Page 184 of The Texas Sterling Collection
“You’re the two guys fromThe Advocate,” Declan’s voice raised slightly, feigning surprise. “We were saying you looked like them, and Ailbe thought I was crazy.” He stopped slapping Ailbe’s back as Ailbe reached for his drink, taking a long draw to wash down the chicken.
“Yes, that’s us,” Wyl said. “I’m surprised you saw that article. IsThe Advocatedistributed over here?”
“Actually, no. We have a subscription. It comes in the mail,” Declan said.
“I’m Ailbe MacGowan,” Ailbe chimed in with a hoarse voice, wiping his face with his napkin, red-faced from the choking incident. “And this is my partner, Declan Knowlan.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you both,” Rod struggled to keep his face from showing surprise at meeting the two men they learned about from General Steinburg. “Have you been together long?”
“About six years,” Ailbe said. “And we know you two are recently married. The article inThe Advocateincluded interesting details about your relationship. What brings you to Ireland?”
“Honeymoon, actually,” Wyl said. “When I asked Rod to marry me, I wasn’t sure he would accept.”
“Like I would turn him down.” Rod glanced at Wyl while keeping Ailbe and Declan in the corner of his eye.
“Anyway,” Wyl continued, “I didn’t plan beyond the marriage proposal. We had a quiet wedding a couple of months later. We postponed the honeymoon because Rod couldn’t take time away from his college position. We had a busy summer and decided to take a break this fall. Here we are.”
“I’ve traveled to Ireland several times. He has never been.” Rod nodded toward Wyl. “When the opportunity arose to do lectures, we extended our stay to enjoy the Emerald Isle. We’re here for a few weeks.”
“Which hotel are you in?” Declan asked.
“We rented a flat. We like to cook our own meals, and an apartment is roomier,” Wyl said.
“You two do seem perfect together. Wait…” Declan jumped to his feet and pointed to Rod. “You’re Dr. Rod Bonner. The same Dr. Bonner who is presenting a program on Mozart operas for one of our evening lecture series events. I didn’t make the connection until now.”
“That’s right. This coming Tuesday, I believe. I’m looking forward to it.” Rod unwrapped his utensils.
Declan recovered and took his seat. “My apologies for the outburst, Dr. Bonner. It was rude of me to point.”
“No worries, and please call me Rod.”
“Aye, then please address us by given names as well.” Declan feigned a smile. “Ailbe here is quite the opera buff. He asked me to reserve tickets for your presentation. I thought I had a conflict, but we’ll both be there.”
“I took Rod’s class at the college.” Wyl unwrapped his own silverware. “He knows his stuff.”
“I knew enough to snag you,” Rod chuckled and winked at Wyl.
“Maybe Iletyou snag me,” Wyl grinned at Rod.
“You two are having fun with each other, aren’t you?” Declan said. “See, Ailbe, couples can have fun.”
“Declan is always telling me to loosen up,” Ailbe grumbled. “I tend to be a workaholic sometimes. He reminds me that life doesn’t last forever, so I must enjoy it.”
“Speaking of enjoying things,” Declan chimed in. “The races start in thirty minutes. We need to pick our nags and place our bets.” He tossed his napkin onto his empty plate and stood to take his tray to the drop-off point. “Excuse me while I stow my tray.”
Ailbe joined him with his own tray. “Good job, Declan,” he whispered as they walked away. “They think we’re a happy gay couple.”
“I can’t believe we ran into them here,” Declan said. “Let’s see if we can get them to meet us out one evening.”
“Good idea.”
They put their trays in the return window and returned to the table.
“You lads have your racing programs?” Declan asked.
“No. Where do we pick those up?” Rod asked.
“I’ll fetch a couple. I need to pick up betting forms anyway.” Declan walked toward the betting counter at the end of the room.
