Page 97 of Beneath Pearly Irish Skies
“Hiya,” he answered after a few rings. “Are you finished with the display? We’re wrapping up on this end. If you can, I’d love for you to meet me at my shed. I have something to show you and Ollie. He’s high on the Christmas candy Eoghan had in his pocket as we walked the track.”
It occurred to her it might be better to tell him about Sorcha’s visit in person. “I’ll be there soon.”
“Are you all right? Your voice sounds funny.”
“I’ll tell you when I see you.”
And she did tell him after he sent Ollie to check on Legend in her small pasture beside the shed.
“Well, that’s quite a boon, isn’t it?” He had his arm around her already, but the other one lifted to touch her cheek. “She must have wanted very much to tell you those things.”
Leaning against his chest, she savored the feeling of his arms around her. “I’d just had a fight of sorts with my mother.”
“It’s been brewing,” he said, rubbing her back. “You and Angie both have things that seem to be bursting out of you. Carrick made a similar observation. If it makes you feel any better, he and I have things brewing inside, seeing the way they treat you.”
She felt tears burn her eyes. “I realized I don’tlikethem. Not even my mother. I used to be able to ask her to do anything, and I should probably be more grateful that she was always willing to help. But she never asked me how I felt or sat down and listened to me.”
“She knows how to do busy love,” Kade said softly as the ponies nickered in their stalls. “That’s what I call it. The kind where someone only does things for others. Some people don’t know how to do any other kind of love.”
“You do,” she said, pressing back to look into his face. “You give the kind of love I’ve wanted my whole life. The kind that nurtures and supports and loves and heals. The kind where I never feel wrong or less. For that, I am beyond grateful.”
He leaned down and kissed her, and some of the tightness in her chest eased. When he inched away, she cupped his jaw, needing more.
“Ugh! Are you two slobbering?”
Kade gave her a wink before turning to look at Ollie. Her little boy had a bold grimace on his face, but underneath, she could see the smile in his eyes as he bit into a candy cane. “We are. It’s something people in love do.”
“I know!” He rolled his eyes dramatically, crunching on the candy a bit more before he spoke again. “Aunt Angie and Uncle Carrick do it all the time too when they think I’m not around. Kade, what’s my present?”
She blinked at the rapid change of subject. “Your present? I thought we were doing presents tomorrow morning?”
Kade grinned. “These presents would be a little tough to bring into the house. Come with me.”
Ollie jumped and let out a whoop. “Presents! You said presents.”
They walked through the yard to the pasture where he usually held his healing hospital, the sun’s rays powering through clouds of white and baby blue, the only kind she’d ever seen in Ireland. The last horse he’d been helping had left the previous week after overcoming his depression over a leg injury. There were two horses she didn’t recognize, both close to the fence line. One was a black pony about four feet high with white socks. The other was a full-size horse in the most beautiful shade of russet.
Kade walked to the gate and turned to face them as the big horse nuzzled his back. “Merry Christmas, you two. I thought it was time you had your own horses.”
Megan’s mouth dropped.
“He’s mine?” Ollie asked after an audible gasp.
“He sure is,” Kade said, stroking the mane of the pony, who gave a sweet whinny. “His name is Socks.”
“Oh, Kade!” Ollie raced toward him and wrapped his arms around the man. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”
Tears filled Megan’s eyes, and this time she let them spill, her throat thick for a different reason. “Kade, it’s the most beautiful present I’ve ever been given.”
His brown eyes were shining. “I’m glad she pleases you. Her name is Breezy. Another sign she’s right for you. I decided a horse might suit you best as I feel you have a rising urge to ride like the wind.”
Every time they rode on the beach, she wanted to urge her mount into a gallop and race the current in the sea. “You know me.”
“I do at that,” he said, making her heart burst with joy.
She and the rest of her party got through Christmas Eve dinner. The turkey Bets had basted was the best she’d ever tasted, which helped. Kade said he and Carrick had something planned for the evening, so the two couples—and, of course, Ollie—excused themselves shortly after dinner, inviting Liam to come with them.
Megan felt a little bad about leaving Bets alone with her parents, but that guilt ended when Liam rubbed her arm and confessed that his mother had called in the troops. Those troops being the Lucky Charms. They were arriving with holiday-themed drinks and so much Bon Jovi that Dan—and perhaps Patty—would inevitably head to bed early.
