Page 46 of Beside Golden Irish Fields
“He does,” Jamie said, leaning in close as well. “Has Sorcha visited you again?”
“Sorcha is back?” Kade grabbed his shoulder. “How is it I’m just hearing this now?”
“Because it’s none of your damn business,” Carrick said, trying to rise from the squeaky chair.
Kade pushed him back down, an unusual move for such a gentle man. “You one of my oldest friends, and it’s not my business? What did she say?”
Jamie opened his mouth to speak, and Carrick spoke his name in warning.
“There’s no hiding it.” Jamie knocked back his drink. “You know why she’s back, Kade. Same reason she came before.”
Kade turned his chair to face him full on. “She likes the Yank for you then?”
Jamie—the traitor—nodded.
“I’d be seeing it,” Kade said, rocking a little in place as he mulled it over. “Both a little lost. Both a little stubborn. Both a little craic.”
“I’m going to head home unless you shut your mouth,” Carrick growled.
“You desperately need a pony ride,” Kade said, “but you need something else more.”
“Don’t we all,” Jamie said with a hearty sigh.
“Not onlythat,” Kade said with a pointed look. “Something to fill your heart and soul again, man.”
“I don’t need anything to fill my heart and soul,” Carrick said with an edge. “Oh, why do I bother arguing with you? When you have that puppy face, there’s no talking to you, Kade. You’d heal the whole world if you could.”
“One pony ride at a time,” Kade said, loosening his grip from Carrick’s shoulder. “And I’ll always put in something extra for friends.”
Damn. That was why Kade was Kade, and they all loved him. “Look, me and the Yank have already talked this through. She doesn’t want me any more than I want her. She’s here to paint and find herself again—whatever that means. I told her how I want my life. We’re not compatible. Simple as that.”
The front door slammed open suddenly, smacking the wall. A couple of people cried out in fright. One said, “Jesus,” and another shouted, “The fairies must be out stirring up trouble.”
Carrick knew who the real culprit was.
“Do you see her?” Jamie asked Kade.
His friend, who also could see and hear ghosts, shook his head. “No, but I’ll have her visit me. Best to get on the same page. I know you have your ambition, Carrick, but it won’t keep you warm at night.”
“Unless you’re thinking about taking up with one of your ewes,” Jamie said with an audible snort. “There’s stories about men and their sheep. Don’t be a cliché.”
He elbowed his brother and then forced a smile as their mothers came over to the table with Bets.
“And what did you boys think of your fathers parading around naked as jaybirds at my first painting class today?” Bets asked, twirling her green boa.
“I plead the fifth, as you Americans say,” Jamie answered first.
“Where did you hear that saying from?” she asked.
“An American TV crime show,” Jamie answered. “Don’t make us answer, Bets. It’s best when we’re not in the middle between our mothers and fathers.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Declan said, knocking back his whiskey.
Kade set his hands on the table. “I think the men had something they needed to express, and I for one admire them for it.”
Nicola shot him a look. “Son, usually I love your compassion, but while your father and I have reached a truce, I have to wonder what showing off their naked bodies like eejits helped them express.”
Brady shrugged. “Maybe they were looking to spice things up.”
