The irish blessing, p.14
The Irish Blessing, page 14
Shane blinked several times as he stood there, staring at me. Then his eyes grew wide, and he sank to his knees next to me in the grass. “This is the place in your dream, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“We can leave if you need us to.”
“No. We need to stay. I think we’re supposed to be here.”
Shane stood and pulled me to my feet. “You’re cold, and your body is shaking. Come here.” He gathered me in his arms, holding me close. “We should leave. You don’t look well.”
“No, please. I want to stay. I’m just overwhelmed and confused, and I’m not sure what else.” I buried my face in his neck, feeling comforted by the rise and fall of his chest underneath my cheek.
“All right. We’ll stay, but only if you’re comfortable with it.”
“I just need a minute to wrap my mind around it all.”
Shane pushed a strand of hair from my face and tucked it behind my ear as he continued to hold me. After a few minutes, he finally spoke. “Are you feeling good enough to go inside?”
“Yes.” I pulled away from him, my hands still on his chest. “When I saw the rose garden surrounded by the hedges, it was such a mental and emotional overload I couldn’t think or breathe. It was a lot to take in.”
“I understand, and as crazy as this seems to me, I agree with you and Mel when you said we were each other’s destiny. Honestly, I don’t know any other way to label it. And at this point, we should just accept everything that is happening to us. I mean, really. What else can we do? I can’t explain it, and I don’t think you can either. So for now, let’s get our luggage and go inside.” Shane put his arm around my shoulder and walked me back to the parking lot.
“Good afternoon. May I take your luggage?” A porter greeted us when we reached the car. He took our luggage from Shane and led us into the lobby, stopping at the reception desk.
“Hello. I have a reservation. It’s under Shane Moore.”
The slender young man behind the desk checked his computer. “Ah, yes, Mr. Moore. I see you’ve reserved a suite. I’ll need you to fill out this card for me, and then I’ll need to see a credit card we can put on file in case you decide to charge anything to your room.”
“Here you go.” Shane took a credit card from his wallet and handed it to the reservation clerk. Then he proceeded to fill out the paperwork. “Liz, did you want to book any of their activities for tomorrow morning? They have a list here of everything they offer.”
“Do they have horseback riding?” I walked across the lobby to look at a picture on the wall that caught my attention.
“They do, but we should skip that one. I was hoping you wouldn’t mind if I took you to meet my aunt and uncle tomorrow in Kilcullen. They own a stud farm, and I can take you horseback riding there.”
I swiveled in place to face Shane, momentarily stunned by his plan. “You want me to meet your family? Are you sure you’re ready to introduce me to them?”
“Positive. My aunt and uncle are wonderful people. They’ll love you. Believe me. You have nothing to worry about.”
“I didn’t expect to be meeting your family so soon, but sure, we can go see them.”
“Sorry about that.” Shane turned his attention back to the reservation clerk.
“No problem, sir.” The clerk handed Shane his credit card and our room keys and picked up the paperwork Shane had filled out.
I spun around to look at the picture. It was an old black-and-white photographic print of the castle with a couple posing by the entrance. The image looked to be from the early 1900s, and I assumed the people were the owners or members of the family. There was suddenly whispering behind me, the voices echoing in the hall. I glanced over my shoulder, catching Shane nod his head and the clerk grin at him, the two of them behaving as if they were up to something. Curious, I studied the two of them, hoping Shane would share with me later what was going on.
The porter led us to our suite on the third floor. “Here’s your room, sir. May I?” He took the room key from Shane and opened our door for us.
I stepped inside and was more than pleased with the suite. The sitting area had several chairs, a fireplace with a carved mantel out of dark wood, and a large television installed on the wall above it. A desk with a coffee and tea station was against the wall. I continued down a hallway, discovering the bedroom to my left and the bathroom straight ahead. I walked into the bathroom, finding it oddly round in shape, with a tiled shower built inside a deep recess and an old-style footed bathtub to my right. Several tall, narrow windows framed the room.
“I like that bathtub. You think we’ll both fit?” Shane came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist.
“I’m not sure, but I’m more than happy to give it a try.” I turned in his arms and kissed him, my fingers sliding up his chest. “I love the way you feel and smell.” I laughed. “It must be the Irishman in you.” I squealed a moment later when Shane picked me up in his arms. “What are you doing?”
“This Irishman can’t get enough of you.” Shane carried me into the bedroom and deposited me on the bed. He quickly removed his clothes while I followed his lead and removed mine. Now naked, Shane lay down beside me. He tenderly brushed my cheek with his thumb, then he leaned down and kissed me, his hands sliding across my skin. “I want you. Every time I’m near you, I want you.” He started to slide his body on top of mine and then stopped. “Damn. I need a condom. I’ll be back.”
“I’ll talk to my doctor about getting on birth control when I go home. Otherwise, we’ll have to buy stock in Trojan. We’ll be using enough of them.”
“Birth control would be nice.” Shane returned to the bed, rolling onto his side. “I don’t think either of us is ready for a mini-Shane or a mini-Liz.” He let out a chuckle. “Although a dozen kids would be fun.”
“You want children?”
“Well, not now. But it would be nice to have some eventually.”
“You’re serious.” I stared at him. Alex and I had tried for nine years to have children. After our first couple of years with no pregnancy, we’d assumed I had a medical problem. A round of testing had proven otherwise. It turned out Alex had a low sperm count. Finally resigning myself to marriage without children, I could never get past the feeling I was missing something. I’d never shared my despair with Alex. I hadn’t wanted him to think I blamed him. Shane’s comment made me hopeful, besides the fact it also meant he was into our budding relationship for the long haul. Shane, children, a long-term commitment instead of a few fleeting moments, was everything I wanted.
“Don’t you want kids someday?” Shane studied me as if trying to read my thoughts.
“I do, but not a dozen. I think it’s more like three or four.” I kissed his chest and then climbed on top of him, leaning down to whisper in his ear. “You are my everything, Mr. Moore.” I kissed his lips, lightly nibbling on them.
“You are mine, mo ghra. I’ve never known what it was like to truly love someone and have them love me in return until you came along. You are everything I could have hoped for and more.” Shane placed a supporting hand on my back and then flipped us over, so I was on the bottom. He kissed me, his hands sensually exploring my flesh.
I savored his touch as he caressed me. My muscles were taut, and my senses were at their peak when he stopped his foreplay and eased inside me. I craved him, pushing my body forward as he filled me, our passion exploding as our bodies merged as one. I tilted my hips, causing his length to touch me at just the right spot, the tightness inside me growing. The wave of pleasure built higher and higher as he made love to me. Then it crashed. I cried out, fingers of ecstasy spreading deliciously through me.
Shane frantically thrust several more times, and then his body tensed as he groaned above me. He relaxed, lying still on top of me, his voice at my ear. “You feel so good. I swear, I can’t get enough of you.”
Fulfilled and content, I leaned my head back as his lips softly kissed my neck and shoulder. Yes, Shane was my Irish blessing.
It wasn’t long before Shane began to stir. “We should get up and get something to eat down at the clubhouse. I made a dinner reservation for seven o’clock, so we have several hours to go before then.”
“Can’t we have dinner earlier, say around five o’clock? We can snack if we get hungry after that.”
“No. I don’t want to have dinner early.”
“But I’m not that hungry right now. I’d rather wait and have an early dinner. I doubt the hotel will care if we change the reservation.”
“I’ll care. I want to get something to eat now and leave the dinner reservation as it is. We can walk down to the clubhouse, grab something to eat, and explore the grounds. Oh, I forgot to ask you. Do you have a dress you can wear to dinner?”
“Yes, I have a dress with me. I always pack one just in case.” I grudgingly got up, irritated at his reluctance to change the reservation. I didn’t understand why it was so important, especially since I wasn’t that hungry. After freshening up and changing into my jeans and a light pullover sweater, I let Shane know I was ready to go.
We left the castle and walked down to the clubhouse, following the same path we took to get here. By the time we reached the building, my irritation had subsided. The castle was so beautiful and Shane’s treat so extraordinarily special, I didn’t want to taint it with a bad mood.
The hours seemed to fly by as we had lunch, walked around the grounds, and then explored the castle. Nearing dinnertime, we went back to our room to clean up.
Finished dressing for dinner, I surveyed my image in the full-length mirror in the bedroom. I wanted to look nice for Shane and our special evening together.
“You look gorgeous.” Shane came up behind me and slipped his arms around my waist as he kissed my neck. “I like your purple dress.”
“Thank you.” I swung around, my gaze running the length of him. Shane wore navy slacks, a white dress shirt with a burgundy-colored tie, and a navy two-button blazer. “You look quite handsome. Why don’t we delay dinner for a few minutes?” I ran my hands up his chest and kissed him.
Shane took hold of my hands and took a step backward. “I appreciate the thought, but it will have to wait. I don’t want to be late for dinner. If you have a shawl or something you can wear over your dress, you should bring it.”
“You’re up to something, aren’t you? I heard you whispering to the reservation clerk when we checked into the hotel earlier.”
“Yes, and it’s a surprise, so you’ll have to wait and see. If you’re ready, we should go downstairs since it’s almost seven o’clock.”
“Is that why you wouldn’t change our reservation? You have a surprise planned?”
“Yes, and that’s all I’m going to say.”
“Fine,” I said, excited at the prospect of what might be next, but frustrated he wouldn’t tell me. “Let me grab a wrap out of my luggage, and then I’ll be ready.” I took a black wrap from my suitcase and slipped it over my shoulders.
“Perfect. You look beautiful.”
Shane escorted me downstairs. A uniformed hotel employee was waiting for us when we stepped off the elevator. The man smiled when he saw us.
“Good evening. You must be Mr. Moore and Ms. Whalen?”
“Yes, we are.” Shane didn’t appear the least bit surprised at having an employee waiting for us.
“Wonderful. My name is Reginald. Please follow me, and I’ll escort you to your table.”
Shane took my arm as we followed behind Reginald. Rather than lead us to a dining room, he took us to the hotel bar. He didn’t stop, crossing the room and heading toward the side door leading to the garden.
“Where is he taking us?” I whispered.
“I thought you might like a private candlelit dinner out in the rose garden. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Oh, I don’t mind at all.”
We exited the bar, stepping out onto a terrace. Reginald led us down a stone staircase toward the rose garden. A small tent was visible in the distance, with several torches illuminating the space and two men standing nearby to take care of us. I gasped when we got close. A candlelit table was underneath the tent with a champagne bucket on a stand next to it. One of the men wore a tuxedo, a violin in his hands. The other man wore a uniform and stood beside the champagne bucket with a towel draped over his arm.
“Please have a seat.” Reginald assisted me with my chair. “Archie will be your waiter this evening.” He motioned toward the man in the uniform. “I will leave you in his capable hands. Enjoy your dinner.” Reginald nodded his head at us and then walked away.
“Good evening. Here are your menus.” Archie handed one to each of us. “May I start you off with a glass of champagne?”
“That would be wonderful, thank you.” Shane reached across the table and took my hand in his. “Do you like it?”
“Yes, and I’m borderline speechless. I can’t believe you did all this for me.”
“There’s more to come.”
I wanted to melt in Shane’s arms with the way he looked at me from across the table.
Archie popped the cork on the champagne bottle and filled our glasses. He put the bottle back in the bucket and took a step backward. “May I suggest the smoked salmon tartare, the braised beef short ribs, or the cannon of lamb this evening?”
“Oh, I would love the smoked salmon tartare.” I smiled up at Archie, my mouth already watering.
“Excellent choice.” Archie directed his attention to Shane. “Sir. What may I get for you this evening?”
“I believe I’ll try the cannon of lamb.” Shane reached for my menu, stacking it on top of his, and handed them to Archie.
“Very good. Thank you, sir.” Archie hurried off toward the castle.
The man in the tuxedo started playing his violin. The music was romantic and relaxing.
“May I have this dance?” Shane stood and extended his hand toward me.
“Yes, you may.” I stood and took his hand, unable to put into words how I felt. No one had ever done anything this special for me before, not even Alex. I leaned my head on Shane’s shoulder as we danced. The music, his cologne, and dinner under the stars were all so intoxicating.
Shane kissed my cheek, his mouth moving to my ear. “You are a woman like no other, and I’ve fallen in love with you. I want us to have children and grow old together.” He pulled away from me and knelt on one knee.
“Oh my God,” I whispered as I clapped my hand over my mouth.
“Liz, will you allow me to be your husband?” Shane pulled a small red box out of his pocket and opened it, displaying a beautiful diamond ring.
I knelt in front of him, tears running down my cheeks. “Yes,” I sobbed, too overcome for more words.
Shane put his knee down and pulled me against him, his lips tender as he kissed me. Then he pulled away and sat back on his heels. “Let’s put this ring on your finger and make it official.” He took the ring from the box and slipped it on my finger when I held out my hand.
I stared at the ring. It was gorgeous. It was white gold with a large diamond in the middle and a smaller diamond on each side. The sides of the ring contained filigree scrollwork with a trinity knot in the center. The ring had a dainty look to it. I looked at Shane, my emotions a complete mess. “When did you decide?”
“The day I called you, and we reconciled. I knew then I wanted you as my wife. I bought the ring this morning when I went out on that errand.”
There was a noise to our left. Shane and I turned simultaneously, finding Archie placing our dinner on the table. Our bread, butter, and salads were already there, although I didn’t recall hearing anyone bring them.
“I guess we better get up.” Shane chuckled. “We do have an audience.” He stood and helped me to my feet, escorting me back to the table.
The violinist smiled at us and began playing another song.
“Congratulations. Based on the ring on your finger, I take it the answer was yes.” Archie smiled as he refilled our champagne glasses.
“It was a resounding yes.” I looked lovingly at Shane. I didn’t think I’d ever been happier.
Shane buttered a roll and set it on my plate. “I guess I should warn you the trip to my aunt and uncle’s estate tomorrow is actually to celebrate our engagement. Of course, that was with the hope you’d agree to marry me.”
“When did you have time to tell your family you planned on proposing?”
“This morning. Caitlin went with me to pick out the ring. I’m sure they’re all waiting anxiously to hear whether you said yes or no. I’ll have to give them the news when we go back to our room later.” He picked up his champagne glass and looked at me, his expression full of love and tenderness. “To a long and beautiful life together, a happy household, and plenty of children. I love you, Mrs. Moore.” Shane held his glass toward me for a toast.
“I’m not Mrs. Moore yet.”
“I’m practicing. I like the way it rolls off my tongue.”
“I like the way it sounds too.” I held my glass up. “To a long and happy life together and a house full of children. I love you, Mr. Moore.” I clinked my glass against his and took a sip of the champagne. Gloriously happy, I tilted my head toward the stars, mouthing the words thank you to whoever was responsible for bringing Shane into my life. After years of heartache, I welcomed a future of tranquility and love.
CHAPTER 11
THE FAMILY
The air was crisp and earthy as we walked across the castle grounds. We had gotten up early to explore the surrounding area and make the most of our time before checking out of the hotel. Returning from a hike in the adjacent forest, we neared the clubhouse as we headed back to the castle. I spotted a group of people in the grassy area next to the building taking archery lessons. Intrigued, I wanted to watch.
“Can we stop for a few minutes and view the lesson?” I said, pointing toward the group.
“Sure. I don’t see why not.”
We walked toward the archers and sat in the grass. We were close enough to get a clear view but not so close as to be a distraction. They stood in a single line with colorful targets on wooden stands a short distance away. There were six people, plus the male instructor. It looked like four of them were a family consisting of an older couple and a younger one. Standing at the end of the line closest to us was a man with a boy around eleven or twelve years old. I assumed they were a father and son based on their actions. The boy had missed his target, and the father was trying to help him. The man turned the boy to line him up sideways to the target and adjusted his arms as he held the bow.
