Page 17 of After Indigo Irish Nights
Bets didn’t get emotional too often, but her throat thickened as she cheered with the others. This was another reason she loved these people.
“All our resident artists,” Bets called, gesturing to them. “Stand up!”
They all rose, Megan blushing, Ellie wiping tears, and Angie softly smiling, her arm resting on Carrick’s shoulder. Kathleen, though, grinned like the Boston Red Sox had just won the pennant.
When she’d first thought of starting an arts center in the middle of the countryside in County Mayo, Bets had hoped for this kind of influx of new people and ideas and art, knowing the teaching of it would be a gift to the area as much as the art created.
Not even a year later, the arts center exceeded her every imagining. That was also something she wanted to talk to Linc about when he returned. What more could they do here in Caisleán? As far as she was concerned, after Ellie’s gift, the sky was the limit. Still, she didn’t fool herself into thinking her nemesis, Mary Kincaid, had given up her one-woman mission to destroy the center. Her kind didn’t like to admit defeat.
“It’s quite a moment, isn’t it?”
She turned her head as Liam put his arm around her. Her son had encouraged her through it all. “Yes, it sure is. I’ve never been happier.”
He kissed her cheek. “If you ever wonder if the Universe is working, you have only to look at your own journey. First, you had the vision of opening an arts center, and then Angie lost her job in Baltimore when the funding was cut. She brought Megan along to help her with her grief over losing her husband. And then Ellie came along and up and gave the center a million euros. Today we have Kathleen, the newest resident, announcing a grand pirate ship to be built for all to behold. Not bad, Mum.”
Of course, all three women had met their beloveds and would be staying, which suggested they’d been meant to be here in some cosmic way. Bets wondered what might be in store for Kathleen. Or if Sorcha would be involved.
Playfully tugging on the gold earring everyone joked made him look like he himself was a pirate, she smiled. “Thanks for the reminder and for helping yourself. You’ve been there from the beginning, cleaning out the first shed we used.”
“I still shudder when I think of the mess of cobwebs,” he replied with a chuckle. His mouth tipped up a little more. “I have a feeling this party is going to go well into the night. I hope you’re up for it.”
She cocked her hip. “When the time’s right, the Lucky Charms will show you just how much.”
“I love seeing you happy, Mum. Come on. I’ll buy you one of Brady’s new cocktails.”
He ordered the drink for her, and Bets grabbed his hand, awash in that messy feeling of loving her son to distraction. Liam wasn’t just her son, though. He was also her friend and teacher, and she was more than grateful for that too.
She sipped her cosmopolitan after Brady finally set it in front of her, looking a little harried. There was a crush at the bar, and Bets thought he could use a second bartender in such a moment—she recognized the rhythm from her own bartending days over thirty years ago—but Brady would figure out his own way of doing things.
They all were.
Declan was to box again, and sure enough, he was surrounded by Donal and the other men. She was sure they were talking up a storm. After the ups and downs with both the center and her new relationship with Donal, she would be glad for some easy sailing. Like the vision of Kathleen’s soaring pirate ship.
When Bets smelled oranges, she lifted her glass and made a silent toast to Sorcha, the namesake for the arts center.
Someone was looking out for them, after all.
They were in good hands.
CHAPTERFOUR
Ellie was a doll! When Kathleen stumbled into the cottage’s tiny kitchen the next morning in desperate need of caffeine, she discovered her bestie had stocked the cupboard with her favorite coffee.
Kathleen didn’t get choked up too often but seeing that touch of home grabbed her by the throat as much as the handwritten note taped over the orange Dunkin’ Donuts bag.
While it won’t be the same, this original blend should do the trick. BTW, I’m glad you’re here.
Helping her shake off that crazy rush of emotions was another note on a clear glass pot with some kind of plunger.
Boil water. Dump grounds. Two inches. Pour water to half. Wait two minutes. Press plunger down and pour. Have fun with your first French press!
She planned to. God, she needed coffee. She had a good head for whiskey and beer, thank God, or she might be sporting a headache. The rippah had run until three in the morning. Most of the villagers had gone home by then, but Ellie and Brady and most of their friends, plus Bets and Donal and some of theirs, had stayed until the end. So had Eoghan and Fergus, who’d slapped their wrinkled cheeks repeatedly to stay awake and waved off suggestions they seek their beds.
Declan had left around midnight with many of the others, citing boxing training. Her skin tightened, thinking about him. She’d dreamed about him. They’d been walking on a wild swath of beach. Upon awakening, she’d had the feeling he was still holding her hand.
She shivered again.
That wasn’t mere lust. That was romance.
