Page 74 of An Irish Kiss
Rory glanced at her mother.“How are you feeling now?”
“Oh, much relieved, I don’t mind admitting.”
“Me too,” she confessed.
“Shall we call the others?”
“Please, stay here and you can call them with the good news,” Patrick said, shaking their hands.“Thank you again, Maeve.Rory.”
He exited, after reiterating they could stay in his office and make their call.So Rory did, starting a video call with her siblings.
“I just left a meeting for this,” Colin said.
“You’ve got news?”Fiona said, blunt as ever.
“Quick, spill,” Aisling whispered, the picture close to her face.“I’m in a lecture and the lecturer hates it when we’re on our phones in class.”
“We’re safe!”
“Hurrah!”Aisling shouted, before her picture distorted and she mumbled “Oops” and a “I’m sorry, sir, I didn’t mean—” and her call ended.
“I think that means she got busted,” Colin said.“But that’s grand news.”
“Excellent,” Fiona said, before she too exited the call.
“I think that means she’s excited,” Rory said, which earned a chuckle from her brother.
“I’m sure she is.But you know she’s got an image to uphold.”
“Colin,” Mam reproved.
“Come on, Mam, you know that’s true.Anyway, Kara will be so excited.We’ve been praying for this result.”
“How is she?”
He grinned.“She’s really well.In fact, I was hoping she could join us at Christmas.”
“Of course she can,” Mam said immediately.“You know we always love to see her.”
“Well, I hope that’s true.I have a certain question I want to ask her that might mean you see her a lot more.”
Rory gasped.“You’re going to propose?”
“It’ll be over a year by then.And you know how this Fairall legacy works, Mam.”
Mam nodded as a shiver rolled over Rory.She had a strong idea on how this Fairall legacy worked now, too.
But it was one thing to think she’d met her perfect match.It was quite another to have him think the same.Especially as she wondered how he’d receive this news which while an answer to prayer for them, would be the opposite for him.Oh Lord, please be with Aidan.
* * *
“So,as you can see, it appears that itisin fact Griffin land, thanks to the clause in the grant that was not enacted by Thomas Quinn.”Siobhan O’Connor eyed him with compassion.“I know this is not what you wanted to hear.”
Aidan stared at the document, unable to believe that the quest that had brought him halfway around the world was now ended.“So, just to be clear, you’re telling me that Thomas Quinn did not meet his obligations to the Clotworthy family which is why the land was taken back and sold to the Griffins.”
“That about sums it up, yes.”
He heaved out a disgruntled breath.“What on earth would keep a man from doing something so important?”
