in.”

I stared at him. Was he telling the truth or making up a story to convince me?

“The only time my mother is faithful is when he’s out.”

I saw the pain flicker across his face. He wasn’t lying. I grabbed his hand and held it tight.

“I’m the oldest child of five. We all have different fathers. Each time she went off with a new man, I had another sibling to take care of.”

I didn’t have firsthand experience of what he was talking about, but the weight he bore was heavy on my shoulders as if I was a packhorse.

“How old were you the first time she left?”

The wind picked up. My hair whipped around my face. I ignored it, concentrating on him and the way his supple lips formed the words.

“The first time I was seven. By the time I was fifteen, I took her shifts at the bar so we could eat whenever she disappeared. It wasn’t legal, but the owner made it work.”

My insides were reeling. This man had grown up way faster than he needed to. What sort of mother does that?

“Is she still like that?” I feared the answer.

“She doesn’t disappear for months or weeks at a time now. Something happened. I don’t know what.”

He reached out and pushed my wild hair out of my face. His fingers were gentle as they brushed my cheek. Tingles followed as if my cheek was being kissed by a unicorn.

He’d trumped me on the crap family. I had no choice but to say, “You can spend three days with me.”

He grinned, and his green eyes creased at the corners. “I thought you’d never ask.”

We walked down the street. The buildings beside us were a mixture of old and modern. The contrast didn’t feel out of place; it suited the dynamic vibe of the city. Cars and double-decker busses passed us. The fumes made me miss the clean air of the farm. Their tyres left dry tracks on the otherwise damp road.I knew why it was so green here. Rain was never far away. I hadn’t seen a blue sky since I’d arrived.

And people, there were so many people. Dublin was nothing like home. Most of my days were spent on the farm. The only people we saw were our workers.

“Ugh,I never want to live in a city,” Isabelle said. “Too many people.”

Mum nodded. “They don’t even smile and they’re always in a rush to get to the next place.”

“Where would I ride my bike?” Callum said. “At least here I can just step outside, get on and go for a ride.”

I nodded. “These wide-open spaces are perfect for riding our horses.”

Was Ciaron going to say something? Tell us about something he liked better here? I held my breath, waiting for him to say something.

“You don’t know what you’re missing,” he said.

My heart dropped. I didn’t dare look at the children.

---